Some random bits on ISIS and Iraq:
- Stupidity persists. The White House spokesman is repeatedly saying, "There are no military solutions to the problems of Iraq." The implication is that there are political solutions. That's clearly wrong. ISIS will keep expanding until it is stopped on the ground. Military solutions are the only solutions right now.
- ISIS not only has oil now, it has electricity. It just took Iraq's biggest hydroelectric dam (Haditha). Control over energy provides a minimal legitimacy to ISIS. It would be smart to shut them down.
- ISIS is now minutes from Irbil, the capital of the autonomous Kurdish zone in Iraq. Unfortunately for the secular Kurds, they won't be able to mount much of a defense. They don't the weapons to do it due to embargoes from the Turks and Iraqis. Arm them.
This is also where militarized drones could rapidly turn the tide of the war.
ISIS is stretched thin due to the speed of its advance. It's winning more from speed and suprise than from force of arms. Drones of the right type could turn this around with very little risk.
ISIS is betting quite a bit on inaction by the West on this. This bet is paying off. The US is ignoring ISIS because recognition of it as a threat would require the US to admit it lost the war in Iraq (and that the decision to invade was a terrible mistake).
PS: This is a good demonstration of why a drone carrier is more valuable than a standard aircraft carrier in terms of projecting power. 100x more drones per ship than aicraft. All personnel remain onboard, out of harms way.
McClatchy has a great photo of abandoned cars on the road to Irbil that ran out of gas trying to escape the ISIS advance: