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War, War, War See other War, War, War Articles Title: Washington Prepares for Ground War with Syria Washington Prepares for Ground War in Syria by Stephen Lendman How many simultaneous wars can America wage? How many more does Obama have in mind? As long as neocon lunatics run Washington's asylum, expect wars without end to rage - against one country after another until perhaps all planet earth is turned to smoldering rubble. On March 4, the Military Times headlined "Dempsey does not rule out US ground troops in Syria." Saying Joint Chiefs chairman General Martin Dempsey told House Appropriations Committee defense subcommittee members US forces may be sent to Syria. "If the commander on the ground approaches either me or the secretary of defense and believes that the introduction of special operations forces to accompany Iraqis or the new Syrian forces, or JTACS (joint tactical-air controllers), these skilled folks who can call in close-air support, if we believe that's necessary to achieve our objectives, we will make that recommendation," he said. Previous articles explained ISIS/ISIL/the Islamic State (IS) is Washington's pretext for war. Syria is the target. Regime change the longstanding objective. US recruited, armed, funded, trained and directed IS and other death squad killers are US proxy foot soldiers. So-called moderate rebels virtually don't exist. Washington imports thousands of ruthless terrorists from dozens of countries. It trains them in Turkey, Jordan and Georgia. It deploys them in Syria against Assad. It provides air support targeting Syrian infrastructure. Israel is very much involved. US combat troops are on the ground in Obama's Iraq War III. It may be just a matter of time before American ground and air power target Assad for removal directly. Air war alone doesn't work. IS terrorists are no match against Syria's military. Deploying US ground forces ups the stakes greatly. Dempsey's testimony differed greatly from what he said in July 2013. He warned Congress about "unintended consequences" of Syrian intervention. Saying once getting more heavily involved, it's hard pulling back. "We have learned from the past 10 years, however, that it is not enough to simply alter the balance of military power without careful consideration of what is necessary in order to preserve a functioning state," he explained. "We must anticipate and be prepared for the unintended consequences of our action." Each option considered entails costly uncertainties, he stressed. Arming and training opposition fighters is least risky. He estimated about "$500 million per year initially." Doing so requires "several hundred to several thousand troops." Limited air strikes entail "hundreds of aircraft, ships, submarines, and other enablers." Costs will run "in the billions." At best, efforts will achieve little more than "significant degradation of regime capabilities and an increase in regime desertions." Assad can withstand the strikes, he said. No-fly zone implementation requires "hundreds of ground and sea-based aircraft, intelligence and electronic warfare support, and enablers for refueling and communications." Dempsey estimated over $1 billion a month in cost. Implementation "may also fail to reduce the violence or shift the momentum because (Assad) relies overwhelmingly on surface fires - mortars, artillery, and missiles." Even limited no-fly zone protection costs over $1 billion a month. It entails having "thousands of US ground forces" to maintain it. Dempsey estimated up to 70,000 US troops needed for intervention as discussed at the time - with no assurance of success. The entire scheme could backfire. Greater regional conflict could follow turning a bad situation into potential disaster. Post-9/11 US wars haven't gone as planned. How many more defeats America can sustain remains to be seen. Defense Secretary Ashton Carter was appointed to wage more war. He's hawkish and then some. He supports US boots on the ground against Assad. What he intends next remains to be seen. It bears repeating. How many more wars does Obama have in mind? He's preparing Kiev for resuming full-scale war on Donbass. Previous articles explained maybe this time jointly with US ground forces and/or shock and awe air support. As long as lunatics make policy in Washington, the worst of all possible outcomes may follow. Things could escalate to humanity destroying global war. Be scared. Be very scared and get active to stop these maniacs before it's too late. Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago. He can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net. His new book as editor and contributor is titled "Flashpoint in Ukraine: US Drive for Hegemony Risks WW III." http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanIII.html Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com. Listen to cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on the Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network. It airs three times weekly: live on Sundays at 1PM Central time plus two prerecorded archived programs. Post Comment Private Reply Ignore Thread
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