US launches Tomahawks on Syrian airbases

a reply to: kloejen

Any military worth anything will have an entire collection of everything needed to strike anywhere at anytime.
We would be foolish to think that they sit around twiddling their thumbs waiting for a reason to plan something.
It would be incompetent to not prepare for every eventuality. It would also leave our country vulnerable.
I'm sure they have detailed plans in many scenarios to strike almost anywhere.

originally posted by: Vector99
They have radar flight patterns, and a reported chemical attack. It's just as likely that they hit a rebel compound storing chemical weapons and unknowingly released a chemical attack as it is that they perpetrated an actual chemical attack.

How quickly we forget. The US made exactly this mistake during the Gulf War in the 1990's. The US hit what turned out to be Saddam's store of nerve gas, and a big plume was send into the surrounding area.

There is ZERO definitive evidence, and there shouldn't have been such a sudden strike, ESPECIALLY considering it seems 30+ of the missiles missed their target.

I think this is just a token response. Even if Trump knows or suspects this was a false flag attack, he needs to look like he's responding.

Double-post deleted.

originally posted by: Vector99

originally posted by: Indigo5

originally posted by: Dr UAE
a reply to: Indigo5

How did kids end up in that equation?

you tell me, i was the one asking the question, they are claiming that 4 children died in the strike

I will have to research when work slows down today...But obvious answers are it's propaganda, or Assad planted some kids there having advance notice of the attacks for propaganda purposes, or some bizzare mistake where kids showed up to play after the evacuation.

The civilian casualties were not on the airbase. They were missiles that missed and landed in villages.

For effs sake...We put men on the moon and have cars that drive themselves, but we can't aim a missile???

I shake my head when crappy 2nd tier nations have crappy missile technology that misses targets...What is our excuse?

THAT is effed up..all debate around whether we should have done this or not aside..When we do strike, we shouldn't be crossing our fingers we hit what we are aiming at. My car knows where I am from outer space down to 3 feet.

originally posted by: bigfatfurrytexan
a reply to: Vector99

"missed their target"....

I'd suspect that most of them hit exactly where they were supposed to hit.

The entire affair was baloney. I can't believe that our 'intelligence' would know where any chemical components entered the theater. It was just an opportunity to knock out some targets with "missed shots" .

Ehh that's possible, but there haven't been reports of other collateral damage outside the civilian casualties. However, it's really unlikely either Russia or Syria would report successful strikes of 'other' targets given that DC has already committed to the story of 59 fired at the airbase.

It was a dumbass, premature response either way. Wait for the international investigation then it could at least be justified if found true.

a reply to: kloejen


That isn't news..


US Military is in a constant state of planning for all and any potential actions..


Of course they had a pre-planned menu of possible strikes and were prepared..


In some dark back room of the pentagon there is probably a plan ready to invade mexico as well..


The fact the US had a plan long before they acted means nothing.

a reply to: TheRedneck

More than half the missiles fired missed.

*ETA -

No retaliation. No threats of retaliation. No escalation of hostilities.

Yea, none, if you watched FOX or CNN. None at all, except this little issue.
Moscow suspends US-Russian memorandum on flight safety over Syria

"The Russian side suspends the memorandum on the prevention of incidents and on ensuring the safety of flights in the course of operations in Syria, concluded with the United States," the statement runs. "We urge the United Nations Security Council to meet in urgent session to discuss the current situation."

Yea, absolutely NOTHING could go wrong there.

a reply to: TheRedneck

Excellent post and good analysis.

Everyone was all doom and gloom and WW3 last night.

Today, most foreign leaders are happy, many people in Syria are happy, most in Congress are happy.
Trump is being praised for the decisive action from all over the world.
The people not happy are mostly those you would expect, such as Iran.
Russia is not happy. Isn't that what the Trump haters wanted? Russia knows that Trump is not in his back pocket.

America is back! And I am proud to be an American with president Trump.

a reply to: TheRedneck
Thank you for taking the time to type all that out. It was an excellent post and states well the many problems that I had when I woke up this morning also.

