President Obama has just OK'd bombing missions in northern and western Iraq to support Iraqi and Presmerga (Kurdish) troops which are fleeing from the onslaught of the Islamic State forces.
So many lives could have been saved if President Obama and his neoconservative-holdover advisors from the Bush Administration (as well as his former and failed Secretary of State, who never saw a conflict she didn't want to send some other person's sons and daughters to fight in-- Ms Clinton) had been a bit less gleefully eager to support the fanatic rebels in Syria in their attempt to overthrow Mr. Assad. Mr. Assad who still holds sway in all of western Syria, was weakened and undermined by US INTERVENTIONISM, CIA covert activities, US logistic aid, money, and weapons supplied foolishly by the USA and other state actors urged on by Obama on Syria's eastern border. These narrow and short sighted efforts prolonged the war, and weakened the Assad Regime. The result of this foolish attempt at "regime change" by the USA helped create just another disaster zone, next to the previous disaster zones we created in the Middle East. The geographic result of US interference in Syria and foreign aid to Assad's (and it now turns out our) enemies was the formation of a no-mans land in eastern Syria where the forces of the Islamic State, using US-supplied weapons coalesced and grew into a powerful military force. These IS forces were the same rebel elements some Washington Senators ( John McCain among them) were very recently bellowing for President Obama to support more forcefully with more aid and even more powerful weapons.
But after establishing eastern Syria as their base, the IS, with goals of a regional Islamic Caliphate, moved outward to the east and south into a weakened and fragmented Iraq. Recall that that unfortunate nation was left in a parlous state by the aggression, missteps, lies and foolish polices of a previous US administration, led by an unsophisticated and inexperienced President. Iraq's newly (and less than effectively) USA-trained forces were no match for the well-armed, focused and determined, religious fanaticism of the IS. The IS troops plowed through northern Iraq...gathering up territory, towns, resources, money, abandoned US military materiel, as well as disaffected Sunni soldiers and former Bathist army officers.
So in reality the President is now fighting on the side of Mr. Assad, the man who he was attempting to overthrow and, in the process of that misguided attempt, helped to generate the mess we are now experiencing in that part of the world. But it is unlikely that he would be willing to admit to that.
Do you understand how stupid this all is? Only the militarists, military pundits, and the arms manufacturers are happy---they are all making big profits. The long-suffering American taxpayer, who now lives in a nation with a sick economy and crumbling infrastructure is reluctantly footing the bill, our US airmen are putting their lives in danger on these flights, and the Iraqi and Kurdish people are again suffering horribly. For this disaster we can thank all those US interventionists: G W Bush, Cheney, McCain, Clinton and now Obama too , who think we can solve the world's problems using the muzzle end of a smoking gun. Let us not forget that. They did it! Let us remind them of their stupidity on a regular basis.
It seems whatever the neocons and their supporters touch abroad gets screwed up-----and sadly lots of people die.
Please President Obama, stand up to this scourge of mankind and give us all a break.
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