Dan Rather

In journalism, anniversaries are tricky things. They are, by their nature, somewhat arbitrary, promoting the idea that five- and 10-year intervals (and so on) after an event possess a kind of special significance. Nevertheless, when the event in question has the scale, repercussions and ongoing relevance of September 11, 2001, these kinds of appraisals are not only inevitable but also wise. Or, at least they can be, if they manage to go beyond the packaged collection of symbols and slogans that, for some, have become shorthand for the attacks of five years ago - the pat narrative that sands away some of the thornier aspects of that day and its aftermath.

Aspects such as the colossal failure of our nation's defences on that morning, which has yet to be fully addressed, or the lingering health issues for those who worked on 'the pile' in New York City.

That terrible date stirs up no shortage of emotions; emotions felt by all who lived through that day either up close or afar; there is no need for the news to play to sentiment because sentiment is already there in abundance, at once intensely personal and nationally shared. What might be needed, however, is an honest assessment of where we are, five years later.

Assessment needed

One of the places we are, and where the need for assessment may be most acute, is Afghanistan. Afghanistan is in danger of becoming our forgotten war, if it has not become so already. For many Americans, it is yesterday's news, a place where victory was achieved and democracy established before it got pushed from the headlines by the struggle in Iraq.

This view is a potentially dangerous one, given that Afghanis-tan is in the midst of its worst and deadliest surge of Taliban violence since the initial, post-9/11 fighting. At the same time, Afghanistan's opium crop has hit record levels - up 59 per cent from last year - and is now responsible for an estimated 92 per cent of the world's heroin supply.

President Hamid Karzai's govern-ment is still in place in Kabul, but its authority still strains to reach beyond the limits of the capital city. In the countryside, the warlords again hold sway. Drug money fuels corruption and the Taliban insurgency alike.

Afghanistan, the subject of so many international promises five years ago, seems at risk of devolving into a narco-state, a place that could slide back into being a haven for terrorists and also provide them with a steady stream of funds.

Terrorism threat

President Karzai seems well aware of these dangers, with the threat posed by terrorism taking centre stage in a summit meeting last week with Pervez Musharraf, president of neighbouring Pakistan. The border region between Pakistan and Afghanistan - in addition to being a suspected hiding place for Osama bin Laden - has been a continual source of frustration for the U.S. and NATO forces fighting the Taliban.

Five years after September 11, 2001, the effects of that day linger along with the grief. The date itself belongs to the past, but it is anything but history. And in Afghanistan, the battle rages still.

Dan Rather is an American television broadcaster.