With death defying courage Afghans have gone out to vote inspite of Taliban mad dogs threatening to cut of fingers marked with indelible ink. Such courage is heroic as well as touching in its naivety. They are voting for Hamed Karzai who has been a resounding failure as president. He has formed alliances with warlords sharing power with the very people who have killed thousands during the civil war. Corruption is uncontrolled and rampant. Most of the aid money is probably usurped by the powerful leaving the poor to scratch the dirt for a living. The Afghan security forces have improved very little and are still useless as a defence shield. The Taliban have made a comeback. Opium cultivation is the highest ever recorded and providing the Taliban with money to buy arms. Ordinary people continue to die and lose limbs in a wretched cycle of violence. Once the hoopla is over and Obama and Clinton have pontificated over the 'historic significance' of the election the Afghans will go back to their wretched lives. Democracy has come to mean a mark on a paper every few years to legitimise the continuing exploitation of the people by scoundrels and narcissistic megalomaniacs. As an Indian I can sympathise.