God there are some bad arguments for going to war – and they crowd out the good ones. Let alone us being out-thought and entrapped by cave dwelling desert nutjobs that are ISIS. This is a group that managed to get a NATO country to shoot down a Russian fighter jet. An act of war that even at the height of the cold war had not brought us closer to World War 3. By the time you read this, the vote on going to war will have taken place in Parliament and I will on BBC to 280m viewers given my (unelected) view.
If we’re to go to war the reasons are not that ‘we must be seen to stand besides our allies’. Britain has proven herself on that and no one doubts Britain as a trusted ally in the fight against terrorism and for liberty. In fact, when you say, ‘we must stand by our allies’ you really do put off people who are thinking ‘what the hell do you think we did in World War II, don’t question Britain’s courage and bravery’.
And where were our allies in the Falklands conflict? And let’s not forget our NATO ally Turkey before shooting down a Russian jet and almost dragging us into World War 3 didn’t exactly consult us.
We really have to stop being outmaneuvered by others – just as in Iraq when opposition leaders fed false intelligence to us for the case for war – really we must stop being the stupid naive kid in the dangerous playground.
So the argument for a fight is not helping allies. We are more than happy to stand apart from them in Europe when it suits us economically, well even more so militarily.
And the argument is not that otherwise we will be a ‘second rate power’. That is a childish argument. We are UN Security Council Permanent Member and a nuclear power. End of story.
Equally the argument for not going to war should not be fear of retaliation. That’s not how Briton behaves.
The best argument to extend into Syria from Iraq (and how this is reminiscent of extending from Vietnam to Cambodia and Laos) is if and only if we can actually be effective.
In the history of warfare the only time airpower without ground troops has led to a surrender of any enemy has been against Imperial Japan in the Second World War. ISIS are as militant as the Japanese were.
It’s precisely when we are willing to be ‘imprecise’ that we kill not just those in ISIS for whom the world is black and white, but for whom it is grey, they will know our resolve and like the Japanese, surrender. History. I wish it weren’t so. But making believe a fairy tale world won’t help.
If we’re to go to war, then do it properly. Instead of front of the queue do it on condition the whole Middle East steps in first. Do it alongside the Saudis, the Emiratis? All the countries we arm. Let them be in the front line – and prove they are our allies. This is a religious war – the enemy told us, so let the Middle Eastern brethren step up. Let their troops step in on the ground.
And the children? The women? The refugees? There is no good end to this. Either ISIS get them, or we open borders, or we wipe out as many as we can and that will be the good with the bad – it always is if you want victory. Missiles have not been built where that is not the case.
And afterwards, they can carve it up – it’s what we in the West do best isn’t it?
