Afghanistan: On The Rise

If this photo of a mass funeral convoy passing through the town of Wootten Basset doesn’t end up marking a turning point in English popular opposition to the Afghan war (the Brits lost these 8 soldiers in a 24-hour period last week), it has certainly ratcheted up the tension over the Afghan”investment.” The angle of the Getty photo not only captures the entire procession, it also suggests how the death toll is on an upward path with no end in sight.

And then, with American casualties also increasing as the result of the U.S. escalation, I can’t tell if this kind of imagery — amidst the noise of ultimately uneventful happenings like the the Sotomayor hearings or the G-8 summit — has a better or a worse chance of capturing domestic attention.

(image: Carl de Souza/Getty Images. Wiltshire, England. July 14, 2009)