[JoeRedskin]

Originally Posted by BaltimoreSkins

I think you can lump every leader in the developed world in together, until the Paris attack security agencies through Europe, North America and Japan did not consider ISIS as a valid terror threat.

Sorry, no. True, they were more of a regional force before Paris, but, they have long been seen as a potential threat. From a Brooking Institute Op Ed. a year ago.

A real threat must have three attributes: intent, capability, and opportunity. Clearly, ISIS has the intent, declaring that the black flag of ISIS will fly over the White House. It also has the capability. Suicide bombers are not the most tactically advanced weapons, but their utility has been demonstrated for decades in the Middle East. That leaves opportunity, and the coalition of nations committed to defeating ISIS is in place to harden the Western target and diminish the chances of attack. Consequently, ISIS is only a threat if America stands by and lets it be a threat. When we stop fighting, however, we allow their fighters a chance to plan overseas operations and focus on a conceptual threat (the West) instead of daily threats at home.

The Big Questions on ISIS | Brookings Institution