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[maquiladora]

The White House has asked the Pentagon to draw up plans for a no-fly zone inside Syria that would be enforced by the U.S. and other countries such as France and Great Britain, two administration officials told The Daily Beast.

President Obama’s dual-track strategy of continuing to pursue a political solution to the two-year-old uprising in Syria while also preparing for more direct U.S. military involvement includes authorizing the Joint Chiefs of Staff for the first time to plan for multilateral military actions inside Syria, the two officials said. They added that no decisions on actually using force have yet been made.

“The White House is still in contemplation mode but the planning is moving forward and it’s more advanced than it’s ever been,” one administration official told The Daily Beast. “All this effort to pressure the regime is part of the overall effort to find a political solution, but what happens if Geneva fails? It’s only prudent to plan for other options.”

Exclusive from The Daily Beat :http://www.thedailybeast.com/articl...asks-pentagon-for-syria-no-fly-zone-plan.html

 

[Azih]

You know in a fight between Bashaar Al-Asaad and Al-Qaeda types my personal approach would be to stay the fuck away from the conflict itself and try to set up some refugee camps for civillians to try to alleviate their suffering.

 

[Ignis Fatuus]

You know in a fight between Bashaar Al-Asaad and Al-Qaeda types my personal approach would be to stay the fuck away from the conflict itself and try to set up some refugee camps for civillians to try to alleviate their suffering.

Isn't that what Turkey and Jordan have been doing?

 

[Batman]

Obama is finally listening to McCain.

 

[PJV3]

What do the Russians think about it?

 

[archnemesis]

You know in a fight between Bashaar Al-Asaad and Al-Qaeda types my personal approach would be to stay the fuck away from the conflict itself and try to set up some refugee camps for civillians to try to alleviate their suffering.

Yep, that's the most sensible solution at this point.

 

[Lagspike_exe]

What do the Russians think about it?

They don't like it. At all.

 

[Aylinato]

Syria, unlike Lybia, is a clusterfuck.

 

[PhoenixDark]

Syria, unlike Lybia, is a clusterfuck.

A no fly zone will likely do next to nothing here, just like Libya. In Libya the no fly zone was nothing more than a way for hawks to call for "military action" without actually doing anything, I suspect the same is going on here.

I don't want a single dollar going to either side. This is their civil war, not ours, and neither side deserves help.

 

[Admiral Bone to Pick]

Here's a radical opinion: The United States should not involve itself in the affairs of Syria. It's not in our right to pick and choose which government we support in the country. We should just stay out of the conflict and focus on our own problems, of which there are MANY.

 

[Angry Fork]

Anyone know about what percentage of the Syrian resistance is from secular leftists? Is it really a majority of Islamists?

 

[BigDug13]

Enforcing that no fly zone over Iraq between when we sent them packing from Kuwait all the way up till our invasion did so much to keep Sadaam from being a problem. So much money spent on naval fleets sitting in the Persian Gulf 24/7 to enforce no fly zones. But sure, our "lower my taxes" nation can certainly keep bearing the brunt of inflated defense spending.

 

[Boom Boom Pow]

A no fly zone will likely do next to nothing here, just like Libya. In Libya the no fly zone was nothing more than a way for hawks to call for "military action" without actually doing anything, I suspect the same is going on here.

I don't want a single dollar going to either side. This is their civil war, not ours, and neither side deserves help.

err what? ddue, without that no fly zone, the rebels in Libya would have been demolished.

I dunno what news you were reading, but they were pushed back to their final city before the zone was established.

once established, they finally started "winning"

 

[whytemyke]

Well you guys can keep complaining about not wanting to waste tax dollars, but there are civilians being gassed. You don't get to say you stand for human rights then stand by and do nothing while military atrocities are being committed against innocent people.

 

[Fularu]

Anyone know about what percentage of the Syrian resistance is from secular leftists? Is it really a majority of Islamists?

It's prety much just islamists.

The patriotic opposition within Syria hasn't taken up arms and is based in damascus. Mostly leftists.

