The U.S. has already begun a psychological attack on the Syrian regime to draw “a red line” in front of weapons of mass destruction. Make no mistake, this mock charge is an act of informational terrorism. Syrians will already know of our advertised intent and will definitely understand the weight pressing on their shoulders.

American support of these actions is quite unfavorable, but the message made to Syria and the rest of the world is clear: the United States of America won’t tolerate WMDs of any kind.

The United States definitely has the muscle to intimidate the Syrian regime into refraining from using any more sarin gas.

For this reason, it may seem like President Obama has no intention of striking Syria with bombs. What matters more is that the world sees the effect that the threat of a WMD will have. We have no desire to partake in another country’s civil war.

This threat that Obama had made toward the Syrian government is powerful. U.S. destroyers are already positioned in the Mediterranean, ready to strike. Russian warships are also anchored there, but they are just watching the American ships. Iran is also poised to retaliate against the U.S. if an attack does come about. With the political climate of the area, our threat to Syria is a threat to a whole region; use of WMDs will bring an avalanche of backlash
which could feasibly cause World War III.

Now a quick rhetorical question: what if Syria had access to nuclear weapons, or even a dirty bomb laced with radioactive isotopes of the same lethality as the sarin gas attacks? How would Americans and the world react? The red line wouldn’t be nearly as thin.

There is just more stigma attached to nuclear weapons, but the vehicle doesn’t matter. According to a report by the French Defense Ministry, Syria has access to several hundred tons of sarin gas, as well as hundreds of tons of
mustard gas and a smaller stockpile of the most lethal of known chemical agents designed for use in war. One drop of sarin gas can be enough to cause permanent brain damage or death by paralyzation and subsequent suffocation.

Given Syria’s missile capabilities, they could easily kill entire city populations.

The United States has always believed in carrying a big stick, but perhaps scaring the entire world about the possibility of another war is overdoing it. Americans are quick to make jokes about terrorism, probably to deny the fact that we are the best at it.