What the Navy and Air Force call the rise of "Anti-Access, Area Denial" (A2AD) is more accurately the decline of the era of American impunity.

Frankly, the sooner it ends the better, as it will force us to once again adopt a reasonable, interest-based foreign policy that is more tolerant of the self-determination of others.

Yemen is in the midst of revolution, and reasonably so. Saudi revolutionaries take sanctuary within Yemen as well. Many of those are also member of AQ (who's primary purpose has always been revolutionary and focused on the al Saud family). Playing out as well is the larger state on state dynamic that Outlaw describes as Iran and the KSA compete for regional preeminence. Then there are the outside players like the US and Russia both jockeying for position on an even larger scale. Where there is insurgency, the exploiter will gather.

By applying a CT rationale to al Qaeda we have conflated nationalist revolutionaries, UW operatives and foreign fighters (typically revolutionaries at home) all under one big "AQAA" targeting banner and fired at the center of mass. OF COURSE these guys are shooting back at us. We need to put a finer point on our understanding of UW and the insurgencies supported and connected by the UW activities of AQ, ISIL and Iran.

If we applied a more appropriate Counter-UW logic we would quickly see that all of the revolutionary individuals and organizations need to come off of our il-conceived terrorist lists. We too should be conducting UW with those groups and competing for influence with the other state and non-state actors seeking to leverage the energy of these movements to advance their respective ends. Instead we find ourselves protecting regimes that are far out of step with their own populations, and being easily duped into killing their revolutionary populations for them in the name of "CT"!

We have mischaracterized this conflict from inception, and the poor strategic results we are attaining are not only predictable, but have been predicted and ignored. To escalate now does not make us look tougher or smarter. It is a weak and ignorant play.