I have withheld writing about the Syrian crisis for a long time and even now i am reluctant to do so, but i will be very careful in what i say and how i say it. It is a very sensitive issue for many people, not only abroad in Syria itself but communities worldwide, including my family and friends that have loved ones still there. So i will tread lightly and carefully in respect to those facts, but in this piece i will be investigating if indeed the almost inevitable U.S military strike in Syria will be beneficial for it’s nation and the people, not to mention i will look deeper into exactly why U.S President Obama is so passionate about taking action, particularly military action and if his intentions appear as pure as he attempts to portray them.
First of all let me tell you how ill informed i am about Syria itself, many people have a lot to say about the scenario, yet i have kept silent and continue to do so. I do not know who the “bad guys” and the “good guys” are. I don’t know what forms a “rebel” and i don’t know who is at fault or to blame. All i do know is a lot of people are dying in Syria, a lot of innocent men, women and children for what appears to be no significant reason, and as usual in all things dealing with the political spectrum it is usually the innocent that have to pay the price. It depresses me that this ancient country that was once a hotbed for tourism that enjoyed some form of pluralistic living in relative peace and security has become a place of death and destruction, perhaps not entirely but for what it’s worth, too many people are dying unnecessarily and it needs to be addressed.
Sad reality: People are dying in Syrian unrest.
The death toll is massive and it ranges depending on the source but one thing is for sure, this internal conflict has gone on for too long and indeed it is time for some form of action and before you know it the United States has stepped forward and offered a solution, a military strike. Forgive my skepticism of the predictable nature of this supposed rescue effort and my mistrust of the American political anomaly, but let me get back to that later. Yes, Syria appears to have a problem and yes it would be great to resolve this issue but will armed and ready warships off the coast of Cyprus be a solution to the troubles and misfortune of the Syrian people, i highly doubt it, will it cause a sudden era of peace to have Bashar Assad arrested, exiled or killed? I Highly doubt it, and are the Americans intentions behind this planned military strike truly for the well being of the Syrian people and for the betterment of the region ? I highly doubt it.
What hauntingly echo’s almost in the form of a sound byte is the United States accusing Syrian (political) forces using chemical weapons on their own people and that suddenly and swiftly military action must be taken. Despite Inspectors not finding any convincing or conclusive evidence that it is indeed a fact, and with little information as to who is directly responsible the war drums start beating and President Obama has made a prompt and definite decision that the best course of action is war, with another Middle Eastern Nation about supposed “weapons” that must be stopped and a wicked dictator that must be toppled. I don’t know who to trust anymore which is why i repeat myself, i don’t know who is good or who is bad in this scenario, all i care about are the people. All of this sounds similar to what was said during the hotly contested Iraq War, which turned about to be not only a war based on a lie but a war that continues to leave a scar on Iraq, which is permanently bleeding to this day with more civil unrest and terrorism.
Forgive my skepticism to the United States and their push for a military strike on Syria, to me it is like ripping off the scab of one that is injured and letting it bleed up again, it is not fixing the problem but in fact is simply a reliving of the nightmare that the Syrians already are in, more death, more destruction and more chaos. It almost appears that the intentions behind a military strike on Syria is nothing more than the United States trying to leave its footprint on this Earth, stridently proving itself to the international community at hand, as if to chant “we are a superpower and will do as we wish, with or without your support and with or without the backing of our own constitutions both domestically and internationally.”
Is Obamas “solution” of military action a cure?
What strikes me as bizarre is Obamas quote that this military strike on Syria will be in the best interest for the security of the United States of America. Let me set out one basic and fundamental fact about this war that i can confidently say. The United States is NOT striking on grounds of self defense. This is an aggression and never has Syria been a threat to the United States and this internal conflict has had no connection to any dangers for any American civilians on American soil, there is no connection. Yet oddly enough President Obama tries to sell people some myth by claiming that “I always preserve the right and responsibility to act on behalf of America’s national security.” Yet the most blatantly obvious thing about such a statement is that no, a military strike on Syria will not protect America, it will in fact open up more gates and doors to terror attacks, retaliation and hostility that actually WILL endanger the lives of innocent American civilians and i hate to break it to you, but it would be justified. Why?
