Kerry accidently talks the U.S. out of war

It's tough being aggressively diplomatic. The propaganda spectre required to convince people that war is necessary for peace definitely isn't easy to pull off. It took the shock and awe of 9/11 to convince the world of the need for an invasion in Iraq which still to this day has never been linked to the attacks of 9/11 officially.

Today was extremely amusing. Kerry, fielding a question he obviously wasn't prepared for, invented what he clearly considered an impossible hypothetical straw man for him to build up and then break down to show that the U.S. simply isn't just pursuing bombs. When asked if there was anything Assad could do to avoid an attack by the U.S. Kerry sarcastically said that Assad could turn his chemical warfare stockpile over to the international community "in under a week".

Of course the timespan chosen off the top of Kerry's head of "a week" is ridiculous, meant to reinforce the 'impossible' in his impossible straw-man scenario. As his spokeswoman said afterwards it was 'rhetorical'. Much to Kerry's surprise, Russia and Assad have accepted the offer, and Obama is now considering it.

Of course the irony in all of this is that now we in the West are pretending as though this is a viable *NEW* option almost forgetting completely that the reason Kerry went on TV in the first place was to sell bombs, not brains. Kerry went on TV to make the case (again) that an "unbelievably limited" (I guess he personally must not even believe it will be so limited?) strike was absolutely needed and yet now people believe not only may strikes not be necessary, but that there is also another option to pursue. An option that I guess intelligence agencies and the numerous commentators on the impossible Syrian situation overlooked? Didn't try? Or never thought of?

It's like the whole world facepalm'd all at once.

Kerry has really created a pickle for U.S. 'foreign policy'. Russia and Syria obviously saw this error of judgement instantly. The U.S., playing the good guy, must ultimately have a 'no war' road especially if not directly threatened. By making the 'no war' road more accessible the U.S. has been put into a position where as to adhere to the morals it projects as it's own it must pursue it.

The chance to project it's morals couldn't come at a better time for U.S. public perception and let's hope common sense prevails, but this certainly isn't the result the U.S. wanted or that Syria's "rebels" desired.

Obama's rogue state tramples over every law it demands others uphold

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Richard Fantin is a self-taught software developer who has mostly throughout his career focused on financial applications and high frequency trading. He currently works for CenturyLink

Nazayh Zanidean is a Project Coordinator for a mid-sized construction contractor in Calgary, Alberta. He enjoys writing as a hobby on topics that include foreign policy, international human rights, security and systemic media bias.