There are lots of opinions out there about climate change and most of the news recently has been overshadowed by the ISIS thing and God forbid the NFL story (somethings are just more important than others)…….
Whether you are a believer or a denier….this is good news.
The speech has been made…..and a number of people like me see it as a nice little speech with very little substance…….
This is a take down of the speech line by line….an interesting read…….
War has come and now is the time for Americans to realize just what they are getting themselves into before it is too late….if it is not already.
Inkwell Institute
Middle East Desk
The president has drawn that line in the sand that so many Righties had wanted for so long…..this time it is against ISIS/ISIL/IS…..he has said everything the polls told him he needed to say to get the American public on his side and cheerfully go to war for all the right reasons.
one of his talking points to keep the American people supportive was that he was putting together a coalition…that would take on ISIS and negate the necessity for the use of American troops (I refuse to use the popular de-humamizing term, “boots on the ground”)……the prez has sent Sec of State on a tour of our allies to garner all the support we need to make this invasion a success.
First up is Saudi Arabia…….and they are behind us 100%……as a matter of fact they will be a “full partner”………
Islamic state versus Islamic State: Saudi Arabia has agreed to help step up the fight against ISIS and will host a training camp for moderate Syrian rebels fighting the extremists as well as the Syrian regime, reports the New York Times. A senior Obama administration official says details are still being worked out, but the country has agreed to be a “full partner in this effort,” which is part of a broad anti-ISIS strategy involving a US-led coalition that the president outlined last night. John Kerry is due to arrive in Saudi Arabia this morning for strategy talks that will also involve Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, Turkey, and Lebanon.
But while Saudi Arabia fears the influence of ISIS, the kingdom’s critics note that leading Saudi Arabian clerics preach the same intolerance against Shias and other religious minorities that ISIS practices, Reuters reports. Saudi Arabia is also governed by Islamic law—and has beheaded at least 20 people in the last month alone. The Western-backed Syrian National Coalition, meanwhile, says it is “ready and willing” to join the international coalition against ISIS, the AP reports, but the leading opposition group also says the battle to remove the Assad regime must continue.
What does that mean anyway? My guess is they will throw money at it and stay behind the scenes and keep their hands clean……..they cannot be counted on when the nut cutting begins.
What about any of the other Middle east countries?
Turkey would be a good choice for they have an experienced and a well trained and funded army….they could do the heavy lifting when the time comes for a ground action…..well that just got shot in the ass……….
Turkey will refuse to allow a US-led coalition to attack jihadists in neighbouring Iraq and Syria from its air bases, nor will it take part in combat operations against militants, a government official told AFP Thursday.
” Turkey will not be involved in any armed operation but will entirely concentrate on humanitarian operations,” the official said on condition of anonymity.
The only other possibility is Egypt…..they have a large well equipped and trained military and the present government is NO friend to Islamists……..this makes them about the best chance we have of not using US troops…..but are they willing to get involved considering the amount of Muslim Brotherhood members within their borders? I think they will take awhile to consider their options.
OOPS! There goes the neighborhood. Who do you think will have to do the heavy lifting when the time comes for that ground action that is inevitable?
In case there is still any doubt………
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry raised the possibility Wednesday that U.S. troops might be committed to ground operations in Iraq in extreme circumstances, the first hedging by an administration official on President Barack Obama’s pledge that there will be no U.S. boots on the ground to battle the Islamic State.
Kerry made the comment during a news conference after a day of meeting with Iraqi officials……….
The propaganda has brought us to this point in time……….happiness is a cold gun!
Sugar coating the info for war is been a tried and true technique for American presidents in the past……but the real reasons are usually more simple than what we are told……
Ever ask….what are the motives for this war?
But we were out of Iraq (mostly)….what the Hell happened to pull us back and why?
First, today is Patriot Day a remembrance of the 9/11 attacks…take a minute out of your day to remember those who lost their lives on that day.
