[JerryPournelle.com] President Obama apparently simply doesn't know that the Caliphate is growing rapidly. He thinks a thousand Special Forces and some arms aid to a few Sunni States, plus some charm played to Iran will take care of the entire Middle East. He thinks his strategy is working, when it is clear to nearly everyone else that it has failed and is failing.
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The goal [should be] is overwhelming force and utter victory including ruthless pursuit. The Caliphate cannot be allowed to own and rule any territory; they must be forced to go underground, where they may exist for years, but their legitimacy as a Caliphate depends on their rule applying fundamental Muslim Law as they interpret it. If they do not rule somewhere, they cannot be The Caliphate.

The only current Presidential Candidate who seems to understand this principle at this time seems to be Carly Fiorina. She does not stand high in the polls, but she seems to understand what is required in the Middle East.

It is possible that other Republicans will catch on; The Caliphate must be destroyed, its pieces given to forces not hostile to the United States - they need not like each other - and refugees settled in these protectorates. They can be protected by locals; the commitment of a long time protective force for the area is a separate problem. The Marines, deployed for one year hitches on American bases, are enough for a start, but it is a long time problem; but until the Caliphate is destroyed it will grow; and it will never be easier to destroy than now.

They have declared war on us. San Bernardino was not Pearl Harbor. The Caliphate is not powerful enough for that. Yet.