RogueIce wrote:
"As for seizing airfields I think it's a bad idea. We're going to stop internationally condemned arms shipments by invasion?
"I might feel better about it." Lonestar muttered, thinking about his shoulder and head.
"Look at who we're dealing with," Arik said, "Seriously. For Shep, nukes are not 'special' weapons, to be held back as a last resort. They're just bigger bombs, and there's nothing wrong with them. He will use them. If we are absolutely determined to go through with this, then the best thing we can do is first-strike Saddamistan and Shepnukistan and try to remove them from the equation as much as possible."
"I think the International Community would be a mite peeved at us if we did that," Wilkens said dryly. "Besides, Shep has sufficient knowledge of esoteric delivery systems there is no doubt in my mind we'd miss more than a few."
"Well then," Arik said "It goes back to having limited choices, doesn't it? And if all the choices are bad...why should we pick the most damaging one anyway?"
"We could," Beowulf mused "Just say 'fuck it' and start arming our own faction on TL. The Sultan, perhaps."
"I'm sorry," Ender interjected "But didn't this all start as a result of the Sultan's
fatwa on the LSR?" He looked over at Lonestar.
"I have to say, I agree with Ender. I don't like the idea of feeding the hand that bites you."
"We can have an unfortunate accident happen to the Sultan and install a more cooperative member of his family. Might as well make it a proxy war." Beowulf said.
"Or let him land the gear and just bomb the equipment once it's issued to Ramsey's army." Deathdealer said.
"Shep has advisers in the archdiocese, we run the risk of killing them." RI said.
""He hasn't publically announced that, at the moment he's keeping up the fiction of the 'Human Foundation' or whatever the Hell it's called." Beowulf said. "Alternatively, we could start mining every port in Ramsey's territory, no matter what the claims are about his sealift is, getting the stuff unloaded would be a bitch. Especially as Shep hasn't built any amphibs or RoRos since our arrival."
"If we mine every port in Ramsey's territory, it would stop legitimate traffic from going in." RI said.
"Well then," Lonestar said cheerfully, "I guess then we would have to occupy a Sultanate port and airfield along the border and declare it a safe zone/port of entry, huh? Just throwing out all the options we have. Which are significantly more than 'let convoy pass' and 'shoot convoy, start war.'"