No one in Syria wants (or trusts) the idiots in Turkey and while some people (mostly conservative rural populations) support and help the various islamist groups, they don't find much echo within most of the big cities.

Probably why the government wasn't toppled.

 

[Crisco]

Considering Israel just flew in there and bombed stuff on a whim a couple weeks ago, it shouldn't be too difficult to setup a no fly zone.

 

[Dyno]

No-Fly Zone allows for enhanced supply delivery to rebels (they need ammo) plus bombing runs on tanks and artillery platforms. It would put the rebels on equal footing with al-Asad's forces.

It would be facinating if it happened because Russia has supplied Syria with state-of-the-art anti-aircraft defenses. We would be getting a taste of what would happen if the U.S. and Russia started going at each other.

 

[Sanky Panky]

In other news, this is just a proxy war for Liquefied Natural Gas.

Israel, Russia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the US, etc, could give three shits who kills which civilians. A dead kid is just a narrative for the news sadly.

 

[PhoenixDark]

err what? ddue, without that no fly zone, the rebels in Libya would have been demolished.

I dunno what news you were reading, but they were pushed back to their final city before the zone was established.

once established, they finally started "winning"

That's not true. The Joint Chiefs told Obama that a no fly zone wouldn't have any impact

With Qaddafi’s forces closing in on Benghazi, Obama asked his military advisers whether a no-fly zone would protect the Libyan people. When they told him it would not—Qaddafi’s Army was likely to kill more people than his Air Force would—Obama instead asked the United Nations to authorize air strikes against Libyan ground forces, a much more ambitious step than Sarkozy and Cameron had proposed. “The President said that the no-fly zone was basically an empty gesture,” one of his aides told me. “So he decided to go much farther.”

http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2013/05/13/130513fa_fact_filkins?currentPage=all

That much had been in the news. One crucial piece of information had not. “We knew that a no-fly zone would not save the people of Ben­gha­zi,” says Obama. “The no-fly zone was an expression of concern that didn’t real­ly do anything.” European leaders wanted to create a no-fly zone to stop Qaddafi, but Qaddafi wasn’t flying. His army was racing across the North African desert in jeeps and tanks. Obama had to have wondered just how aware of this were these foreign leaders supposedly interested in the fate of these Libyan civilians. He didn’t know if they knew that a no-fly zone was pointless, but if they’d talked to any military leader for five minutes they would have. And that was not all. “The last thing we knew,” he adds, “is that if you announced a no-fly zone and if it appeared feckless, there would be additional pressure for us to go further. As enthusiastic as France and Britain were about the no-fly zone, there was a danger that if we participated the U.S. would own the operation. Because we had the capacity.”

http://www.vanityfair.com/politics/2012/10/michael-lewis-profile-barack-obama

Multiple senators and congressmen, especially John McCain, were howling for a no fly zone when in reality it did nothing. It was just a feint of might for hawks to hang their hats on.

Assad's forces are largely based on the ground from what I understand. A no fly zone could theoretically help provide some aide (food and weapons) but I have no interest in sending either.

 

[Lagspike_exe]

In other news, this is just a proxy war for Liquefied Natural Gas.

Israel, Russia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the US, etc, could give three shits who kills which civilians. A dead kid is just a narrative for the news sadly.

Basically, yes. Syria is just a pawn on the chessboard. The human rights stuff is pure PR, no one up the command chain cares about it at all. It's all about energy and money flow.

 

[Kad5]

Yes let's put our dick in the bear trap great idea

 

[mr2t]

Well you guys can keep complaining about not wanting to waste tax dollars, but there are civilians being gassed. You don't get to say you stand for human rights then stand by and do nothing while military atrocities are being committed against innocent people.

Oh lawd. How many civilians have been gassed?

 

[Tacitus_]

Yeah, this is not going to go through the UN due to Russia and I doubt that that the US has the political will to do it without it.

 

[hym]

You know in a fight between Bashaar Al-Asaad and Al-Qaeda types my personal approach would be to stay the fuck away from the conflict itself and try to set up some refugee camps for civillians to try to alleviate their suffering.

