Mike - I'm not trying to be a smartarse, but if you sit at home and read every bad story and statistic about the outside world, of course you'll think it's dangerous. Newsreporters make a living out of finding stories of war and strife.. nobody's going to sell a story about how nice the mountains look in Kyrgyzstan, or how relaxing and peaceful Andkhoi is in Afghanistan.
Advising people here to stay clear of the 'stans is as irresponsible as telling people that Afghanistan is safe and that they should go. Perhaps you just meant Pakistan and Afghanistan... in which case the comment would be more understandable, but still not very helpful.
As for having contacts in Afghanistan, if they're foreigners, military or civilian, they are there for one reason - the war - and naturally they are obsessed about security. Of course, the statistics don't look good for Afghanistan, it's not safe, but it's a personal decision. Presenting people with some facts or advice to let them make their own decision is far more helpful than just telling them not to go.
No offence meant, all the same
Daniel, in Abkhazia
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