War is a conflict between nations, it is not where big brother beats little brother to a pulp and little brother walks away, sometimes little brother will fight back and that is the war concept that the United States doesn’t understand- once you aggressively attack a sovereign, independent nation recognized by the International Community, you have enabled a war. Aggression leads to retaliation, hence a response to this war- however it is carried out, is justified. If America attacks Syrians on their own soil in a war that is not self defense but an aggression and Syria responds accordingly by attacking Americans on their own soil – that is no longer terrorism, but simply the codex of warfare.
It is just hypocrisy beyond belief that even if it is true, that if Syria has used chemical weapons that it justifies a military strike. If America intend to be honest and expect the same treatment if they commit the same offenses then according to Americas own policy, it is in fact justified that America be attacked for using and supplying Chemical weapons in Falluja, Iraq (in 2004). Which is why until this day, the marks of those chemicals are seen on the Iraqis of that area because they are having severely deformed children from the effects of the Chemical weaponry used against them during the illegal Iraqi war. My question is who is putting America under scrutiny and check for doing that? What nation has told the United States that for such actions they will be attacked? None. Yet if the United States finds others doing it, then apparently it justifies a military strike. The hypocrisy is mind baffling, which is why i do not support a military strike on Syria, to me no matter how much they try and dress it up, i see it for the empty, hollow and shallow truth that it is, none of this will do anything to make anything better, anywhere.
Is a lack of public support strong enough a case to stop military action?
The Good News is that the United Kingdom, who typically and initially supported the Military Strike on Syria, just as they blindly did for Iraq have backed away from their support. The British parliament conducted a vote and the huge majority voted against military action in Syria, which almost guarantees the United Kingdom will have no play in this almost certain strike. Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned the United States against an attack stating that if the US attacks Syria that “We have our ideas about what we will do and how we will do it in case the situation develops toward the use of force or otherwise. We have our plans.”
Iran’s most powerful authority, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said “I believe the Americans are making mistakes in Syria and they have felt the impact and will certainly suffer loss“, whilst China has diplomatically tried to the warn the United States in a way that hurts the most, economically. Chinese Vice Finance Minister Zhu Guangyao said “Military action would have a negative impact on the global economy,”
In saying that, it is not only most of the international political bodies that disagree with Americas rush to strike Syria, it is the people of the countries themselves. A recent PEW research poll revealed the the majority of the American people do not support a strike on Syria. Results show that just 29 percent of Americans favored airstrikes on Syria.
Other nations have had their say on the military campaign.
The depressing thing is that President Obama doesn’t really care about the opinions of his people, he is quoted to have said “We can send a very strong message.” To me this is what it is all about, flexing that big American muscle and letting the world know that despite being on the brink of a tragic debt, that the United States is still indeed the worlds super power and that their political system is beyond its U.N charters, it’s people, and the international community itself. I don’t hate America or Americans, i am not a left or right wing nutter nor do i have an agenda up my sleeve in regards to the Syrian situation.
I believe in a resolution, i hope for peace in Syria and i wish the problem is resolved sooner rather than later, but i will not back up another war that President Obama is intimidating the world with. He said “My credibility isn’t on the line. The international community’s credibility is on the line“. So in essence, if you are not with me, in supporting an aggressive strike against a sovereign nation for committing a supposed crime that America itself has committed (and was unpunished for)- then you as a nation lose credit. I refuse to support this disingenuous case for war, it is nonsense to assume civil warfare stops with international military intervention, there may be a cure to many diseases out there but the disease of war doesn’t have a cure, it simply is a kettle that continually boils and it is only a matter of time before that hot water spills over the edges again and that cycle just keeps on repeating itself. If President Obama really cared about the interest of the American and Syrian people, he’d keep out of Syria.
Peace, Salam.
ramio1983 