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Lamashtar's avatar

I think there's a lot more going on under the surface.

On the one hand, ISIS is partly working *with* Assad and Russia. Russia wants refugees to destabilize the ME and Europe, ISIS wants their apocalyptic Caliphate. Assad needs Russia to stay in power.

A lot of state actors in the region are engaged in drug smuggling. There's an oil pipeline money to look forward to as well.

King Abdullah of Jordan has indicated that he believes Russia would trade Assad for Crimea. This reflects the Emirates attempts to facilitate the backchannel to Russia with Trump.

The US has been dropping bombs on ISIS in Syria for years now. Assad has been committing atrocities all this time, of various kinds. At worst, Assad complained that the US was there illegally.

Trump's policy suddenly takes a left turn and he bombs an empty airfield. A lot of noise is made, but serious observers think its all diplomatic bombast. Local Syrians claim that, although chlorine gas attacks ensue, there are fewer bombing runs.

Suddenly, people who have barely noticed the US bombing babies in ISIS held areas and Yemen, get over the top angry at a warning shot at an empty airfield. "It's WAR!"

Also, more support for the Kremlin theory that the attack wasn't Sarin gas at all, we need to wait for an investigation, and oh yes, the pilot who dropped the bomb may have died. Suddenly.

The airfield was mostly emptied prior to the US attack due to hours of warning time, yet afterward Sputnik got pictures of canisters that resembled chem weapons there. This turns into a "Gotcha!" moment as Russian-controlled media explains those are general purpose canisters! Hahaha

And the hospital where the Sarin gas victims were taken is bombed.

This is some evil shit.

Whatever deals Trump may made, he is doing with Syria exactly as smarter people want him to do. There is a theory that, because Trump is so easily manipulated by those around him, that McMasters/Mattis are steering him to do the right thing.

Right thing being: 1) deter Assad from chem weapons, 2) use diplomacy to deter Russian support for him, and 3) a lot of senior military want us to put money into refugee help.

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whitroth's avatar

"War is glorious"? May we see your DD-214, and where you served?

Oh, you didn't, I see... "Someone's gotta go over there, and that someone ISN'T me" - Draft Dodger Rag, Phil Ochs.

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