(Thankfully jen psaki didn't finish again by telling us what shoes she's buying next). There was very little in the way of specific response or even concern about Sotloff. The focus is completely Iraq and will not change. Is this only because their sole mission is humanitarian wrt Iraqis? And, would it make sense to see it in a more global fashion and therefore direct action towards Isis in Syria? Is there anything that nc actually be done in Syria ?
it will continue, it will be more gruesome, and it will hit closer to home.
Looks like the JV team is ignoring the call to join the 21st century and adopted 9th century tactics.
Maybe, just maybe they weren't the ones that are JV after all.
probably one of our safest bets. Based upon my experience in Iraq, they are a known entity and we could do much worse. I know that's not a glowing endorsement, but it's the best we've got. Every day we delay substantive action against ISIS is just another day they grow stronger and more formidible. The time to act is NOW!
I agree with you and others (Greg's been championing this idea since the beginning) that the Kurds are our best bet to be used as proxy to get after ISIS, especially since the Iraqi government has been ineffective. However, I am not sure that ISIS is actually growing stronger (or even more formidable) by the day. I think they are becoming more embolden by the delay of the international community to get involved, but they'll remain pretty much what they are now. Once (if is more like it, I guess) the US or any other nation gets more actively involved, ISIS won't last long in their current state but will end up resorting to insurgent tactics we've seen in Iraq in the mid-2000's.
to people who view the separation of Religion and Government as a direct contradiction to Islamists who believe that Islam is the Law and government is there to enforce Islam
There are a half-dozen factions and they're all awful. There are no "good guys" in Syria. Bashar al-Assad is a tyrant. It appears likely that Assad has concentrated his efforts against rebels other than ISIS, tacitly aiding the group's growth, because he's betting that ISIS is so awful that some kind of international effort against them will take care of his problem for him.
ISIS is, well, you know. Al-Nusra may not be as unrelentingly barbaric as ISIS, but they are absolutely a terrorist organization. Hezbollah needs no introduction. It's hard to know what to make of the Free Syrian Army. The Iranian Quds Force is a pretty sinister outfit.
but I think in the very near future it's gonna get unbearably hot for the Sunni tribal leaders in NW Iraq and they're gonna show ISIS the door back to Syria.
What ISIS has accomplished in IRAQ would not have been possible without mainstream Sunni complicity.
Have we reached the point when Turkey and Iran is more distressed by the IS than they are by Kurdish independence? I think that's likely the case in Turkey, given how they have negotiated an end to hostilities with the PKK in the past couple of years and have begun to accept Kurds into the Turkish political process.
I said this exact thing a month or so ago and was shouted down that neither Turkey nor Iran would allow for an independent Kurdistan. Of course the facts I presented about the political situation in Turkey with the Kurds over the last few years were ignored, as most facts are when disagreements arise.
But I still expect the Kurds to be the proxy and to win major concessions towards independence. Both turkey and Iran (and Saudi, etc) would trade Kurdistan for IS every day of the week, twice on Fridays.
What's a shame is that this isn't your dad's Peshmerga and they have already shown diminished capabilities against IS from what one historically expected from their fighters.
This has been allowed to fester and linger. Inaction has been decidedly worse than no action. What that action should be, don't know, but there are few credible players involved that could make a dent.
RE: It's time to equip and train the Kurds to do some damage
I know those kinds of moves are typically followed by some after effects that are undesirable, but these fucknuts are savages and really have to go, pronto.
That's already in process. They've been getting night-fighting equipment and such.
I'm sure Ronnie can speak more definitively than I can regarding
the internal politics of Anbar province, but there's a balancing act here. Going back to the 2006-07 "surge" era, the Sunni tribes there rebelled against the treatment they received at the hands of the Shia-dominated government in Baghdad. This allowed the proto-ISIS, Zarqawi's Al Qaeda in Iraq, to flourish there. The brutality of AQI, however, pushed the tribes into an alliance of convenience with the Iraqi government and the US military to defeat their AQI oppressors.
Now, the cycle is repeating itself - again, Maliki has alienated the Sunnis of Anbar, and again a Sunni-led insurgent group has taken control of the region. At some point, it is likely that they will rebel against the heavy-handed treatment they receive at the hands of ISIS.....but this time, who will they be willing to ally with? I truly don't believe we will ever send a large ground force back to Iraq, so who will it be?
