The single beacon of light in this unholy region is the Kurdish people. Whilst Kerry and Obama cast around for the non-existent 'moderate' force to deal with ISIL, the Kurdish peshmerga is sitting right in front of their face. All the positives of this group, as accurately described by the author are accurate.
The best thing for the 'west' is to fully support morally, militarily, financially and politically, the establishment of an internationally recognised Kurdish state with access to the Sea in the west to the mountains to the east.

With a fairly decent ability to fight and command of enough oil (in Iraq) to fund - the Kurds should be able to justify a fair bit of territory for nationhood - or at least territory in a federated Iraq.

But not all the territory they want as that would lead to endless disputes with Iran, Iraq, Syria and Turkey. In those disputes they can't rely on Western support and mediation forever - otherwise they'd be like the Israelis.

The Kurds like the Macedonian's have endured centuries of occupation, oppression and neglect. Let us hope that now the Kurds will achieve the statehood they deserve as they are in the front line of fighting ISIL and other evil forces.

<Explained by Harvard professor Michael Ignatieff in his seminal analysis of nationalism 'Blood and Belonging', "statelessness is a state of mind, and it is akin to homelessness". Statelessness for Kurdistan has meant an existence denied of self-identity, and a life devoid of security. It is ahistorical to imagine that Kurdish national belonging can in any way be satisfied without a corresponding, and internationally, recognised state>

This statement by Harvard professor Michael Ignatieff is
so wrong it throws doubt on the intelligence of Harvard Professors
in general. It shows that they are teaching an idealological
belief system and not something based on factual observation.

It is to be noted that Turkey, whilst positioning tanks to protect
their own borders from ISIS, has failed to help the Kurds in the
town of Kobani, this shows a reluctance by them to help the Kurds.
After all their tanks and soldiers are right there in sight of the
town of Kobani, they have troops at the ready on the ground but fail
to deploy them to help the Kurds. A very telling stance.