The Week

■ Mark Green edged out Fernando Ferrer in the New York mayoral primary—Democratic, of course—but Ferrer demanded a recount, owing to certain ballot irregularities. Okay, let’s have a recount: and at the end, can Rudy Giuliani win?

■ The U.S. initially hesitated to bomb the Taliban’s front lines north of Kabul, because the Bush administration hadn’t fully thought through its campaign before launching it. The administration hoped to loose the military unencumbered by messy political considerations. But no war can be waged without a coherent political strategy, which in this case would have required a clear idea of what might constitute a post-Taliban government. So the administration stalled in destroying the Taliban, while it tried to cobble together some political vessel that would please Pakistan and all of Afghanistan’s perpetually warring ethnicities (the majority Pashtuns dominate the Taliban, the minority Uzbeks and Tajiks the Northern Alliance). But there’s another, more important consideration: Every day the Taliban remains in power, America’s prestige and momentum—in other words, its power—diminishes in the region. The U.S. should topple the Taliban and throw Kabul to the Northern Alliance, for simple lack of an alternative. At least then, justice would be served the Taliban, and the political pieces could be picked up later. Bombs away.

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■ Mark Green edged out Fernando Ferrer in the New York mayoral primary—Democratic, of course—but Ferrer demanded a recount, owing to certain ballot irregularities. Okay, let’s have a recount: and at the end, can Rudy Giuliani win?

■ The U.S. initially hesitated to bomb the Taliban’s front lines north of Kabul, because the Bush administration hadn’t fully thought through its campaign before launching it. The administration hoped to loose the military unencumbered by messy political considerations. But no war can be waged without a coherent political strategy, which in this case would have required a clear idea of what might constitute a post-Taliban government. So the administration stalled in destroying the Taliban, while it tried to cobble together some political vessel that would please Pakistan and all of Afghanistan’s perpetually warring ethnicities (the majority Pashtuns dominate the Taliban, the minority Uzbeks and Tajiks the Northern Alliance). But there’s another, more important consideration: Every day the Taliban remains in power, America’s prestige and momentum—in other words, its power—diminishes in the region. The U.S. should topple the Taliban and throw Kabul to the Northern Alliance, for simple lack of an alternative. At least then, justice would be served the Taliban, and the political pieces could be picked up later. Bombs away.