SUN CITY – President Barack Obama’s recent speech regarding the crisis of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) occurred in Florida, but it hits home across the nation, and local voices are a part of the fray.
Although feedback about Obama’s speech varies among Sun City residents, one word unifies the responses: dissatisfaction.
According to Sun City resident David Williams, former member of the Huntley Seniors for Progressive Action, Obama’s decision to employ air strikes means trouble.
“I think that for anybody to resist ISIS, it has to be a local campaign by the people who live there. ISIS is preaching an ideology as opposed to being a military group. You can’t bomb ideology out of people very well,” he said.
On the contrary, Sun City resident Richard Stack, a retired U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Colonel, feels that Obama’s efforts are not strong enough.
“A basic tenet of military planning is to strike the enemy in the open with artillery or air strikes whenever they provide that opportunity,” said Stack. “The other important tenet is to have eyes on the ground.”
In addition to voicing their opinions on Obama’s international efforts, Williams and Stack also revealed their interpretation of ISIS itself, a term that seems to evade definition.
“My understanding is that it is basically a very strong Muslim group, and that their overall objective is to have everybody practice their religious outlook,” said Williams. “And they’re doing it right now by eliminating the competition.”
Stack agrees, but adds that the mission of ISIS isn’t quite so straight forward.
“ISIS wants to create a caliphate. It is well organized, well-funded, and growing larger by the day,” Stack said, adding that he believes the group’s ultimate goal is to destroy Israel and the United States.
But is ISIS a threat to United States soil? Stack believes so.
“I think it’s only a matter of time,” he said, noting that he feels ISIS is strong and ruthless.
Williams offers an opposing take on the threat, commenting on the strength of United States domestic efforts.
“Some say that ISIS really isn’t a threat to American citizens in the United States, and I think that we’re probably doing a pretty good job keeping an eye out for terrorists,” he said.
The biggest difference among the Sun City residents’ opinions, however, lies in how to move forward.
“I basically think that we should do humanitarian work in the area and try to make life better for people in that area. It might be beneficial not to impose our opinions on them,” said Williams.
However, Stack feels that U.S. military efforts are not enough.
“If [Obama] would have implemented a robust campaign as recently as six weeks ago, his opportunity for early success would have doubled. By stalling, posturing, and using coalition-building, he has allowed ISIS to go to ground and become much harder to find and attack,” he said.
