Refugees: Young men should be sent back to fight

Should the U.S. and other Western countries accept refugees from the Levant (Syria)? Yes, but no military-age males. The elderly, children, women, mothers and those expectant can and should be allowed to emigrate. These people pose little or no threat and should be welcomed, assisted and given temporary visas with the hope that they will eventually return home.

The military-age males should be returned to their country to fight for it. Yes, that’s right: Fight, not run. They must be organized into brigades of highly motivated freedom fighters equipped and supported by the West to destroy the radicalism they are fleeing.

Yes, it would take time, but likely they would defeat the Islamic State in the Levant. The tricky part is getting the Assad regime and Russia’s Vladimir Putin to accept the plan. We wouldn’t want Russia targeting them.

Here’s another thought: We might have to accept that keeping Assad in power in Syria is an acceptable trade-off for the defeat of the Islamic State - the lesser of two evils, for sure. It wouldn’t be the first time we have tolerated a brutal dictator to combat a greater evil.

This story was originally published November 17, 2015 at 2:06 PM with the headline "Refugees: Young men should be sent back to fight."