“taking the $15 figure, how does this work in terms of financial logistics, exactly? Assuming that officers get paid a little more than enlisted men, at this level the wage bill for a 10-men Taliban unit would be about $5000 a month. Without getting into the questions of financing, how do the Taliban handle payroll? I can’t believe that there are paymasters hiking around ToraBora with suitcases full of currency, and I can’t find any reports suggesting that slain Taliban fighters are usually found to be carrying large sums of cash, so I don’t think they are paid cash in hand. On the other hand, it seems a bit far-fetched to assume that they’re getting paid by the Afghan equivalent of BACS transfer either.”