Busy Skies Over Iraq

Not to take away anything positive that's being done in the fight against IS, I must say the grand coalition has it's weaknesses.  While growing in numbers daily, they all seem to be doing the same thing.  Bombing in Iraq.  Not Syria.

There are of course reasons for this.  Syria hasn't asked for help.  Iraq has. Even though the news reports tell us the border between Iraq and Syria has been obliterated by the IS, for all practical purposes it does still exist and Syria is a sovereign nation.  To bomb in Syria requires a UN mandate which will not be forthcoming because you can be sure Russia will veto any such effort.

Why are we there?  Because of the alleged imminent plot by the Khorasan to sneak non metallic bombs on airplanes.  It's a stretch but it will do.  Of course they threatened France in the same way yet they aren't using it as an excuse to go into Syria.

That leaves us with crowded skies over Iraq, only ourselves over Syria where the IS headquarters are located, and still no boots on the ground.

To say the least, this is another ill thought out exercise which is likely to end in futility.  No one wants to send in boots if we're not willing to do so or won't admit that we actually have.  So here's another war being run, if you can call it that, by vauge goals, obfuscation and no certainty of how to get out of it when things go awry.

The salute isn't the only thing this President gets wrong.

Terror In Middle America

OMG!  I came to my office to write about our pending leniency with Iran when I saw the headline that a woman has been beheaded in Oklahoma! I'm horrified.  My brother lives in Oklahoma!

I wish I could say I'm surprised but in a very twisted way I'm not.  And the irony, remember the Oklahoma City bombing which took the lives of so many and was perpetrated by a former GI?  If terror is beyond our grasp, we had better get a grip!

It doesn't even have to be a Muslim terrorist.  Just some deranged individual who has seen the reaction of the others who have been beheaded and sees an opportunity for attention.

Now is a good time to address the Iran situation because it surely ties together.  Iran has been a large part of our woes in Iraq.  They fund terrorist organizations, we know that.  They hate Israel.  We know that.  Sanctions had slowed their pace so what are we thinking when we consider allowing them to keep half their already enriched uranium?

Hello Washington.  The rest of the world does not need them in the fight against IS or it's counterparts.  At least if the war is conducted as the generals would have it.  But no.  Our Secretary of State is desparate for a victory no matter what it entails.  Literally arming a known enemy isn't much of a victory in my book, but then who am I?

It puzzles me why the rest of the world doesn't share the urgency for action.  Is it because it has yet to hit their country?  They haven't had to comfort grief stricken parents and family?  They haven't had to see it on You Tube?  England has.  France has.  Where are they?

The horror in Oklahoma exemplifies, to me, what we're likely to see more of as long as beheading is the rage among the misfits. Perhaps it will become more of the proper type of rage now that it has happened here.  I don't care what his motives were or that perhaps he hadn't intended it to go quite that far.  But it did.  He was bent on harm. Period.

Please, Mr. Kerry and Mr. Obama.  Don't ease up on the Iranians.  World, where are you?  Stop them if it becomes likely. Life is difficult enough as is without aiding and abeiting the enemy.  We know who they are.  It doesn't matter what they choose to call themselves or what we choose to call them. Just stop them.

Why Time Is Of The Essence

Yes.  There has been another beheading.  This time a French citizen by an al Qaeda splinter group in Algeria.  Why?  Because of France's part in the fight against IS.

These horrors are going to continue for several reasons I think.  One, no matter how many or who, they shock.  Which of course is the purpose. Two, the splinter groups want in on the glory of the actions so they'll play copy cat.

I cannot wonder how long it will be until some crack pot in this country gets the idea and decides to try it. Something like the way the recently well publicized Knockout Game is played. The Knockout Game, to refresh your memory is when a person attempts to knock out a random victim with one punch.  It doesn't matter if the victim is young or old, male or female, etc.  Just handy. The results have often been life threatening or worse for the victim and the perpetrator more often than not gets away. I fear someone or some group trying to make their mark might try the Beheading Game.

All that being gruesomely hashed out, let me move on.  Now that the President has progressed from pacifism to war, is there really still need to not have boots on the ground?  We already do anyway, no matter how it's couched.

I'm thinking the training of the rag tag Free Syrian Army and the inadequately armed Kurdish Pershmega troops would both be better served, along with the cause, by having our military presence in the neighborhood rather than shipping them off to another country.  We are the ones with the know how.  We should be sharing it; not denying it for an ill advised promise that has now been broken.  I won't argue semantics.  We are at war.  We do have boots on the ground. That being the case, they are in harms way.  There is no way they can be both present and beyond harm.

I do believe time is of the essence.  I understand the need for a strategy though I've yet to see one come into focus.  Too much is being held back. I realize that to eliminate the threat is not something that can be accomplished quickly but the IS forces and their friends must be made to understand that with every beheading or crucifixion or whatever other barbaric means they might employ, we will not be deterred.

