Saving Face

It’s a miracle! Mr. Obama has seen the light and is now considering delaying the start of the United States-Syria War:

US President Barack Obama has said he will put plans for a US military strike against Syria on hold if the country agrees to place its chemical weapons stockpile under international control.

I’m sure his decision was influenced by what Syria proposes to do with its chemical weapons. The fact Russia has moved its fleet into the area, every other nation in the world (with the exception of France, who used to claim Syria as a colony) opposes a war between the United States and Syria, and Congress is unwilling to state its willingness to enter another war almost certainly had no influence on Mr. Obama’s statement.

Let’s face it, Obama is trying to save face. He was demanding war with Syria and everybody else opposed him. If he feels he can get away with ordering an action against Syria he will almost certainly claim that the Syrian regime failed to put its chemical weapons under international control. If he doesn’t feel as though he can get away with starting another Middle Eastern war he will claim that the Syrian regime did put its chemical weapons under international control. Either way, he has an out and that’s what he’s striving for. The one thing he doesn’t want to do is look weak. War mongers never want to look weak.

As a side note, watch many of the people who were opposing the war change their opinion. I believe many people in the opposition were only opposing the war because Obama supported it. If he now ceases beating the war drum those people will quickly pick up the drumsticks and continue beating the drum. American politics is seldom about principle and often about opposing what the other side wants.