The US air war in Iraq has moved into its second week, and they are continuing to announce new, broader war goals virtually every today, with the White House today announcing a new notification was sent to Congress.
President Obama informed Congress that the latest war goal, the Kurdish capture of Mosul Dam, would require US airstrikes to support it, and claimed the loss of the dam would be a threat to the US Embassy in Baghdad.
The Congressional reaction should be trivial, as both parties seem overwhelmingly pro-war at this point, and if anything are complaining that Obama’s repeated escalations fall short of their own designs for a massive new Iraq War.
Indeed, on the Sunday talk show circuit, Congressmen were not only pushing for escalation in iraq but also for expanding the war across the border into Syria, with many saying the only way to guarantee full victory over ISIS would be attacking them in both nations.
Obama initially made the war just about protecting US troops in Irbil, then expanded it to Baghdad as well, then broadened it further to denying ISIS territory, and is now focusing on the Mosul Dam.
The Kurdish Peshmerga reported taking “most” of the dam today, backed by the US strikes. Holding it is another matter, as the dam has been heavily contested for awhile. The ever-broadening US war goals don’t stop there, of course.
On Thursday, Anbar Province Governor Ahmed Khalaf al-Dulaimi reported a deal with the US on putting troops on the ground in the province, along with a substantial round of airstrikes aiming to chase ISIS out of the area.
The push for constant escalation was somewhat slowed last week when it was revealed that the “trapped Yazidi” crisis was largely untrue, and the Pentagon has since been openly talking about looking around for other opportunities for “humanitarian” intervention.
They won’t have to look far, because after the long US occupation, Iraq is still a trainwreck in a lot of places. The ISIS incursions have only made matters worse, and the US war will only add to that humanitarian crisis.
Telling in how long the US war is liable to take is that the British military, which is talking about joining the war to a limited extent to back the US, is saying their role will last months.
The myth of tens of tens of thousands of Yazidis rescued is still the dominant theme throughout main stream media.
Curiously we read how so many were killed and driven out when we invaded and occupied Iraq the first time, yet Bush the Good Christian didn't seem to care (Yazidis aren't OUR type of Christians…the same must hold true for the ones killed and driven out inside Syria).
Please tell they at least know who they're shooting at this time. I'm not looking forward to the eventual headline that Americans killed some Kurdish wedding party.
Learn to spell to OBAMA: Oh Bombs Ah! My America!
So, there is a reset button after all. It seems that the PTB have decided to undo Dubya's failure to "secure the realm (by securing the oil)"…or maybe it was to completely destroy the entire country of Iraq, mud brick by mud brick. The telltale sign will be whether they allow ISIS to slip in and destroy the Mosul dam – or maybe there is another of those pesky "mistakes" by the target acquisition team and the US does the deed themselves…ooops…sorry!! Our bad!! Here, we'll help rebuild it with our loyal hired engineering companies – you know the ones who use shoddy methods, not to mention substandard material.
Either way, they're going back to make sure the "Mission Accomplished" banner is once again relevant – and this time true.
President Shaft still cleaning up Bush the Lesser's mess.
I knew he would have to but for so long? A tribute to how bad that idiot f*cked up. But really, it is more of a continuation of the overall destabilization and destruction of Iraq that has been going on for over 20 long years.
Although USG policies since Barack Hussein Obama being in office been about militarization by all and every (friend on hands including ISIS) but as long as his orders about "destroying" ISIS is a good news, yet the plan in dividing Iraq and Syria, a demand by Joe Biden, Saudis, UAE still a life and USG/English and part of EU looking for the "moderate" Sunnis rebel to establish Joe Biden idea.
All and every plans presented by USG/English for last 60 years haven't been about democracy nor is going to, Iraq, Syria, Libya and in general Middle East is just a example, non of these militarization attitude or policies been produced anything but disastrous outcome for people of Middle East, supporting Israel apartheid, fascist regime is yet another, the creation if Ukrainian Neo fascism, oligarch regime is yet another.
USG and its "democratic" social and economic system is based on a militarism regime and vulture capitalism which president after president doing what the regime been told, start another war, plan for next coming war and the next meanwhile militarize a police state, for that the killing of a black American young man in ferguson witnessing the USG/federal/state policies.