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RE: Oh, Fuck Off. We Have Enough Problems.
September 24, 2015 at 12:57 pm
Quote:So it's not that easy and clear cut as 5 million soldiers versus 35.000 insurgents.
That was Bill Maher who came up with that graphic and he forgets that the vast bulk of that 5 million are committed to repressing the populations in their home countries. Sure, they could flood Syria with soldiers...could they handle the logistics more than a mile from their borders? Doubtful. And they would have to be willing to risk insurrection at home. I doubt they are willing to take that risk even if they could support an expeditionary force.
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RE: Oh, Fuck Off. We Have Enough Problems.
September 24, 2015 at 2:13 pm
(September 24, 2015 at 12:44 pm)Parkers Tan Wrote: We tried "the American bully" approach? How so?
Essentially, it's where we lean on people with threat of our giant military and/or economic power, and assume we have the right to command other nations to do as we want them to do.
A Christian told me: if you were saved you cant lose your salvation. you're sealed with the Holy Ghost
I replied: Can I refuse? Because I find the entire concept of vicarious blood sacrifice atonement to be morally abhorrent, the concept of holding flawed creatures permanently accountable for social misbehaviors and thought crimes to be morally abhorrent, and the concept of calling something "free" when it comes with the strings of subjugation and obedience perhaps the most morally abhorrent of all... and that's without even going into the history of justifying genocide, slavery, rape, misogyny, religious intolerance, and suppression of free speech which has been attributed by your own scriptures to your deity. I want a refund. I would burn happily rather than serve the monster you profess to love.
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RE: Oh, Fuck Off. We Have Enough Problems.
September 24, 2015 at 2:34 pm
Quote: Do I think we should have intervened on behalf of the Syrian secularists?
We tried that, out of 1200 'volunteers' some 60 passed the vetting process. Last I heard there were still 4-5 of them left. Let's see, that means we could make one the president, and one the vice-president and one the treasurer and one the secretary and one the chief of the defense ministry. Then we could recognize that "government."
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RE: Oh, Fuck Off. We Have Enough Problems.
September 24, 2015 at 2:41 pm
(September 24, 2015 at 2:13 pm)TheRocketSurgeon Wrote: (September 24, 2015 at 12:44 pm)Parkers Tan Wrote: We tried "the American bully" approach? How so?
Essentially, it's where we lean on people with threat of our giant military and/or economic power, and assume we have the right to command other nations to do as we want them to do.
I gathered what you meant. I'm wondering how we did that in Syria?
We stayed out of it until ISIS started making huge gains; the most we did was Obama's empty rhetoric about "the Assad regime must go" and "don't cross our red line", both statements which were shown to be idle and vapid words as they weren't backed at all by any state or economic leverage.
That's why I'm confused about what you said. We didn't "bully" Syria. We did nothing.
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RE: Oh, Fuck Off. We Have Enough Problems.
September 24, 2015 at 2:53 pm
(This post was last modified: September 24, 2015 at 2:54 pm by TheRocketSurgeon.)
(September 24, 2015 at 2:41 pm)Parkers Tan Wrote: (September 24, 2015 at 2:13 pm)TheRocketSurgeon Wrote: Essentially, it's where we lean on people with threat of our giant military and/or economic power, and assume we have the right to command other nations to do as we want them to do.
I gathered what you meant. I'm wondering how we did that in Syria?
We stayed out of it until ISIS started making huge gains; the most we did was Obama's empty rhetoric about "the Assad regime must go" and "don't cross our red line", both statements which were shown to be idle and vapid words as they weren't backed at all by any state or economic leverage.
That's why I'm confused about what you said. We didn't "bully" Syria. We did nothing.
Oh, I follow you. No, we didn't do anything in Syria because we couldn't pull the usual approach, not the least of which reason was Russia. I guess I could have been more clear.
What I meant to say was that if we don't have the bully method, we got nuthin'.
A Christian told me: if you were saved you cant lose your salvation. you're sealed with the Holy Ghost
I replied: Can I refuse? Because I find the entire concept of vicarious blood sacrifice atonement to be morally abhorrent, the concept of holding flawed creatures permanently accountable for social misbehaviors and thought crimes to be morally abhorrent, and the concept of calling something "free" when it comes with the strings of subjugation and obedience perhaps the most morally abhorrent of all... and that's without even going into the history of justifying genocide, slavery, rape, misogyny, religious intolerance, and suppression of free speech which has been attributed by your own scriptures to your deity. I want a refund. I would burn happily rather than serve the monster you profess to love.
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RE: Oh, Fuck Off. We Have Enough Problems.
September 24, 2015 at 3:02 pm
The people were not ready for another war.... that's the main reason we didn't go fucking around in Syria.
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RE: Oh, Fuck Off. We Have Enough Problems.
September 24, 2015 at 4:18 pm
(September 24, 2015 at 2:53 pm)TheRocketSurgeon Wrote: (September 24, 2015 at 2:41 pm)Parkers Tan Wrote: I gathered what you meant. I'm wondering how we did that in Syria?
We stayed out of it until ISIS started making huge gains; the most we did was Obama's empty rhetoric about "the Assad regime must go" and "don't cross our red line", both statements which were shown to be idle and vapid words as they weren't backed at all by any state or economic leverage.
That's why I'm confused about what you said. We didn't "bully" Syria. We did nothing.
Oh, I follow you. No, we didn't do anything in Syria because we couldn't pull the usual approach, not the least of which reason was Russia. I guess I could have been more clear.
What I meant to say was that if we don't have the bully method, we got nuthin'.
Yeah, American statecraft has always been lacking, especially in this age of polling and rigid ideology. Realpolitik has rarely been an approach we use, unfortunately.
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