Very sensible analysis. I doubt you see much of this on regular news channels.

The opium in Afghanistan is the source of all the corruption and is now the source of funding for the Taliban who tax the farmers.

The farmers are too scared to sell it to anyone else apart from the warlords, despite what further meddling America might want to do.

Afghanistan BANNED opium production in 2001 and the production dropped to zero that year. The farmers cried out for international help for irrigation, seeds and fertiliser and the west didn't do a fucking thing.

So they all went back to growing poppies, the warlords and Taliban regained control, and now the whole country is a mess of war and death again.

And as soon as it got close to breaking point, in went the troops.

"You see emergency, go to war"
Jello Biafra.

Just one thing, when you burn the opium make sure you invite me around

You would think though that the Taliban would then begin terrorizing the opium producers into selling exclusively to them, which would still mean having to protect a large proportion of the countryside militarily. Trying to cut off their funding in this way still seems like the most pragmatic option.