Too Little, Too Late

            President Obama's move to help the rebels in Syria is pathetic.  After drawing a red line on Syria's use of chemical weapons, he dithered for months, even as French and British allies shoved the proof he needed under his nose.  When he finally caved in and decided to send arms to the rebels, he didn't even have the guts to announce it himself; he left that to a deputy something or other.  This is what masquerades as leadership in the White House.

            Obama's decision is pathetic for another reason.  If he was going to step into the conflict to get rid of Assad, he should have done it long ago.  In the early stages of the rebellion, the rebels consisted of unorganized groups of fighters.  They were moderate, democratically leaning  Sunnis who wanted nothing more than to oust the oppressive and murderous Syrian regime.  Their weapons came mostly from raids on government units, although we now know from Benghazi revelations that we were secretly funneling  small arms to them from Libya. 
            Then things began to change.  More rebel groups joined the fray.  But these were not moderate or pro-democracy.  They were radical Islamists aided by Sunnis from Iraq and funded by Saudi Arabia.  Their aim was to establish a religious regime governed by Sharia law.  The underfunded and fragmented moderates were no match for the Islamists who gradually took charge of the rebellion.   
            The conflict exploded when Russia and Shi'ite Iran joined the fray by supplying Assad with heavy weapons.  Tanks, planes, and artillery were too much for the rebels.  They began to fall back.  That's when Obama decided to send in military aid.  But to which rebels?  How can Obama be sure that our arms will go to what's left of the moderates and not to Islamists and al Qaida fighters who are our avowed enemies?   He can't.  It's too little, too late. 
            If President Obama wants to make a difference in Syria now, he has to go all in.  But he can't do that without bringing Israel and our European allies into the conflict and without challenging the Russians and Iranians who have too much invested in Syria to back out now.   We'd be looking at World War III.  It's just not going to happen.  What will happen and is happening right now is a total loss of United States influence in the region. 
            We were once the world's only superpower.  We aren't anymore, thanks to Barack Obama's timorous and impotent foreign policy.  I find that pathetic.