When leaving Libya, make sure to bring the flag.

General General Discussion
1

Just int time for the weekend when the press is on break. One thing Obama can do real well: make policy change silently, and kill our world standing. We just retreated away from Al-Quada.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/07/26/world/africa/libya-us-embassy-evacuation/index.html

The U.S. Embassy in Libya evacuated its personnel on Saturday because of heavy militia violence raging in the capital, Tripoli, the State Department said.

About 150 personnel, including 80 U.S. Marines were evacuated from the embassy in the early hours of Saturday morning and were driven across the border into Tunisia, U.S. officials confirm to CNN.

U.S. officials stress that this is a relocation of embassy personnel and the operations have been “temporarily suspended” until “the security situation on the ground improves.” The embassy will continue to operate from other locations.

It won’t.

Looks like they did take up on Ambassador’s Steven’s request for more security.

2

It’s the right move.

For no other reason than the fact I don’t trust this POTUS to go in and get the occupants vis-à-vis a Tehran 1979 situation.

3

Sounds more like the administration knew they couldn’t get away with blaming an anti-Islam movie a second time if another ambassador got killed in Libya.

4

What troubles me is the last minute decision to evacuate, which left fewer options to get the embassy staff out safely.

“The Pentagon had pressed for weeks to evacuate the embassy, especially after the Tripoli airport came under repeated militia attack, leaving Americans no way to get out via commercial air, the official said.”

Thank goodness there were no casualties, but WTH were they, the State Dept. thinking?

5

Totally agree…Obama dropped the ball here big time, and by extension we all look like a bunch of p*ssies

He should have totally sent in the military, and fought “Al Quada” on the streets of Libya.

That way the world will see as as the rightful Sheriff of planet Earth.

6

As much as I hate to use the adjective, the DoS feels very… “adventurous” in Libya.

For some yet unknown reason, they seem intent on having a “diplomatic mission” complete with forward deployed suit-wearing-guys in the absolute… by far… number one Foreign Fighter/ Transnational Jihadi capital of Planet Earth:

It seems completely idiotic, but I’m sure there’s a really good reason buried somewhere…

I’m not sure how closely you followed the conflict or the groups involved, but we were backing al Qaeda against Qaddafi in Libya.

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/04/28/source-u-s-knew-weapons-and-aid-were-going-to-al-qaeda-linked-militants-in-libya/

IF Qaddafi had used the military against his people like al Asad, he would still be in power today (like Asad- plus without the ethnosectarian divisions Syria has, he could have cracked some skulls and stabilized the country).

IF he spent his money building a security apparatus instead of schools, hospitals, and infrastructure (like Saddam) the insurgent/Jihadi movement would never have gained any traction (Plus Saudi Arabia would have just taken their terror-sponsor-funds on down the line- which they did with Iraq).

Saif al Islam, “The Reformer” (and perhaps the character Scotty Evil was based on) would have been an excellent leader for Libya today if our foreign policy could see-past-it’s-nose and devise long term strategies.

Now that the insurgents have seized control of the entire country, it’s going to be near impossible to root them out.

…and Bin Laden’s strategy grinds on even after his death. He knew how to slay the dragon:

  1. Dilute our military power by forcing us to fight in far flung corners of the globe.

  2. Bleed our military of the brave and willing.

  3. Bleed our economy by forcing us into debt.

  4. Make us attack our own culture and people through the security apparatus.

The final blow comes from within when the American people realize that our intrusive and oppressive Government is making our tax dollars disappear in low intensity foreign wars, our warfighters are dying to clear terrain that will only be reoccupied after a withdrawl, and we’re broke as a joke.

The era you’re thinking of has already ended.

7

Libya has been on “the list” for a good while now.

//youtu.be/9RC1Mepk_Sw

http://www.amazon.com/The-Grand-Chessboard-Geostrategic-Imperatives/dp/0465027261

8

Damn youtube videos! Always bringing out the worst in our jihadi friends.

9

You do realize that the good General never saw that memo he claims had the seven countries in five years, right?

http://www.globalresearch.ca/we-re-going-to-take-out-7-countries-in-5-years-iraq-syria-lebanon-libya-somalia-sudan-iran/5166

And he said, “This is a memo that describes how we’re going to take out seven countries in five years, starting with Iraq, and then Syria, Lebanon, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and, finishing off, Iran.” I said, “Is it classified?” He said, “Yes, sir.” I said, “Well, don’t show it to me.” And I saw him a year or so ago, and I said, “You remember that?” He said, “Sir, I didn’t show you that memo! I didn’t show it to you!”

How can one make such a grandiose claim if they never even looked at the memo?

10

Are those 7 countries any different now?

11

The point being that Wesley Clark never looked at the memo and is going off what someone “told” him. I’d be more than willing to bet the military had plans for something along those lines. I’m pretty certain they have plans for the invasion of Canada if it came down to it.

Plans =/= acts. And with Clark wanting a shot at a POTUS run in 2004, he needed his name out there.

12

How we handled Libya and managed the fall of Gaddafi was a giant goat ****.

13

…not entirely unlike how we did the same to a few dozen other countries over the years…

14

Yeah, but at some point that becomes a meaningful observation on how our foreign policy repeats the same actions expecting the opposite of what history indicates are the results of that policy making. Same idea of only an idiot does the same thing and expects a different result, who do we have making those decisions that is working so hard to recreate myopia induced foreign policy failures, and why?

15

King Wesley is still pissed because he didn’t get his grand ground war in Kosovo.

16

It’s a different person every time. Every person in every position is always moving up and out on ~2-3 year cycles (and that’s at the top).

The problem isn’t that the policy makers don’t understand the consequences of their actions, it’s that they are beholden to special interests (especially at the top).

There are a countless examples of it, but our foreign policy does not often align with the national interest… and often times is 180 degrees out of synch.

17

KEV, I failed miserably at my sarcastic attempt of a reply earlier in this thread.

18

I apologize… I think the Obama criticism threw me off…