Will They? Or, Won't They?

[CrotchetyGeezer]

So, who thinks Syria takes the punk-in-chief seriously enough to not employ the use of chemical weapons?

 

[Oldguy]

Assad would be a fool not to. Obama has never shown a reluctance to use military power when it's appropriate and in our interests. Ask Khaddify and the Somalian pirates about that.

 

[CrotchetyGeezer]

Assad would be a fool not to. Obama has never shown a reluctance to use military power when it's appropriate and in our interests. Ask Khaddify and the Somalian pirates about that.

LOL! Obama, nor did the U.S., kill Khadaffy and, the Somalian pirates were small potatoes compared to venturing into military conflict with Syria. Syria is going to be more like Iraq was. Let's see if he's got the people surrounding him who were as good as Schwarzkopf and all the rest involved with the beginning of Desert Storm. He can oversee the take out of one guy such as supposedly bin Laden, he can oversee the take out of a small band of Somali pirates and he can send in U.S. military aircraft to conduct a few token missions in Libya but, let's see if he's got the backbone go against a slightly stronger country militarily and, if he's got the people surrounding him who know WTF it is they're doing.

 

[BallsBrunswick]

Who's the Punk-in-Chief? Iggy Pop?

 

[CrotchetyGeezer]

Who's the Punk-in-Chief? Iggy Pop?

Guess again.

 

[squinch]

Who's the Punk-in-Chief? Iggy Pop?

Guess again.

Joey Ramone?

 

[CrotchetyGeezer]

Who's the Punk-in-Chief? Iggy Pop?

Guess again.

Joey Ramone?

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ctus3UjJrpo]Jeopardy 1998 PC - All Alex Trebek's Wrong Answer Quotes - YouTube[/ame]

 

[OKTexas]

If he does anything in Syria it would most likely be some well placed cruse missiles. I doubt he would do more than that.

 

[waltky]

Assad hangin' on by his fingernails...

Al-Assad losing control but showing no signs of leaving
December 13th, 2012 - The Syrian president's control is crumbling at an accelerating pace but the latest assessment by U.S. intelligence finds few indications Bashar al-Assad is willing to step down, according to U.S. officials.

While Obama administration officials have said during the nearly two-year conflict that it appears al-Assad is weakened, the descriptions provided to CNN by U.S. officials familiar with the latest intelligence suggest the Syrian leader's problems have accelerated internally as the opposition continues to capture more territory. "It's at its lowest point yet," said one senior U.S. official with direct knowledge of the latest assessments. U.S. intelligence believes the decline has accelerated in recent weeks. "The trend is moving more rapidly than it has in the past." The officials agreed to talk on the condition their names not be used because they were not authorized to discuss the information with the media.

The description comes as a key Russian official suggested candidly that al-Assad could very well be defeated by the rising opposition fighters. "The regime and the government in Syria are losing more and more control and more and more territory," Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bodganov told a Russian government committee. "Unfortunately, we cannot rule out the victory of the Syrian opposition." The remark was unusually frank from Moscow, given that until very recently Russia had publicly brushed aside suggestions al-Assad was losing control. Still, few think it will lead to a change in Russia's stance to block efforts to force him to leave government.

Obama officials have publicly warned that al-Assad could resort to more drastic means to fight the opposition as he becomes more desperate. Intelligence in recent weeks has found indications the Syrian military was mixing precursors for chemical weapons and loading them into bombs, though after public outcry and warnings from leaders around the globe there were signs that activity has "leveled off," according to Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta. "But my concern is this: that as the opposition continues to move against the regime, particularly as they move towards Damascus, that if the regime feels that it's in danger of collapsing, that it might very well resort to these kinds of weapons. That's what concerns me the most," Panetta said in an interview this week with CNN's "Erin Burnett OutFront."

This week brought new concerns - that the Syrian military had fired Scud missiles at rebels, according to U.S. officials. The White House spokesman said the use was a sign of al-Assad's "utter depravity" and a U.S. official said it could represent a "growing sense of desperation" by the government. But others within the U.S. government suggest the move might be more tactical than desperate. If al-Assad is trying to keep his aircraft out of the range of opposition's surface-to-air missiles, the Scuds let him fire from much farther away and still reach into opposition territory, according to a U.S. intelligence assessment.

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[blackhawk]

I truly think if Assad feels his back his against the wall and using chemical weapons is his only hope holding onto power he will do it and I don't think the rest of the world will intervene if he does moreover I think he knows this.

 

[zakdavis]

I think Assad is more scurd of Russia then the US.

 

[Duped]

If he uses chemical weapons it will expedite his demise - even with Obama, but he won't go overthrow him.

 

[Oldguy]

Hey, Assad! Does this tell you anything?

 

[blackhawk]

Hey, Assad! Does this tell you anything?

You do know Syria has very good air defenses right? Which is one of the main reasons we have not set up a no fly zone in Syria like we did in Libya somehow I don't think a drone will get the job done there.

 

[Oldguy]

Hey, Assad! Does this tell you anything?

You do know Syria has very good air defenses right? Which is one of the main reasons we have not set up a no fly zone in Syria like we did in Libya somehow I don't think a drone will get the job done there.

Iran has very good air defenses too, but our drones are over there every day.

 

[waltky]

Wonder if any of `em know how to fly a plane?...

Syrian rebels seize key air base, activists say
Jan 11,`13 -- Islamic militants seeking to topple President Bashar Assad took full control of a strategic northwestern air base Friday in a significant blow to government forces, seizing helicopters, tanks and multiple rocket launchers, activists said.

The Taftanaz air base in the northern Idlib province is considered the biggest field in the country's north for helicopters used to bomb rebel-held areas and deliver supplies to government troops. Rebels from al-Qaida affiliated Jabhat al-Nusra and other Islamic groups have been fighting for weeks for control of the sprawling facility and broke into it on Wednesday evening. Activists said the rebels seized control of buildings, ammunition and military equipment after ferocious fighting at dawn. "As of now, the rebels are in full control of the air base," said Idlib-based activist Mohammad Kanaan.

The rebels had been attacking Taftanaz for months, launching a fresh offensive on it in early November. While its fall will embarrass the regime and dent helicopter operations, it will do little to stop airstrikes by government jets, many of which come from bases farther south. It is also unclear if the rebels will be able to retain control of the facility. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which relies on a network of activists on the ground, said government warplanes bombed the air base after the rebel takeover Friday.

Rami Abdul-Rahman, director of the Observatory, said it is the first major military airport to fall into rebel hands. The rebel assault was part of a wider campaign to chip away at the Syrian government's air supremacy, which it has relied upon increasingly over the past year as it lost control of large swaths of territory. Airstrikes by warplanes and helicopters have proved the main obstacle to opposition fighters. Amateur videos posted online by activists showed rebels celebrating inside the air base, some kneeling and kissing the ground and others showing off booty including multiple rocket launchers.

Kanaan, the activist in Idlib, said the rebels seized tanks and helicopters at the base, but added that most if not all of the helicopters were damaged from the fighting and were nonfunctional. "The regime bombed them to keep the rebels from using them," he said. The Observatory said around 20 helicopters were captured but that none were in working order. While acknowledging that the capture of the base itself would not stop government airstrikes, Kanaan said the achievement, and seizure of ammunition, put "another big nail in the coffin of the regime."

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[blastoff]

It would be very nice if Assad eventually faced the kind of street justice his buddy Moammar experienced.