CIA gives blue pills to aging chieftains in exchange for information

I guess this isn't a crime, but I'm pretty sure it has some victims: those "four younger women" who are the recipients of the chieftain's reinvigorated attentions. Think of these "younger" (how young?) wives as you read this. It takes all the fun out of this story.

The Afghan chieftain looked older than his 60-odd years, and his bearded face bore the creases of a man burdened with duties as tribal patriarch and husband to four younger women. His visitor, a CIA officer, saw an opportunity, and reached into his bag for a small gift.

Four blue pills. Viagra.

"Take one of these. You'll love it," the officer said. Compliments of Uncle Sam.

The enticement worked. The officer, who described the encounter, returned four days later to an enthusiastic reception. The grinning chief offered up a bonanza of information about Taliban movements and supply routes -- followed by a request for more pills.

* * * * *

"You didn't hand it out to younger guys, but it could be a silver bullet to make connections to the older ones," said one retired operative familiar with the drug's use in Afghanistan. Afghan tribal leaders often had four wives -- the maximum number allowed by the Koran -- and aging village patriarchs were easily sold on the utility of a pill that could "put them back in an authoritative position," the official said.

I wonder how old these wives are, and how it was they came to be married to the aging chieftain. Probably not by way of a western-style whirlwind romance or a friendship slowly blossoming into love and mutual respect. Much more likely a forced marriage between a young or very young woman and a man decades older. My heart goes out to these poor women as this man reasserts his "authority" over them.