Who could have known, after regime change in Libya had gone so swimmingly?
What a difference a year makes. Around this time last year, the West was gearing up for military action against the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who was accused of carrying out chemical weapons attacks on his own people. That intervention never came to pass, not least because domestic public opinion in countries such as Britain and the United States was opposed to further entanglements in the Middle East.
Now, the U.S. is contemplating extending airstrikes on Islamic State militants operating in Iraq in Syria — fighters belonging to a terrorist organization that is leading the war against Assad. The Islamic State’s territorial gains in Iraq and continued repression and slaughter of religious minorities there and in Syria have rightly triggered global condemnation. “I am no apologist for the Assad regime,” Ryan Crocker, a former U.S. ambassador to Syria, told NPR. “But in terms of our security, [the Islamic State] is by far the greatest threat.”
The irony of the moment is tragic. But to some, it doesn’t come as much of a surprise. Many cautioned against the earlier insistence of the Obama administration (as well as other governments) that Assad must go, fearing what would take hold in the vacuum.
One of those critics happened to be Russian President Vladimir Putin, who warned against U.S. intervention in Syria in a New York Times op-ed last September.
Red Line related: The United States has made the strongest indication to date that Syria may have withheld some of its chemical weapons on 18 August, when it said there are still “serious questions” about its declaration to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).
Well, all things considered, they might want to give some back.
“The United States has made the strongest indication to date that Syria may have withheld some of its chemical weapons on 18 August…”
And all along I thought that they could be trusted.
My trust in these middle eastern countries has been shaken.
Are they playing us? (sarcasm)
Hasn’t any of the Western countries realized that in the last ~30 years,every time they interfere with Mooselimbs killing Mooselimbs,then a worse terrorist group fills the void? There is just no fixing stupid with narssictic,psychopathic,schzoid politicians. We’ve had it too cushy in the West for too long,allowing progs to take over with their Kumbaya,root cause BS.
Tangentially related: Is there a quiet coup taking place in Washington? With the Idiot in Chief off picking grapes in the vineyard, people in his administration are taking a lot of liberties with warnings of Islamist threats. I know that Power like Nature abhors a vacuum and there seems to be a vacuum in the Oval Office which makes me wonder.
Something a friend passed along …
The world is really confusing – who is doing what to whom??
Anyone see anything wrong with this logic? Tell me.
Are you confused by what is going on in the Middle East?
Let me explain.
We support the Iraqi government in the fight against ISIS.
We don’t like ISIS, but ISIS is supported by Saudi Arabia who we do like.
We don’t like Assad in Syria. We support the fight against him, but ISIS is also fighting against him.
We don’t like Iran, but Iran supports the Iraqi government in its fight against ISIS.
So some of our friends support our enemies, some enemies are now our friends, and some of our enemies are fighting against our other enemies, who we want to lose, but we don’t want our enemies who are fighting our enemies to win.
If the people we want to defeat are defeated, they could be replaced by people we like even less.
And all this was started by us invading a country to drive out terrorists who were not actually there until we went in to drive them out.
It’s quite simple, really.
Do you understand now?
Still on topic …
The humanitarian convoy into the Ukraine has now delivered its cargo and the empty trucks, verified by both Ukrainian and Russian border authorities along with Red Cross representatives, are now back in Russia.
Waiting patiently for next fear-stoked conspiracy theory fuelled by the upcoming NATO president election on Sept. 4. I’m guessing I won’t have to wait long.
SYF, I agree with most of your post above. Except for the bit about when it started. This started long before Afghanistan.
Which just goes to show that the Obama regime was far more ridiculous than the Bush regime. Like Bush, Obama’s Arab Spring was about regime change. And it’s hardly surprising that given Obama’s constant vacillation and indecision his regime change results have been even worse that Bush’s. Nor should it be a surprise that he abandoned whatever limited success Bush achieved.
Came across a cool locution this morning.
Saddam was an effective garbage can lid keeping the garbage from spilling out.
Now, that’s real politic.
We conservative fools cheered the ripping off of this lid. Mea maxima culpa.
Sounds like some important people are awaking to the realization that Assad performs a similar hygienic function.
Yeah, as I’ve been posting all along about US foreign policy, this backing for various Muslim forces did not just start with Obama.
Not as far as WWI’s Lawrence of Arabia, but at some point around WWII, where US thirst for oil meant they sidled up and supported the House of Saud.
Bottom-line, the US has been less that successful in its idealistic vision that, with its interference, a Jeffersonian democracy will instantly spring up in what has been a head-chopping tribalism which has been prevalent in that part of the world for some 1300 years.
