Tom Toles for August 28, 2013

Barry’s Imaginal Line.

Assad, you are a barbarian and evil as they come!

The sad thing here is that the right wing in this country doesn’t really give a damn what Assad does, they’re just salivating because Obama is in a tight spot, and whatever decision he makes they will jump all over and use it to trash him (even if it is successful).They want the President to fail much more than they want an end to the slaughter in Syria.

Someone recently made the comment, “If you hate government so much, quit running for public office.”Seems logical, at least to those of us capable of logic.

I read some poll numbers, 70% of Republicans, and 70% of Democrats think we should not get involved in Syria. Who said the two parties could not agree on anything?

Hahahah! By the way, who is it pressing Obama to jump into Syria? Oh yeah, McCain.

Gotta keep the perpetual war machine going since the rich need to get richer and the only good paying jobs are in the military.

And when the cruise missiles start taking out Assad’s war machine the cons will complain that we should send in ground troops.

Acts of war require congressional approval. A smart Obama should (and is legally required) to put this before congress. Shoe on the other foot, and with any luck, we’re not pulled into another illegal war.

I won’t disagree that Obama’s “line in the sand” comment was not the wisest choice. Having said that, he has to “put up or shut up.” But the situation in Syria is a powder keg, regardless of Obama’s comment.And that Putin is putting the Russian’s in Assad’s corner ups the stakes frighteningly. Syria could escalate into WW3 with a horrifying suddenness.Obama is in the same spot that Kennedy faced with the Cuban Missile Crisis. One wrong step could be a disaster for everyone.I’m not thrilled with Obama’s performance on this issue, but I think any American President would be equally ill-at-ease in this situation.That having been said, I stand by my assertion that the political right in this country are poised to condemn him regardless of his actions or the outcome. They care far more about political gain than they do about peace in the Middle East.

Biased, me?You bet’cha.But for a right wing appliance like yourself to dole out criticism for being biased is as comical and hypocritical as anything imaginable.You lot do “biased” like it was a holy calling.

Obama and the press are crossing the line of cynicism. They have been brazenly supporting the terrorists that they call “rebels” and “activists”. obviously intruding in a sovereign country’s internal affairs!

To hell with that logic; if Obama launches an attack against Syria, I’ll condemn Obama for it.I do not want to see the US in another Mid-East conflict. Our presence is not accomplishing anything positive, no matter how hard we try. I don’t support the notion of “Let them kill each other until there are none left” because, believe it or not, there are innocent people in Syria (and elsewhere) that don’t deserve to be slaughtered either by madmen or US bombs.Get the UN involved, invoke sanctions, use diplomacy (backed with strength), but bomb ONLY when there isn’t a single other option.And perhaps not even then.

Onguard: once again you prove you don’t know what you’re talking about, and throw in an effort at an insult.

CS used in tunnels in ‘Nam deprived the occupants of oxygen, and proved lethal, and the U.S. was charged at the time with proof of that. It isn’t INTENDED to be lethal, but in confined quarters, can be. Yes, I too have been exposed to CS, and used it, and it DOES make you want to be “elsewhere”. It also burns the skin, which CN does not, so it’s more miserable to be around.

“Whine about it when my guy has to make a tough decision”? Quote me once where I am whining. This is a real “put up or shut up” moment.As far as “The looks of sheer delight on their faces and the glee in their voices,” cite a single example, or provide a link. You’re all talk with nothing to back it up.And as far as “difficult to forget; for a reasonable person” is concerned, how do you figure into that equation in any way?

I will return the compliment re: a well thought out and reasonable argument, but I will contest some of your conclusions.As I have stated before, the mess in the Middle East is as old as written history, and it has provided a problematic situation for every American President for the last 200 years (back to the days of the Barbary pirates). This terrible situation is not all Obama’s fault, but I won’t deny that his handling of this situation has been less than masterful.It is a lose-lose situation, so why blame Obama for being caught in the same trap as so many of his predecessors?Is he doing well in this situation, not very, but he hasn’t made some of the damned-fool blunders of some of our more recent Presidents. And this is not a bed of his making, so it’s not exactly fair to say he has to lay in it.Out of curiosity, what would you do if you were the President? I’m not asking this to be rude or insulting, I am truly curious.I will readily admit, I’m not sure what I’d do (except perhaps pass it off to the UN and let it be their headache).

We Should sit this one out!