In the words of the old song - if you're going to love a woman, be sure and do it right. The same goes for fighting a war. I'm not sure how the apostles of air power manage to get away with it; convincing their bosses that it's a war winner. "Boots on the ground" do not appear to be a priority when it comes to defeating Islamist hard-liners in Iraq and Syria. Western politician after western politician promises their nation's warplanes will take part in air strikes but their will be no "boots on the ground". I guess that keeps the number of body bags down and the political cost at home to a minimum. But it's no way to win a war. We're assured that the Kurds and the Iraqi Army will provide the necessary boots on the ground. I don't think so. Does anyone remember how Libya turned out? And no-one likes to mention who will be providing the boots on the ground in Syria. Anyway, if the Iraqi Army and Kurds can't do the job, who can? Perhaps it's time for mercenary man. There is a long long history of kings and governments hiring mercenaries to do their fighting for them - particularly when their own countrymen are unlikely to cut the mustard. I strongly suspect that the presence of "contractors" is yet another of the things we are not being told about the conflict in Iraq. That and the number of civilian casualties being inflicted as the Islamic hardliners embed their positions in amongst the local population.