Sadly, I've read that as well lately - the peshmerga isn't the force it was a decade ago. The battle-hardened veterans that made them so effective have either died off or gotten old, and they've struggled to replace them. However, I do hope that, given generous US/regional support, that they can be rebuilt stronger than ever.
In my interested layman's view, that's the best of a range of options ranging from imperfect to downright unappealing.
At a minimum, the peshmerga has a history of military competence
they suffer from some of the same issues endemic to the region in terms of cronyism, so it isn't surprising they have been pushed on their heels. They have the capability to bounce back over time.
are being exagerrated - I read an article that claimed they were trying to create an air force. Getting hold of some planes doesn't make an air force...
These Kurds were brought up in a modern era in cities
And suburbs. Erbil is a modern metropolis. Education and employment is high. So is culture. These aren't the mountain lions of the past, battle hardened and ready for anyone.
Again, this is my own amateur analysis - ISIS is hardly the USMC. Like I said once before, watch the Vice documentary. They spray and pray with their weapons the same way soldiers of many other tinpot armies are prone to doing. They're effective enough fighters by the standards of the region, but their big advantage over their adversaries is one of morale and commitment. Men fight for ISIS out of fanatic zeal, while the Syrian and Iraqi armies are made up largely of conscripts who really don't want any part of this war. The peshmerga has traditionally been a highly motivated force, as they are fighting to protect their own people who lack a nation/"official" military of their own. Even if they are diminished today, that should still give them a fighting chance against ISIS if they are sufficiently supplied.
RE: I'm sure Ronnie can speak more definitively than I can regarding
the internal politics of Anbar province, but there's a balancing act here. Going back to the 2006-07 "surge" era, the Sunni tribes there rebelled against the treatment they received at the hands of the Shia-dominated government in Baghdad. This allowed the proto-ISIS, Zarqawi's Al Qaeda in Iraq, to flourish there. The brutality of AQI, however, pushed the tribes into an alliance of convenience with the Iraqi government and the US military to defeat their AQI oppressors.
Now, the cycle is repeating itself - again, Maliki has alienated the Sunnis of Anbar, and again a Sunni-led insurgent group has taken control of the region. At some point, it is likely that they will rebel against the heavy-handed treatment they receive at the hands of ISIS.....but this time, who will they be willing to ally with? I truly don't believe we will ever send a large ground force back to Iraq, so who will it be?
The Military, if our guys cut off the heads of those mother fuckers the media cry's foul and the soft general population cry's out we can't have that. Get the Media out of the War business and let the Warriors do their Job.
They apparently have several commanders who were highly ranking officers in the Saddam-era army, who are fighting with ISIS mainly to settle old scores rather than out of Muslim piety. Not that the pre-2003 Iraqi Army was particularly effective, but it does give ISIS a more experienced and trained command cadre than most insurgent groups.
RE: RE: I'm sure Ronnie can speak more definitively than I can regarding
the internal politics of Anbar province, but there's a balancing act here. Going back to the 2006-07 "surge" era, the Sunni tribes there rebelled against the treatment they received at the hands of the Shia-dominated government in Baghdad. This allowed the proto-ISIS, Zarqawi's Al Qaeda in Iraq, to flourish there. The brutality of AQI, however, pushed the tribes into an alliance of convenience with the Iraqi government and the US military to defeat their AQI oppressors.
Now, the cycle is repeating itself - again, Maliki has alienated the Sunnis of Anbar, and again a Sunni-led insurgent group has taken control of the region. At some point, it is likely that they will rebel against the heavy-handed treatment they receive at the hands of ISIS.....but this time, who will they be willing to ally with? I truly don't believe we will ever send a large ground force back to Iraq, so who will it be?
Well states, sir.
That and we bribed the fuck out of them. When the money spigot turned off (Maliki using his office as a Shia patronage machine) their loyalty ebbed.
The Military, if our guys cut off the heads of those mother fuckers the media cry's foul and the soft general population cry's out we can't have that. Get the Media out of the War business and let the Warriors do their Job.
Please stop with the silliness. Do you really believe that the US military would engage in an orgy of bloodletting if not for "reporters"?
thinks it is a good idea to leave the US or the UK and go to some sandy shit hole and fight against us?
There's little to no upside, and you are almost certain to get killed at some point.
What could possibly be the allure?