Today on IST is going to be a day where I will post and press numerous articles about the decision for the US to return to a war footing…..the neocons should be jerking off in the corner….at last the country is listening to their constant war drumming…..there will be lots in the media today…lots of whys and whens and what ifs…..just tune in here and avoid all the research…….
Before the Prez could give his speech the morons in Congress were out posturing….doing what they do best…NOTHING but talk!
First, the narrative for the last couple weeks has worked…….the MSM and the war hawks have been seasoning the American public to accept a return to war…….
Some six in 10 Americans say they would support a strike against ISIS, as President Obama appears to be moving toward such a hit. The figure comes from an NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll that also finds Americans feeling unsafe: Some 47% of the country now feels the US is less secure than it was before the 9/11 attacks. Just a year after those attacks, NBC notes, only 20% shared that feeling; last year, it was 28%. One news item fueling the fear: US journalists’ beheadings, which 94% of Americans are aware of. That’s the highest level of awareness of any story in the past five years, according to the poll.
A day before the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, Obama is preparing for a tough speech. Tonight in prime time, he’ll discuss the US plan against the group, an initiative that will start small and expand; eventual airstrikes in Syria are possible, Politico reports, while the AP notes that major troop action on the ground is unlikely. Meanwhile, a generation has come of age as the post-9/11 conflict has continued, the AP notes. In an earlier vision of the future, Iraq was supposed to be fending for itself by this point, with US troops largely leaving Afghanistan combat behind; instead, we’re preparing for further action in the region. “The Cold War took 45 years,” says a former George W. Bush adviser. “It’s harder to see how this ends.”
Now as promised….the Prez went on TV in prime time to explain what the US is about to do……I promised an analysis……
President Obama tonight laid out the US strategy to “degrade” and “destroy” ISIS in a prime-time address, and he made clear that he’s ready to expand US airstrikes from Iraq into Syria. The president says a US-led coalition will go after militants from the Islamic State “wherever they exist,” adding that he “won’t hesitate” to order strikes in Syria if necessary. Here are excerpts, in which he refers to the group by the alternate name of ISIL, via CNN and the Washington Post:
Based on recent polls, the president won’t have a hard sell in convincing Americans that military action against ISIS is necessary.
Are you happy? Now that it is official there are a few points I would like to throw in…….1) “ultimately destroy”….you cannot do that from the air. Ground troops will be necessary. 2) “No safe haven”–stating the obvious–every bad guy knows that already, drones have hit it home. 3) “with strength and resolve”–now that is conveniently vague…what does it mean? 4) Here’s a thought do not use Somalia or Yemen, both are bloody messes with NO end in sight. Guess what? The ISIS thing is end in sight. 5) “no combat mission”–you do realize that if they carry weapons the mission is combat related, right? 6) He also mentioned “America’s core interests”–what are those exactly?
What I did not hear was….1) who will be that force on the ground? 2) what to do about the countries that are financing ISIS? 3) Just how we will convince the by standers in the Middle East to get involved? Those questions would go a long way to pointing the way forward in Iraq.and shine a light on how we will get ourselves out as soon as possible. But wait! There is more. 4) Why now? There has been a humanitarian crisis going on for at least a couple of years so…..why now? 5) Tell the American people why ISIS is a pressing threat to the homeland? 6) How to make the Iraqi army more dependable–right now it is as worthless as tits on a boar.
Congrats America….you have a new war to cheer then bitch about……The Prez has done exactly what I thought he would do…..sugar coated the information to make returning to Iraq more palatable to the American people…..he threw in every talking point that had been reported in the media….GOD! I love propaganda!
All in all a nice little speech….seeking support for something that will be done without it……made me feel warm and fuzzy.
Note: Watch the media!
I smell another Middle East folly in the making. Or is it the whiff of oil I smell?
McCain offered his analysis and he is still an old worthless wind bag who will do whatever it takes to get more American soldiers killed….typical posturing from an old jet jockey……..(sorry off topic)
Happy Patriot Day!
Now I return you to the only story you truly care about…….the NFL story! Or is it a Tyler Perry sit-com?