From Paul at Celestial Junk, the fellow has a way with words:

Last Marshmallow Roast

Day in, day out, the story in Afghanistan is the same.  The Taliban are being hunted mercilessly.  American air assets have been flooding the battlespace in the surge, and the enemy is being worn down.  Thousands of US soldiers are spreading out into the countryside and kicking over Talbian ant-hills, and in each case the result is the same … dead and scattered Jihadists.

This is the part that we hear so little about; all we hear about are the ISAF AND USA deaths … or civilian deaths.  It’s like watching a football game where only the other team’s scores are given.  You have no idea if your side is winning.

The fact of the matter is that the Taliban have never faced what they are facing now.  Their leaders are killed almost as fast as they assume their positions (even in Pakistan) … their fighters are killed day and night in a massively one-sided battle … and they are losing.  For the first time the Taliban are willing to negotiate … why … because they are losing not only the battle, but the will.  Their factions are fragmenting and a growing number of fighters are coming home.  There is a limit to how many young men are willing to leave their villages never to return.

The following video shows in great detail how many Taliban meet their end [not with a whimper but a...]…

Plus from Matthew Fisher of Postmedia News:

Optimistic news emerges from Afghanistan
…
The feeling among Canadians and American soldiers fighting in this corner of the country is that the principal reason some Taliban are keen to talk is that the enemy has been getting crushed on the battlefield since a huge surge in U.S. forces finally kicked in this summer. Even a few members of the Western media who have been notoriously dubious about the war may slowly be changing their minds…

The iconic symbol of this war in Canada may be the ramp ceremony, but not one has been conducted by Canadians at the Kandahar Airfield for 11 weeks now. Despite the recent spate of coalition deaths, the number of U.S. casualties is down slightly this fall and the numbers of Canadian and British casualties are down dramatically.

A major factor has been that drones have been whacking IED emplacers while far more IEDs and IED components are being found before they can kill or maim. There have been anecdotal reports that the Taliban have been taking staggering casualties in Kandahar and have been fleeing west and north [see "German combat Update" here] and, if they can run a NATO-enforced gauntlet, to Pakistan.

Another telling hint of a change on the ground is that village elders have been turning out in far greater numbers for shuras — town hall meetings — organized by Afghan and NATO troops. They are doing so, they say, because they fear the Taliban less. In a few cases, they may actually be carrying peace feelers from insurgents.

Nevertheless, the war is hardly over…

Indeed. Yesterday:

Afstan: Talkin’ to the Talibs/Dutch military return?/CF departure Update

Update: Washington Post:

Top U.S. military, civilian officials assert gains in Afghan war

Plus some balance from CP:

Opinions vary wildly on whether Kandahar is safer

Upperdate: Major op in Panjwaii:

Critical Assault by Allies Begins Near Kandahar

Canadians work to corral Taliban as major operation begins

Mark
Ottawa