And like you, I have slowly changed my mind. I just don't have a way with words like you and you said what I was trying to convey in my posts.

originally posted by: TheRedneck
Wow, thread is growing!

Yesterday, when the air strikes were reported, there was a knot in my stomach that would have stopped Jupiter from spinning. Syria is an extremely complex situation, and one in which we, ourselves, are very involved behind the scenes. Russia has loomed over that conflict like a big ol' bear watching her cubs play. And the stakes are much higher than most people realize.

Then Trump decimated an air base, seemingly on a whim, in open defiance of a Russian warning. Oops!

But I woke up this morning to the news, watching to see the Russian response... or the UN condemnation... or Turkey going off the deep end and 'helping' by blowing a few dozen MIGs out of the sky... but nothing. No retaliation. No threats of retaliation. No escalation of hostilities.

Damn!

I already said earlier that if this had to be done, it was done perfectly. No warning, no posturing, just take out the offending entity (in this case an air base) and be done with it. My concern was whether the decision to launch was appropriate. It apparently was. Objective accomplished with no US casualties and a minimum of foreign casualties. No prolonged escalation. We just did it.

Now I wonder, why was I hesitant? Why did I worry, when the need for a statement was so obvious? Could it be that living under the 8-year occupation of Obama, listening to the skewed pseudo-news, watching the cowardly gyrations of the retreater-in-chief, have taken more from me than just a job, an income, and opportunity? Could it have stripped the very heart from me and softened me to the point I was actually starting to think in terms of "We can't" instead of "Hide and Watch"?

If so, that is something I can never forgive the DNC and Obama for. Ever. This fiercely proud Independent just came closer to being Republican that he has ever been.

Donald Trump once claimed, to the sarcastic jeers of his distractors, that he "knew more about ISIS than the generals." At the time, I took it as just another play to the crowd. Today I wonder, maybe, just maybe, he was serious and he was right.

Welcome back, Land of the Free and Home of the Brave! Thank you, Donald J. Trump!

TheRedneck

Oh brother you shouldn't be happy i promise you that. you should not thank trump for this.Syria is the only barrier left between you folks and some bearded goons currently trying to occupy it.

"when the need for a statement was obvious?" yeah sure. and it was just a simple coincidence that ISIS attacked Syrian military exactly after US attacks and in the exact same region? the whole world thanks you for being the airforce for ISIS.

everyone knows US has a bigger military (AKA di!Ck) than anybody else. there is no need to show it to everyone every couple of years.

when was your statement when Iraq launched the biggest chemical attacks in history on Iran? where is your statement now in Yemen where women and children are getting vaporized on a daily basis? where was your statement when 100 kids were brutally murdered by US airstikes just a couple of weeks ago?

hypocrisy anyone?

originally posted by: TheRedneck
Wow, thread is growing!



I already said earlier that if this had to be done, it was done perfectly. No warning, no posturing, just take out the offending entity (in this case an air base) and be done with it.

The opposite..

Full notice, full warning..The pentagon gave Russia/Assad full notice to evacuate men and equipment.

Posturing was exactly what this was.

Donald Trump once claimed, to the sarcastic jeers of his distractors, that he "knew more about ISIS than the generals." At the time, I took it as just another play to the crowd. Today I wonder, maybe, just maybe, he was serious and he was right.

No.. I'm pretty sure he didn't know more about ISIS than the generals. Or even now. He couldn't even name important names of opposition leaders, and when asked about it, got testy and said he'd hire people for that info. Which honestly is exactly what happened.

The only reason this happened decisively is because he has a militaristic administration now, and didn't bother to get the ok of Congress. I am actually ok with the strike, as long as it ends there. This wasn't a brilliant ploy by Trump. It was the military finding that plane info.. verifying it was their government.. and then heavily recommending this already pre-planned strike. All he did was say.. "Ok.. let's do it." Or something along those lines.

