History's irony
Call it a coincidence, call it a fluke, call it an ironic twist of history, but the first United States naval destroyer ordered to sail into Mediterranean waters ahead of possible military action against Syria is the USS Mahan, named after Rear Admiral Alfred Thayer Mahan (1840-1914).
Few may recognize Mahan's name, but his contribution to history was immense: In the late 19th century he penned a book titled "The Influence of Sea Power upon History," which posited that the U.S. needed a strong, powerful fleet to rule the oceans, defend maritime trade routes and ensure that the United States grows from a young country that had just completed its coast-to-coast spread across North America, into a world power.
Mahan outlined the strategic foundations for the American empire and his book had an immediate impact: The U.S. Navy, which until then was relatively small and had only defensive objectives, began launching battleships meant to secure worldwide maritime superiority. New winds blew through the White House and President Theodore Roosevelt (1901-1909) set out to turn the U.S. into an empire: From Cuba -- where he fought prior to his election -- to the Philippines, from the Panama Canal to the Yangtze River, the American flag flying over the Great White Fleet, as the new battleships sent to sail around the world were called, had become the symbol of a new and rising power.
That is why it is somewhat ironic that the current commander in chief of the U.S. armed forces, President Barack Obama, has found himself launching at Syria a battleship named after an admiral whose strategy was opposite to his own. The president, who had won the Nobel Peace Prize before he had even done anything, and whose presidency has been characterized by a vision of reducing U.S. involvement overseas, now has to do the opposite -- and send the USS Mahan to the front line.
Today, it is hard to ignore the importance of history and the lessons it holds. The Barbarians are at the gate again, but this time, they are at our gate. Let's set political correctness aside: when global jihad is openly gathering its forces around us, when "stable" regimes collapse, when chemical weapons are used in broad daylight -- it is time to sober up.
The main lesson of Syrian President Bashar Assad's use of chemical weapons against his people is that unconventional weapons have become readily available. A chemical weapon is no longer an urban myth, something complex requiring mad scientists and advanced compounds, or something that may exist far away and will never be used. Not at all. It is available in warehouses where you can take it out and fire it, and it is lethal. And now it is possibly just a matter of time until jihad and al-Qaida operatives get their hands on it. They have already fired regular Katyusha rockets at our citizens in northern Israel over the weekend, but some Katyushas can carry a chemical warhead -- just look at the footage of the aftermath in the outskirts of Damascus.
The world, and we, are facing a new twist to an old war -- civilization versus barbarians. It is hard to know what the "world" is going to do, with or without Obama and the USS Mahan. Deploying the destroyer, the meeting of top military officials in our region, and various other preparations might indicate that something is brewing in the Mediterranean's waters, but Israel is better off assessing what it can and should do. Because, they -- "the world" -- will always be a little farther away, and we will always be here, with the barbarians at our gate.
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