I know Twain wrote a lot about war, but I think one particular passage can be applied to our present predicament with pin-point accuracy. The "statesmen" are the "scholars" of the Taliban regime, "studying" the predicament: "... the statesmen will invent cheap lies, putting the blame upon the nation that is attacked, and every man will be glad of those conscience-soothing falsities, and will diligently study them, and refuse to examine any refutations of them; and thus he will by and by convince himself that the war IS just, and will thank God for the better sleep he enjoys after this process of grotesque self-deception. " This , in my view, precisely describes what is presently transpiring. Our adversaries are just incubating, but only time will tell. It certainly seems as though Twain's observations of history are once again bound to be repeated. Sorrowfully, Bob