Remember awhile back when we had all these Somali immigrants and they settled in Minnesota and some other places. Well that's where these recruits come from. There were three that came from the same high school in Minnesota.
I think that the current state of the Peshmurga can and will be much improved with professional advisors within its ranks, who can provide air support along with medevac support. Also, as stated earlier, supply of heavier firepower will greatly improve their capabilities.
It may not be an instantaneous improvement, but what you do have with the Kurds is a sense of martial pride that was lacking in the wider Iraqi military. And this will pay far greater return in far shorter period of time than we've seen during our transition period in Iraq when we trained the Iraqi Army.
The seven months I spent advising and operating with the Iraqi Army in Ramadi showed us that even the Iraqi Army is capable of conducting successful military operations if they have professional military advisors assisting them. There were times when we took charge of our Iraqi units (platoon and company levels) when their Iraqi leaders were failing during engagements; however, when the Iraqis knew that they had air support and medevac support available, they were more than willing to put their asses on the line next to their advisors.
What I'm trying to get at is that I am not worried about the Peshmerga not being able to stand against ISIS with our support both on the ground in the form of advisors and from the air. As stated earlier, no matter how much we want to make ISIS out to be this juggernaut of a force, they are amateur group of fighters brutalizing civilians and ill-equiped and poorly-led forces. Once they face a force that is a bit more together, you will see what ISIS is really made up of.
RE: RE: RE: I'm sure Ronnie can speak more definitively than I can regarding
And a formal institution like the Peshmerga will be more likely to absorb and benefit from the coordination with a well trained group of advisors and some heavy arms.
Merely stating, as currently constructed, a once formidable fighting force that could stand on it's own two feet has turned over enough that a new generation, not trained in the crucible of fire, now makes up a sizable chunk of their armed forces.
RE: Undoubtedly some professionalism injected would help
Merely stating, as currently constructed, a once formidable fighting force that could stand on it's own two feet has turned over enough that a new generation, not trained in the crucible of fire, now makes up a sizable chunk of their armed forces.
True that they are not the Peshmerga of the past, but even with a sizable chunk of their force not having been bathed in crucible of fire, they are, as a whole, the best and most dedicated fighting force that the ISIS has faced (until ISIS tries to encroach closer to Baghdad).
The thing that people continue to do is to confuse brutality with military effectiveness. Yes, ISIS has won engagements (mainly against ill-led and ill-equipped forces), but when push came to shove, ISIS were pushed back rather effectively. What most people have focused on is their ability to run through towns defended by nothing more than the locals. While I advocate never underestimating the capabilities of one's enemies, I also don't like to make boogiemen out of bullies. And these bullies have shown that when punched, they crawl back into their holes.
I think this is what was running through Bush the older's mind when he decided not to run up the highway to Bagdad in Operation Desert Storm.
I've always had a lot of respect for that man. He knew what was waiting for the region if he removed Sadam from power. Now we are seeing the outcome he must have envisioned.
I agree...Bush Sr was one of our more underrated Presidents.
The Military, if our guys cut off the heads of those mother fuckers the media cry's foul and the soft general population cry's out we can't have that. Get the Media out of the War business and let the Warriors do their Job.
Please stop with the silliness. Do you really believe that the US military would engage in an orgy of bloodletting if not for "reporters"?
kthxbai
Hopefully, remember the Women are now allowed on the front lines.
Merely stating, as currently constructed, a once formidable fighting force that could stand on it's own two feet has turned over enough that a new generation, not trained in the crucible of fire, now makes up a sizable chunk of their armed forces.
True that they are not the Peshmerga of the past, but even with a sizable chunk of their force not having been bathed in crucible of fire, they are, as a whole, the best and most dedicated fighting force that the ISIS has faced (until ISIS tries to encroach closer to Baghdad).
The thing that people continue to do is to confuse brutality with military effectiveness. Yes, ISIS has won engagements (mainly against ill-led and ill-equipped forces), but when push came to shove, ISIS were pushed back rather effectively. What most people have focused on is their ability to run through towns defended by nothing more than the locals. While I advocate never underestimating the capabilities of one's enemies, I also don't like to make boogiemen out of bullies. And these bullies have shown that when punched, they crawl back into their holes.
I don't disagree that Isis's fighting capabilities are not as organized as they may become. Let's remember that these guys aren't just farmers. They're educated, they're organized, they have been running municipal governments. Their brutality makes up for the lack of a formal fighting force. But they're not the FSA, for example.
