Boko Haram 'seizes army base' in Nigeria town of Baga

Its because of things like this. A "multinational" force cuts and runs when a group of terrorists attacks them. In many cases there is no option but to ask the US, or maybe a couple other capable countries, for help. The only times we lose is when we decide we dont want to win

We could do worse than to remember that.

and 10's of thousands of recruits from when the government fails. The humanitarian crisis they will cause will kill 100's of thousands. Those 200 school girls they kidnapped are just the beginning.

The arguments used to get us involved in most of the wars that have cost us so dearly in blood and treasure -- all for nothing.

I'm under no illusion that it would do any good. But ISIS has shown that they can use stolen weapons as good or better than the people we arm. And the local militaries can't seem to take care of the problem. I'm just dreading the day we have an IS or a Boko guy showing up at the UN demanding international recognition.

Considering their barbaric behavior -- the only kind of behavior they seem to know.

are the reason why we don't have health care as a basic human right, and why our infrastructure is crumbling. Most of our taxes are going to the military including civilian cos. which supply them, and blackops.

Although it does appear it is nearly as good at killing civilians as Boko Haram is:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baga_massacre

Is there are difference between ISIS and boko harem ?

You have to wonder why it is that such barbaric movements gain traction.

I think it's a cheap shot to blame it on Islam. If the conditions were right, we could just as easily see nihilistic movements claiming the mantle of Christianity or Hinduism to justify their actions.

I think these movements are horribly misguided responses to horribly fucked up societies. And they fill an ideological gap: They are in rebellion against the world as it is, and radical jihadism provides an organizing principle. Oh, for the good old days of Communist national liberation movements.

Yea, how anyone could engage in barbaric heinous actions is something I will never understand.

Killing without remorse...what a weird concept.

The countries couldnt be much different from each other. The races couldnt be much different from each other either. They attack poor and rich alike only because they believe differently. The book they read calls for violence in many different ways for those who do not believe as they do.
The only way to get rid of them is when the Islamic majority tire of being painted with their brush and push back hard.

The head in the sand nonsense around here is getting tiresome.

So they agree on doctrine and conduct at least that much.

The govt. is useless

Not unlike Mexico...

Secondly, the country is 50/50 split between christians and muslims, and the majority of the economic/political power is in the christian south

We should embargo weapons and bomb them with food and cash. That would calm things down. As it is, I see little to hope for.

That seems another popular approach in some corners.

People talk about how it's not getting enough coverage, but if it was getting wall-to-wall coverage, what would be (and/or should be) the response from the US?

But ensuring food security for everybody in the area would be a start. You send in an armed force, take an area, move supplies in and feed the crowd, take care of them, get order restored, do some recruiting. Then, when that settles down, you do the next area, and so on. Meanwhile you make sure everybody in the surrounding areas knows about it.

You need the military to protect the civilians, and you need the civilians to protect and guide the military, it's symbiotic.

Medical care is useful too.

The main problem with food bombs is they get co-opted and don't get to the intended targets in the intended way, so you have to do it stepwise.

that talked about how some members of Boko Haram were fleeing a section of forest where they'd hid, due to the spiders and snakes within it. Their various religious beliefs had something to do with their fear of the snakes and spiders.

Well, that was a lightbulb moment. If their members are so afraid of spiders and snakes that they'd flee from their locations simply because those creatures are in their area, then why not drop nonpoisonous spiders and snakes on them at night? They can't tell if they're poisonous at first glance, and it does seem like a glance is all it takes to put enough fear into them that they are no longer a threat.

I don't recall if the story mentioned them dropping their weapons or not, but, if nothing else, rubber spiders and snakes might work just as well if dropped at night

MAIDUGURI—Some members of the Islamist sect, Boko Haram, arrested yesterday at Mairi ward behind University of Maiduguri by members of the Civilian JTF vigilante group, have confessed that most of them are fleeing the Sambisa Forest to areas across Borno State owing to what they believe is spiritual attacks from mysterious snakes and bees, which had killed many of their leaders.

ttp://www.vanguardngr.com/2014/06/mysterious-snakes-bees-attack-boko-haram-sambisa-forest/#sthash.mJKceOgs.dpuf

Interesting.

http://www.amnesty.org/en/news/nigeria-satellite-images-show-horrific-scale-boko-haram-attack-baga-2015-01-15

Incompetent, corrupt, unmanly or a combination of everything. Never heard of a military that allows such actions without a response.