Based on what I know, count me as a supporter of the President's position that we need to extricate U.S. troops from Syria, as well as more generally from the Middle East. These are tribal conflicts that have endured, in some cases, for centuries. The fracking revolution that led to our renewed energy independence ought to give us the ability to at least get our Bravest out of harms way of these endlessly fighting tribes. Let 'em settle their own rancid and never-ending squabbles and hatreds. I've not advocating isolationism with respect to the Middle East - we should maintain vigorous diplomacy and the ability to project air power. But I strain to see the continued need for boots on the ground in these God-forsaken hellholes.
A few people I have seen make the case, "this is a tribal war, it's been going on forever".
Sorry, Christians may have been the first innocent victims in yesterday's attack. So, this depersonalizes what is at stake.
No 2003 invasion, no Bush, no Obama and maybe no persecution of Christians, Christians who have btw, died fighting ISIS.
Some reports say Christians were among the first victims yesterday:
Wladimir
@vvanwilgenburg
·
4h
Christian fighter of @SyriacMFS
is not surprised two Christians were the first to be killed in the Turkish attack in the Al-Beshayriyyeh neighborhood in Al-Qamishli city Wednesday. "This is what Erdogan wants. Especially the Christians are his first target."
https://twitter.com/vvanwilgenburg/status/1182283899013079042
The SDF, Arabs, Kurds, Christians, did the dirty work on the ground. I find this a morally bankrupt philosophy on this conflict.
Try the view in 2003, not in 2019 after Bush and Obama and plenty of others. And Trump possibly has severely erred. We have a moral responsibility, the war was mismanaged, the flames of sectarianism fanned.
McMaster is talking about whether something like this was going to happen anyway, meaning the Turkish invasion. It does seem like sooner or later, this was something that had to be confronted. Europe though, could do much more, not for it all to be up to us.