What more could one ask of Afghanistan?

I certainly hope our Impresario-

in-Chief will feel himself in a 

position to promise us all a res-

toration to greatness in the Af-

ghan textile trade, for our next

few hundred billion. Vestments

and lap throws will mark a high-

er return on investment than we

have achieved so far, in this

longest of all foreign wars,

and might be just the thing to

seize the luxury goods imagina-

tion of his councillor-daughter.

I am positively wearing out a

sumptuous but delicate scarf, a

traveling friend brought me from

that redoubt of cashmere grazing. 

I only hope, by now, that this

long-standing skeptic of every

catastrophe he didn't precipit-

ate, himself, will not tamper 

with the war's salubrious prop-

agation of poppies, to say noth-

ing of teas, and other herbs. Or

should we make less light of our

wars, just now, and leave that

confidently to his ministrations? 

Alexander Calder

Tapestry in jute

1975