Some people are upset that the Russians are launching bombing strikes in Syria.  And that the Iranians are sending in ground troops to fight. I say, the more, the merrier.  The participants there are ISIS, which is thoroughly evil; the "Western-backed" rebels, which include al-Qaeda (al Nusra), which is thoroughly evil; and Assad, who is thoroughly evil.  The Russians, who have been busy assimilating parts of the Ukraine, are not exactly allies, either.  I think they need another Afghanistan experience to demoralize their country, and I think Syria fits the bill.  They are defending an ethnic group that is only 15% of the country.  There is no way they will ever win.  They will kill a lot of radical Islamists, and take casualties themselves, which may distract them from their European acquisitions. Iran will be sapped as well.  It has spent a lot of money, and now, by spending troops, it will lose a lot of its radical...(Read Full Post)