The contradictions of selling a limited strike in Syria to a war weary American public.

See what Kerry tells us…

Reacting to comments by Kerry that any attack on Syria would be “unbelievably small,” Obama said any attack would not be felt like a “pinprick” in Syria.
“The U.S. does not do pinpricks,” he said in the NBC interview.

Wait for it… wait for it…

“Our military is the greatest the world has ever known. And when we take even limited strikes, it has an impact on a country like Syria.”

This is one of those statements that needs to go with a stated “comma sniff” — “America is the Greatest country on Earth comma Sniff”… “America is the Best Hope for Mankind comma sniff” — the problem comes in the talk up of the military … in a post 9/11 World, when our political figures made this comma sniff comment about “our military”, they did so with the full backing of the American public.  In a Post-Iraq War nation, and when trying to thread a needle about what the plan is for in Syria — arguing that it is something small but major — it becomes disorienting.

Oddly, the case that Obama is making here is about the same as the anti-war figures — see Tom Tomorrow here.

“Well, actually, we know what Assad’s capabilities are and, you know, Mr. Assad’s are significant compared to a bunch of opposition leaders, many of whom are not professional fighters,” the president said Monday evening. “They’re significant relative to over 400 children that were gassed. They’re not significant relative to the U.S. military.”

A real rag-tag band of misfits, the Syrian Opposition Forces are.

A relevant partisan break-down chart.

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