They are masters of propaganda and the mind fuck. That's their advantage. Time honored tactic to sweep up the small towns to foment fear and disunity amongst their enemy in the bigger cities down the road. Put a few heads on some sticks and you've got everyone's attention. It's like they just got done watching a Game of Thrones marathon.
Now here is the rub. Isis controls enough territory and treasure and has the infrastructure to support a small state at this point in time. How long will it take to institutionalize a formal military made up of ex-Baathists, cowered Sunni Arabs, and Jihad John from Britain...how long do they control swathes of territory until they can stand and take a punch?
I disagree on a few counts. I don't think they're as monolithic as we are led to believe. Not unlike the Taliban, where they can work through Sunni sheiks they seem to be doing that. So when someone does something spectacularly brutal or makes a good tactical decision I'm not sure it sends a cognizable message about the entity as a whole.
I still don't know that the appearance of this wannabe Caliphate is going to be enough to convince Turkey to disgorge itself of any territory, at least not until ISIS/ISIL has proven it can stand and fight against a disciplined, motivated, well-armed state army such as the Turks or, if it comes down to it, Iran.
Steven was one of my campers when I was a camp counselor back in college (97-00). When I first saw his name in the news after Foley's execution, I knew it was just a matter of time. So sad.
Steven was one of my campers when I was a camp counselor back in college (97-00). When I first saw his name in the news after Foley's execution, I knew it was just a matter of time. So sad.
Does anyone understand why Foley and Sotloff would make pro-ISIS statements in the videos, since they seem to know their fate is sealed regardless of what they say? When I first read Foley's statement, I thought, "Why did he say that?"
Also, why is the actual execution not shown in either video? I certainly don't want to see either one. But if ISIS wants to boast about how savage their tactics are, why are they going through the trouble of editing it out?
(And by the way, these aren't rhetorical questions based on conspiracy theories. They just strike me as odd in the overall context.)
the body will die. There are former Saddam officers looking for a return to glory since being marginalized by Malacki. They are battle hardened, disciplined and apocalyptic . I hope our intelligence is as up to the job of identifying( like the playing cards with Saddam's inner circle) and destroying the command and control players
Does anyone understand why Foley and Sotloff would make pro-ISIS statements in the videos, since they seem to know their fate is sealed regardless of what they say? When I first read Foley's statement, I thought, "Why did he say that?"
We don't need boots on the ground until we've blown the shit out if the entire area. We have the fire power to do so.
I don't have any kids in the military so some may say that's this is easy for me to say... But that is what our military is for. The more they wait the more danger we are in. This scum needs to be wiped off the map!
Looks like the JV team is ignoring the call to join the 21st century and adopted 9th century tactics.
Maybe, just maybe they weren't the ones that are JV after all.
I agree with you and others (Greg's been championing this idea since the beginning) that the Kurds are our best bet to be used as proxy to get after ISIS, especially since the Iraqi government has been ineffective. However, I am not sure that ISIS is actually growing stronger (or even more formidable) by the day. I think they are becoming more embolden by the delay of the international community to get involved, but they'll remain pretty much what they are now. Once (if is more like it, I guess) the US or any other nation gets more actively involved, ISIS won't last long in their current state but will end up resorting to insurgent tactics we've seen in Iraq in the mid-2000's.
Haha...I see what you did there. Yeah, great comparison...brilliant, actually.
ISIS is, well, you know. Al-Nusra may not be as unrelentingly barbaric as ISIS, but they are absolutely a terrorist organization. Hezbollah needs no introduction. It's hard to know what to make of the Free Syrian Army. The Iranian Quds Force is a pretty sinister outfit.
What ISIS has accomplished in IRAQ would not have been possible without mainstream Sunni complicity.
Well, then, the problem's solved! Kudos!
I said this exact thing a month or so ago and was shouted down that neither Turkey nor Iran would allow for an independent Kurdistan. Of course the facts I presented about the political situation in Turkey with the Kurds over the last few years were ignored, as most facts are when disagreements arise.
But I still expect the Kurds to be the proxy and to win major concessions towards independence. Both turkey and Iran (and Saudi, etc) would trade Kurdistan for IS every day of the week, twice on Fridays.
What's a shame is that this isn't your dad's Peshmerga and they have already shown diminished capabilities against IS from what one historically expected from their fighters.
