Ted Rall for September 16, 2013

Ted, I get the point, but is this the reality? Bombing is a lousy option, but are there really people living next to Assad’s suspected chemical weapons sites?You generally work from actual facts, just wondering if you’ve researched this one.

In fact, “putting civilians next to valid military targets” was used by Saddam Hussein during both Desert Storm and Operation Iraqi Freedom.[]In the former, Hussein made it a point to place missile launchers, radar sites, and whatnot within close proximity to mosques, hospitals, schools, and other such facilities in the hopes that we’d be too afraid to hit his targets for fear of hitting the structures. (He underestimated how far our bombing and missile technologies had come, allowing us to make the strikes with far less damage than he anticipated).[]In the latter, Hussein actually posted human shields in and around numerous targets – including a number of well-meaning but misinformed North American and European peaceniks – in the hope of making us think twice.

Our cruise missile strikes are likely to be like political polling: Mostly random and inaccurate.

The next war, wherever it is, will be like almost all of the previous ones. The rich and powerful use those that are not rich and powerful to fight their battles and die their deaths. Don’t bother to point out that our military is all volunteer; the draft we have now is an economic draft.

If you think Putin gives a care about the bombing and the death by Allah, you are mistaken.Putin supports Assad because Syria has been a long time ally of the Russians, as well as a customer for their military hardware. The naval station in Tartus is indeed important, & if Assad goes Russia is likely to lose their only Mediterranean port.Putin sees the Syrian rebels as cohorts to the jihadists within Russia. He truly sees his support of Assad as fighting terrorism. Tweaking Obama was just a bonus.

@Ted RallIt is great to know that you read the comments and take time to reply to them, but you may find, that as many of us have discovered, that getting in a discussion with a TROLL may be THE WORSE THING YOU HAVE EVER DONE!

Thanks for the cartoons, and the well thought out comments.

Assad IS a creepy dude, but he’s also yet another dictator from a minority religious element in his country, who’s been keeping the “politics” and repression out of his secular treatment of religious groups, like well, Christians. NOW, we’re again pushing for a violent overthrow, to install a radical SECTARIAN regime, though in Syria, nobody can yet predict which of the religious nuts will take over the future theocracy!!

Yes, ANY “targeting” WILL kill bystanders and there WILL be “collateral damage”. But that never bothered Bush and Cheney et al, or most Americans who have NO BUSINESS messing with Syria!!

Which, as we aren’t even to mid-term elections WTF are folks so concerned about already??? Oh, right, it’s the LOSERS who are most bent out of shape, and determined to influence the politics of what isn’t anywhere NEAR yet!!

Welcome back Ted.