These are ISIS, Islamic State in Iraq and Greater Syria, or Islamic State in Iraq and Al-Sham, depending on your source. (Speaking of source... image is from a Google Images search and the text is my own dissemination based on facts from the Council on Foreign Relations, the Wikipedia page on ISIS, Fox Business Network's news update this morning, and again, my own dissemination of the information I have at this time.)
They're a predominantly Sunni militant group organized in (you guessed it....) Iraq and Syria.
And let me tell you what, they are raising some kind of hell in Iraq right now.
We've been hearing conflicting reports whether ISIS or the Iraqi government is in control of a major oil refinery and we've already heard of ISIS forces seizing a large sum of money from Iraqi government coffers in Mosul if memory serves correctly but I could be wrong on that one... Bottom line is, whether a military action is conventional or unconventional in nature it has to be funded... WELL FUNDED. Why did the Allies beat the Axis Powers in World War Two after Russian and American intervention, despite that the Germans and Japanese had made a habit of stomping British and French ass?
You will never hang with the Russians on quantity... Either manpower or produced equipment.
And you will never hang with US Manufacturing and Money... Despite the fact that various administrations have done their damndest (Is that a word? It is in West End, North Carolina and that's where I'm sitting so you got it...) to run us broke.
The Wehrmacht was one of the finest fighting forces on the field at the time. A professional, battle hardened army beaten by armies that were almost all conscripts (granted, the Wehrmacht did institute conscription). Why were they beaten? They couldn't hang with the influx of men, war materiel, and supplies coming from the US or the massive troop and tank numbers in the East from Russia.
So how does this apply to ISIS?
When they gained access to the Gold Bullion in Mosul's central bank, they instantly had access to a type of currency that is good absolutely everywhere. Bullion is one of those things if you throw enough of it at most folks, they tend to forget what alliances and allegiances you hold pretty quick.
What does this mean?
They have money... A lot of it. And money makes this world we live on go around. They need more troops... OK, pay more of them. Need more guns, ordnance, or ammo? No problem... SOMEONE will sell it to them.
Now that we've established how much of an effect money has on warfare, let's look at the other side of the same coin.... Economic warfare.
Lately, I'm buying a lot of BP gas... this started as a function of necessity (I keep retarded hours... and am usually on my way home from work or my girlfriend's at God-awful hours of the early AM) with the only gas station in my AO open at the times I'm out being a BP. But when you look at BP, most of it's oil is sourced offshore and NOT in the Middle East.
"OK, Mr. Marine... get off your soapbox,"
Nothing like that at all...
Now we hear of ISIS taking over, or attempting to do so, a major oil refinery in Iraq. So, we buy oil from that refinery... more cash to go in their pockets if they fully seize the refinery.
But is there a bigger picture?
Sure... Economic warfare.
All of this unrest in the Middle East right now has driven Brent Crude (oil for you people who don't speak the same lingo as those of us who keep Fox Business on the TV and leave their stock portfolio and Kitco up on their tablet...) up to a 9-Month high, ALL of us are paying at the pump. And paying out the nose.
Yeah, big deal.
Exactly... it IS a big deal.
The more we pay at the pump, the less (as a people) we can afford... What do the ships and planes to deliver CAS to the Iraqi government forces who have been begging us to help them run on? That's right... Oil. Which someone has to pay for.
The more hell they can raise, the LESS likely the major powers are to intervene... It simply comes down to numbers and would cost too much.
While I hope they all burn in hell... Well played ISIS... Well Played.
Analyst:
-Kenny Smith
TFTG CEO
--- Free Intelligence Dissemination From Total Force Training Group ---