Editor:

Whoever wrote the headline for the Gene Lyons column in the Sept. 27 edition of the Item got it wrong (it was Syria).

 Far from being a win for diplomacy, the Syrian affair has all of the makings of a diplomatic disaster for Obama and the USA. The president had painted himself into a corner by drawing a line in the sand, and then trying to extricate himself by saying “I didn’t draw a line in the sand; the international community did.” When that didn’t work, he decided to ask for congressional approval to lob a few missiles into Syria, knowing full well that neither house would vote for it.

This would have gotten him off the hook, but still looking weak and indecisive. But before the vote could be taken. Secretary of State, John Kerry, made one of his classic diplomatic blunders by stating that the only thing that could prevent this miniscule strike would be if Syria gave up it’s WMD’s. This could have been a master stroke if Kerry had not added “but that’s not going to happen.” This was too good for Russia’s thuggish master of gamesmanship and opportunism, Vladimir Putin, to step in and take charge of brokering Syria’s offer to do away with it’s WMD’s.  

Leroy Gilbert, Carriere