Before I address some serious concerns I want to recognize a few positives coming out of the events of the past 12 hours.  First and foremost it is good to see our administration finally taking action on the foreign stage.  The threat from ISIS, ISIL, or IS, whatever they call themselves today is so real and has been met with so little resistance that it was very important for the U.S. to take this action of what they are calling targeted airstrikes.   The second positive is that despite the pressure the administration has put on Israel during the most recent Gaza campaign, this action sends a message of the clear distinction in the administration’s philosophy towards Israel’s military action and the actions taking place by ISIS in Iraq.

That’s the good news.  Now the concerns. The second point I made about how this makes a clear distinction, immediately makes me think of a saying in Dutch.  The saying is, “U wordt bedankt”, literally means, “you get thanks” and is akin to saying “thanks a lot” sarcastically.  The fact that I even thought that it indicated a distinction shows that the administration has clearly not been as openly pro-Israel as it should be.  To many that is a serious problem that needs to be fixed and may only be fixed when a new American administration takes over.

The second concern is more complex and potentially far more serious.  Will these airstrikes really make a difference?  Yes they look good and yes they may save many lives now, but unless ISIS, ISIL, IS, whatever they are called is stopped, I believe they won’t stop till they call themselves IS-Rael or IS-US.  A malignant tumor can get shrunk by targeted radiation, but can only be cured by chemotherapy, surgery, or both.  Targeted airstrikes are akin to radiation and may slow down the disease temporarily, but they do not eliminate it. Nothing about this administration’s actions till now indicates it has the stomach or desire to see a tough battle to its conclusion, and to damage these people without crippling them may do nothing more than help them grow and give them extra motivation to strike on U.S. soil sooner than they probably had planned.

There is no question that a good action is better than no action, but at the end of the day it is important that the good action doesn’t have the same impact as no action, which will be the case if it is not followed up properly.  Let’s hope and pray that it is.

CLICK TO JOIN “THE GLOBAL COALITION FOR ISRAEL” ON FACEBOOK

Follow Holland’s Heroes on Twitter @hollandsheroes