Biting the hand that stops feeding them...........

Predictably, NATO will now take over enforcement of the no fly zone in Libya. As the US largely controls NATO, there is not much difference between our air marshals or other military brass being in charge or NATO itself. The move does, however, take some of the pressure off O who seems to have committed to an engagement with Libya without informing Congress. Needless to say, Congress is pissed off and, as it now enjoys an opposition majority, is making a meal out of the situation.

There is already talk here of an exit strategy for Libya. The best comment I heard on that subject is that an exit strategy is not mandatory, cannot be predicted and for those reasons should be abandoned altogether. Let's stop talking about an exit strategy and begin using our common sense.

 Had that prevailed in the first place, we would not have become engaged in Libya. The administration here seems to believe that we are involved in a weekend war that will be over by month's end. Nobody that I have read or listened to spoke about the internal nature of the rebellion until recently.

Now, the more savvy pundits, are speaking about conflicts between the main Bedouin tribes of Libya and dissatisfaction by the have nots, i.e. people who are not from Gadaffi's tribe. What's more, a slight current of opinion is gaining momentum that the primary rebelling tribe, from Eastern Libya, is much more dedicated to Islamic fundamentals and more easily radicalized than the ruling tribe.

We shall see how that plays out, but what is absolutely clear to me is that as per usual the US has gotten itself involved in something it does not understand and with the highly plausible prospect that those who we are aiding will return to bite us. Indeed, the Arabs have a penchant for biting the hand that stops feeding them.