BLANDLY STUPIDLY OBTUSE AND IN CHARGE

We are all used to elected officials of surpassing stupidity who nevertheless thrust themselves into the limelight to throw their idiocy and ignorance into the harshest glare of public self-shaming. Here's a new one. This one wears a uniform.

A Pentagon spokesman expressed concern about the surface-to-air missiles and other aerial targeting weaponry because it suggests the Russians are rejecting a call from American officials to focus on targeting the Islamic State group, also known as ISIL or Daesh.

“Certainly we are aware of what they’re putting in there ... it’s a capability that we don’t see as being productive in the fight against ISIL,” Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, the Pentagon spokesman, told reporters Monday.

“Whether it’s putting air-to-air missiles on planes or putting in surface-to-air missiles, those are things that are clearly not about ISIL, as ISIL doesn’t have any aircraft,” Davis said. “So far it has not had any impact on our operations [over Syria] but it's certainly something we're aware of, particularly with the surface-to-air missiles."

I don't know why this idiot is surprised that Russia is 'rejecting a call from American officials to focus on targeting our friends in ISIS.' To paraphrase the captain, I wonder why the Russians don't view themselves as the selfless myrmidons of the Greater EU like we do and simply do as they're told by their betters, Dammit!

Isn't it fascinating that a navy captain is the Voice of Quality Assurance and can tell the Russians that they don't need to defend their aircraft from other aircraft in the ongoing spat over Syria. Evidently, the captain suffered through one too many Deming TQL/TQM sessions and fixated on productivity to the exclusion of results and accomplishment, high on the list of which, in war, would be surviving the engagement.

I like that the missile deployment hasn't had any impact on American operations over Syria though. That's a good touch. So far as it can be determined American operations over Syria haven't had any measurable effect on ISIS so things are balanced with total futility on our side and a cold-eyed assassin's approach to killing its enemies on Russia's side.

You know, we haven't even started to discuss the eventual "unexpected discovery" of Stinger missiles in ISIS inventories. "How'd those little suckers get there," mused Pentagon Spokesman, Captain Jeff Davis. I mean, you just know that if our FBI and ATF couldn't resist selling guns and ammo to the Mexican drug cartels, their military and intelligence agency counterparts will be unable to refuse to give away surface to air missiles to ISIS.

On that note, I see this morning that Robert Crumplar has a new essay; How Offering Tomahawks for Foreign Military Sales Will Strengthen Allies and Deter Adversaries. Idiocy isn't confined to Turkey and the Pentagon. It's everywhere.