Libya…And We’re Off…Navy Launches Missile Strikes

And the “No Fly Zone” opens with a French attack on Libyan…tanks. I did not know tanks could fly. It’s like some governments were dishonest about the scope of this adventure from the start.

…There are things I don’t like about this mess.

First, I think it’s too late or so late the job has become exponentially harder. If Obama wanted to get results, he shouldn’t have had such a fetish for the UN and a French led coalition. If action were required and the best way to do it was unilaterally, then so be it. If the political fallout of that was too high, then maybe the goal isn’t that important after all.

Second, as I wrote yesterday, I’m not sure what the hell we’re doing. Is protecting civilians from Qadaffi the goal? If so, then we’ve basically signed on to a mission that will last as long as he’s in power. That could be awhile.

The only way to ensure that civilians are protected from Gadaffi is to get rid of Khadaffi. Except…nobody in the administration is saying that.

…An additional thought: People complained that Bush and Rumsfeld tried to do Iraq on the cheap and didn’t commit enough forces for what came after victory (the Phase IV Operations). Well, does anyone really think that air power alone is enough depose a regime? What about the cities where Kadaffi’s forces are already inside, among the population? Air power isn’t going to protect them. And what if we do get rid of him? How do we know the country won’t dissolve into chaos? If it does, air power isn’t going to do anything about it.

It’s not just the mission that worries me, it’s the fact that there doesn’t seemed to be a defined goal and if there’s a wink and a nudge that the actual goal is getting rid of Kadaffi, well, what does that commit us to?

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