RIP Iraq
Commentary by Sanford D. Horn
May 29, 2015
To listen to Barack Obama say “I don’t think we’re losing”
pertaining to Iraq is demonstrative of his fecklessness as a leader and grandly
obtuse. Seeing him utter such bull Durham to the American people puts Obama on
stage at the theatre of the absurd. Perhaps he should have just said “I don’t
think.”
Having witnessed the fall of Ramadi, the capital of Anbar
Province, a mere 70 miles west of Iraq’s national capital of Baghdad to the
bloodthirsty savages calling themselves an Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL), Obama
cavalierly said, “it is a source of concern.” Never one to overstate a situation,
there is no sense of urgency from the Obama administration as the quagmire in
the Middle East becomes ever more perilous for Christians, Jews, and anyone not
willing to kow-tow to ISIS.
Iraq is lost partly because of Obama’s ego. To think he
knows more than the State Department or the generals who actually oversee the
war/conflict – declared or undeclared, is part of his greater shortcomings – it’s
all about him. Iraq is lost partly because of Obama’s legacy, which is akin to
his ego. Wanting to end all wars/conflicts would be a giant gold star on his
record, to be sure, but at what cost? The piper is now being paid as a too soon
withdrawal of troops from Iraq is costing the lives of thousands upon thousands
of men, women, and children.
President George W. Bush, on July 12, 2007 delivered some
prophetic words during a White House news conference:
“I
know some in Washington would like us to start leaving Iraq now. To begin withdrawing before our
commanders tell us we’re ready would be dangerous
for Iraq, for the region and for the United States. It would mean surrendering the future of Iraq to
al-Qaeda. It would mean that we’d be risking mass
killings on a horrific scale. It would mean we’d allow the terrorists to establish a safe haven in Iraq to replace
the one they lost in Afghanistan. It would mean
we’d be increasing the probability that American troops would have to return at some later date to confront an
enemy that is even more dangerous.”
Sadly, to a word, all of the above has come to fruition.
Like Bush, dislike Bush, it matters not. What matters, is that Obama listened
to no one and the death of Iraq and the good men, women, and children are on
his head and narrow shoulders. Iraq, and for that matter, the internally
strife-ridden Syria, could end up absorbed by Iran which would be catastrophic on
a grand scale.
For it is not just Ramadi that has fallen. ISIS already
controls 36,000 square miles of Syria – roughly the size of Great Britain –
rich with gas and oil fields and a strategic bastion for the ISIS savages. Most
recently, ISIS captured Palmyra replete with its 2000 year old Roman antiquities
that are now in jeopardy. ISIS has a penchant for destroying historical items
that serve them no purpose, just as they wantonly destroy as much humanity as
possible. And back in Iraq, Mosul, the second largest city in the country,
which fell in June 2014, as well as Fallujah, which fell in January 2014, are
two major cities under ISIS control as are the locales of Al-Baghdadi, Baiji,
and Tikrit. Mount Sinjar is also under ISIS control.
The United States cannot continue to play the game it is
playing. First it is in, and then it is out, but without any rhyme or reason.
It’s a deadly game of musical chairs as once the music stops and a chair is
pulled away, no one knows who will fall next. Without a full commitment, it is
too risky for American, or any foreign troops to attempt to ward off ISIS. ISIS
is committed to fight to the death and they don’t care whose deaths are
wrought.
On the other hand, retreating, or pulling out before the
job is done, prior to achieving total victory, is called surrender. If that is
not losing, I wonder what Barack Obama’s dictionary looks like.
The barbarians are not marching toward the gate, they are sprinting toward it and they must be stopped. There supposedly is a coalition containing 60 countries – 60 – that should be able to destroy ISIS and put them out of our misery. Problem is, Obama has done nothing to lead, seems to not want to lead, and lacks political will, thus the other 59 countries have little faith in the United States to be the world leader it has been predestined to be.
The barbarians are not marching toward the gate, they are sprinting toward it and they must be stopped. There supposedly is a coalition containing 60 countries – 60 – that should be able to destroy ISIS and put them out of our misery. Problem is, Obama has done nothing to lead, seems to not want to lead, and lacks political will, thus the other 59 countries have little faith in the United States to be the world leader it has been predestined to be.
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