pantaraxia: Will Israel "sanction" Brazil? Laughable. I suspect the Chinese would be happy to sell Brazil military equipment.

johnf: The Israel Lobby was/is the master of small stakes. The amount we give to Israel is miniscule when you consider the overall size of the USG's budget. And Israel had no opposition in Congress. (Has any American politician ever lost a race for being anti-Palestinian?) So we have a committed minority of Jewish and Christian Americans who "care" about Israel and.....what? Arab Americans who are divided and give little money to political campaigns? No wonder Israel was able to push on that open door. It was a one-sided fight over small stakes. Today, the stakes are different. Israel asks us to do dangerous and expensive things--like go to war with Iran. The Israel Lobby raised the stakes too high for the Indifferent Majority to just mindlessly go along. It's one thing to bum a dollar off a friend. But try borrowing $10,000....

Barish: Yes, but were the Turks treating Al-Nusra fighters in Israeli hospitals? Talk about the Israeli pot calling the Turkish kettle black.

PB: Thanks for another wonderful post. I wonder if anyone has any thoughts about (1) Syria's manpower reserve and how that number will (possibly) increase with more victories; (2) does Assad have any "day after" plans with Russia and China and any idea of what type of rebuilding Syria needs/can accomplish on 2-3 year timeline; and (3) what type of political reorganization will come with an Assad victory. Frankly, a lot of Syrian families have lost children fighting for the government and you would expect would envision benefits to being an SAA veteran in a post-rebellion Syria. And what about the rebels and their families? I have no answers to any of these questions.

Cynic: So much better for the whole world, actually.

Thomas: Compared to the Saudis, Kaiser Wilhelm II was a foreign policy genius.

TTG: And when the happens, Mike "common touch" Bloomberg will enter the race and "save" us from Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump? To my mind, both Trump and Sanders share one very attractive quality: They terrify the Davos Crowd.

"Biden stands in the wings, 'licking his chops' in anticipation of fulfilment of his life long dream. PL Armed of course with a new Neil Kinnock speech and a bust of Wolfe Tone for the Oval.

Trey, this article quickly synopsizes the Borg's worldview. See http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2016/01/alexander-litvinenko-russia-putin/425157/#article-comments The basic attitude is: We have a foreign policy. Our opponents just bully others.

Col: Do you think Putin is disappointed by this? Gives him and his allies a few more weeks to move against Aleppo and Idlib.

Col: Congratulations. Proving that hard-hearted empaths have a large audience. Although I think the more precise term should be "one who sees the world as it actually is not just as one wishes it to be."

PB: Any insight into this? See http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/19/world/middleeast/in-surprise-move-bitter-political-rivals-in-lebanon-announce-deal.html?smid=tw-share Hopefully, a sign of waning Saudi influence.

hemeantwell: If the Anti-Assad forces can claim a victory--any victory, even a mythic one--it will still facilitate a negotiated peace.

Turks to the rescue. See http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160120/1033456296/turkey-jarablus.html What comes next?

Patrick: This will be the last stand. See https://twitter.com/KenRoth/status/689719257874206721 As the rebels collapse, expect to hear of an "emergency" need to protect "civilians" in rebel areas. And by civilians, I mean women, children, and armed rebels. We will be told that we "failed" Syria just like we "failed" Rwanda.

Col: Donald Trump recently tweeted that Iran was going to buy 114 planes from Airbus, but expressed shock that they would not be buying from us. I guess refusing to sell Iran spare parts for their civilian airliners might just have left a bad aftertaste. Fortunately, the Israeli market can absorb another $100 billion in Boeing sales, can't it? (Sad Trombone sound.)

Col: At least in Texas, low oil prices means trading high paying energy sector jobs for lower paying jobs elsewhere. Whether low oil prices will be a "good" thing might depend on how many financial instruments have been linked to the energy sector. We could see a cascade of bond defaults.

BM: And don't forget the Barzani family. Apparently, they understand democracy just like Mahmood Abbas. Once elected, never hold (or recognize) another election.

Saudi Arabia sure knows how to deploy the diplomatic firepower: Bahrain, Sudan, Djibouti, and the Comoros Islands. See http://gulfnews.com/news/africa/comoros-becomes-latest-country-to-sever-ties-with-iran-1.1654175 Surrender now, Persians. Surrender now.

MM: Hopefully, right after March 1st, when Super Tuesday will mercifully end the candidacy of "No Fly Zone" Christie.

PB: Did the Syrian government ever offer the fighters in Madaya a deal like that offered to the fighters in Homs?

The Samantha Power indicator, Kenneth Roth edition. See https://twitter.com/KenRoth/status/688910876720672768 So the rebels hold civilians hostage and the Syrian government must lift its siege?

The Samantha Power Indicator is the most accurate measurement of developments in Syria. See https://twitter.com/AmbassadorPower/status/687797231924154369 The "humanitarian concerns" rise in direct proportion to rebel setbacks.

A new balance of power is arising? See http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/01/11/russia-is-arming-hezbollah-say-two-of-the-group-s-field-commanders.html

Walrus: 1.