Airstrike on Syria (Photo: screen capture).
More than once, I’ve brought up the possibility of Trump starting yet another war, and I’ve been on edge for a while now, wondering when the fuck it was going to happen, because I think we all knew this was coming. The Tiny Tyrant is not bathing in adulation, he’s not everyone’s little baby, being cooed at. People are not happy, and they aren’t impressed. His low approval ratings are setting a whole new record. His Regime is a chaotic clusterfuck, his wife happily keeps her distance, while people are calling for her to get the fuck out of NYC, and no one in Florida wants the Trumps around anymore, as they are pure poison to plain folk, their wallets, and their businesses. There’s the collusion with Russia, the overwhelming evidence of corruption, fraud, and constitution violation. Donnie hasn’t gotten over his humiliation in not passing the Fuck You Care Plan, either. So, what’s a shallow, sociopathic idiot to do? War! Missiles! It’s the War on Terra 2.0!
And, just like with Bush, this is already working on at least some people, primarily the media it seems. Deciding to fire a missile from a long distance to slaughter people does not make a person “presidential”. Especially not in this case. Trump made this decision at his Mar-a-private club, without congressional approval. That’s not presidential. That’s a fucking dictator. And there’s something everyone really needs to remember – Trump does not give one shit about those Syrian children. Syria was on his personal hit list of bannination, and when he was campaigning, he compared Syrian refugees to venomous snakes. Don’t go thinking he had a sudden attack of empathy, he didn’t. Okay, let’s get on with the round-up, lots and lots to absorb out there.
In Think Progress’s main article about the strike, they include the seven tweets by Trump deriding President Obama for considering strikes against Syria. He ranted and raved about it quite a bit.
The actions represent a dramatic reversal from Trump’s position when Obama considered military action against Syria after Assad used chemical weapons in 2013. Trump repeatedly derided the idea of striking Syria, characterizing it as a foolish and expensive waste of time.
AGAIN, TO OUR VERY FOOLISH LEADER, DO NOT ATTACK SYRIA – IF YOU DO MANY VERY BAD THINGS WILL HAPPEN & FROM THAT FIGHT THE U.S. GETS NOTHING!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 5, 2013
[All Caps] Again, to our very foolish leader, do not attack Syria – if you do many very bad things will happen & from that fight the U.S. gets nothing!
Think Progress also has an article about the excessive fawning by the media over the suddenly “presidential” Tiny Tyrant.
This isn’t entirely surprising. Trump’s approval ratings have been fairly low, but the President indicated in 2012 a certain awareness that decisive military strikes can help polling rebound.
Now that Obama’s poll numbers are in tailspin – watch for him to launch a strike in Libya or Iran. He is desperate.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 9, 2012
Now that Obama’s poll numbers are in tailspin – watch for him to launch a strike in Libya or Iran. He is desperate.
And many are already terrified that Trump might use military action to shore up his popularity and distract from the massive scrutiny and investigations his administration has face in its first 11 weeks.
You can include me in that group. That’s exactly what this fucking sociopathic idiot is going to do.
Think Progress has an article about the unhappiness of Russia with this symbolic muscle flexing.
Though the strike was intended to degrade Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s capability to carry out another chemical attack in the future, it appears to have been largely symbolic. During a gaggle with reporters, National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster acknowledged that after the strike, “the regime will maintain the certain capacity to commit mass murder with chemical weapons, we think, beyond this particular airfield.”
Raw Story has an article which reminds us all of Trump’s vow to commit war crimes and his love of torture.
Raw Story also has an article up about the selling of the Iraq war, and just how much news outlets had to do with that, primarily Fox.
The 10 Republicans who have done a 180 on Syria, now that Obama is not president.
The Conversation has an article about the current rationalisations for the new war.
Even the Nazis are upset.
And, just in:
Nine civilians including four children were killed in the U.S. missile attack on a Syrian airbase near the city of Homs on Friday, the Syrian state news agency said.
I don’t think anything turned me away from the fiction of the state faster than realizing a leader’s approval rating improves as a result of starting a war.
Yeah. I’m with you, Shiv. Latest just came in -- nine people dead from that strike, including four children. So yay usa. Fuck.
I’m sure Trump will have a good speech to read off the teleprompter when the caskets start coming back. This kind of limited bullshit is so Vietnam.
But the the attack is already achieving some of its goals. The stock price of Raytheon (the company that makes the Tomahawk missile) is surging up this morning, and the DoD now has the support it needs for the request it made in February to purchase 4000 more Tomahawk missiles for two billion dollars. Yay usa. Yay capitalism.
Kengi:
I just fucking read that, and it’s a good thing I had an empty stomach. Someone remind me of just what makes this pos country so great?
Caine@#5:
Someone remind me of just what makes this pos country so great?
Because we haven’t nuked everyone, yet?
Marcus:
:Snort: There’s a Russian warship headed out for the destroyers who did the launch. And, the Russians were warned before hand, and they warned the Syrians, so the whole point of this shit was exactly what I said -- Trump the Sociopath taking advantage to up his abysmal failures and ratings.
:spits:
I don’t generally like to retweet things but I went on Twitter and retweeted those brilliant observations by Trump.
It’s actually a good sign that the Russians are sending a ship toward the destroyers that did the launch. If they were going to make things horribly worse, they would have stayed farther away and just sent a swarm of missiles. They’re probably planning on observing, so that they can immediately call in a launch warning if they see more US missiles outbound.
Russia, so far, is doing exactly what I expected -- they’re going to bolster Syrian air defenses and let the Syrians decide whether to declare the airspace to be hostile. I also expect that they will start handing out nasty weapons to insurgents, which means the US is going to start incurring casualties. I hope those Marines in Manbij got the hell out of there. Putin can play the game of “special forces advisors” just as well as the next guy.
I think Clinton’d be getting people killed, too -- she’s just as bad a strategist as Trump. And it was Obama that invaded Syria in 2016. Trump’s the chump that got left holding a political bag of shit -- and, unsurprisingly, he’s smearing it all over his face and declaring it “winning.”
Is it too cynical to assume that this is only the case because more money can be made using conventional weaponry? (See #4)
Marcus:
Yes, that’s made more than fucking clear in the OP and all the bloody links. It also has nothing at all to do with what the dictator did, which was to order a strike, without congressional approval, and he did it so people would start bathing his ass in approval again. Trump hates Syrian people, he’s sure as fuck said it often enough. He doesn’t give one tiny shit about those children.
And, Clinton would not have dared order a strike without congressional approval.
To #10 I’d like to add that he ordered the strike from his weekend holiday place he swore he’d never use. Because if firing missiles as someone isn’t worth getting the required approval, it certainly isn’t worth going back to the office and cutting short your weekend off. So on top of everything else it looks like a half-arsed rush-job.
Respond first, then think about the situation. Or not, as the case may be. I wouldn’t be too surprised if at some point over the next few weeks Trump actually forgets about that attack and has to be reminded about the sordid details.
Komarov @ 12, yep, yep, yep. I’d really like to know just who’s idea this whole thing was, because I doubt it was Donnie’s idea.
Pay no attention, just another diversion and a tribute to Michael Bay.
Well, of course Trump is upset about Assad killing Syrians. That’s what he wants to do.