The arguments going on in this thread about who to trust, our crooked govt or various groups/reporters on the ground in Syria, is kinda funny at times. Especially the blind trust in our govt - after we all spent the last year or two whining about how corrupt it has become - it's still mostly the same people as when Obama was president. Some Trump loyalists here act as if he/Mattis were there in person.
Anyway, your point about the Kurds is valid. Even more so, ask the Christians there, whose continued existence there after 2000 years is not assured if rebels win. The Orthodox Christians official statement is that the US and allies totally f'd up and are wrong to do what we did.
So, the only two groups I care about there are NOT falling in line with the Trump-can't-possibly-make-a-mistake crowd.
Regardless, candidate Trump also does not approve of what president Trump is doing - AT ALL!
And whoever people choose to believe about this one incident, nobody is going to win the war throwing around the same chemicals I use to clean my pool. Many, many more times the number of chlorine victims (if any this time) are killed by real weapons - which, of course, also ALL use chemicals to deliver fire and lead straight through both people and buildings.
What's the point of a red line anyway? Do we care about numbers of people killed or types of people killed? Or do we just care that a few might be killed by household chems? It's time to get more specific about WMD. Sure nukes and large-scale sarin (not easy) would be a red line type thing. Not chlorine.
As ex-Army myself, I don't see anything to be proud about. It was a simply a training / practice exercise, this was not a military victory - despite Trump's impression of George "mission accomplished" Bush.
Get the hell out, we are not going to stop Isaiah's prophecy in the long run!
Yes unfortunately, whether Assad or the vast majority of the Syrian opposition fighters (not 100% of the Syrian opposition; yes, there are “moderates” but they have never had a majority - in numbers - or a majority military role among the “Syrian opposition”), the west does not have much of a horse in THAT race. As I said, for me, as for the Kurds, it’s a different “war”, and a different history and I believe, for the west, it deserves a different response.