You could also simply root for the cutest couple:

 

[koryuken]

Here's a radical opinion: The United States should not involve itself in the affairs of Syria. It's not in our right to pick and choose which government we support in the country. We should just stay out of the conflict and focus on our own problems, of which there are MANY.

I agree. Constantly putting our noses into other people's business is what prompts retaliatory acts of terrorism. I am not saying that we should bow down to the threat of terrorism, but pursuing the same course of action is going to end with very similar results. (In addition to more debt.)

 

[SnakeswithLasers]

I enjoy reading GAF for the reactions to wicked problems that require a lot of finesse, gray area navigation, and complex and dynamic requirements.

 

[Fularu]

I enjoy reading GAF for the reactions to wicked problems that require a lot of finesse, gray area navigation, and complex and dynamic requirements.

Especially when none of them (beside Sentry and me as far as I know) are Syrian and they, somehow, know better than us what we want and need for our country.

It would be funny if the situation there wasn't so dire.

 

[Freezie KO]

Well, having a "plan" can't hurt... right...?

 

[Socreges]

Especially when none of them (beside Sentry and me as far as I know) are Syrian and they, somehow, knwo better than us what we want andneed for our country.

It would be funny if the situation there wasn't so dire.

Please inform me (us) as to what all Syrians want and need for their country.

 

[Stridone]

Helping Islamic radicals to take over the country? Sounds like an excellent plan.

 

[liger05]

Is there any chance of this actually happening regardless of what Russia says?

 

[Fularu]

Please inform me (us) as to what all Syrians want and need for their country.

A non islamist entity fueled by foreign financial and military help, mostly from Qatar and Saudi Arabia (bastions of democracy and freedom). A head of state who isn't some western country's puppet on strings, non ingerence within our own matters.

That's not a whole lot to ask, ya know.

 

[BeerSnob]

There is absolutely no way this ends well.

 

[dripdripsplash]

You could also simply root for the cutest couple:

It's amazing how one single user on NeoGAF has the ability to project so much hyperbole all on his own!

I applaud you sirr for also taking your time to do the same in the Syrian Civil War OT too!

 

[SnakeswithLasers]

There is absolutely no way this ends well.

Quite astute.

 

[Stridone]

It's amazing how one single user on NeoGAF has the ability to project so much hyperbole all on his own!

I applaud you sirr for also taking your time to do the same in the Syrian Civil War OT too!

He is actually the one of the only level-headed and informed posters on the subject it seems, unlike you who seems to be clouded by religious affiliation.

 

[Crisco]

As a side note, I'm not entirely sure this is at all significant and probably just the media trying to stir up some ratings. The Pentagon has had plans for establishing a no fly zone in Syria for over a year.

 

[Fularu]

It's amazing how one single user on NeoGAF has the ability to project so much hyperbole all on his own!

I applaud you sirr for also taking your time to do the same in the Syrian Civil War OT too!

What's wrong about that picture? I mean, Al'Nusra (the main rebel force) is allied to AQ... same with most of the islamic groups fighting in Syria (Al Faruk and co)...

So unless you want (a la Kobashi) a Califate in Syria (good luck with that), I cant see how you would root for the so called "rebels".

 

[nib95]

How about America just stay the fuck out? You could not have a worse track record if you were trying to think of a villain for a Bond film. Replacing a secular democracy in Iran with the Shah, training Afghani's in military jihad, putting Saddam in power and arming him with WMD's etc etc. They need to just leave it alone.

 

[leroidys]

You could also simply root for the cutest couple:

OK al-Zawahiri is really working those puppy dog eyes. I'm sold.

 

[Socreges]

A non islamist entity fueled by foreign financial and military help, mostly from Qatar and Saudi Arabia (bastions of democracy and freedom). A head of state who isn't some western country's puppet on strings, non ingerence within our own matters.

That's not a whole lot to ask, ya know.

Without knowing anything about you, it's difficult for me to know when the sarcasm begins and ends.

Anyway, I'm curious. What proportion of Syrians (roughly speaking) do you feel want a secular state, as opposed to those who want Islamist rule?