The more quickly they understand this the better.  It won't happen by micromanaging and cherry picking.

One thing I do hope for the future is that we've learned it can be disastrous to ignore the reality of what's going on in the world.  Especially if the purpose is strictly political. There is no ideology be it personal or of a group that can trump truth.  Nor should it.

This War Needs Cautious Assessment

Okay.  We're not even 24 hours into what we're finally calling a war.  That we've taken the action we have is good.  That Arab countries joined in is even better even though some of them flew but did not bomb. That we hit enough IS targets in the right places to have their leadership on the run rather than being able to dig in is probably best of all.

That being said, there are a few cautionary notes.  One, there is no Plan B that we know of.  And two, there are still no boots on the ground and the time line for those willing gives IS, along with its counterparts, time to regroup before having to face those who can rout them out.

We have also learned that there has been another al Qaeda affiliate, Khorasan, which apparently had plans for an imminent attack on us.  Where did they come from?  We're now told they've been around for some time.  Shouldn't we know about them or have they been brought to mind merely to give cover for our bombing strikes? Giving those strikes legitimacy because of plans and a group we knew nothing about.

It's the convolution that's frustrating. Knowing now that they do exist along with so many others that are like minded, to win the battle against the extremist mind set is going to take more than cheering one night of attacks.  We still don't know who all is in the coalition and what each has promised to do.  It's a political nightmare for all of them.

I think it important to remember part of what's at stake here and why we need to be wholly involved.  While it isn't our fight alone, someone has to lead it. And it's not just a fight against IS.  It's a fight against pure evil and for human decency.  It's in all against not only the worst of the worst like IS, but also the likes of Assad, Putin, Kim Jong-un, the Iranian Mullahs and all like minded dictators.

It's a fight to show them their inhumanity will not be tolerated by the rest of the world.  If only it were so.  If it were there  would be far less reluctance even without the strong leadership we used to provide. As it is each participant has to search their own conscience and proceed as cohesively as possible. Hopefully, one day, our leadership will return but it won't be soon and the world cannot wait.

Expect a few burps along the way while an incomplete strategy shakes out.  Hope the President allows himself to listen to those who know better than he what is necessary for victory. Micromanaging it will doom it.

Remember too, it isn't principled war we Americans are against, it's not being allowed to win those wars.   Don't under estimate our determination when the goal is just and coherent. We can and will win. It's what Americans do.

Republican Senate?

For a time it seemed a sure thing.  The Senate would go Republican.  Now it isn't so sure.  Maybe.  Since no politician nor consultant speaks from only one side of their mouths I'm never quite sure if the woe is more political than truth.  Underdogs do better.

On the other hand, if it is true and the Democrats maintain control the Republicans have no one to blame but themselves.  Mostly because they don't listen to their constituents if they even hear them.  Nothing has changed since the discontent with the administration reached its peak.

There is still no cohesive voice, if any.   Rand Paul is doing his thing.  So is Ted Cruz along with the other mavericks.  The message however seems to be more of the what's wrong mode than the this is how we'll fix it mode.  To paraphrase, silence is not a strategy!

It was a sad day when political careers became more important to the office holders than the good of the country.  Nothing other than holding on to office seems to penetrate their consciousness. They personify the latest trend in Zombie movies.

I wonder if it really matters.  We have two very difficult years to navigate before we get a new administration.  If the Republicans do manage to win there still won't be much they can do because of the President's veto power. Unless they win by such a margin that they can over ride a veto.  Doubtful at best.  If they lose it will be more of the same with Harry Reid refusing to bring important issues to the floor for a vote to protect the Democratic ranks.

If this is the case I'll expect Obama to go full speed ahead with executive orders.  The only tool the Republicans have with which to fight is the purse.  Close it.  Put a lock on it.  But they won't.  The consequences might damage their chances in 2016.

It has been usual for a two term President to be followed by one of the opposite party due to party fatigue if nothing else. When that hasn't held true it's because of really bad candidates put forward by the opposition.  I think Romney would be a good President but he sure ran a terrible campaign.  I'm not at all sure McCain would have made a good President because he's pretty much a one trick pony.  Plus he chose a really poor running mate.  None of which made good sense; it had only to do with politics.

Still, I await November with anxious anticipation. No matter which way the election goes, it will tell me a lot about where the voting public is at a whole.  Apathetic? Naive? Frustrated or angry?  The last would be my preference.  If we want the country to be what it has been in the past, if we want it to be respected around the world and yes, even feared by our enemies, it is up to the voters.  The voters have to put the right people in office. If they don't nothing will change and the country will be ruled by the whim of Washington.

That would be end.  The new normal.  As we oldsters fade away this dysfunction is all that will be remembered. It will be the guiding principle. It will be the fatal blow to a once great nation.