UK politics look set to be quite interesting over the next couple of days. Tomorrow (I believe) Parliament is going to debate bombing Islamic State in Syria. And then on Thursday there’s the Oldham by-election.
My view on Syria is that Britain should stay out. But that’s mainly because the skies over Syria are filling with Russian, French, and American warplanes (never forgetting Turkish ones as well). And they’ve all got different targets/enemies. There’s no coalition, and no agreed war aims. The whole thing is a mess. And as a result Syria is a tinderbox in ways that Libya, Iraq, or even Afghanistan never were. And Turkey’s Erdogan has shown that he wants to set NATO against Russia. And other people probably have similar interests. And they may succeed.
Also, I don’t believe that bombing does much good when fighting an ideology. And the Islamic State is everywhere, not just in Syria.
But that’s just my opinion.
Anyway, from what I gather, Parliament will vote to bomb Syria tomorrow, and so I suppose we’ll be sending a squadron of biplanes or something. Do we even have an aircraft carrier these days? I seem to remember we were going to share one with the French.
But the parliamentary vote looks set to tear the Labour party apart. Jeremy Corbyn is anti-war because he’s always anti-war. But many Labour MPs support bombing Syria. A big rift has opened up in the Labour party, and I believe they have been given a free vote. Which amounts to there being no clear Labour party view on the matter.
And then there’s the Oldham by-election the next day. It seems that the odds on UKIP winning are shortening every day, although Labour still seems to be set to win it, just. But divisions within the Labour party over Syria (and any number of other things) may well persuade Labour voters to stay home, because they simply don’t know what they’re voting for any more.
Frank Davis 
Bombing did not work in Vietnam.
We currently have no fixed wing carriers commissioned, there are two building to be named Queen Elizabeth and Prince of Wales.. On their completion they will be unable to fulfil their role as we will have no fixed wing aircraft to fly from them unless we borrow or lease until the very late and over budget F35’s join the fleet or we buy Sea Rafaels from France.. There is an agreement to share the French carrier Charles de Gaulle which is currently conducting operations off Syria and since we have no carrier capable fixed wing aircraft we are not currently sharing her.
Bombing only works where you have clearly defined targets as shown in Vietnam which was mostly a guerilla war with few conventional battles, Carpet bombing ‘a la World War Two’ is inherently expensive and very heavy on collateral damage i.e. civilian deaths and destroyed infrastructure, it is not popular with politicians and most civilians alike given it took six years of carpet bombing (around the clock from 1943) to reduce Hitler’s industrial capabilities and millions of civilian casualties in so doing, so not really an option, It was however very effective in Desert Storm where Hussain’s Republican Guard were caught in the open .and decimated by B52’s, On balance.
I don’t think that even with precision munitions Isis will be beaten solely from the air but that it may require the Poor Bloody Infantry to end it the old fashioned way to get the desired result.
Carriers are a thing of the past with todays world wide missle systems,they are indeed last centuries battleships. Waste of time even building them as long as countries pocess todays long range missle systems. Carriers are a dime a dozen for the scrap heap.
I suppose we could send Cameron’s new jet….
Anyone notice the complete lack of coverage of the bi-election in the media? Usually it is all over the place could it be that labour are having a hard time?
Funny how we’ve always got enough money for a war, isn’t it.
War or second-hand smoke. Which is worse?
Funny how we’ve always got enough money for a war, isn’t it.
Not if ASH et al complete their end game. Work out how much tobacco tax we, the “undesirables” pay to keep the government afloat…..
Also, I don’t believe that bombing does much good when fighting an ideology.
Perhaps it is a good idea not to fight ideologies. They are only a (albeit often dangerous) temporary phenomenon. Temporary, because ideologists make the same mistake(s) over and over again – their blinkered view is their downfall.
And the Islamic State is everywhere, not just in Syria.
Exactly.
And, there may be subtle differences in the various radical Islamic groups, they will unite to form a (?temporary) coalition in an attempt to violently dictate THEIR ideology. Then they begin to be violent to each other again for their subtle differences.
Sadly, we, the ‘attacked’ won’t manage even a temporary union. Sure, the leaders of EVERY Western Country pledges unity when they have finished to further divide their own communities into “desirables” (those who adore their own bodies and want to live sooooooooo much longer, although NONE of us knows if that REALLY is the case as NONE of us knows our own expiry date) and the “undesirables” (those who don’t want to live their lives in fear about health; the ones who go down with e.g. a cigarette in one hand and a glass of their favourite tipple on the other, shouting: “What a ride this was!!!!”).
In order to be someone (some countries) to be reckoned with perhaps we should re-unite and kick those who seek to divide us simply out. (btw. it might be a good idea to attach the yuppies-now-in-management-or-recovering-from-a-nervous-breakdown, too. They follow another destructive ideology)
And then on Thursday there’s the Oldham by-election.
Oh, WHAT by-election? There is nothing in the news about it. Is it an important one?
Deb Arnott has been found at home
Harley, you have been hacked. Time to write a return for the hacker……