IT'S ABOUT TIME – AT 8:46 A.M. ET:  The Kurds are a pro-American people who are theoretically part of Iraq, but essentially live independently.  Despite their loyalty to America, we have treated them badly, often taking them for granted.  Maybe that's about to change, although I wouldn't trust the long-term plans of this administration.  From WaPo: 

The United States is sending weapons to Kurdish forces in Iraq who have begun to roll back gains made by Sunni militants, a senior U.S. official confirmed to Fox News.

Long, long overdue.

A senior State Department official told The Associated Press that the Kurds are "getting arms from various sources. They are being rearmed."

Providing weapons to Kurdish forces is a reversal of U.S. policy, which previously had only allowed for selling arms directly to the Iraqi government. In recent days, the U.S. military has been helping facilitate weapons deliveries from the Iraqis to the Kurds, providing logistical assistance and transportation to the north.

Sources say the weapons from the U.S. will not be provided directly from the Pentagon. Officials wouldn't say which agency is spearheading the effort, though the CIA historically has done similar arming operations.

State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf noted that the administration previously mentioned the new arms deliveries, which she suggested are being made to contend with the "heavy weaponry" obtained by Islamic militants.

"The Kurds need additional arms and we're providing those," she said in a statement.

The move to directly aid the Kurds underscores the level of U.S. concern about the Islamic State militants' gains in the north, and reflects the persistent administration view that the Iraqis must take the necessary steps to solve their own security problems.

COMMENT:  The Kurds will fight.  And events in Syria have shown that when the Islamic nuts are confronted by a well-disciplined group of troops, they run into trouble. 

But I hope it's not too late.  So much of Iraq has been overrun by ISIS.  The Iraqi government is in turmoil, and nominal allies of the United States are being turned into refugees, not fighters.  Also, no one knows when Obama will pull the plug on aid.  The only long haul he's ever hauled is his own career.

August 11,  2014