Islamic State surges in N.Iraq, near Kurdistan border

These guys need to be stopped. Call me a war monger but nothing good comes from the existence of ISIS in the world. Not the ISIS as defined today with the Iraq occupiers.

The ideal time was several months ago. The West looked on. The real threat was a couple months ago. Still nothing. Now a region of people may be wiped out.....TBD!

I agree, Mark - though I would hate to see "boots on the ground" if it could be avoided. Perhaps Turkey could play a role with the Kurds in the North-East, allowing the Iraqi army to concentrate on the South, while America provides air cover.

Drone the heck out of them. They confiscated abandoned Stinger missiles left behind by the retreating Iraqi Security forces. Dumbasses should have destroyed the equipment before retreat. So now, airstrikes are a risk. I said a month ago destroy the equipment they acquired. The trucks, tanks, Humvee's, known arms stocks, and..... Now its been dispersed and a greater targeting problem.

"This appalling slaughter underscores the true price of oil."

Discuss.

No coincidence this all happened after Saddam was toppled. I don't care what president withdrew the troops, which should have never been in Iraq invading in the first place.

What book(s) are they reading and following? So far, their actions truly belong to the dark age of human history. They are trying to reinvent the caliphate marching for world conquering by starting in Iraq as their ultimate price. To hell, of course.

@oldman

No coincidence this all happened after Saddam was toppled. I don't care what president withdrew the troops, which should have never been in Iraq invading in the first place.

Perhaps, not quite sure. regardless, turmoil was stewing anyway under Saddam, the clock was already ticking on him from 1990.

@sense

We do not get the majority of our oil from Iraq. What nonsense.

@Bass,

Since Ronald Reagan revoked the Fairness Doctrine, much of the US media is self-censoring, prone now to politico-corporate influences. Inconvenient truths don't make for lucrative careers, but they do help us develop critical thinking skills that see beyond the knee-jerk and soundbite.

The biggest oil producer is Tsar Vladimir, who can literally freeze Europe come winter. Next come the Saudis:

Prince Bandar bin Sultan, once the powerful Saudi ambassador in Washington and head of Saudi intelligence until a few months ago, had a revealing and ominous conversation with the head of the British Secret Intelligence Service, MI6, Sir Richard Dearlove. Prince Bandar told him: "The time is not far off in the Middle East, Richard, when it will be literally 'God help the Shia'. More than a billion Sunnis have simply had enough of them."

http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/comment/iraq-crisis-how-saudi-arabia-helped-isis-take-over-the-north-of-the-country-9602312.html

The potential disaster now facing the Arabs demands a new generation of Sunni leaders, able to defeat extremism within their own camp. That is something Saudi Arabia, whose Wahhabi absolutism is part of the genetic code of groups such as Isis, cannot do.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/ab1b61c4-1cb6-11e4-b4c7-00144feabdc0.html#axzz39lgI4nJq

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_oil_production

Authority should be given for unrestricted, concentrated air strikes against all idenfiable ISIS military targets, with the back-up threat of tactical battlefield nuclear weapons strikes. Then, once ISIS are in disarray and on the run, send in the best troops that the Iraqi military, the friendly militias and the Kurd peshmerga can muster on three fronts to finish the job.

I genuinely believe that, with a concerted strategy, ISIS can, and will be, defeated.

Since Ronald Reagan revoked the Fairness Doctrine, much of the US media is self-censoring, prone now to politico-corporate influences. Inconvenient truths don't make for lucrative careers, but they do help us develop critical thinking skills that see beyond the knee-jerk and soundbite.

The biggest oil producer is Tsar Vladimir, who can literally freeze Europe come winter. Next come the Saudis:

Please don't talk to me about the fairness doctrine, I worked, though briefly under it. But the problem was, there was nothing fair at all about it, more like Nazi-Journalism where you were made sure you don't say this or that, it was horrible, NOT to mention, it was one-sided and one of the main reasons in those days that conservatives didn't and really couldn't get a word in edge-wise, except on CNN-Crossfire and that was about it. With it gone since the media is already 98% liberal, reinstating it would benefit liberals only really, this way, it is more fair that the people can watch, listen and decide for themselves, they don't need the Nazi-Journalist watchers looking over their shoulder at whatever they write or speak about.

For the past 13 years, we have been told Islam is the religion of peace. When a man wants to burn a Koran in Florida, the world's media explodes. Now that Islamist are going to force convert people, destroy churches and let people starve, the world and the Muslim groups say nothing.

Even when the US was there in Iraq, great pains were made to not destroy any religious buildings and respect the local relious beliefs. I didn't see any report that these very same people who are being threatened by ISIS going around and making muslims convert and accept Christ at all, because if they would have, the media would have picked it up and ran with it.