This has been allowed to fester and linger. Inaction has been decidedly worse than no action. What that action should be, don't know, but there are few credible players involved that could make a dent.
That's already in process. They've been getting night-fighting equipment and such.
Now, the cycle is repeating itself - again, Maliki has alienated the Sunnis of Anbar, and again a Sunni-led insurgent group has taken control of the region. At some point, it is likely that they will rebel against the heavy-handed treatment they receive at the hands of ISIS.....but this time, who will they be willing to ally with? I truly don't believe we will ever send a large ground force back to Iraq, so who will it be?
Instructors and some modern anti-tank weaponry in the hands of the Kurds, with continued air support and ISIS will look a whole lot less imposing.
In my interested layman's view, that's the best of a range of options ranging from imperfect to downright unappealing.
Now, the cycle is repeating itself - again, Maliki has alienated the Sunnis of Anbar, and again a Sunni-led insurgent group has taken control of the region. At some point, it is likely that they will rebel against the heavy-handed treatment they receive at the hands of ISIS.....but this time, who will they be willing to ally with? I truly don't believe we will ever send a large ground force back to Iraq, so who will it be?
Well states, sir.
Quote:
the internal politics of Anbar province, but there's a balancing act here. Going back to the 2006-07 "surge" era, the Sunni tribes there rebelled against the treatment they received at the hands of the Shia-dominated government in Baghdad. This allowed the proto-ISIS, Zarqawi's Al Qaeda in Iraq, to flourish there. The brutality of AQI, however, pushed the tribes into an alliance of convenience with the Iraqi government and the US military to defeat their AQI oppressors.
Now, the cycle is repeating itself - again, Maliki has alienated the Sunnis of Anbar, and again a Sunni-led insurgent group has taken control of the region. At some point, it is likely that they will rebel against the heavy-handed treatment they receive at the hands of ISIS.....but this time, who will they be willing to ally with? I truly don't believe we will ever send a large ground force back to Iraq, so who will it be?
Well states, sir.
That and we bribed the fuck out of them. When the money spigot turned off (Maliki using his office as a Shia patronage machine) their loyalty ebbed.
Please stop with the silliness. Do you really believe that the US military would engage in an orgy of bloodletting if not for "reporters"?
kthxbai
There's little to no upside, and you are almost certain to get killed at some point.
What could possibly be the allure?
Remember awhile back when we had all these Somali immigrants and they settled in Minnesota and some other places. Well that's where these recruits come from. There were three that came from the same high school in Minnesota.
It may not be an instantaneous improvement, but what you do have with the Kurds is a sense of martial pride that was lacking in the wider Iraqi military. And this will pay far greater return in far shorter period of time than we've seen during our transition period in Iraq when we trained the Iraqi Army.
The seven months I spent advising and operating with the Iraqi Army in Ramadi showed us that even the Iraqi Army is capable of conducting successful military operations if they have professional military advisors assisting them. There were times when we took charge of our Iraqi units (platoon and company levels) when their Iraqi leaders were failing during engagements; however, when the Iraqis knew that they had air support and medevac support available, they were more than willing to put their asses on the line next to their advisors.
What I'm trying to get at is that I am not worried about the Peshmerga not being able to stand against ISIS with our support both on the ground in the form of advisors and from the air. As stated earlier, no matter how much we want to make ISIS out to be this juggernaut of a force, they are amateur group of fighters brutalizing civilians and ill-equiped and poorly-led forces. Once they face a force that is a bit more together, you will see what ISIS is really made up of.
Meh, when in Rome.
Merely stating, as currently constructed, a once formidable fighting force that could stand on it's own two feet has turned over enough that a new generation, not trained in the crucible of fire, now makes up a sizable chunk of their armed forces.
True that they are not the Peshmerga of the past, but even with a sizable chunk of their force not having been bathed in crucible of fire, they are, as a whole, the best and most dedicated fighting force that the ISIS has faced (until ISIS tries to encroach closer to Baghdad).
The thing that people continue to do is to confuse brutality with military effectiveness. Yes, ISIS has won engagements (mainly against ill-led and ill-equipped forces), but when push came to shove, ISIS were pushed back rather effectively. What most people have focused on is their ability to run through towns defended by nothing more than the locals. While I advocate never underestimating the capabilities of one's enemies, I also don't like to make boogiemen out of bullies. And these bullies have shown that when punched, they crawl back into their holes.
