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Thursday, April 6, 2017

Stop the Hysteria On Syria

In one form or another, the media is collectively hyperventilating over what President Trump will do in Syria in response to the chemical weapons attack by the Assad forces on civilians.  I've heard debates over the wisdom of "Trump's plan for regime change" (even though there is no such plan).  I've also heard pundits warn about how American action would put Russian troops in danger and could easily lead to World War III.  Then there are the people who are still questioning whether or not it really was Assad's forces who used the chemical weapons.  In many ways, it's like watching mass hysteria.

It needs to stop.  Americans need to wait to hear from President Trump how he proposes to respond to the Syrian war crimes.  It's unlikely that the President is going to want to start an invasion of Syria to oust Assad.  Anyone who has listened to candidate Trump knows that such a move is not favored by the President.  Similarly, anyone who has listened to the President's comments of the last few days must understand that Trump understands just how damaging to US credibility it would be to do nothing now against Trump.

The most likely outcome is a focused attack on a well curated list of targets.  If America takes away much of the Assad regime's ability to use poison gas, there is no need to go further.  It's a warning move and the message is clear.  Assad will understand that further use of chemical weapons will bring even worse results for his future.

Another positive to come from such an attack would be the restoration of American credibility.  The North Koreans would understand, for example, that a threat from President Trump to act against that country is real and cannot be ignored.

No matter what happens, it's important that both the chicken little brigade on one side and the war mongers on the other side have to tone things down.

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