The Syrian Invasion

[Clinton Huxley]

Obama and Cameron have had a 40 minute phone call, USN destroyers (referred to as "battleships" by the Daily Mail) are converging on the eastern Med, apparently there is increased activity at the RAF base on Cyprus, and a RN sub has been spotted off Gibraltar and maybe is heading East. Tony Blair has backed a western intervention, from some billionaires yacht off a Greek island.

So what next? Fuck all? Chastening cruise missile attack on the Syrian regime? Special Forces operation to seize Syrian chemical weapons before the rebels can pass them on to Al Qaeda or a full scale invasion and expertly handled aftermath and transition to parliamentary democracy?

[Audley Strange]

They'll invade Syria with heavy air superiority and probably accidently bomb Turkey.

[cronus]

The Russians are right. This is gonna end bad. But its gotta be done. The great beast of the industrial military complex is hungry and must feed on a world leaders blood to be sated. Assad is unlucky in coming within feeding range of its talons and assorted cruise missiles. After that shares in military companies will flourish.

[Rum]

Not sure they will do either. Every adventure like this has turned to worms - even the 'light touch' at Libya.

[Audley Strange]

It's Islam's long dark night of the Soul. Ours started a century ago and lasted through most of it. The problem is there are no guarantees they'll come through it healthy. The whole arena is insane and while it does actually pain me to say so, given that real people are actually dying because of this and anything the West does or does not do is going to come back and bite us on the arse anyway, I say we let them sort it out and keep an eye on Israel to make sure those stupid fuckers aren't keeping the fires going.

[Ian]

I can't say whether or not retaliation for chemical weapons use is the right move, but I sure don't give a shit about being accommodating towards Russia's interests right now.

[cronus]

Israel is the key to all this. If things go according to plan and the Samson Option is taken at some point amidst the chaos to come then the middle east will be much less of a problem. The Germans, especially Berliners, won't like it but it might work if we can keep going through the small nuclear winter. And this would resolve the global over-population issue as well.

[Svartalf]

French news assert that not a single French or US soldier will set foot on Syrian soil and it will all be done by bomb and missille.

[Clinton Huxley]

Parliament has been recalled for Thursday, presumably to rubber stamp Blighty flinging a couple of cruise missiles, to complement the 2 day US bombardment that is according to the Washington Post, being planned right now.

[pErvinalia]

The great beast of the industrial military complex is hungry and must feed on a world leaders blood to be sated.

Love it! I need a new addition to my signature. May I (I already have)?

[ronmcd]

"Precision" strikes. "No boots on the ground". Yes indeedy, this will all end swimmingly.

Except for the people who are killed during the strikes, the people killed by the increased chaos that will follow, and finally the people killed for decades to come by those who have been "radicalised" by more western intervention.

[pErvinalia]

What could go wrong?

[Mysturji]

It became too late for the West to do anything militarily at all in Syria the moment Al-Qaeda aligned itself with one of the Opposition factions.
It's a cluster-fuck. Stay out.

[Clinton Huxley]

The Al Qaeda connection will be worrying western intelligence. Don't want them getting hold of Assad's sarin gas and attacking Hemel Hempstead with it...

[Coito ergo sum]

The Russians are right. This is gonna end bad. But its gotta be done. The great beast of the industrial military complex is hungry and must feed on a world leaders blood to be sated. Assad is unlucky in coming within feeding range of its talons and assorted cruise missiles. After that shares in military companies will flourish.

Why? Wasn't there something said a few years back of there being no justification for war unless there was an attack or an "imminent threat" of attack?

Without an imminent threat even on the horizon, we are left with:

A rogue totalitarian leader;
Accused but not proven of having "WMD"
Western leaders "nearly certain" that he has and has used WMD "against his own people."
Civilians being killed and persecuted by the rogue totalitarian leader....

....seems I've heard that list somewhere before....

"I opposed American involvement in Libya because I did not believe vital U.S. interests were threatened and I oppose any involvement in Syria for the same reason. If President Obama wants to commit military forces in the Syrian civil war he must make the case to the American people, win their broad support and secure a vote approving any involvement from the United States Congress. Absent an imminent threat to American interests I believe unilateral action without the approval of Congress would not be consistent with the requirements of our Constitution and I will oppose any such action.”

US Congresswoman Candace Miller http://macomb.patch.com/groups/politics ... reat-to-us