It is highly predictable that a thug state based on piracy will fail. Howsoever long that people are willing to submit to extortion though, the state can grow and even thrive. If it parasitizes a successful population it can take a long time. It is good to see the signs of the Islamic State cracking at some seams though. Too much emphasis on fighting and sharia and not enough on food and economics and this was inevitable.
H/T Wrath of Khan
It would appear that they are building an ‘Islamic Paradise’ and ‘Utopia’ all rolled into one. Stand back and watch for the stampede of the ‘pious’ and ‘faithful’ rushing to this ‘Heaven on Earth’.
And like all utopias it is failing.
ISLAMIC STATE STRONGHOLD IN IRAQ SWAMPED WITH WATER-BORNE DISEASE
http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Peace/2014/12/02/Islamic-State-Stronghold-In-Iraq-Swamped-With-Water-Borne-Disease
Not only Raqqa, Lebanon report:
Water-borne disease plagues ISIS-held city of Mosul
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2014/Dec-02/279579-water-borne-disease-plagues-isis-held-city-of-mosul.ashx