This group, along with Boko Haram (we seem to have forgotten about that) are pushing their religious beliefs on others at the tip of an AK-47. Don't really see the media making that the point, but I have heard that this is all Bush's fault.

@Bass,

Nice deflection. What about the true price of oil?

@Alphaape

Now that Islamist are going to force convert people, destroy churches and let people starve, the world and the Muslim groups say nothing.

Do you actually bother to read what "Muslim groups" are saying?

From the Muslim Council of Britain's website:

"Whilst all of Iraq's leaders have a case to answer for the deepening divisions, often violently, in this fragile state; the depth and scale of barbarity attributed to ISIS is particularly unconscionable and is to be repudiated. Its actions are turning Iraqis further against each other, increasing sectarianism and are the driver of Muslims killing one another."

The only way to beat ISIS will be to join up with Assad.

Gee, why don't we just clone a new Saddam Hossein and call it a day? Both are (or were) tyrants representing a minority in their country and would do anything to remain in power.

Democracy requires time to take root. Even the United States took over a hundred years, including a civil war and various suffrage campaigns, before true democracy was realized. Turkey is doing a good job; the Kurds seem to have a clue; even Iran is far more democratic than Syria. Whether Iraq makes it or not, and in what form, is quite an open question - but teaming up with Assad would be the most asinine, short-sighted thing America could do.

3 hrs ago, President Barack Obama says he's authorized the U.S. military to carry out airstrikes in Iraq against Islamic militants if they advance toward the critical city of Irbil.

I see the Prez is sending in the bombers. what an unholy mess NATO started with the Iraq invasion.

Nice deflection. What about the true price of oil?

Wasn't a deflection as usual, you just wanted to gloss over the facts. But anyway, it is $97.34 You planning on buying?

@Bass,

The budget for proselytizing the intolerant Wahhabism beloved of ISIS and Boko Haram didn't come from selling sand:

Estimates of Saudi spending on religious causes abroad include "upward of $100 billion",[96] between $2 and 3 billion per year since 1975. (compared to the annual Soviet propaganda budget of $1 billion/year),[97] and "at least $87 billion" from 1987-2007

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wahhabi_movement#Funding_factor

bass4funkAug. 08, 2014 - 03:20PM JST

Nice deflection. What about the true price of oil?

Wasn't a deflection as usual, you just wanted to gloss over the facts. But anyway, it is $97.34 You planning on buying?

Bought some this morning prior to the news.

The only way to beat ISIS will be to join up with Assad.

Wow, didn't think I'd see a Russia saying the US needs to take the lead with Assad. But it's hard to disagree. Assad's alliance with Russia hasn't produced much.

Just ask us for help and we'll give it.

NATO started it?

I'd say G W Bush, Colin Powell, the "liberal" MSM and the 41% of Americans they brainwashed to think that Iraq was directly connected to the 9/11 attacks.

The same MSM that lied about the chemical weapons attack in Syria.

The same MSM that is demonizing Putin.

And the same MSM that divides us between Republicans and Democrats, presenting no clear vision for the future.

Let's ask Bush for his opinion!

More self-righteous Muslims bringing shame to Islam! Shame on you...when will all of you are going to wake up?

MarkG:

" These guys need to be stopped. Call me a war monger but nothing good comes from the existence of ISIS in the world. "

Well, yeah. But the first thing a sane Western government should do is STOP SUPPORTING them, via support of the Sunni jihadis in Syria.

Bombing them in Iraq while giving them weapons in Syria at the same time is the height of absurdity.

@global

And I am assuming, you will keep that barrel in your apartment?

@JapanGal

Let's ask Bush for his opinion!

More like, let's ask Obama for his opinion, but first we need to find him.

@Fizz

More Bush bashing? That's all you guys got. Some more would've, could've, should've the rest of the world moved on, I would suggest you do the same as well. I could start had Clinton taken out OBL, but who cares, it's the past, the current majesty that reigns supreme is Barack Hussein Obama, now keeping up with current events. Had Obama kept a sizable force and kept the SOFA agreement in place, we wouldn't probably be talking about ISIL without a doubt, this would not have happened. If you want to blame somebody else, blame the Americans that voted for this joker...twice. Keep it real, keep it current.

@sense

You are not making any sense. You make it seem like as if the relationship between the US and the Saudis is a bad thing.

bass4funkAug. 09, 2014 - 01:39AM JST

@global

And I am assuming, you will keep that barrel in your apartment?

NO, I am not specialized in commodity future.