Sabre rattling in the Middle East

[flogger]

It sounds like things are getting testy again in the Middle East with the deaths of 3 US service members last week in Jordan, and 6 more Kurdish allies yesterday from drone attacks on bases in Syria. Not to mention the attacks on shipping in the Red Sea. Given the possibility of upsetting Putin with any aggressive moves against his useful idiots, and the chance of pissing off some members of Congress (The Squad), followed by bleeding heart protesters in the streets, somethings got to happen.

The airstrikes carried out by US and British forces seem to be effective and well planned but, I'm not sure these people are getting the message.

I feel for the impoverished citizens who suffer in the area, but they have been indoctrinated to blame Israel and the US for all their problems. That is a hatred that deepens with every empty stomach or bombed out home. I'm not sure how you deal with that.

I hope cooler heads prevail because this could turn ugly real fast, but we can't put up with this BS forever.

[Clint45]

It's an extremely complicated situation and the media barely scratches the surface... plenty of soundbites and slogans though.

[BushMasterBoy]

Eventually you will have to go to the source of these troubles. This means war with another country. I still firmly believe nuclear terrorism is their ultimate goal.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_program_of_Iran

[FoxtArt]

I don't think airstrikes are the solution.

Now, if one of Iran's Arabic enemies were to happen to detonate a nuke a km away from the ayatollah...

And the US and Israel could whistle as they walked down the sidewalk, that's a solution.

[BushMasterBoy]

Most of the Guantanomo prisoners are from Yemen. Just saying...

[Clint45]

What if the entire population of Israel just relocated to other countries and the set the timers on their nukes before the last plane leaves? That would effectively quash this whole situation. Plenty of room in upstate New York... NYC is full, but that state is the size of France and mostly rural.

[bellavite1]

Or we could get the hell out of there, mind our own businesses and, here's an idea, secure our own fucking borders...

[Fentonite]

Or we could get the hell out of there, mind our own businesses and, here's an idea, secure our own fucking borders...

Whoa there, Luigi.... Ain't no common sense allowed these days.

[bellavite1]

95859

[Mick-Boy]

It's funny to me how things are framed these days.

Iranian backed (probably) Syrian faction hits US installation...in Syria.

Narrative - Syrian forces saber rattling in the Middle East.

It reminds me of the Hilary Clinton quote about Russia moving troops "up to NATO's doorstep". What she failed to mention is that the troops she was talking about were.... INSIDE RUSSIA.

If you guys want a very depressing but extremely well researched read on the GWOT and why the middle east is such a mess, check out "Enough Already" by Scott Horton. Our foreign policy establishment sucks.

[Martinjmpr]

Ah, yes, the same "airstrike strategy" that worked so well for Clinton pre-9/11.

The problem with that kind of tactic is that the enemy knows we're not in it for the long haul, so all they have to do is hunker in the bunker until the strike is over and then they go right back to doing what they were doing before.

An airstrike to these groups is like a bad hailstorm to a farmer. Yeah, it sucks, it sets you back, but as soon as it's over you go right back to it.

The Houthis and the Iranians KNOW we don't have the stomach for a protracted war. So they know they can keep taking pot shots and occastionally getting lucky.

They are in it for the long haul, and they know we are NOT. That's their strength.

[FoxtArt]

And for every one you kill there's another 5 indoctrinated infants that recently popped out of the womb holding an AK and with no hope of education, so it's a spigot that effectively never stops.

Many in the US value the lives of the people in these places more than the people there value their own lives.

[BushMasterBoy]

The US runs on oil. The region has copious amounts of oil. We are over there to make sure the oil keeps moving. $10 gas overnight and the US economy will grind to a halt. During the beginning of the Pandemic, oil went to minus 14 dollars. You couldn't give it away, there were storage fees to pay.

In a nutshell, we are in the Middle East for the oil.

95868

[flogger]

The US runs on oil. The region has copious amounts of oil. We are over there to make sure the oil keeps moving. $10 gas overnight and the US economy will grind to a halt. During the beginning of the Pandemic, oil went to minus 14 dollars. You couldn't give it away, there were storage fees to pay.

In a nutshell, we are in the Middle East for the oil.

95868

Very good point. It's all about the oil and it has been for a long time.