I don't think you seem to feel the repercussions of what those lil' ol' consequences seem to be that I listed. Maybe the last recession didn't affect you if you made good money, but it most certainly affected middle class Main Street America who felt the pinch at the gas station, the supermarket, going out to eat, etc. Anything that relies on transportation and uses fuel to get commodities to their destinations will be affected by an all-out war.
Well, the experts are saying that the Syrian situation won't spike oil prices significantly. The NY Times has an article (site isn't allowing me to link it but you can Google the title), "Major Surge is Unlikely for Prices of US Gas", which isn't too surprising given how little Syria exports.
Unless, you have sources that say otherwise about US gas prices, I would consider that as a reason to not intervene.
Again, this does not affect our national security interests. If it did, I would have a different perspective. But it doesn't. To those people that were affected by this attack, I am sorry ... at the same time it is not the business of the United States' citizens. I understand that sounds cold, but after seeing what we've seen this past decade, enough is enough and the majority of the public wants the U.S. to reverse course on foreign policy. That was one of the key reasons Obama was elected. Most definitely was one of the key reasons I voted for him.
I don't think the Libyan revolution was in our interests either. Or the Rwandan Genocide when we decided to sit it out. Not having a personal tie to a crisis is no rule in whether you should get involved or not. I know if you saw a car accident, you wouldn't keep driving. You'd, at the very least, call 9-1-1-. Same reasoning here.
You don't know that, Lost. Sure, Obama can say that now that he is not looking to send boots there. That is assuming war doesn't break out. What happens if war does break out? I don't feel you are analyzing all of the possible outcomes and reactions to this lil' ol' strike Obama was planning. War breaking is most definitely a very real and I feel likely possibility. The armed forces will have to get involved if that occurs.
And you don't know that we will send in soldiers into Syria. You're letting the worst-case scenario guide you and how you feel on what should be done. (It's the Chicken Little approach to international diplomacy.) If the worst case scenario would look like it was going to happen, I'd think you and I would agree on staying out. But making Syria into a military giant, when it isn't, is far from reality. Israel has routinely antagonized it over the years and it has never directly responded to Israel.
I am not saying Syria will ever win a conflict with the United States or the team of Syria and Iran. What I am saying is that "it isn't our God-damned business", Lost. We have zero to gain by getting involved. Get rid of one dictator and replace him with an Al Qaeda-backed government. Wonderful.
Dennis Kucinich hit the nail on the head with this. Obama made the right move yesterday.
Obama is not doing regime change. Unless you have evidence to the contrary, bringing up that we're "get[ting] rid of one dictator" and replacing it with another is made up. Newt Gingrich of all people had a great point yesterday while on CNN when he said that some of the rebels are more anti-American than Assad is. And that's true. Obama would be a fool to tip the balance of power and create a power vacuum where these terrorist/rebels could take control of Syria. Obama is no fool. He won't allow this to happen.
Obama has stayed out of this conflict for two years, clearly wanting no part of it. And now that he feels obliged to respond military, people think he's going to send it to hell a hand basket by not exercising caution. Cautious is the best word to describe Obama's approach so far. He's refused to supply weapons and only agreed to do so months ago after the first incidences of chemical weapons. And, from what I've heard from rebel commanders, US weapons still haven't arrived.
Obama is clearly practicing restraint and caution.
