Posted on 05/01/2013 1:11:20 PM PDT by Laissez-faire capitalist
What if we do, and they turn out to be Muslim extremists, or are friendly to those that are? What if they manage to scuttle the Assad regime? How do we stop them from getting their hands on chemical weapons if/when they topple Assad?
Boots on the ground in Syria?
Does the U.S. want to do that?
I posted this because I am curious as to what people here at FR think is the best way to resolve this.
BTW, should we just stay out of this?
Just curious.....
No, not that it matters since we’re likely arming them anyway.
Personally I think that’s what the ammo buys are for, to cover the gun ruuning to Syria.
Maybe we should listen to Russia....More arms means higher intensity.
Emphatically NO!
I would almost rather arm Assad.
Disarm Citizens of the United States and send arms to rebels in Syria. How much more Democratic can it get? /S
Disarm Citizens of the United States and send arms to rebels in Syria. How much more Democratic can it get? /S
Sorry about the duplicate!
We armed Osama Bin Laden in the 80s against the Russians... so... sure. What could go wrong?
YES - with liberal volunteers!
No. Even if there are good guys in this conflict, which in the mideast usually there aren’t, and we manage to find them, we always suck at the follow through (ref Afghanistan the first time around) and leave the place ripe for takeover by even worse guys than we overthrew.
We should not arm the Syrian Rebels.
We should stay out of it completely.
No matter what we do we will not be thanked for it, and the Rebels AKA Al Quaeda, are going to turn Syria into another Muslim Christian killing crap hole , worse than it already is.
Let these people kill each other, The longer it takes the less time they have to think about killing someone else.
Leave Syria alone and let muslim thugs continue to murder muslim thugs. Hope it spreads.
Let ‘em all kill each other and let Allah sort it out.
Send them 536 handpicked human shields.
“What if we do, and they turn out to be Muslim extremists, or are friendly to those that are?”
I just assume this as a given, since the most likely Muslims to take to the streets with AKs trying to topple a government are naturally Muslim extremists.
“What if they manage to scuttle the Assad regime?”
*shrug* Good for them, I guess?
“How do we stop them from getting their hands on chemical weapons if/when they topple Assad?”
Do they have warheads capable of attacking us? I don’t think so, so why should we care? Let the Europeans and Israelis come up with a plan for once.
“Boots on the ground in Syria?”
Why? To protect a dictator? Or to hand the country over to terrorists? Either way, it’s a losing proposition for us to get involved.
As far as I’m concerned, if something comes up that demands our involvement, then our involvement should extend as far as pushing the little red button that is marked “Nuke Syria”, and that’s about it.
Received this recently from Texas Senator Cornyn:
Dear Mr. XXXXXXXX:
Thank you for contacting me regarding the United States’ policy toward Syria. I appreciate having the benefit of your comments on this matter.
On March 18, 2011, the Syrian people commenced widespread and peaceful protests against President Bashar al-Assad and his regime. Subsequently, President Assad and his government forces launched a violent response. According to the United Nations, as of January 2, 2013, more than 60,000 Syrians have been killed. The violent oppression by the Assad regime continues unabated, with the regime failing to deliver promised reforms and instead utilizing overwhelming force against the protestors. Since August 2011, President Obama has called for Assad’s resignation, supporting United Nations Security Council action to facilitate his removal. Yet to date, the Security Council has been deadlocked due to obstruction by Russia and China.
I have pressed the Obama Administration to end all U.S. government business dealings with Rosoboronexport—the Russian state-owned arms broker that facilitates the Russian Federation’s arms transfers to Syria. I am deeply troubled that the U.S. Army continued to do business with Rosoboronexport, purchasing dozens of dual-use Mi-17 helicopters for the Afghan military, as the atrocities in Syria have continued. It is unconscionable that U.S. taxpayers would be forced to pay for a contract with a Russian firm that is simultaneously enabling the Assad regime to murder its own people. Because the Obama Administration ignored my requests, I offered Senate Amendment 3260 to the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013 (FY13 NDAA; P.L. 112-239), which prohibits the use of funding for the U.S. government to enter into any further contracts or business agreements with Rosoboronexport. I am pleased that this provision was included in the final version of the FY13 NDAA, as signed into law on January 2, 2013.
Furthermore, during the 112th Congress, I was proud to cosponsor Senate Resolution 370 (S.Res. 370), which would have condemned the ongoing and systematic human rights violations conducted by Syrian authorities and called on Assad to step down from power. Additionally, this resolution would have called on President Obama to develop a plan to identify weapons stockpiles in Syria and prevent their proliferation, as well as urge the international community to support a post-Assad democratic government.
I also cosponsored Senate Bill 2224 (S. 2224), which would have directed the President to submit three reports to Congress to assess all Syrian opposition groups; assess the size and security of weapons stockpiles in Syria; and describe support provided to opposition political forces in Syria. S. 2224 was passed by the Senate by unanimous consent on May 9, 2012, and referred to the House of Representatives for further consideration. Although S.Res. 370 and S. 2224 were not enacted prior to the adjournment of the 112th Congress, you may be certain that I will keep your views in mind as relevant legislation is considered during the 113th Congress.
The people of Syria have demonstrated a hunger for freedom, and the United States has a solemn duty to support their democratic aspirations. I appreciate having the opportunity to represent Texas in the United States Senate, and I will keep your views in mind as these matters are discussed. Thank you for taking the time to contact me.
Sincerely,
JOHN CORNYN
United States Senator
517 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Tel: (202) 224-2934
Fax: (202) 228-2856
http://www.cornyn.senate.gov
Please sign up for my monthly newsletter at http://www.cornyn.senate.gov/newsletter.
PLEASE NOTE:
Due to the nature of electronic communication, if you did not receive this e-mail directly from my office, I cannot guarantee that the text has not been altered. If you have questions about the validity of this message, or would like to respond to this message, please use the web form available at my website, http://www.cornyn.senate.gov/contact.
—
Senator Cornyn is either so uninformed as to not understand what the real battle is, or is being duped by Obozo.
Either way he clearly does not understand what the “rebels” really are. They have large elements of al-Qaeda in their leadership.
I wrote Senator Cornyn explaining how dangerous the replacement government would be and it evidently did not register.
I will not vote for John again. He has been trying to appear close to Senator Cruz, but Cornyn is not one of us.
Sounds like a good plan. Maybe we should arm both sides :)
No
And according to reports al Qaeda is very close to capturing a poison gas depot/factory.
That, we should not permit. Drop a thermobaric bomb or two and destroy the agents.
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