Cat House

[Porgie Tirebiter]

How effed is that?

Plenty effed. Here's the problem. There is no good side to be on in this particular mess. The irony is that the Alawites are probably the most reasonable (if the word reasonable can be applied in Middle Eastern politics anyway) group out of the whole bunch. It's to bad that happens to be the sect that Assad comes from.

As for the use of chemical weapons, it's not really in Assad's interest to use them as he risks losing what little support he has from foreign interests. Added to that is the fact that it would be absurd not to believe that the FSA wouldn't also have access to some of those stockpiles. And it would clearly be in the FSA's interests to goad the U.S. into hitting Assad.