We have reached a point of Deep State shamelessness that should worry everyone

CNN is desperately trying to get the world to believe that Russia is arming the Taliban in Afghanistan.

Their air-tight case? Taliban fighters have been spotted with AK-47s and a few Dragunov sniper rifles!

A new TIME cover?

These are only the most popular weapons in the world for their intended purpose.

We have reached a point of Deep State shamelessness that should worry everyone—Left, Right or libertarian.

CNN's hard-hitting report was a rather transparent attempt to whip up support for a new round of troop deployments to Afghanistan. Sending more troops to Afghanistan will accomplish nothing aside from maiming more children and enriching those who are already profiting handsomely from the War on Terror. Even though the US military is losing badly in the Middle East, Raytheon and other death merchants will remain fat and happy so long as Congress keeps the money flowing.

Of course, prolonging the conflict in Afghanistan could also blunt China’s ambitions for a continent-spanning new silk road network to Europe, known as the One Belt, One Road (OBOR) initiative.

In this sense, Moscow really is causing trouble for Washington in Afghanistan. For the past nine months Moscow has been leading discussions between the major regional powers, including upgrading Pakistan to full negotiating partner, to figure out a plan to stabilize Afghanistan.

And the best path to achieving that goal is to get the Kabul government to sit down to talks with the Taliban and form a united front against ISIS. By elevating Pakistan, Russia smartly allows them to broker deal between neighbors with more common history and relevance to each other.

The health of the OBOR project depends on this issue as does the future of the region. U.S. neoconservatives and Deep State planners continue to believe in the Wolfowitz/Brzezinski Doctrine of central Asian chaos to prevent cohesion.

U.S. primacy at the cost of millions of lives is not honest commerce.

The Taliban is the key to ending the U.S.’s disastrous legacy in Afghanistan. Unfortunately, no other viable option exists. With Iraq wanting a defense agreement with Russia, Turkey buying Russian missile defense systems and Syria ending in defeat, the U.S. is on the verge of a complete rout.

My sincere hope is that John McCain lives long enough to see it happen.