Quote:
we are hearing alot more of this now a days...
I think this is what was running through Bush the older's mind when he decided not to run up the highway to Bagdad in Operation Desert Storm.
I've always had a lot of respect for that man. He knew what was waiting for the region if he removed Sadam from power. Now we are seeing the outcome he must have envisioned.
I agree...Bush Sr was one of our more underrated Presidents.
Quote:
The Military, if our guys cut off the heads of those mother fuckers the media cry's foul and the soft general population cry's out we can't have that. Get the Media out of the War business and let the Warriors do their Job.
Please stop with the silliness. Do you really believe that the US military would engage in an orgy of bloodletting if not for "reporters"?
kthxbai
Hopefully, remember the Women are now allowed on the front lines.
?
The Totenkopfs were just following orders
But what about what the Hutu's did for machete sales?
Losing strategy, guys.
Quote:
That and we bribed the fuck out of them. When the money spigot turned off (Maliki using his office as a Shia patronage machine) their loyalty ebbed.
Meh, when in Rome.
No judgment. Just saying when you evaluate for loyalty and zeal start by asking who is signing their paychecks.
Quote:
Merely stating, as currently constructed, a once formidable fighting force that could stand on it's own two feet has turned over enough that a new generation, not trained in the crucible of fire, now makes up a sizable chunk of their armed forces.
True that they are not the Peshmerga of the past, but even with a sizable chunk of their force not having been bathed in crucible of fire, they are, as a whole, the best and most dedicated fighting force that the ISIS has faced (until ISIS tries to encroach closer to Baghdad).
The thing that people continue to do is to confuse brutality with military effectiveness. Yes, ISIS has won engagements (mainly against ill-led and ill-equipped forces), but when push came to shove, ISIS were pushed back rather effectively. What most people have focused on is their ability to run through towns defended by nothing more than the locals. While I advocate never underestimating the capabilities of one's enemies, I also don't like to make boogiemen out of bullies. And these bullies have shown that when punched, they crawl back into their holes.
I don't disagree that Isis's fighting capabilities are not as organized as they may become. Let's remember that these guys aren't just farmers. They're educated, they're organized, they have been running municipal governments. Their brutality makes up for the lack of a formal fighting force. But they're not the FSA, for example.
They are masters of propaganda and the mind fuck. That's their advantage. Time honored tactic to sweep up the small towns to foment fear and disunity amongst their enemy in the bigger cities down the road. Put a few heads on some sticks and you've got everyone's attention. It's like they just got done watching a Game of Thrones marathon.
Now here is the rub. Isis controls enough territory and treasure and has the infrastructure to support a small state at this point in time. How long will it take to institutionalize a formal military made up of ex-Baathists, cowered Sunni Arabs, and Jihad John from Britain...how long do they control swathes of territory until they can stand and take a punch?
Stronger by the second...
I still don't know that the appearance of this wannabe Caliphate is going to be enough to convince Turkey to disgorge itself of any territory, at least not until ISIS/ISIL has proven it can stand and fight against a disciplined, motivated, well-armed state army such as the Turks or, if it comes down to it, Iran.
Wow
In comment 11837695 Gatorade Dunk said:
Does anyone understand why Foley and Sotloff would make pro-ISIS statements in the videos, since they seem to know their fate is sealed regardless of what they say? When I first read Foley's statement, I thought, "Why did he say that?"
Also, why is the actual execution not shown in either video? I certainly don't want to see either one. But if ISIS wants to boast about how savage their tactics are, why are they going through the trouble of editing it out?
(And by the way, these aren't rhetorical questions based on conspiracy theories. They just strike me as odd in the overall context.)
Also, remember that victims of torture can be made to say pretty much anything that the torturers want, if it's comprehensive and long enough.
Does anyone understand why Foley and Sotloff would make pro-ISIS statements in the videos, since they seem to know their fate is sealed regardless of what they say? When I first read Foley's statement, I thought, "Why did he say that?"
There are fates worse than beheading.
Really dude?
We don't need boots on the ground until we've blown the shit out if the entire area. We have the fire power to do so.
I don't have any kids in the military so some may say that's this is easy for me to say... But that is what our military is for. The more they wait the more danger we are in. This scum needs to be wiped off the map!