Think Progress

State Department has only two Pashto speakers in Afghanistan.

Filed Under: Afghanistan

By Ben on Apr 28th, 2008 at 7:44 pm

State Department has only two Pashto speakers in Afghanistan.»

Spencer Ackerman notes that during a State Department-sponsored conference today, department Counselor Eliot A. Cohen reported some unsettling news: The department has only two Pashto speakers currently in Afghanistan. Pashto is an official language in Afghanistan and spoken by roughly 35 percent of the population. Ackerman adds, “C’est la vie. Not like there’s a war on in Afghanistan or anything.”

Comments

12 Responses to “State Department has only two Pashto speakers in Afghanistan.”

j swift Says:

You don’t need translators you wave your M-4 and speak English louder.
April 28th, 2008 at 7:48 pm
Crusty Old Bastard Says:

Just waterboard the ignorant bastards until they speak English, or is it Bushish now?
April 28th, 2008 at 7:50 pm
spencers mom Says:

Guess all the other qualified Pashto speakers were gay and therefore not fit to serve. Wonder how you say “Don’t ask, don’t tell” in Pashto?

PEACE
April 28th, 2008 at 7:54 pm
robertoroberto Says:

In this administration, those with rhetorical abilities are not needed. George W.Bush just gives them a gun and points them in the direction of some brown people.
April 28th, 2008 at 8:05 pm
RUCerious Says:

Man, I’ll bet they’re busy.
Gerbil H. Kreist!
April 28th, 2008 at 8:11 pm
blue state bob Says:

Why won’t those lazy Afghans learn English.

Snark off
April 28th, 2008 at 8:14 pm
Guido the Loving OBGYN Says:

lol
April 28th, 2008 at 8:28 pm
pete Says:

Further proof that there is no task too simple for Bushco to fu(h up.
April 28th, 2008 at 9:09 pm
Max-1 Says:

.

So this is how we don’t engage in isolationism… YES?

.
April 29th, 2008 at 2:01 am
profmarcus Says:

what this conveniently ignores is that the us embassy and usaid compounds, to say nothing of the offices of the usaid-funded projects (one of which i am currently working for) and u.s. military outposts scattered all over the country, are FULL of afghan employees who speak pashto, dari, and farsi and are also quite fluent in english…

do your homework, think progress, and start reporting on the full context of issues… don’t be an example of the context-free reporting you decry…

finally, speaking for myself, i would rather see the work going to the locals who really need it, than to ex-pats who are paid roughly 15-20x more than the locals…

And, yes, I DO take it personally
April 29th, 2008 at 2:13 am
hussein toasterhead Says:

profmarcus Says:

what this conveniently ignores is that the us embassy and usaid compounds, to say nothing of the offices of the usaid-funded projects (one of which i am currently working for) and u.s. military outposts scattered all over the country, are FULL of afghan employees who speak pashto, dari, and farsi and are also quite fluent in english…

April 29th, 2008 at 2:13 am

That’s somewhat beside the point, though. Of course they’re going to have lots of FSNs who speak the local languages. However, most of them are in administrative positions - clerks, assistants, translators, drivers, etc. What they don’t have are senior leadership people - program officers, infrastructure specialists, etc - who speak the local languages and therefore understand the local cultures. It doesn’t matter how many Pashto speakers you have if the people at the top are making decisions that clash with local culture.
April 29th, 2008 at 8:27 am
MapleStreet Says:

Why would you need a translator ?

Every good wingnut knows that English is universally understood if spoken slowly and loudly enough.

Plus by speaking English slowly and loudly you both show your host that you are being considerate to them AND help them to learn English.
April 29th, 2008 at 3:51 pm