GMAFB. Really? THAT’s Our Strategy?
According to the WaPo, it looks as if the current Occupant, 1600 Penn Ave, Wash DC, has decided on US “strategy” for countering ISIS. We’re going to
- Strike ISIS in Syria (and, presumably, in Iraq as well),
- Apparently with or without the OK of the Syrian government, while
- Arming the allegedly “moderate” Syrian rebels against the current government of Syria, and
- Without putting “boots on the ground” (presumably, that means “more boots on the ground than are already there”).
Oh, and he says he doesn’t need Congressional approval, either.
Yeah, that’s gonna work out just swimmingly. Assad is going to love both the violation of his national sovereignty and the US arming some of his foes. And we are also absolutely, positively certain that neither of those actions will cause any short-term or long-term problems.
I trust the sarcasm in the preceding paragraph was obvious.
Sheesh. If I’ve ever heard a more cockamamie strategy to counter a developing threat to US interests in the ME, I can’t recall what that absurdity might have been. Only Jimmuh the Clueless’ strategy of “encouraging” the Shah of Iran to grant amnesty to ex-patriot dissidents, then leave in favor of “Iranian democracy” (which then promptly allowed that nice fellow called Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini to return to Iran and ascend to power a few months later, and which was predicted by anyone with half a working brain in the event of the Shah’s departure) even comes close.
As Harrison Ford said (in his role as Han Solo): “I’ve “I got a bad feeling about this . . . . “
Category: "Teh Stoopid", Dumbass Bullshit, Terror War
Well, the claim by the family of the last journalist to be killed was that he was sold to ISIS by a “moderate” rebel. So; we’re going to arm those sonsabitches, too? What could possibly go wrong???
+1000, OT. I read that. This is what I expected from pResident Present, and the naive idiots he’s surrounded himself with.
This is going to “end well” for sure…
More bumbling incompetence. Hate to break it to the anointed one, but there is nothing strategic about his “plan.”
Meanwhile on a golf course…
Now what could possibly go wrong with that strategy? I mean we are talkin about the same guy who brought us ObaminationCare and look how well that turned out despite all the Naysayers(Sarc) Okay I gotta go take my meds now and prepare for my daily rectal lobotomy.
I really hope we can survive this POTUS… I expect it will take at least two decades to undo this mess…
If we’re even that lucky. We’re still dealing with the aftermath of Jimmeh Kahtuh letting Iran fall into the mullahs’ hands!
Correct me if I’m wrong, but didn’t ISIS start out as “moderate Syrian rebels”? Or were they “Arab Spring moderate rebels”? Or maybe they were “moderate muslims”? Ah, hell I don’t remember for sure, but I know they started out as “moderate” SOMETHINGS when slowbama first started giving them guns.
Pres Obama: Fetch me my brown pants!
One wonders where he came up with this idea? Did he ask Michelle or one of the kids? Does a president get SS caddy when golfing? If not, maybe he asked his caddy. I am really struggling to come up with someone who the president might interact with who is completely clueless. Hell, the cooks in the kitchen are probably better hooked up that Mr. Obama. Who gives this guy advice?
Her name is Valerie Jarret and when she talks; he listens. When Rahmbo ran afoul of her; he was gone. When Daley crossed her; he was gone. No one goes against her and wins. She is the only “advisor” to the president that has her own SS detail. No other advisors for any President had that.
Knowing the Glorious Leader, he probably makes a Marine follow him around with the clubs. On foot, mind you, while Barry gets chauffeured around in a golf cart.
But no word of arming the only true allies in the area, the Kurds. Incredible.
As a school trained and practicing US Army strategist, the only thing that I can say is “ugh”.
By no boots on the ground, what is really meant is no “conventional” forces boots on the ground. Not the most well thought out of effective strategy so far as I can tell. Also pretty sure that if we do anything on Syrian soil, including “just” the airstrikes, we are going to get Russia involved in the conflict/debate.
This POTUS needs to run GETCLUE.EXE, stat!
This is exactly what I expected from Obama. Nothing. Lots of talk, sending more arms to anyone except Kurds is a mistake, thinking he will “manage them” into peace with limited air strikes is a mistake. The man has NO GUTS for war. The prerequisite for any leader worth a shit is the acceptance that people may not agree with you, may dislike you and people under your command mat well die while engaging the enemy. All the planning and forethought in the world cannot prevent deaths, both of soldiers and civilians. People at home and abroad will disagree with your choices but by gosh you make them. Hard ones for the betterment of YOUR nation and screw opinions of anyone or any nation enjoying the peace you are bringing to them as well. They can pick up a weapon and join the fight or SFTU.
But as I began I will end. Michelle has more balls and courage than the president. Our nation will suffer for this Nero’s fiddling while our enemies grow stronger.
That’s strange, because yesterday, bodaprez said he would contineu to support the Kurds.
Hmmmm…. Short-term memory loss. Not a good sign.
Does either of his hands know what the other one is doing?
Well thank god we elected a leader who was so intellectually superior to our previous president the international community would have to bow down under the brilliance of this man’s intellect and oratorical skill.
Bush/Cheney were bumbling twats without any long range planning, but they sure tried to sell us on their plan as incomplete as it was. At least they were committed to attempting to maintain some forward momentum in spite of their inability to plan for it.
