Syrian Civil War Developments

[snapper]

You can't read, can you? NOT OUR PROBLEM. Get this through your head. We don't care. Assad is neutered in OUR EYES. We don't care what anyone else believes.

Then you are blind or prefer not to recognise the truth.

[Officer of Engineers]

Please take this to a more appropriate thread.

You opened the door.

That is just 689,000 Syrians who do not believe Assad is "neutered" who are fleeing him.

You can't read, can you? NOT OUR PROBLEM. Get this through your head. We don't care. Assad is neutered in OUR EYES. We don't care what anyone else believes.

[snapper]

So skip your holier than thou sermon. You have no place telling us how to treat our enemies.

Not our problem. And frankly, we like to keep making it their problem.

That is just 689,000 Syrians who do not believe Assad is "neutered" who are fleeing him.

[Officer of Engineers]

Assad started the slaughter by killing civilians who were protesting. And no I do not have anything much in common with your average Sunni Syrian - I am a Polish Catholic and it is not my business really

So skip your holier than thou sermon. You have no place telling us how to treat our enemies.

- but there are 689,000 'displaced perople' from Idlib thanks to Assad and Putin and the IRG and where do you think they will head?

Not our problem. And frankly, we like to keep making it their problem.

[troung]

Those who start committing war crimes cannot complain when others retaliate against them in kind. Point is that Assad is hardly 'neutered'.

Non assad held Idlib is run by HTS which is AQ. Would be kinda awkward to ride in and save an AQ statlet.

[snapper]

Yes he is. He's too busy trying to butcher other butchers. Get off your high horse. They're too busy trying to butcher each other and if you can't understand that (and you don't), you have absolutely no place (and you don't) telling us how to treat our enemies. They're exactly where we want them to be. They're butchering each other.

Your "people" in Idlib are nothing more than another set of butchers. Assad is neutered and so is your damned Idlib butchers.

Assad started the slaughter by killing civilians who were protesting. And no I do not have anything much in common with your average Sunni Syrian - I am a Polish Catholic and it is not my business really - but there are 689,000 'displaced perople' from Idlib thanks to Assad and Putin and the IRG and where do you think they will head?

[Officer of Engineers]

Those who start committing war crimes cannot complain when others retaliate against them in kind. Point is that Assad is hardly 'neutered'.

Yes he is. He's too busy trying to butcher other butchers. Get off your high horse. They're too busy trying to butcher each other and if you can't understand that (and you don't), you have absolutely no place (and you don't) telling us how to treat our enemies. They're exactly where we want them to be. They're butchering each other.

Your "people" in Idlib are nothing more than another set of butchers. Assad is neutered and so is your damned Idlib butchers.

[snapper]

I didn't see your holier than thou sermon when they were butchering Assad's people.

Those who start committing war crimes cannot complain when others retaliate against them in kind. Point is that Assad is hardly 'neutered'.

[JRT]

...and neutered Assad.

While Assad was seeking a prosthetic replacement set...

The Russians cut a pretty good deal for themselves in leasing rights for larger Russian Navy presence at Tartus. It remains to be seen if they can put that lease and treaty to good advantage for themselves.

https://m.dw.com/en/new-russia-syria...sly/a-37212976

https://www.usni.org/magazines/proce...-mediterranean

https://www.navytimes.com/news/your-...mediterranean/




It's been recently reported that the Trump administration is cutting an SSN from the FY2021 budget, from two to one, which doesn't seem to be a good way to bolster the already much deteriorated submarine industrial base. They are adding a DDG to make up for some of that, but that is poor compensation for the loss of a Virginia SSN now in the build plan as the ramp-up of Columbia SSBN quickly approaches which will choke off the SSN builds. Timely SSBN replacements are highest priority, and they need as many SSNs as the industrial base can support prior to that big shift in resource allocation.

[Officer of Engineers]

Try explaining that Assad is "neutered" to the people of Idlib.

I didn't see your holier than thou sermon when they were butchering Assad's people.

[snapper]

neutered Assad.

Try explaining that Assad is "neutered" to the people of Idlib.

[tbm3fan]

Or it is purely to rebuild National Security assets that were gutted and used up during the war on terror? Deficits be damned to counter the Chinese aggression in the Western Pacific and expanded Russian submarine presence in the Atlantic.

I don't have a problem with deficits provided said deficit was over and above a normal revenue stream which is not what is happening.

Oh, and by the way, appropriated defense monies are now being sidetracked to building his wall. If you believe in a strong defense then that should bother you. I'm sure the Navy could use the $1-2 billion and I know the Admirals will agree with me.

[Officer of Engineers]

the -how- matters.

Pricesly. Without the US going into Iraq, Saddam would have crushed the destablization factors that toppled Qaddafy and neutered Assad.

[astralis]

And as much as you disagree with Iraq, Saddam and Qadaffy are gone, Assad is neutered, and Iran has gone silent. I say that's a strategic plus over what was before.

the -how- matters.

Gaddafi was eliminated at minimal cost to the US. Assad, neutralized with minimal cost as well (although the corresponding rise of ISIS in Syria has not been without its own costs).

Saddam, not so much.

the Chinese view of the US twenty year Middle East adventure is that it's one big strategic window of opportunity. ironically, i -agree- with Trump's assessment that we're spending far too much in sh*tholes like Iraq and Afghanistan; it's just that his execution has been remarkably piss-poor.

[astralis]

surfgun,

Or it is purely to rebuild National Security assets that were gutted and used up during the war on terror? Deficits be damned to counter the Chinese aggression in the Western Pacific and expanded Russian submarine presence in the Atlantic.

compare the size of the DoD budget increase vs the size of the GOP TCJA tax-law.

that shows you the priorities.

EDIT: BTW, Pence several days ago mentioned the administration's rationale for deficit spending:

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/02/07/penc...or-growth.html

“The president came into office and he said, ‘First and foremost, we have to restore growth,’” Pence said.

“Deficits and debt are right in line, but it is first about getting this economy moving again and we really do believe the trajectory of this economy,” Pence said...

“The real long-term solution to the fiscal challenges in Washington, D.C., is making sure the budget of every American is growing.”

so nothing about national security/defense, everything about using deficit spending to "restore growth". which, according to the "standard" GOP talking point, supposedly does not work if it is the government spending money, right?