The Soviets had invaded Afghanistan during the Carter Administration; eight

years later they were still there, still maintaining that they did not invade, they only, as

Mr. Buckley phrases it, "answer[ed] fraternally the call of a friendly government for help

against reactionary fascist forces." But there were signs that they might be thinking of

pulling out, and the UN General Assembly--in a move led by, among others, Mr.

Birch--had voted to condemn the occupation. About one-third of this show is devoted to

viewing a British documentary on the war in Afghanistan. Mr. Birch gives historical

perspective ("I think that the Russians have come to realize after all these years and the

bravery of the Afghan resistance--they have learnt a lesson that we in fact learnt in the

last century, which is that you can't have a military victory in Afghanistan"); Mr. Cherne:

"I think the Soviet Union knows that it has lost this war. You know that I'm not given to

optimism. I wish I were. I would be very depressed if I thought we would be sitting here

a year from now facing this situation." (In the event, while the Soviets started pulling out

the following summer, George Bush had been inaugurated before they finished--and at

that the story wasn't over; cf. Firing Line #S831.)