11-17-2015, 12:00 PM
Evil Daesh is definitely a problem, but it's one of many problems in the struggle for power in the Middle East.
There are several Middle Eastern countries participating in the anti-ISIL coalition aready.
But, there is a lot of animosity between some of the Middle Eastern countries. A lot of animosity between Shia and Sunni leaders as well. A lot of conflicting ideas about what Syria should be post-war too.
So, I think Islamic countries have failed to combine their ground forces and storm in against Daesh because they don't have an agreed-to end goal and they don't want to lose bodies only to find Syria and Iraq in the hands of Iran, or still in the hands of Assad, or puppeted by Russia or the U.S.
Plus, in my opinion, the Middle Eastern countries are used to the U.S. and Western forces leading the charge to fight the evils (real and perceived) of the world, whilst simultaneously being condemned for causing all the evils in the world.
I think Obama is saying, "not this time" and pushing for the Arab/Muslim nations to lead the charge against the evil in their own backyards. And, maybe they would if they weren't prohibited from targeting Assad's forces in the process and didn't correctly believe that crushing Daesh would benefit Assad, Putin, and Iran, at least in the short term.
One thing that bothers me a lot is how, aside from Turkey and Jordan, the countries surrounding Syria have not opened their doors to the Syrian refugees; the physical humanitarian responsibility is largely being shouldered by Europe. It reflects very poorly on much of the Arab world and its priorities, in my opinion.
There are several Middle Eastern countries participating in the anti-ISIL coalition aready.
But, there is a lot of animosity between some of the Middle Eastern countries. A lot of animosity between Shia and Sunni leaders as well. A lot of conflicting ideas about what Syria should be post-war too.
So, I think Islamic countries have failed to combine their ground forces and storm in against Daesh because they don't have an agreed-to end goal and they don't want to lose bodies only to find Syria and Iraq in the hands of Iran, or still in the hands of Assad, or puppeted by Russia or the U.S.
Plus, in my opinion, the Middle Eastern countries are used to the U.S. and Western forces leading the charge to fight the evils (real and perceived) of the world, whilst simultaneously being condemned for causing all the evils in the world.
I think Obama is saying, "not this time" and pushing for the Arab/Muslim nations to lead the charge against the evil in their own backyards. And, maybe they would if they weren't prohibited from targeting Assad's forces in the process and didn't correctly believe that crushing Daesh would benefit Assad, Putin, and Iran, at least in the short term.
One thing that bothers me a lot is how, aside from Turkey and Jordan, the countries surrounding Syria have not opened their doors to the Syrian refugees; the physical humanitarian responsibility is largely being shouldered by Europe. It reflects very poorly on much of the Arab world and its priorities, in my opinion.