Thomas Friedman, "Same War, Different Country": America's Credibility Is Not on the Line?

Obama's declaration of a "red line" involving Assad's use of chemical weapons did not place America's credibility at issue?

In his latest New York Times op-ed entitled "Same War, Different Country" (http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/08/opinion/sunday/friedman-same-war-different-country.html), Thomas Friedman pompously declares:

"I still believe our response to Assad’s poison gas attack should be 'arm and shame,' as I wrote on Wednesday. But, please do spare me the lecture that America’s credibility is at stake here. Really? Sunnis and Shiites have been fighting since the 7th century over who is the rightful heir to the Prophet Muhammad’s spiritual and political leadership, and our credibility is on the line? Really? Their civilization has missed every big modern global trend — the religious Reformation, democratization, feminism and entrepreneurial and innovative capitalism — and our credibility is on the line? I don’t think so."

Were it only the case.

As observed today in a New York Times op-ed entitled "Barry’s War Within" (http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/08/opinion/sunday/dowd-barrys-war-within.html), Maureen Dowd observes:

"Obama has told Israel, when it has threatened to go it alone on striking Iran, to back off, guaranteeing the U.S. would use force if necessary to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon. If Congress ratifies that there’s no appetite among Americans to police the Middle East, does it doom any chance of a U.S. pre-emptive strike on Iran and indicate that the U.S. won’t be there for Israel?"

What Dowd fails to mention is that Saudi Arabia is even more anxious than Israel concerning Iran's nuclear weapons development program.

Yup, Obama sure as heck painted himself into a corner.