It's an awkward situation for Labour: the person many of their supporters detest is the only leader to have won a working majority for them since 1966.
AndyJS Indeed, but I don't think Blair 2 is the answer, even more than Attlee 2 or Wilson 2, Labour needs a leader who can reach out to the aspirational suburbs but also keep its soul and core vote
SeanT He also said we should arm the Kurds and basically leave the Shias, arm Jordan, but otherwise leave the Shias and Sunnis to it. On your broader argument I think we are getting to the point where we have had 2 of the worst foreign policy presidents in US history back to back, George W and Obama, one too busy invading everywhere without considering the consequences, the other unwilling to invade anywhere even to avoid WW3. Hillary or whichever Republican faces her will have one hell of a mess to clear up!
TimB We are already providing air support to the Kurds and Iraqi army, what would ground forces achieve until the Sunnis in Iraq turn against ISIS? It would just be another long and bloody war of occupation and ground troops are hardly going to be sent into Syria to support Assad. For the moment, and until the Iraqi government reaches out to Sunnis and improves the best that can be achieved is to contain ISIS outside of Shia Iraq and Kurdish areas in Iraq and Syria and try and support alternative rebel movements in Syria and turn them against ISIS first
Furtively arm Assad. Who gives a F. And threaten Turkey with all hell, and likewise the Kuwaitis and Saudis who are funding these Nazi scum.
The Egyptians are quietly murdering all the Islamists. And quite right too. When you see the alternative.
This is a mental virus which can only be extinguished by the death of the host.
Assad has comparatively little left. There is already major discontent amongst some of his own regime about the fact that he isn't controlling the war effort in his own country, much of it is Iranian proxies. Assad is also beginning to run out of bodies and money. One thing he isn't short of is basic kit.
Curiously the Iranians aren't giving him the loans he has been asking for. Perhaps there is a sign there that Assad isn't the horse to back. The Iranians may not be particular fans of outside overtures to help Assad whilst they have him by the nuts. The Russians have been approached recently about stepping back as well and haven't exactly threw the idea out.
Yokel, any idea of how the Iran/Assad thing is playing out with Hizbollah and internal Lebanese politics. Things seem to have gone quite in Lebanon - I don't know if that is because they have, or just that it is not getting reported. I haven't visited in 2 years, so no longer have a feel for what's happening on the ground.
I'm not hugely informed about that side. Hezbollah are still publicly onboard with Assad but recently had to issue a denial that they were going to drop him. The issue for Hezbollah is that they have lost a good number of bodies in the meat grinder so militarily, if not yet politically, they are facing some damage, the extent of which I couldn't tell you with any accuracy.
They've been working in recent weeks on trying to get the Lebanese army involved in border clashes against Syria insurgents but the generals have said no. Its an interesting bit of arm chancing though.
There might be anti-McCluskey tactical voting by the supporters of Cooper and Kendall in transferring their votes to each other in the 2nd round in order to stop Burnham.
Comments
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kristian_Thulesen_Dahl
"No female is going to vote for a bloke with longer eyelashes than they have...."
Does Burnham have a female problem? Discuss.
https://twitter.com/toadmeister/status/601899791208062976
"Separate academic forecast: Tories will win vote by 2-3 points but Miliband most likely PM":
http://www.may2015.com/author/polling-observatory/
http://ericjoyce.co.uk/2015/05/sturgeon-is-right-carmichael-must-resign-to-save-himself/