Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria – Where Next?

It is time to step back and evaluate where we are.  The global war against terrorism is NOT why we are in Syria.  It should be why we are in Syria, but not in the form of air strikes.  We are in Syria for humanitarian reasons.  The Islamic State (or ISIS) has been committing acts of mass murder and genocide and we are attempting to stop it.  Most Americans would not go back to war in the Middle East unless they believed that the purpose of our military action was to protect our homeland.  Our current actions in Syria are not to protect the homeland.  The targeted bombing of the al Qaeda affiliate in Syria (the Nusra Front) on the first night of bombing was to protect the homeland.  Since then, our bombing has been to diminish the killing capabilities of ISIS: the capacity to kill other people of the Middle East, NOT Americans.

The Nusra Front was plotting attacks against Western countries; and most likely continues to do so.  Our government cannot confirm how many of the Nusra Front was killed in our air-strike.  The Obama administration has stated that at WORST it has delayed the intended attack on Western society.  To stand back and evaluate it objectively the truth is that at BEST, we have delayed the intended attack.  Al Qaeda is alive and well and planning an attack on the infidels.

We have attempted to stabilize the governments in Iraq and Afghanistan so that al Qaeda could not use these territories to plot their next attack on us.  In turn, al Qaeda found another spot on the globe where a failing government could not curtail their terroristic ways – Syria.   With all the turmoil in Syria, we have no chance of restoring a stable government in that corner of the world.  Our on-going airstrikes in Syria are to help stop the human slaughtering by ISIS on the peoples of Iraq and Syria – NOT to protect America.  Do you as an American support sending in ground forces for this purpose?  Is anyone prepared to spend another trillion dollars to fight feeble ground wars against global terrorism?

President Obama is correct to leave the stabilization of Iraq and Syria to the region’s neighbors; Muslim Arabs that will not be branded as crusaders or infidels.  Maybe the Muslim Arab neighbors will take on the larger task of preaching the true meaning of Islam and dissuade young, disenfranchised Muslims from joining such horrific terroristic groups.  Until the radical brand of Islam is discredited by other Muslim’s, martyrdom will remain a noble cause for a young Muslim with no better prospects in life.

But back to the big picture of what America must face – a world of radical Islamists that are bent on our destruction and a world of unstable governments from where these terrorists can operate.  What if we could stabilize Syria so that al Qaeda could not operate there?  They would move to Yemen, Somalia, Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, or some other unstable part of the world.  We cannot stabilize the entire world.  Therefore, we have to take another approach to fighting terrorists.

We must spend less money on munitions and more on intelligence gathering, special operations forces, and border protection.  The pentagon needs to become the hexagon.  Joining the Army, Air Force, Navy, Coast Guard and National Guard should be the Anti-Terrorism Force.  Okay, that isn’t necessary – but the focus that such a titled force would bring to protecting America is needed.  No more large scale troop invasions on foreign soil.  No more waiting for unstable countries to collapse before learning that there are terrorists in those countries planning harm on America.  We need eyes and ears on the ground everywhere in the world, and a stealth, fast-attack, special operations force capable of swooping into every hell hole in the world, kill the bad guys and get back out as quickly as they arrived.  We need drones in the air and hell-fire missiles ready to go around the clock.  We must cease and desist as the world’s police and become the world’s surgeon capable of cutting out the cancer of terrorism where ever it is detected.

This must be an American force, but an alliance with other like-minded countries to share these anti-terrorism responsibilities must be formed and maintained on an on-going basis; not just in times of mass murder.  Terrorism is not mass murder in foreign countries; it is focused attacks to kill civilians in their homeland.  Therefore, focused special operations forces are needed to eliminate terrorism – not large masses of ground forces.

Now is the time to forge this on-going anti-terrorism alliance.  The Europeans have joined us in Iraq (not Syria) because they know they need us to protect them from Russia.  But, are six jet-fighters all the UK can lend to the current conflict?  If Putin was not threatening Europe would they have joined in on the ISIS attack?  Would any of the Europeans have joined us?  We need to cement an anti-terrorism compact now and assure an on-going involvement with the Arab countries that stand with us now.

With that said, as Americans we do have the responsibility to prevent and stop genocide on a large scale.  We cannot stabilize the entire world but we can provide relief to people in dire need.  What we are doing in Iraq and Syria is the right thing to do – but it will not protect us from terrorism.