Popular discourse on Afghanistan is steeped in mysticism, with the land ascribed by many almost supernatural immunity to foreign invasion. The idea that Afghanistan is and has always been the “Graveyard of Empires” can result in us both ignoring the successful conquests of the region by foreign powers and failing to analyze the errors of those who were unsuccessful. While most Americans think of the war in Afghanistan as something that began in 2001, in reality the country has been in a state of armed conflict since 1979. In this episode of “No One is Competent” we’ll be looking at the Soviet-Afghan War, the USSR’s folly that set the stage for decades of violence in Afghanistan.