When you hire a bunch of militaristic help, these are the sorts of responses you are going to get to these sorts of situations. As long as they hold in check their desire to blow the crap out of anything or anything that doesn't agree with them.. might be fine. But there is a much greater chance at escalating a situation even to war, under this President, than under the previous.

a reply to: haman10

I'm with you Haman, I honestly don't understand how people don't see the implications involved given Moscow's response on the issue.

American jets will be shot down in response, it's almost guaranteed.

originally posted by: Vector99
a reply to: haman10

I'm with you Haman, I honestly don't understand how people don't see the implications involved given Moscow's response on the issue.

American jets will be shot down in response, it's almost guaranteed.

Vector you really need to calm down. NO ONE is shooting down US planes, nor will they!

a reply to: BlueAjah

i agree, keeping ships over there without any plan is stupid, Syria is country that has at least 21 air bases, so of course they have plans for every one of them in advance.

originally posted by: Vector99
a reply to: haman10

I'm with you Haman, I honestly don't understand how people don't see the implications involved given Moscow's response on the issue.

American jets will be shot down in response, it's almost guaranteed.

No they wont.

This was done with Putin's full advanced knowledge, if not tacit approval.

Trump needed a PR win and Russia and Assad were given notice and time to evacuate all men and equipment they felt vital.

Any planes that got lost were very likely in maintenance and unable to fly.

This is nothing more than a news cycle that serves both Putin and Trump well...both talking tough.

This was for show.

a reply to: Martin75

A few hours ago Russia just pulled out of the memorandum that guaranteed safe passage to US jets in Syria.

They also have broken off all military cooperation as of a few hours ago.

You really don't see an issue there?

originally posted by: Vector99
a reply to: haman10

I'm with you Haman, I honestly don't understand how people don't see the implications involved given Moscow's response on the issue.

American jets will be shot down in response, it's almost guaranteed.

Bro for me this is not about the complications following this strike.

its about the morality of such action.

First of all this is a violation of Syrian territorial integrity which is in clear violations of UN rules. these rules are there for a reason. US cannot just defy them because they have more power. we're also more powerful than 90% of the world (militarily speaking) should we attack them too cause we see fit? is this a jungle ?

secondly and more importantly, there is absolute no logical reason behind this act of war. Syria has absolutely no reason to launch a chemical attack in this volatile situation. this is ridiculous. moreover let me ask you sth: who is more likely to use chemical weapons? Syria or FSA terrorists?

thirdly and most importantly: What was this strike going to achieve?

let me tell you what it did: it greatly diminished Syrian power in her combat against ISIS and gave the upper hand to ISIS and their beheader folks.

US just acted as the Airforce for ISIS. this is what it achieved .

originally posted by: Indigo5



Full notice, full warning..The pentagon gave Russia/Assad full notice to evacuate men and equipment.

Posturing was exactly what this was.

then, also look at the damage inflicted... 6 MIGs in a service hangar, the runway intact... the out buildings nd 2nd tier storage buildings were hit, the Traffic Control Tower was spared....(the damage reminded me of the Coalition Attacks & bombing of ISIS held sand dunes)

wiggle room is the end result of the 'posturing' via illegal attack spurred on by a false flag chemical attack blamed on Assad & by implication Russia


I bet it is soon discovered that Libyan Sarin Gas got into the clutches of anti-Assad rebels like the attack from a few years back (anti-Assad forces like IS/ISIS/AQ/ al Nursa, all the Terrorist-Jihadists rolled-into-one Caliphate force)





Plus

Trump, can, if needed... play the 'new evidence card'... as unfolding info comes about revealing that the IC (intel community) holdovers from the Obama regime, deliberately provided Trump with false info. ---- Trump can then deny he acted wrongly to a united condemnation of unlawful & unethical uses of chemical weapons - but - did indeed have the wrong targets as the culprits.... thus plausible deniability is preserved and the Dooms-Day clock can be set back to the earlier 11 minutes-to-midnight status

a reply to: Indigo5

No, it wasn't. Think what you want. This was an unprecedented move. I would be willing to bet within 2 weeks an American jet is downed in Syria.