Here's the simple, foolproof way to defeat ISIS: Kill them

The best way to deal with extremism is often by improving socioeconomic conditions. This is not one of those times.

Iraqi Army
(Image credit: AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed)

The Obama administration has reportedly finally decided on a plan for dealing with ISIS: letting the next administration handle it. Now, to be fair, that approach will at least work for one person — Barack Obama — which is more than can be said for many other approaches. But it doesn't exactly put to rest the question perplexing Washington: How should the U.S. deal with the Islamic State?

At the risk of over-caricaturing, there are basically two approaches to ISIS: "Give 'em jobs," as infamously exemplified by State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf, and "kill 'em dead," as exemplified by most Republican presidential candidates.

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Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry

Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry is a writer and fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center. His writing has appeared at Forbes, The Atlantic, First Things, Commentary Magazine, The Daily Beast, The Federalist, Quartz, and other places. He lives in Paris with his beloved wife and daughter.