there's a story we teach our children called the boy who cried wolf, which is about a child that asks for help repeatedly, only to have none required - until a wolf actually shows up, and nobody believes it.

i was yelling as loud as anybody through the 00s that the war on terrorism was a lot of imperialist bullshit that was rooted in lies. and, it should be clear that i haven't dropped my general skepticism. but, what happens when a horde of dark age zealots intent on rape and slavery and pillaging and slaughter actually shows up in the middle east, and starts raping and enslaving and slaughtering people?

you don't believe them, anymore - and, to an extent, i don't blame you.

but, it happened, nonetheless.