Other than the various mainsprings of external interest in Afghanistan and the trans- Indus regions in general, and the Pashtun cultures in particular, geopolitical developments during the 1980s and then specifically after September 11 understandably came to focus on the Taliban. Along with its reductionist portents, such a discourse reveals some shared themes such as political Islam, Taliban militancy and the security imperatives of the regional and global actors, which collectively converge in imparting or reiterating specific images about Muslim and especially the Pashtun communities. The juxtaposing of Islam with violence and Islamist movements as terrorist outfits cannot be seen in isolation, as they have become brand names and identikit for most Muslims. Irreverent of their ideological, denominational, class and national pluralities, such simplified views, more like those of the erstwhile communists and Jews, have unleashed severe ramifications. Appreciation of Muslim mundane dilemmas like those of any other human society is often absent in them, or it may reflect sheer indifference if not bland hostility. Certainly, there are numerous areas in which Muslim groups and states could perform better, yet their political and economic issues, especially those linked with some external factors need to be analysed objectively within their generic contexts. After all, the evolution of various forms of political Islam such as Hamas, Hezbollah, Islamic jihad, the Muslim Brotherhood, the Moro Liberation Army, the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front, the Hizbul Mujahideen, the Taliban and such other formulations overwhelmingly sought sustenance in political and economic grievances in which disempowerment, a grave sense of injustice, sustained oppression and dislocations had continued.