This story is so bizarre, I’m not quite sure what to do with it.

US planes rain dollars on Afghanistan

>CHAMAN, Pakistan: US aircraft over southern Afghanistan have scattered $100 bills tucked into envelopes bearing a picture of President George W. Bush, witnesses said on Thursday.

Picture of George W. Bush? $100 bills?

Ok, assuming for the moment that the story is true. $200 is about three months’ income; seems to me that 200 one-dollar bills would be a lot more useful. (Can’t imagine there are too many places where you can break a large bill.) If someone can advise me on what strategic purpose this serves, it’s escaping me.

And why a picture of W? We’re not talking about a media-saturated country; unless the armed forces have been on a publicity campaign that we haven’t been told about—always possible—the average Afghani wouldn’t know George W. Bush from Joerg Haider.

On the other hand, if the story is false, why is the Times of India running it? And if the story is off the Reuters news wire, why is the Times the only paper to pick it up?