America, there is still time to avoid another costly mistake. The lead up to President Obama’s ISIS / ISIL speech was a continuous hyperventilation and hype about the capabilities of ISIS / ISIL from a media driven by puppets of the military industrial complex and neocons.
ISIS / ISIL Overhyped
President Obama for some time was avoiding the ISIS / ISIL hype. He continued his “Don’t do stupid stuff” policy. President Obama disregarded Hillary Clinton’s neocon-lite like critique in her The Atlantic interview. He scolded a reporter for asking Right Wing warmongering questions.
Over the last few weeks, it was evident that the purveyors of hype and misinformation were having an effect on American citizens. The neocons were aided by the graphic beheading of two American journalists that instilled a carnal fear in many Americans. The neocons got that emotional push they needed. The President felt the heat as Americans supported some sort of action. The polls showed overwhelming support for military action.
One could only have hoped that Col. Lawrence Wilkerson and Gen. David Petraeus had spoken up and gotten their views on ISIS / ISIL in the news sphere before the President acted. It may have encouraged others to speak up. It could have attenuated Americans’ angst about the real power of the terrorists ISIS / ISIL.
“The hype about this group is phenomenal.,” said Col. Lawrence Wilkerson. “I frankly find it difficult to believe. Great powers like the United States taking counsel of their fears is the first step to destruction. We do not need to fear these people in the way that the media and others are hyping it. And people from my own Party like Lindsey Graham and John McCain who incidentally aren’t going to be on the front line, I will guarantee you. I will take an oath on that.”
“ISIL in Iraq should not be overestimated,” Gen. David Petraeus said. “In many respects, it has nowhere near the roots, the numbers and structure that Al-Qaeda in Iraq and the associated Sunni insurgents had.”
If America continues to react to every group that scares us by arbitrarily killing Americans and making threats on social media they likely cannot honor, it will actually make us less secure. America should invest in making America safer at home and letting those most affected by regional threats keep their own houses in order. Sadly Americans die every day in the streets of America and abroad. It is simply not sensationalized in a manner that affects good policy.
We must use common sense. Terrorists are not only in Iraq, Syria, Yemen, and Somalia. They are all over. Many are already here in the US, both Muslims and Christians (Islamist terrorists and Right Wing militia terrorists in waiting). Dropping bombs in Iraq and Syria does nothing to prevent them from acting. Terrorists DO NOT need a base of operation.
We must not allow the neocons and the military industrial complex to profit once again at the expense of investing our taxes in middle-class programs, middle-class projects, and security at home.