The last war

It's often said that generals prepare for the last war they fought. The debate over what to do in Syria shows civilian leaders and the media do that to the nth degree. Many of the comments that are being made by politicians and the so-called analyses by pundits have a lot more to do with the situation in Iraq pre-invasion than Syria (or the region) now.

I expect the strike will be approved. I also expect it won't have any effect on the civil war itself, partly by design. What the effect of the debate will have is yet to be determined.

The real question that should be debated - and is in some quarters - is this: What should be done to countries that commit murder on a mass scale using weapons that are universally detested? It's a valid question at any point, but especially this week.

If the answer is not swift, direct, and intense military punishment, then how do you ever justify taking action against a country because it uses nuclear weapons, let alone acquires them?