Short of possibly destroying the chemical weapons stockpiles from the air we should not be involved in Syria. If Assad falls we will find that, like Egypt, what replaces him will be much worse. ---- (Reuters) - As the Syrian civil war got under way, a former electrician who calls himself Sheikh Omar built up a brigade of rebel fighters. In two years of struggle against President Bashar al-Assad, they came to number 2,000 men, he said, here in the northern city of Aleppo. Then, virtually overnight, they collapsed. Omar's group, Ghurabaa al-Sham, wasn't defeated by the government. It was dismantled by a rival band of revolutionaries - hardline Islamists. The Islamists moved against them at the beginning of May. After three days of sporadic clashes Omar's more moderate fighters, accused by the Islamists of looting, caved in and dispersed, according to local residents. Omar said the end came swiftly. The Islamists confiscated the brigade's weapons, ammunition and cars, Omar said. "They considered this war loot. Maybe they think we are competitors," he said. "We have no idea about their goals. What we have built in two years disappeared in a single day." The group was effectively marginalized in the struggle to overthrow Syria's President Bashar al-Assad. Around 100 fighters are all that remain of his force, Omar said. It's a pattern repeated elsewhere in the country. During a 10-day journey through rebel-held territory in Syria, Reuters journalists found that radical Islamist units are sidelining more moderate groups that do not share the Islamists' goal of establishing a supreme religious leadership in the country. The moderates, often underfunded, fragmented and chaotic, appear no match for Islamist units, which include fighters from organizations designated "terrorist" by the United States. The Islamist ascendancy has amplified the sectarian nature of the war between Sunni Muslim rebels and the Shi'ite supporters of Assad. It also presents a barrier to the original democratic aims of the revolt and calls into question whether the United States, which announced practical support for the rebels last week, can ensure supplies of weapons go only to groups friendly to the West. World powers fear weapons could reach hardline Islamist groups that wish to create an Islamic mini-state within a crescent of rebel-held territory from the Mediterranean in the west to the desert border with Iraq. That prospect is also alarming for many in Syria, from minority Christians, Alawites and Shi'ites to tolerant Sunni Muslims, who are concerned that this alliance would try to impose Taliban-style rule. More: http://www.reuters.com/article/2013...islamists-specialreport-idUSBRE95I0BC20130619
When will America ever learn? Let's defend OUR borders and let those who want to kill each other do so... without our help or intervention.
Out of 93,000 killed in the war in Syria, 100 to 150 were allegedly by chemical weapons. Is that a 'weapon of mass destruction? And i might add that a lot of people aren't so sure that there were chemical weapons. What proof do we have? Why isn't the media hell bent to prove that there weren't any? When Assad is killing the enemy by the tens of thousands, why would he risk it to kill 100 rebels with chemicals? iow, the whole story stinks. The media, now that their guy is in, has no interest in finding out whether the story is true... we have obama's word for it. The same guy that told us Benghazzi was because of a film. The same guy that met with the irs guy over 150 times after he screamed that the tea party needed to be investigated by the irs and now says he had nothing to do with it. The story is all most likely a sham just like every single other thing this fake, phony, fraudulent usurper says.
exactly, who here really gives a flying fuck what Syrians do to each other. i sure as shit do not as it has nothing to do with the security of the USA. On the other hand we have MILLIONS of people living here illegally and a wide open southern border. how stupid is it to worry about defending another nation when we can't/won't defend our own fucking borders? Nothing our govt does makes any sense whatsoever.. especially when you contrast their actions with their Constitutional obligations and limitations. Seriously, next election has to be a clean sweep, nearly every present politician needs to go. And yes that includes dumbass reps like rubio etc that support amnesty, GTFO!
I don't think Obama makes foreign policy decisions. His puppet masters are in control. The MIC and banking cartels see $$ in Syria. They are going in. Not to mention how conveniently this happened. Right in the middle of all the scandals of the administration that nobody is talking about anymore. The NSA story seems to have been completely dropped from MSM. Sad times we live in.
So freakin' spot on. Is it just a coincidence that Obama's foreign policy moves always seem to benefit the most anti-american radical islamists? Look at Egypt. He put in a regime so odious even the Egyptians despise them, but too bad. Obama is deaf to their protests now. When an American ally, Mubarak, was in power, all it took was a few demonstrators and Obama was pulling the rug out from under him. How aobut Turkey? How is that any different from the protests under Mubarak? One difference would be that a hardline islamist is in power. Has Obama EVER challenged one of them? Look at Libya. Same story. Ghaddafi was not exactly George Washington, but he had the islamists under control, had given up his nuclear program and was cooperating with us on terrorism. Obama tossed him out and opened the way for Benghazi and a flood of heavy weapons to go to other islamist groups thoughout africa. Syria is even more mystifying. It's a choice between a known bad and an unkown future that will likely be even worse. How do you risk American troops' lives to influence that choice? Or waste billions more in military spending? If well-meaning people are undecided, all they need to do is look at who is supporting intervention, Johnny McCain and Lindsey Graham, the Senate's version of dumb and dumber. Fading them is always a safe play.
LOL McCain never heard of a conflict that he didn't think America should be involved in. I guess he is still trying to get back at those Gooks who broke his arms.