 

[Slavik81]

In other news, this is just a proxy war for Liquefied Natural Gas.

Israel, Russia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the US, etc, could give three shits who kills which civilians. A dead kid is just a narrative for the news sadly.

Why would the US want liquefied natural gas from Syria? The North American market is flooded with natural gas.

 

[Fularu]

Without knowing anything about you, it's difficult for me to know when the sarcasm begins and ends.

Anyway, I'm curious. What proportion of Syrians (roughly speaking) do you feel want a secular state, as opposed to those who want Islamist rule?

The vast majority. Otherwise, there's no way the regime would have stayed in power. Most of my syrian contacts (be it friends or family) absolutely despise the "rebels" and their means of gaining power.

As I said, there's a "Patriotic" opposition in Syria, opposed to war and working for the Nation's cohesion and talking with the power in place in order to fix things diplomatically. Something the "Exiled" opposition and the "Rebels" always refused to do, they want the west to hand them the power.

If you need to know, my family leans heavily toward the opposion left.

 

[Socreges]

The vast majority. Otherwise, there's no way the regime would have stayed in power. Most of my syrian contacts (be it friends or family) absolutely despise the "rebels" and their means of gaining power.

As I said, there's a "Patriotic" opposition in Syria, opposed to war and working for the Nation's cohesion and talking with the power in place in order to fix things diplomatically. Something the "Exiled" opposition and the "Rebels" always refused to do, they want the west to hand them the power.

If you need to know, my family leans heavily toward the opposion left.

Interesting. Is this opposition not also aiming to oust Asaad?

Is there a class element to the political divisions? ie, the middle/upper class seeks to maintain most of the power structure and thus their place in society?

 

[Fularu]

Interesting. Is this opposition not also aiming to oust Asaad?

Is there a class element to the political divisions? ie, the middle/upper class seeks to maintain most of the power structure and thus their place in society?

The opposition obviously wants to take power, but through diplomatic means and with the "blessing" of the Syrian population.

Most class elements are represented, save for the rural syrians (mostly)

 

[Sanky Panky]

Why would the US want liquefied natural gas from Syria? The North American market is flooded with natural gas.

I think the US is more in the position of "helping friendly allies", be it Saudi Arabia that wants to block Qatar from building a pipeline to Turkey, or Europe that is ready for some non-Russian LNG (or further misguided attempts to "control" with governments). Of course, Russia is not happy about that. Israel, I have no clue what their deal is, I don't think it's concern for their own citizens.

 

[weremichael]

Saudi Arabia (bastions of democracy and freedom)

????

Isn't Saudi Arabia an absolute monarchy which is based completely on the religious teachings of Islam???? If that is your view of a bastion of democracy and freedom, we need to talk.

I honestly don't know what is right in this situation. Like others, I smell a money trail that leads to fossil fuels. That doesn't mean that I should care any less for the folks caught in the crossfire between the two sides.

 

[hym]

It's amazing how one single user on NeoGAF has the ability to project so much hyperbole all on his own!

I applaud you sirr for also taking your time to do the same in the Syrian Civil War OT too!

Says the person who didn't even know of or comprehend the ideologies of the opposition he's supporting.

Oh but you really support the Muslim Brotherhood right and not the crazies? guess what, they are the crazies wearing a suit, explore Qutbism.

Supporting Islamism is easy if you are safely tucked away in the west protected by our freedoms but you aren't even willing to see how destructive it is to the Middle East and even Turkey now.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan “If you are going to drink [alcohol], then drink your alcohol in your house,”

 

[Fularu]

????

Isn't Saudi Arabia an absolute monarchy which is based completely on the religious teachings of Islam???? If that is your view of a bastion of democracy and freedom, we need to talk.

I honestly don't know what is right in this situation. Like others, I smell a money trail that leads to fossil fuels. That doesn't mean that I should care any less for the folks caught in the crossfire between the two sides.

That was sarcasm about Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

 

[mr2t]

Kinda strange how we sat by when Saudi Arabia crushed the democratic uprising in Bahrain.