06 September 2013

Observations on potential war with Syria

"The liberal elites are particularly amazing to behold. I watched Anderson Cooper tonight and I may have missed it, but I couldn’t find a single guest opposed to this war, even as most Americans emphatically oppose it. Even O’Reilly was more even-handed (I kept flicking back and forth). We got to listen to Ryan Crocker tell us that we have to intervene and at the same time that the potential replacement for Assad is probably just as foul as the dictator. And we got Fouad Ajami – another pro-Iraq war “expert” who was exposed as an eloquent bullshit artist during the Iraq fiasco – telling us – yes, he said this – to trust the “Syrian people”, as if they exist, as if the sectarian divides and hatreds are not re-fueling as we speak, as if he has no shame and no record. It really is as if Iraq never happened, as if the US still had the resources to fight another, brutal and scarring sectarian conflict in someone else’s country on someone else’s behalf who will eventually ally with our foes. It is as if the Bush-Cheney administration never happened. It is as if the “surge” worked...

So now we are treated to the argument from “credibility”. Enough with the arguments about credibility! The United States would benefit by nothing more than accepting the fact that we do not have the power to control that region and shouldn’t die trying. Our credibility is threatened not when we stay out of other people’s civil wars, but when we make threats we cannot enforce. I am emphatically not dismissing the Rubicon of chemical weapons, and am as appalled by their use as anyone. But if we cannot resolve the question without entering another full-scale, open-ended war on the basis of murky intelligence about WMDs, then we should resign ourselves to not resolving the question. Repeat after me: American power is much more limited than our elites still want to believe."
And this:
AIPAC’s all in on Syria.

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the nation’s primary pro-Israel lobbying group, has broken its silence on Syria, calling for members of Congress to vote in favor of a resolution giving President Barack Obama express authority to launch strikes against President Bashar Assad’s regime.
“AIPAC urges Congress to grant the president the authority he has requested to protect America’s national security interests and dissuade the Syrian regime’s further use of unconventional weapons..."
The word “Israel” appears nowhere in the text of the statement, underscoring by omission the worry pro-Israel groups in the United States have about framing retaliatory strikes in a way that makes it look like Israel is pushing for an attack on Syria for its own interests.

7 comments:

  1. The US can accomplish nothing productive by attacking Syria.

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  2. SMH...
    this, from a country, the ONLY country to have used nuclear weapons in a war...
    society and culture are circling the drain
    unleash the dogs of war...
    woof

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  3. We shouldn't have gone into Iraq, and we shouldn't go into Syria. I don't know why our government has stopped listening to it's supposed "masters" but it needs to end. I figure that the business of war is lining some pockets pretty well, and in the meantime, those of us down here on the bottom rung get crapped on by those up top profiting from death and destruction. Why should they listen?

    Maybe it's for the best - let Syria be another sacrificial lamb to slaughter for these idiot politicians to get a bit richer, then when there is no more blood to squeeze out of this stone, they'll be forced to sober up and go home.

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  4. More about Israeli involvement in the effort to destabilize Syria: Cheney-Linked Company to Drill in Occupied Golan Heights

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  5. I've written to the White House about this issue, asking Mr. Obama to please desist. No one I've talked to in this country (U.S.)and I have talked to people all across the nation -- no one is in favor of bombing or drone strikes or another war. We are all supportive of Israel, but not willing to go to war unless Israel is attacked.

    We are tired of wars that accomplish nothing but enriching the munitions-makers and companies like Halliburton. We do not wish to spill any more American blood...

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  6. He was one of the biggest boosters for the Iraq war. He called anti-war activists "traitors" and worse. He basically was McCarthyism 2.0 Disgusting. ridiculous. hypocrite. This should always be remembered when reading this self serving creep.

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  7. I agree we should not be the ones to intervene in all these conflicts. While I supported overthrowing the Taliban and trying to destroy al Qaeda in Afghanistan, I saw no reason for staying there. Of course, Iraq was completely unnecessary.

    I support what we did in Libya and see that as a model. I support what we did in Bosnia to end ethnic cleansing and agree with many that Clinton should have done something in Rwanda.

    Yes, we are war weary. Yes, why can't other nations take the lead. Russia is arming the regime and China just wants to sell junk everywhere. This make the UN useless.

    What is so bad about lobbing a few cruise missiles at selected targets when it sends a message to dictators that it is wrong to use poisonous gas on babies? Assuming we have the intel and can make the case Assad did this. Doesn't the world have standards anymore? There is no reason to believe we will be sucked into this or have boots on the ground.

    Can someone tell me the right time for NATO or the UN to stop atrocities against mankind?

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