“It’s not hundreds of thousands of people. It’s not that kind of mobilization....–if they think a counterinsurgency operation is enough–they are living in a fantasy world.”
Hmmm. CIA analysts state that the number of active IS-IS “fighters” is around 30k.
Standard counter-insurgency teaching holds that you must have about a ten to one ratio to insure victory. John “Nam Vet” Kerry should know that a counter-insurgency op indeed requires hundreds of thousands, alongside efforts to divorce the population from the insurgents.
You don’t go to war unless the alternative is unthinkable. If you must go, make the other side decide that continuing the war is unthinkable. Don’t waffle.
Overwhelming Force