Posted on 10/02/2014 6:22:43 AM PDT by re_tail20
There are now reliable reports that ISIS forces are a mile or so from the Iraqi capital. While CNN, NPR, ABC, and the rest have been celebrating our president as the second coming of Douglas MacArthur — with his “gutsy” air strikes and his diplomatic skill in pulling together a coalition to “degrade and destroy” the Islamic State — the Islamic State has been quietly gaining ground over the past several days, and closing the noose around Baghdad.
Although the U.S. and U.K. are desperately bombing away to keep ISIS at bay, it’s not clear who or what can stop them from taking the capital. “They said it could never happen, and now it almost has,” according to Canon Andrew White of the Foundation for Relief and Reconciliation in the Middle East. His people face mass slaughter if the radical Islamists take over, as do thousands of others.
So what’s the larger impact if and when Baghdad falls? Some quick thoughts.
First, strategically and geopolitically for the U.S., it’s a catastrophe of the first order. Like the fall of Saigon in 1975, it will be an overwhelming setback for U.S. prestige, not to mention honor, and our hopes of ever being a strategic presence in the Middle East and South Asia again.
Second, it will be a humanitarian catastrophe, starting with the massacre of anyone who has ever cooperated with the Americans or the previous governments. Before the fall of Saigon, we were at least able to evacuate 50,000 personnel and refugees in the greatest airlift in history. It’s very likely that there will be no time for any comparable operation, even if the Obama administration had the will do it. Expect an ISIS bloodbath that will make their previous massacres look like playground kickball.
Third, it will be...
(Excerpt) Read more at ricochet.com ...
Bush’s Fault! (WHINE!)
Marine “advisors” being sent to Kuwait?
It doesn’t matter, Obama is African American. It’s no big deal.
B b bb bbb but! 0bama campaigned on having won the war in Iraq and brought the boys home!
What about the Legacy!?
We are living in an extended episode of the Twilight Zone—and our [pres_ _ ent] has hidden the remote.
...”with his ‘gutsy’ air strikes and his diplomatic skill...” you forgot his phone and his pen.
The White House says there is virtually no chance it will happen.
However, they also say that there is virtually no chance of Ebola coming to the USA.
I can just imagine a Saigon-like evacuation from the US Embassy in the Green Zone. Or even worse, a massacre of our people there. Afterwards, the ISIS flag flying atop the embassy—their greatest prize.
And, yes, if that happens, it will ALL be Bush’s fault.
The capital of Iraq falls to ISIS, the state of Iraq ceases to exist.
massacre of anyone who has ever cooperated with the Americans
And the same will happen in Afghanistan. Until these people decide to stand up for themselves and actually fight, there is no use in us being there.
There are a lot of things (militarily) that are flying slightly under the radar, and you’ve identified one of them: the USMC unit being deployed to Kuwait specializes in emergency evacuations, among other missions. Makes sense to have them (and lift assets) in place, if you’re worried about a big skedaddle from the Green Zone.
Some other developments that have been ignored (or misunderstood by the MSM and/or the low-information crowd): we’re deploying a division HQ to Iraq, supposedly for command and control (the HQ is out of Fort Riley, Kansas, part of the 1st Infantry Division, a.k.a., the Big Red One). However, most of the U.S. troops already in Iraq are special forces. So why not send an element from JSOC or one of our SOF groups to provide C2? I believe the division HQ is the lead element for deployment of multiple brigades to Iraq; Obama has been pushing off the announcement until after the election, but ISIS drive towards Baghdad may force his hand before November.
The ISIS tide in Iraq (and Syria) cannot be stemmed without American boots on the ground. Another indicator of a ground deployment is the pending arrival of A-10s from the Indiana National Guard, who are heading to the Middle East. A-10s are most effective when working with ground controllers, whether they be SF personnel, or JTACs assigned to conventional units.
As for Baghdad, ISIS doesn’t have the combat power to take the city. And if they tried to enter Baghdad in force, you’d have every Shiite militia in the city gunning it out with them. Think Beirut circa 1975 and that’s what the Iraqi capital would look like in very short order.
On the other hand, ISIS can sever lines of communication (reducing access to food, water and electricity), while continuing perimeter attacks around the city. That would have a devastating affect on the civilian populace and further undercut the government’s dwindling authority.
Could ISIS establish a foothold in Sunni areas of Baghdad? Sure. To some extent they already have. Could they capture the city as a whole? No way in hell.
Its not just Baghdad. U.S prestige and credibility are at risk in several other areas of the world. Obama’s disastrous reign is leaving its mark.
That's silly. At the moment ISIS is massacring anybody who isn't an observant Sunni. Between Shi'ites and secular Sunnis, that covers the vast majority of residents in Baghdad, not just American collaborators.
That'll learn em
My biggest fear is that they will do that to us. Maybe they already have?
If Obama evacuates, he's admitting that ISIS is a big threat...so he won't..until it's too late? How many troops can we get there in a short time?
do you think Obama cares what happens to Baghdad?
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