The Battle for Aleppo is the Battle of Stalingrad for Syria.
The city is Syria's commercial hub, its largest by population, and whoever wins Aleppo wins the war. Whoever loses Aleppo dies, meaning Basher Assad or the rebel cause. The human toll is already immense, involving some 200,000 refugees and uncounted casualties. Assad's forces have assaulted the city with tanks, helicopter gunships and now warplanes. The rebels have broadcast video showing brutal ersatz execution of Syrian soldiers. This is the endgame of the Syrian civil war.
Only the US can stop the slaughter. How? By clearing the skies over Aleppo of Syrian planes and helicopters, and by destroying Assad's armored corps. This is exactly how Libya was handed to the Libyan rebels on a silver platter - taking out Ghadafi's armor. In fact, it was an air attack on Ghadafi's escaping armored column which sealed Libya fate, by causing Ghadaffi's capture and death, ultimately. Tanks, air power, and artillery are a lead pipe cinch to annihilate the rebels in their pick up trucks and AK-47's. Every time. Guaranteed. It is no contest.
So where is the United States? Well, Obama is campaigning in Ohio. And Hillary is scoring useless diplomatic points at the U.N. Security Council. And Obama is on the phone with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan tryin to "coordinate efforts to accelerate a political transition in Syria." While fingering a baseball bat. Very lame. What is really says is that Obama is entirely throwing in the towel on Syria, and will not intervene.
So the question remains - why was Obama so eager and willing to attack Libya, and is now running and hiding out in Ohio, and cannot be dragged, not even kicking and screaming, into doing the right thing in Syria?. Why?
The answer, of course, like the answer to every other question for Obama, is always the same. The campaign comes first. Tens of thousands may be being killed in Syria, and more and more every day. But the campaign comes first.
After he is re-elected, Obama will have, as he told former Russian President Medvedev, why then he "will have more flexibility". But not yet.
Bullies don't like to pick fights they are not guaranteed to win. So the cowardly bully, Obama, had no problem attacking Libya with impunity. There was no risk there. But wait a minute. Syria has Putin and Russia behing him. Oh no. Syria is not at all a slam dunk. Assad could win. Yikes.
This entirely determines Obama's response. Intervention is too risky. Meaning too risky to re-election. God forbid, if the US intervenes and then there is no quick resolution in Syria, meaning before November 6, then Obama will be blamed, and his defeat will be sealed. Way too risky. Better to make another campaign trip to Ohio.
But you can't do nothing. So fire up the PR machine. Obama's PR machine is making the best of this losing proposition. So the campaign releases word of a 'secret' finding signed by Obama relative to covert CIA operations in Syria. Macho man. And the campaign releases of a photo of Obama on the phone with Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan, while fondling a baseball bat. These are PR macho man ploys. Very similar, incidentally, to the macho man bare chested pictures of Putin riding a horse, or next to a tiger, of last year. Hilarious, if it wasn't so tragic..
So this is what US intervention has come down to.
Everyone knows that saving Syria is really up to only the United states of America. Europe will never ever act on its own, and will only will follow the US, just like it did in Libya.
So the United States, they guardian of freedom and liberty in the world, right now, this minute, today, is the last best hope for thousands of Syrian civilians, who are about to die. Will Obama do the right thing? Fogetaboutit.
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