What world are we living in? According to ABC News last Thursday, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton supports a $500 million initiative to negotiate with the Taliban. Yes, the same Taliban that attacked the Ministries of Justice, Education and Communication and the Central Bank in Kabul earlier this month. Yes, the same Taliban our troops are ordered to shoot and incinerate for posing some nebulous threat to our way of life. The plan, which some have dubbed the âÄúTaliban Trust Fund,âÄù comes after a conference in London last week. Top U.S. and NATO officials agreed to change tactics in Afghanistan toward reconciliation with Taliban soldiers purportedly not linked to militant or al-Qaida ideology. ThatâÄôs right, we will not only negotiate with Taliban soldiers to put down their guns; weâÄôll pay them for it, too. While the details of the initiative have yet to surface, the Afghan government will broker deals with key Taliban groups and offer money to others in exchange for peace or loyalty. As if the Taliban insurgency was not already having a bumper year, weâÄôve gone out of our way to legitimize them and are poised to reward still others who have not yet turned to violence. If more precious resources must be sent to Afghanistan, they should be used to build infrastructure such as hospitals and schools. Afghanis need a nation to govern before we resort to the monetary deterrence of current Taliban figureheads. Last year was the bloodiest yet in Afghanistan, but you really know a war is ending badly when you have to negotiate with the same people youâÄôd called terrorists at the beginning.