This administration brings incompetence in the pre-planning, execution, and post planning phases of any policy to an amazing height heretofore unseen in the recent decades of US middle easter foreign policy.
A few more years of this and we will have sharia law throughout the middle east and a militant group of immigrants granted amnesty after walking across the US/Mexican border without hindrance.
Hope and change indeed….
I thought that was Leia that said that
Actually, we were both wrong. I inadvertently used the wrong quote for the correct character.
The “I/I’ve have/got a bad/very bad/really bad feeling . . . ” line appears in some variant in all six of the Star Wars films. The version I used initially in error was from the Anakin Skywalker character in one of the later Star Wars films. That is now fixed above.
The Princess Leia character did use a similar phrase in the second film, The Empire Strikes Back: “I have a bad feeling about this.”
http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/I_have_a_bad_feeling_about_this
PVT Hudson said the same thing in ‘Aliens’ during the dropship jump.
I said the same thing when I stumbled off the bus at the reception center at Ft. Knox at 0330, after a 12 hour bus ride.
“Game over, man! GAME OVER!!”
Good stuff, Hondo. That said, I have to point out a MAJOR flaw in what you wrote. You credited Han Solo with a line that is spoken as a running gag by all of the major main characters of the original trilogy. Shame on you.
See my previous comment (reply to Jabatam above). Right character, wrong variant of the quotation on my part. It’s corrected above now.
I shall now encapsulate Obama foreign policy:
“Look Ma, no hands”
You are welcome. I also do balloon animals.
Balloon animals? Goody! I want a wiener dog and an Easter basket.
Talk to a guy named Anthony.
Hell, if you ask nicely he might just send you a picture!
(Just joking – obviously.)
I’ve got a bad feeling about this
“Arming the allegedly “moderate” Syrian rebels against the current government of Syria.”
Didn’t he already try this? IIRC, he ended up arming “moderate” IS with tons of weapons and ammunition. I suppose my definition of moderate isn’t the same as Obama’s. And why in hell is he going after Assad when the real threat is IS?
Who exactly are these “moderates” that the dumbass-in-chief wants to arm? I’ll be the first to admit that I’m no expert on the ME, but I can’t recall a single group in this entire mess who could be classified as “moderate.”
The moderates are the rebels who don’t cut your head off, the moderates just sell you to the guys who will actually cut your head off.
That’s it in a nutshell really….
Know how you turn a “moderate” Muslim into a jihadi extremist?
Give him a gun.
I prefer that we turn them into martyrs, long before they have the capacity to do it themselves.
Know how you turn a “moderate” Muslim into a jihadi extremist?
Make them watch a State Department Video?
Our government has been infiltrated by Islamists and our policy decisions are funded by them. These enemies whispering into our politicians ears and holding key positions in our government need to purged.
Here are some of the known conspirators.
John McCain
Elizabeth O’Bagy
Mohamed Elibiary
Huma Abedin
Brookings Institute
Once you start connecting the dots, every single illogical policy decision regarding Islamists from this administration begin to make sense.
1.Keep up the pressure of airstrikes while we pull the heavy hitters together.
2.Put a Carrier Group in the E. Med and another in the Gulf.
3. Arm and support Israel.
4. Arm and support the Kurds.
5. Turkey- We’re going to need the use of Incirlik for awhile. Oh and while you’re thinking about that; did I mention we’re arming the Kurds?
6. Cut the cash flow from Qatar. They’re international players with many overseas banking interests.
7. After 30 days or so of shock and awe. Take back the real estate with not only boots, but wheels and tracks on the ground.
8. Make it clear we are going to be there until the sh!th0le is cleaned up.
Just MHO
President ATKRON delivered his policy on the Islamic State today in front of the nation. The speech did not take up much time away from the massess trying to watch their favorite evening program. Here is President ATKRON’s speech in its entirety:
‘My Fellow Americans, the first thing I will do tomorrow morning, 9/11/14, is I will formally ask the Congress of the United States of America to declare war against the Islamic State. Make no mistake about it, we are already at war, and I intend to use the full force of this powerful nation to end it. Ladies and Gentlemen, I promise to you right now, that I will pursue these son’s of bitches to the ends of the earth. I will eradicate this menace and restore a more moderate political climate back in the region. We will fight with impunity, and we will show no mercy. My fellow Americans this is a fight we can and must win. We will not sit idly by while Americans and people of our allies are taken hostage and beheaded. We will avenge these deaths. Good night, and tomorrow let’s kick some ass.’
Before we drop one bomb on a single ISIS squadie, we will need to bomb Assads forces into oblivion. We need to take away his air defense capability in totality.His forces must be left with no weapon capable of downing a modern military aircraft. And that includes the opposition fighters as well. We need to do to Assad what we did to Saddam. Even if they have the weapons they should be too frightened to stand up and fire them. When we run out of targets we can bomb the whole country flat. When we run out of bombs we should drop concrete blocks on them to keep their heads down. Once their heads are down we need to shoot them in their asses.
Actually, it sounds like a great strategy — temporize another couple of years until a Republican who will do something gets elected. Then dump it in his lap andwe can blame the war-mongering Republicans for the problem again.