Estrich, Susan. The Enemy of our Enemy. Creators Syndicate 2 Sept. 2014: Web. 2 Sept. 2014.

The Enemy of our Enemy begins with a description of the beheading of journalist Steven Sotloff and
the seemingly unstoppable cruelty of ISIS terrorists; it then proposes that American forces ally with
Syrias Bashar al-Assad, asserting that our hope of crushing terrorism lies in empowering other countries
opposing ISIS; it ends in a fretful tone as Estrich fearfully describes Americas lack of strategy and her
uncertainty regarding the countrys safety.

The news is constantly blaring with stories of the Middle East and the war and violence consuming this
region, but all too recently this conflict has required true sentiment on behalf of the United States.
Guarded from these horrors by a false sense of eternal security, an isolated America is presumably
invulnerable to terroristic threats. That is, until now. The death of James Foley is preceded by the
beheading of another freelance journalist, Steven Sotloff. The grotesque murder of an American citizen
is a testament to the extremes of the group ISIS; these killings are the terrorists way of proclaiming
their fiery, barbaric drive, a monstrous machine fed on religious devotion, guided by a distorted moral
compass, and billowing out the ashes of accumulating dead. As the threat of ISIS dominion grows, we
are forced to contemplate ways of hindering the terrorist organization. Estrich proposes that the United
States join with Syrias brutal leader, Bashar al-Assad, suggesting that we unofficially ally ourselves with
murderers to save ourselves from even more brutal murderers. This plan does hold whispers of
promise: allying with countries closer to this epicenter of horror could constrain the ISIS threat, and
Syrias knowledge on brutality and war might provide insight for ISIS motives and actions. However,
there are too many opportunities for error, too many reasons not to trust other terroristic countries like
Syria, that make this an implausible plan. Placing our trust and the fate of Americas peace in the hands
of a volatile, still hostile country allows for deceit and mistakes. Though it may take longer to devise a
solidified course of action, I believe we are more likely to stop ISIS with a trustworthy plan versus
rallying a countrys troops that stand on the opposing battle lines of American soldiers.