MajorMajor wrote:2. Support(i.e. weapons, aid, airstrikes & special forces help on ground at most) the Kurds on the ground in the north of Iraq.
I agree with this, though it is important to note that the Kurds aren't interested in launching an offensive against IS and only care about defending their homeland. Ideally, they'd be able to carve an independent Kurdistan out of parts of Iraq and Syria and become another Western ally in the region. Turkey won't like it, but Erdogan can go fuck himself.
MajorMajor wrote:3. Work with Iran to arm and support the Shia in the south.
4. Suck it up and support Assad in Syria to crush ISIS there.
Any American politician proposing this would get laughed out of his office in an instant. The US are not going to do something that is directly against their interests only to get rid of some nutjob insurgents that likely won't even be around 5 years down the road.
I find it funny how worked up everyone is getting about IS while Putin is currently in the process of anschlussing Ukraine, a country whose sovereignty the US and UK are obligated to protect.