Quote:
Originally Posted by spence
Sure it does. It helps eliminate one of the last pockets of opposition
It didn't need help to do that. Assad's opposition was already, to all intents and purposes, defeated. The pocket was not effective against Assad, and could have been eliminated with conventional warfare. Using the chemical weapon which is against UN and international law would stir up the international pot against Assad. It would not be an advantage for Assad, but more of an advantage for ISIS and for those fighting Assad to have the US destroy a big portion of Assad's military capability.
and allows Russia to stir the pot and create more pressure on the US. The risk of a response, even a coalition led response that could depose Assad is really pretty low.
Why would Russia want to put more pressure on the US to attack Assad and destroy his weapons and delivery systems? If Russia wanted to do that, why would it want the very thing used, a chemical weapon attack, which international opinion would be morally and legally against?
And if Russia was colluding with Trump, why would it want to pressure Trump to do something that would help bring him down?
There's also the scenario where the attack was carried out by the Deep State to bait Trump into war with Syria  |
Do you have a romance with the Deep State? Have the CIA, the FBI, and the rest of them always acted honorably? Have they not illegally killed? Haven't they helped to start wars before? I don't know if Deep State had a hand in this or not. You, of course, are damn sure it didn't.
But there are other scenarios--such as ISIS using the chems to "stir up the pot" against Assad.
At any rate, I'm not with Trump on bombing Syria until there is irrefutable evidence that Assad used the chems. And if that would be the case, I'm not for the US unilaterally exacting punishment.
On the other hand, if Trump is using it as a message to NK that it could actually get the same, it might be a useful bluff in convincing Kim that he needs to cooperate. And the bluff could be swerved away from by some other "lie."