mali!

whenever there's some little terrorist, radical, supremely shitty group of people like those over in mali, there are only ever a few of them. there are apparently 800 or 900 of these monsters who've taken over a region the size of texas. EIGHT OR NINE HUNDRED! this is preposterously few people. what makes it possible for so few people, however marvelously armed and tough and passionate, is some sort of sympathy from the population. if the pop's not into stoning adulterers and all that, then at least getting a paycheck from those who are. there are SO FEW OF THEM. they've gotta have the sympathy of the population. so don't let them get the sympathy of the population. which is to say, instead of expecting a war to be a cakewalk, make cakewalks, not war. for so you'll win the hearts of the locals, and good will reign, LOCALLY!

i mean, there's lots of potential recruits! mali is like 90% muslim. and even if 98% of that 90% is totally unsympathetic, there're liable to be a few people who are, especially if westerners show up and do their terror-fighting, collateral murder thing