Guests:Gillian Turner & Thom Nichols
"I am tired of the phony rhetoric surrounding the ISIS terror threat. I am also tired of being misled by the Obama administration. Here is the truth: Syrian moderates cannot defeat the ISIS terror group. Last week Congress approved arming and training the Syrians, possibly to the tune of $500 million. If that money is actually spent, it will be another total waste. So, what should we do? First of all, there is not a single credible military person who thinks ISIS can be defeated without ground forces. So we need ground forces. However, the American people, perhaps rightly so, do not want to send any more of our troops into these chaotic countries. But what about a mercenary army? Elite fighters who would be well paid and trained to defeat terrorists all over the world. Here's how it would work: The fighters would be recruited by the USA and trained in America by our special forces. America would be in charge of selecting who makes the cut and how they are deployed, with an eye on a 25,000-person force. American and NATO officers would lead the army, basing the first soldiers in Kurdistan. The force would be called the 'anti-terror army,' with the cost paid by the coalition that President Obama is trying to put together. That means all countries that want intelligence and protection from the USA and NATO would have to chip in. If you don't pay, you get no help. Each soldier would sign a three-year commitment and, again, they would be well paid. Finally, it would help a lot if Congress would formally declare war on terrorism and stop trying to coax reluctant, sometimes cowardly countries into fighting terrorism. Islamic terrorists are going to kill as many people on this Earth as they can, so an anti-terror force will eventually have to be raised. Let's see if President Obama has the foresight and guts to do it now."

The Factor invited reaction from Thom Nichols, a professor at the U.S. Naval War College. "This is a terrible idea," Nichols declared, mincing no words, "not just as a practical matter, but as a moral matter. It's morally corrosive to outsource our national security, this is something America has to do for ourselves. You're asking these forces to operate as if they are part of the U.S. military, yet you're treating them like they are mercenaries." But Gillian Turner, a former official at the National Security Council, was not as dismissive. "I agree that Syrian moderates are not capable of unilaterally destroying ISIS troops. In principle it's a good idea to bring other countries on board with U.S. strategy in the Middle East." The Factor took issue with Nichols strenuous objections: "What's immoral about it? The U.S. trains and supervises and decides where they go. It is a highly-trained, disciplined force that operates under the Geneva Convention rules, a force that would strike fear into every terrorist in the world."

Guests:Juan Williams and Mary Katharine
Juan Williams and Mary Katharine Ham opined on former Obama administration officials who now say the president dithered while ISIS grew. "These guys are selling books," Williams said, "and they're in a Monday-morning-quarterbacking mode. They were there back then and they understand that we could not identify whether those Syrian rebels were really rebels or growing into terrorists. There was no win in giving arms to people who might turn around and use them against the USA." Ham criticized the The Factor's idea of a highly-trained and highly-paid international force. "There is a highly-trained and skilled force that can go forth in many of the places and do the work that needs to be done, and that is our special forces. The fact that people don't want our troops on the ground is not a reason to start a worldwide mercenary army."

Guests:Brit Hume
FNC's Brit Hume has contended that it is not the role of the National Football League to police the private conduct of its players. He entered the No Spin Zone to elaborate. "An accuser who may not be acting in good faith," Hume worried, "has the power to damage someone, perhaps permanently. I worry when you get one of these firestorms going and it seems almost like a lynch mob forms. The critics are not only going after Ray Rice, they're after the commissioner of the league." The Factor put forth a simple suggestion for the NFL: "This is a league with social implications, and if I were running a team I would have a zero tolerance policy. If you're arrested, you're suspended, and if you are convicted of a felony, you're done!"

Guests:Karl Rove
FNC's Karl Rove, who has been surveying the upcoming November elections, gave his latest prognostication. "If everything goes reasonably well for the Republicans," he said, "they will wind up with 52 or 53 seats. It could be more if a big wave develops. Republicans lead in six states and they're very close in four other states." Rove analyzed the tighter races one-by-one and, to the surprise of absolutely no one, suggested that his GOP will prevail in all of them.

Colorado has been notoriously lenient on child pornographers, and in one recent case, 69-year-old Timothy Robinson received probation despite possessing thousands of images of children being sexually abused. The Factor discussed the decision with former prosecutor Dan Conaway. "The judge probably felt that Robinson was too old or too sick," Conaway surmised. "However, if I had been the prosecutor in this case, I would have been jumping up and down about the fact that these were images of child rape." But former prosecutor Nicole DeBorde defended the idea of judicial discretion. "There are circumstances that we don't know about concerning this individual's health and how he got the images. He hasn't gotten away without punishment, he's going to be a registered sex offender for the rest of his life." But The Factor lambasted Judge Kurt Horton, who handed down the lenient sentence: "For every child in one of those images, one life was ruined, and this guy had thousands of them. I don't know how the judge can go home and put his head on the pillow."

Guests:Jesse Watters
Jesse Watters headed north to Boston, home of many prestigious universities, and asked some students about our troubles in the Middle East. Most of the young 'uns were unable to identify ISIS or even where we are dropping bombs. Back in the studio, Watters disputed the common claim that he goes out of his way to select particularly inane interview subjects. "We asked eight people what is going on," he reported, "and half of them had no idea. I'd actually invite a random person to come out and witness what actually happens."

If you feel strongly about any issue, including environmental matters, let your opinions be heard. But do your homework and know what you're talking about.

John Thomas, Bakersfield, CA: "Bill, the 'machines' are here to stay. I loved seeing you jump up and down because you have no control over the machines. They have provided more good than evil. This message was sent from a machine."

Marian Lami, Fairhope, AL: "Technology gives kids an outlet to use vulgarity without reprisal. Once a behavior is accepted without stigma it becomes acceptable."

Peggy Singleton, Austin, TX: "I usually enjoy the humor in the Gutfeld-McGuirk segment but was put off by the callousness shown to Alanis Morissette. It does not take a life endangering episode to experience post traumatic stress disorder."