No enemy is 10 feet tall, and the Taliban is not exception to this; but this is a foe who has earned my respect.

Is it easy to get yourself in a bad situation tactically when your opponent has "unblinking eye" ISR, complete dominance of the air, and highly trained and well equipped ground forces? Certainly. Is it easy to conduct an enduring campaign against those same sophisticated forces for years and drive them to dance to your tune and not the other way around? No way, yet that is what is happening. These guys are largely uneducated, but they are also largely every bit, if not more, intelligent than we are. Never forget that fact.

Sure its funny when an IED emplacement team blows itself up. But go make a batch of HME in your garage and devise a firing system from the crap in your kitchen junk drawer, and then sneak out onto a busy street and emplace it without getting caught without using any lights to assist, and see who blows themselves up or gets caught first.

Knowing one's enemy and not over-estimating him is critical to success. Underestimating or mocking the same is the path to defeat.