Massive use of chemical weapons in Syria, 1,429 killed including 426 children

[Ed Anger]

Assad gets +2 die roll modifier for 3 turns.

[CountDeMoney]

We should've always supported Ba'athism back in the day.  But noooo, smelled too much like communism.

[Admiral Yi]

Is the utility of chemical weapons actually high enough to warrant their use?

I mean, I am not sure what the point is - it doesn't seem like it worth the trouble.

Point seems obvious to me.  Your enemy holds terrain with defensive advantages, like a built up area.  Just gas them and they're dead.  No need to send your own guys to root them out, exposing themselves to danger.

Plus the terror component: resist us and this will happen to you.

[alfred russel]

Well, we know that the rebels are completely dishonest.  But on the other hand, we know that Assad thinks (correctly) that the West is too cowardly to stop him.

Maybe not. It isn't as though Assad is extremely secure atm. A bombing campaign wouldn't do him any favors and wouldn't cause the west to put much, if any, skin in the game.

[derspiess]

We should've always supported Ba'athism back in the day.  But noooo, smelled too much like communism.

It looked good on paper. Sadly it mutated into something quite nasty.

[alfred russel]

Is the utility of chemical weapons actually high enough to warrant their use?

I mean, I am not sure what the point is - it doesn't seem like it worth the trouble.

Point seems obvious to me.  Your enemy holds terrain with defensive advantages, like a built up area.  Just gas them and they're dead.  No need to send your own guys to root them out, exposing themselves to danger.

Plus the terror component: resist us and this will happen to you.

Two other components: you've been waging a war for years, without a successful resolution in sight. Your troops might be getting antsy that they are expected to go all out while leadership is holding back. Also, there could be political pressure on Assad to do something differently in order to give confidence that a successful resolution can be brought.

Other possibilities: this was a rouge commander, or chemical weapons never were actually used.

[garbon]

I checked CNN and the story wasn't a headline (it was off to the side a bit).

I checked Fox News, and it was a somewhat buried story with an Obama oriented headline.

Even the BBC didn't have it as the lead (that was Bradley Manning), but at least gave it second billing.

Yahoo news has it on top.

[11B4V]

Send in the carriers! 

Euros turn. Oh, wait their navies are a joke.

[CountDeMoney]

We should've always supported Ba'athism back in the day.  But noooo, smelled too much like communism.

It looked good on paper. Sadly it mutated into something quite nasty.

Hindsight's always 20/20, but when the options are Islamic Revolutionary Republics sponsored by Tehran's IRG/Hezbollah franchises and Saudi-sponsored Wahabbist/AQ extremism, secular albeit tribalist Ba'athism doesn't seem so unattractive.

[11B4V]

Assad gets +2 die roll modifier for 3 turns.

Column shifts. Dont you know nothing about chemical weapons. 

[CountDeMoney]

Assad gets +2 die roll modifier for 3 turns.

Column shifts. Dont you know nothing about chemical weapons. 

  No shit.  Nothing like a lil' boost for the 3rd Shock in Turn 5.   

[dps]

We should've always supported Ba'athism back in the day.  But noooo, smelled too much like communism.

It looked good on paper. Sadly it mutated into something quite nasty.

Hindsight's always 20/20, but when the options are Islamic Revolutionary Republics sponsored by Tehran's IRG/Hezbollah franchises and Saudi-sponsored Wahabbist/AQ extremism, secular albeit tribalist Ba'athism doesn't seem so unattractive.

Well, in retrospect, just looked at from the standpoint of our own interests, helping the Europeans keep their colonial empires instead of largely dismantling them in the quarter century after WWII would have been the best bet.  Except, of course, for the fact that by 1945 they weren't really able to keep ahold of them, and we would have had to do the bulk of the heavy lifting anyway.

[Razgovory]

Even countries that didn't suffer during WWII, like Portugal weren't able to keep their colonial empires.  Decolonization was inevitable.  The war just helped it along.

[Ed Anger]

Assad gets +2 die roll modifier for 3 turns.

Column shifts. Dont you know nothing about chemical weapons. 

Excuse me for not remembering rules. 

[DontSayBanana]

Go Bashir! 

You get a pass, since you just mistakenly rooted for a genetically-engineered superman.



Khan plus subtlety minus William Shatner:

Go Bashir!