No Dhimmi also touches on the point. Christianity has been in that area for nearly 2000 years. Saddam Hussein is known to have visited Christian convents during his regime.
Now that the US’s actions have unleashed the evil forces kept on a short leash by what the west considers dictators, their clueless leader’s solution is to sit back and watch the turmoil.
Yes, as far back as WWI. Iraq, Syria, Palestine are all artificial creations of the sawing-up of the Ottoman Empire without the slightest consideration of what would have the stable support of the local population over the long term. And this slicing up of the Empire allowed wahhabism its fullest expression over the course of the rest of the century as sunni fanaticism was alternately used and suppressed by the Euro colonial powers as suited their interest at the time.
There is no essential difference between the suppression effect of the Ottoman Empire on sunni fanaticism and that of Assad. And like idiots we keep making the same mistake again and again.
Regimes of all stripes in the US have gone into the ME with all sorts of idealistic claptrap. American fantasies have worked no better and produced at least as disastrous results as the cynical manipulation by the Euro colonial powers post-WWI.
Where did Syria get all those chemical weapons? It couldn’t have been Iraq since we all know “Bush lied – people died”. Just curious. (Wish the MSM were too.)
well now set you free and cgh, it actually doesn’t matter what or who happened, once the state of Israel happened all bets were off the table. Things may have been different but I doubt they would have been much better.
Unfortunately, Justtinkling, we can’t cut ourselves loose from the Middle East. A terrorist can board a flight in Beirut in the
evening and be in NYC the following morning, or Toronto in the afternoon. Have you noticed comments from ISIS about
Chicago? The Islamists burn with lust to harm – Americans in the first instance no doubt, but us as well.
Hi again, Justtinkling, I have found an American Airlines flight which might be even more popular with a terrorist.
He can board it in the morning in Doha, Qatar, and be in Calgary a little after 11 pm. Actually it is three different
AA flights; our terrorist must change planes at JFK and Dallas.
The drug trade opens paths for illicit transit, and the oil patch for legal movement of people.
Gee isn’t it wonderful how small the world has become!
Hmm. Anti-Semitic sentiment was pretty prevalent throughout Europe in the pre-WWII period and Mr. Hilter conveniently took the rap for his Final Solution.
So, instead of sending them to the gas chambers, the powers that be of the day created a Jewish homeland.
Two problems solved. The Jews who, incidentally, were prevalent beyond their numbers formenting the Russian Revolution were given a chance to survive.
All they had to do was set up a homeland in a 1300-year old hornets’ nest.
NME, Israel was simply a convenient focal point. Even had it never been created, the ME would still be a complete shambles of grinding dictatorship vs. sunni fundamentalism. The whole point of Al Qaeda was not that we were propping up Israel; the whole point of 9/11 was that we were propping up dictatorships which the fundamentalists loathe.
Further to your point, cgh, the xenophobic and imperialistic culture that pervades the middle east isn’t only found in the middle east. The difference is the huge influx of wealth and support of first world nations by “allowing” foreigners to develop and sell oil. Portions of the middle east had been centres of trade for millennia. Other portions made themselves as isolated as the heart of Africa or portions of Malaysia or Indonesia.
What is valuable in the current chaos, is the real undistorted self portraits posted online.
Without the discreet and constant suppression of these evil morons, that the USA has been providing(UNTIL OBAMA),we need speculate no more as to the benefit of Pax America.
Notice all the lovely activities that are resurgent in the Middle East.
Slavery,Rape, looting, murder, multination, extortion, hostage selling, piracy, only now they have oil wells, banks and US military weapons.
But remember girls, according to the Democrats,Liberals and Progressive Media, it is the conservative citizens of North America who are at war with women.
… only for those dictatorships to be replaced with other dictatorships.
If the US had principled and strong leadership, it would drone ISIS and let the rest tear themselves apart.
cgh and syf, yes, this ME mess did begin with the inept 1919 peace talks carve up of the Ottoman Empire in the ME. I believe the Muslim Brotherhood organization formation in the late 1920s was the first direct consequence. The creation of Israel added some fuel to the simmering fire and is a convenient excuse. Even if Israel ceased to exist tomorrow the Muslim war against the west would continue without much of a pause as this war has fired up and waned for many times over the last 14 centuries.
Obama. The Sultan of Swing.
Somebody should take that old song and do a video of dickhead teeing off and riding in his golf cart while his country (and the world)falls apart.
Exactly!