Syria?

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Wouldn't firing cruise missiles into a war zone only make matters worse?

Where would these cruise missiles be targeted? they'd probably only hit military compounds staffed by conscripted 17/18 year old soldiers and civilians.

I think it's more stupid to launch an attack than it is to do nothing.

I also think the days of the US and it's allies (UK, France etc) being the world police force are coming to an end.

Any thoughts?
 
Me too.

Even when I was in high school I didn't really believe in the domino theory. Power plays out in sometimes good sometimes bad ways.

What sort of 'punishment' could be laid down on Assad for the gas attacks?

I'm really happy that Obama is going to Congress. Too often in the past Presidents have gone around the war powers act and decided that they knew what was best. That;s always smelled dictatorly to me...and I don't like that smell.

England did it right.
 
Syria is Russia's doorway to the Mediterranean. Whoever is in power in Syria will probably always have their support. Any outside attack could easily be construed as an act of war against Russia, as they claim that they need to 'keep peace' in the Mediterranean and beyond. Continued support of Assad is Russia's way of flipping the Western world the bird under the auspice of 'peacekeeping.' Until Assad's acts constitute genocide or 'ethnic cleansing,' it is a no win situation for the US or any other nation to step in IMO.

-Tom
 
My thoughts are that this is exactly what the muslim brotherhood and the taliban want and is their plan. They know that anywhere they stir up stuff, we will come running in. Their plan is to wear us down both physically and financially to the point we collapse. I don't think washington understands that yet. I hope congress has the nads to say no.
 
Its a CF. No matter what decision is made it will be scrutinized and found lacking in some manner and that is what will be played up in the media. Fire missiles and something other than the intended target will be hit or be collateral damage. Sit back and watch and be seen as soft.

Maybe they should go in a disarm both sides and force them to sit down and negotiate. But then it would be seen as meddling in their internal politics.
 
Gassing people needs to be addressed in some manner. Can't sleep thinking people are being gassed.
 
There's this dude, whom it seems has been given a pass historically.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T._E._Lawrence

From 1299-1922 the Ottoman Empire ruled this part of the world by, for the most part, not getting involved in ethnic disputes. After WW1 the Europeans, based on deals that TE Lawrence had made with certain war lords, carved it up in such a way that few profited and most suffered/suffer. IMO, what we have seen in the Middle East for the past 90-95 years is a war that never ended and America and Europe never left.
 
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Gassing people needs to be addressed in some manner. Can't sleep thinking people are being gassed.

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That may be true but it's worth considering that America can't lecture the world on the morality of weapons.

Agent Orange (legacy of terrible birth defects in Vietnamese children) and Napalm (speaks for itself) use in Vietnam, White Phosphorus and depleted uranium use in Iraq and Afghanistan (children in Fallujah born with birth defects). Fuel air (thermobaric) bombs that suck the air out of the atmosphere so fast it pulls the lungs right out through the mouths of people in the vicinity of the bombs, this is an especially sick form of death.

So as far as I'm concerned, America is as guilty as Assad.

America still has a huge stockpile of chemical weapons, what does that tell you?
 
When I did some reading about gas attacks I found that the CIA helped Iraq/Saddam with gas attacks on Kurdish villages.

"...it's worth considering that America can't lecture the world on the morality of weapons."

You're right. But there is a difference between having the ability to do something and choosing not to. More than once in my life I've felt like throwing bricks through windows but I haven't...figuratively speaking of course. Self control and discretion.
 
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When I did some reading about gas attacks I found that the CIA helped Iraq/Saddam with gas attacks on Kurdish villages.



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The more you look into the murky world of American foreign policy in the middle east the darker the waters become, let's face it, we could all sit here and argue about morals and ethics of chemical warfare but we really don't have a clue what's going behind the scenes.

Take Donald Rumsfeld's meeting with Saddam Hussein in 1983, it's like something from a Robert Ludlum or Tom Clancy novel, he tells the reporter why he was there but we'll never know the real reasons -

watch Rumsfeld's reaction to being shown the tape of his meeting

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_3WofUf8m_k


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America still has a huge stockpile of chemical weapons, what does that tell you?

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Are you asserting that the UK does not? I know you are in Scotland and UK allegiance is in question at this point but technically you are in the UK. The UK has plenty of nukes and all other types of weapons capable of causing "mass destruction". I'm not going to throw my weight behind any of these proposed actions or abstentions in Syria. I just think we need to involve a whole lot more history in the debate. Simply talking about where we are now won't get us anywhere without understanding how we got here.
 
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America still has a huge stockpile of chemical weapons, what does that tell you?

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Are you asserting that the UK does not? I know you are in Scotland and UK allegiance is in question at this point but technically you are in the UK. The UK has plenty of nukes and all other types of weapons capable of causing "mass destruction".

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yes, I know but I was specifically highlighting American hypocrisy as you are about to bomb Syria. Why is that the US is allowed to kill innocent civilians in foreign countries (Iraq, Vietnam, Cambodia for example) and call it collateral damage?

Those cruise missiles about to be launched on Syria will kill young conscripted soldiers who were forced to join the Syrian army as well as civilian staff who man the various military installations in Syria. Why is it ok for Barack Obama to kill these people and get away with it? It's acts like this that fuel the flames of hate towards America and see terrorism like 9/11 visited upon American soil.

Why does the US seek to influence the rest of the world when as a country in itself it is impervious to outside influence?

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The gassing of people needs to be addressed in one fashion or another.

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Why does the US seek to influence the rest of the world when as a country in itself it is impervious to outside influence?

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Seriously to answer that question Grover, in two parts, the first as far as seeking influence, I would say, because we like ourselves and wish to share something which we think is working to bring life to a more comfortable level. Or at least give an opportunity to. To all that is. And second, "impervious to outside influence", is complicated for me to answer because I don't think it's really true. But also, yes because we are a large and powerful country and quite frankly the rest of you look really puny to us. It's not like were just ignoring you. Sorry I don't speak policy but I'm not much of a politician.

Listen, policy makers are not wizards stuff gets caught in politicking and nobody likes the results people get hurt and killed and countries are left in shambles sometimes. Your country did it the Romans did and the list goes on. This mess could get ugly or the world may not exist as we knew it when it's said and done but gassing people is against the worlds view of fair and needs to addressed. You do it or we do it is of no object. You are me to me, a human being. Don't let gassing go unanswered.

Love and peace, Bob Douglass
 
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