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So, what about that Trump is a puppet of the Kremlin thing? Or was he a puppet until 2 days ago? Sneaky orange troll.
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@Baron-Silas-Greenback said in Syria:
Stick to that thought, Donald.
Are people serious at upvoting this? Do people genuinely think this is a bad idea? Trump has bombed Syria because they used chemical weapons on their own people. The goal of such a bombing is to prevent chemical weapons becoming normalised. Syria doesn't want to be bombed by the USA so will stop using chemical weapons. This is a small targeted attack with a clear objective. It is nothing like "regime change" or "nation building". I would expect any other recent US president to act in the same way.
Do people doubt the need to prevent chemical weapons from being used? I'm perplexed.
I upvoted it. Because it's ironic that 4 years ago when he had no access to any intelligence other than cable TV he thought intervention was a bad idea but now that he's in the driving seat with all that advice and infohe's come to the same place as Obama.
Presidenting turns out to be hard. Who knew.
I don't think anybody said the bombing was a bad idea, although plenty of us are hoping his plan for what happens next is better than Obama's or GWB's were.
He hasnt come to the same place as Obama, his path is very different. For good or ill.
No argument from me about the path being different, but the destination has turned out to be the same IMO: airstrikes. Obama's were late and not particularly effective, but still airstrikes. Trump's are timely with unknown effectiveness. But still airstrikes. I guess we'll find out how their paths diverge again from here, won't we?
One interesting question is the legal basis for Trump's response. Is he going to seek Congressional approval now? They're saying there's no change in policy but isn't an airstrike on a foreign power an act of war?
The real problem with Obama's policy was that he wanted to arm the rebels and I believe his administration tried (but mostly failed) to do so. Trump doesn't want to arm the rebels as far as I know.
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@Rancid-Schnitzel if you were thinking conspiratorially, you could say he and Putin colluded, Putin gave Intel, pulled his troops from the area and said go...
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@taniwharugby said in Syria:
@Rancid-Schnitzel if you were thinking conspiratorially, you could say he and Putin colluded, Putin gave Intel, pulled his troops from the area and said go...;)
That's the theory in some parts: create a fake cold war to give both leaders a boost.
This article is interesting from a military point of view:
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@taniwharugby said in Syria:
@Rancid-Schnitzel if you were thinking conspiratorially, you could say he and Putin colluded, Putin gave Intel, pulled his troops from the area and said go...;)
A win win deal
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Apologies to @gollum and @administrators for WAAAAY off topic post two nights ago. The post should have been in the "PC on campus thread" (though topically it would sit in the defunct US Politics thread) and more importantly it should not have been directed at Gollum.
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@Baron-Silas-Greenback it has the potential to get a bit 1984 at this point. While Naomi Klein is not everyone's cup of tea I found this tweet of hers funny in that context:
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China has been showing signs that they are losing patience with NK. Any increase on pressure would need China's approval so I doubt it's a coincidence this is happening immediately after Jinping has been in the US.
Forget the nukes for a second. One of the threats NK has made is that any direct action would result in a mass executions at the concentration camps.. I'd be amazed if there was direct action
Like the small Syrian action it's possible to make a case for an escalation here. However, this is not what Trump campaigned on.
Doctrine changes are not unusual. GWB campaigned against Clintonian intervention, nation building and the US being the worlds policeman. It seems strange to say that now.. However there was an incident (a rather large one) that caused him to adopt a different doctrine. He then explained his new position in several speeches.
I think Trump would benefit from explaining why he no longer has a Buchanan view on foreign policy
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However, this is not what Trump campaigned on.
Yeah but a few things he campaigned on aren't necessarily coming to fruition
The NK situation is based on them having a long leash from China, and as you say I think maybe China has had enough of the bullshit.
At the same time, they've got the S China sea to worry about, especially as Duerte has told his military to start occupying nearby uninhabited islands.
I'm not sure why all the tension. Surely they can just all make solar panels, batteries, and live in harmony?
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A mate of my brother is a full-on Trump supporter and I ran into him this morning at the gym. He's absolutely furious about the Syria and now the possibility of war with North Korea. He's now thinking of sending all his merchandise back.
As Duluth mentioned, he has some explaining to do.
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@Rancid-Schnitzel said in Syria:
A mate of my brother is a full-on Trump supporter and I ran into him this morning at the gym. He's absolutely furious about the Syria and now the possibility of war with North Korea. He's now thinking of sending all his merchandise back.
As Duluth mentioned, he has some explaining to do.
Unlike GWB, an apparent attack on civilians in a war zone is not nearly as jarring as planes flying into a New York high rise. Dubya's sea change was not a difficult sell, I am sure there are many Trumpites who can see why the USA should get involved
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Richard Spencer had a protest this weekend chanting 'walls not war', a position shared by many Trumpkins. Of course it got attacked by antifa who I presume must be pro war?
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@Rancid-Schnitzel said in Syria:
A mate of my brother is a full-on Trump supporter and I ran into him this morning at the gym. He's absolutely furious about the Syria and now the possibility of war with North Korea. He's now thinking of sending all his merchandise back.
As Duluth mentioned, he has some explaining to do.
I'll pm you my address , with the election coming up I'd like to wear the merchandise to green rallies.
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@Rancid-Schnitzel said in Syria:
A mate of my brother is a full-on Trump supporter and I ran into him this morning at the gym. He's absolutely furious about the Syria and now the possibility of war with North Korea. He's now thinking of sending all his merchandise back.
As Duluth mentioned, he has some explaining to do.
I'll pm you my address , with the election coming up I'd like to wear the merchandise to green rallies.
If will if you film it please.
I used to go jogging in Norway (very very anti-Israel) in an IDF shirt until my wife begged me to stop.
This same guy kept putting Trump stickers on the car of a mate who worked at a major university. Needless to say the stickers didn't survive long at that supposed bastion of free speech.
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@Rancid-Schnitzel
A red line you DO NOT cross.About time too.
Shame he wiped out the line that was already in the sand - albeit a faint dotted line only days earlier when he said the US was not looking at regime change and would seek to work with Assad.
Which the fuckknuckle took to mean "do whatever the hell you want it's no concern of ours"
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At this stage, I interpret the drums of war neo-con vibe to part of Trump's strategy. Scare his enemies and look unpredictable. No one actually knows what he is going to do. And that is intentional. It's negotiation.
However, I could be wrong and he has been taken over by the neo-cons or is being duped by them. Time will tell. I think he judged by his actions here. So far, there has just been a glorified fireworks show.
If Trump had done nothing while CNN etc. posted pictures of dead kids round the clock - he would not only have been accused of being weak, but also a total stooge of Putin.
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@Frank I think you have missed a major point here, and that is the response from Trump would hardly "scare his enemies" and unpredictable is already his middle name.
I would suggest having a look at the link that Nick posted above for some very good analysis as to what good, if any, Trump's cruise missile response has produced.
Syria