Hitting ISIS where it hurts As horrific as the current situation in Iraq may be, according to political scientist Patrick B. Johnston's essay "Hitting ISIS where it hurts: Disrupt ISIS cash flow in Iraq" there is little appetite in the U.S. For a wide-scale ground war. Yet a more conservative combination of limited airstrikes and aid is also unlikely to prevent ISIS from thriving. Johnston believes that the defeat of ISIS can only come from within Iraq. Helping the Iraqi government and the ISIS resistance movement plan military options, specifically by targeting ISIS' financial sources of support is critical. Rather than targeting the outside flow of financial revenue to ISIS, Johnston advocates active military operations against the oil business, cash, and bookkeeping of ISIS. Traditional methods of stemming the flow of cash will not work, give ISIS' lack of reliance on foreign patrons.

America can also provide non-military assistance in the form of analyzing ISIS' financial information. The Iraq government should make attacking ISIS oil wells a priority as well as engaging in alliances with sympathetic Muslim neighbors to contain ISIS' financial operations.
Johnston's recommendations are clearly designed to require the minimum amount of military and intelligence commitments from the U.S. To achieve the maximum result in terms of disrupting the financial operations of ISIS. Given the unfeasibility of major U.S. ground support, attacking ISIS financially 'where it hurts' is essential. But given that ISIS' sources…