How satisfying it was for many of us, including the Washington establishment, when we heard that our Navy launched more than 50 Tomahawk Missiles at a secondary military air base in Syria. We then watched the parade of the military/foreign policy “adults” and “hawkish” politicos across our cable news-screens, assuring the American people that this was a righteous action. The missile strike they opined was done in justifiable retaliation for the horror-filled videos of the aftermath of Bashar al-Assad’s use of “Sarin Gas” against perhaps 100 of his own Syrian citizens. All through the on-screen discussions, this military decision to attack another country, was characterized by statements to the effect that Donald Trump was finally taking the advice of the “adults in the room“. The meaning of course was that before that, the Trump administration was being run by the demented likes of Steve Bannon and his band of Alt-Rightists. This of course, was not to mention the fact that behind their impassive miens, most of the Washingtonian establishment believed Trump to be a crazy loose cannon.
Here’s the rub in all this, deconstructed down to the realities of the situation in bullets:
- Bashar al-Assad is a member of the Alawites, which is a sub-division of Shia Islam and is the faith of 12% of the Syrian people.
- Sunni Islam is the faith for 68% of the Syrian population.
- The Sunni-Shia Conflict is a bitter one and stretches back more than 1,300 years to the death of the Prophet.
- Iran is the leading nation of Shia Islam, whereas its’ arch-enemy Saudi Arabia is the leading proponent of Sunni Islam.
- Thus the “Civil War” in Syria is a religious conflict, whose roots stretch back 1,300 years, as well as a Geo-political battle for dominance between Iran and Saudi Arabia, over supremacy over Islam and the Middle East.
- Added to this toxic mix is the fact that the United States is a very close ally of Saudi Arabia and the Russian Republic is closely allied with Iran.
Just from the bullets above, anyone should be able to see that what is going on in Syria is a very complex situation that will never have an easy solutions. The real problem for our country is that its politicians, its Corporate/Military/Intelligence Complex (CMIC) and its citizens don’t handle complexity well. This is especially true when one factors in that when there is money to be made, or political power to be gained the politicians and the CMIC prefer propaganda to truth when seeking support of the citizenry. Each one of those 50 odd Tomahawk Missiles launched never to return, costs $560,000, Thus Raytheon Corporation should get about $30 million from this launch alone, to replenish our missile stockpile.
You might think that my putting this missile attack, into these terms, is too simplistic and far too cynical. Is it really? None of the talking heads on my TV last night believed that the attack would achieve either the goals of ousting Assad, nor of stopping his use of “Sarin Gas“. So what was the point of the missile attack based on my synthesis all the justifications I heard on my TV last night.
- The U.S.A. was sending Assad a message that we wouldn’t stand for his gassing of his citizens.
- The murderous gas attack required a message of our displeasure being sent.
- The U.S.A.could not let this attack go unpunished.
- The U.S.A. must signal to the world that we won’t stand for this barbarity.
My sense of this action and these justifications, is that they are palpably childish nonsense, performed by people who are interested more in saving face rather then actually accomplishing a particular set of goals. Ten year olds on the playground act this way and will use violence to save face, or to “solve” problems. When it comes to the “The Great Game” of world Geo-politics, a term incidentally harking back 186 years to a conflict between Britain and Russia over similar territory, it all comes down to wealth and power won at the point of a gun. In other words activity strikingly similar to the struggles of children on playgrounds. The term “adults in the room” is really a technique for cutting of discussion and questioning of military actions, by implying that critics are childish, where the reverse is probably true.
Bashar al-Assadis a very bad person, who if you read his history is but another ignorant little rich boy, making the Syrians his toys. If I had the chance I would cheerfully cut his throat, or shoot him in the gut, making sure he suffered even a little for his heinous crimes. I am not a pacifist, nor do I believe that war is always unjust. However, I feel that violence in display of power, is for the most part stupid and childish. I do weep for the lives of those innocent people destroyed by this horrible act, but you cannot convince me that the launch of some missiles makes up for it, or calls to account the perpetrators. I must note, without Schadenfreude, that Trump’s crocodile tears over the lives lost in the gas attack are merely the result of hypocrisy morphed into bitter irony. After all, part of his initial campaign demagoguery, was his wanting to ban Syrian refugees as potential terrorists.
Putting my cards clearly on the Geo-political table, I don’t have a clue as to what to do about Bashar al-Assad or Syria, or if indeed there is anything to be done. Whatever wiser heads than I come up with to deal with the horror of Syria, I am certain though that the path to a good solution wasn’t being trod by last night’s missile attack.
April 7, 2017 at 12:12 pm
IMO, to the extent we can be certain, beyond reasonable doubt, that some person is intentionally and knowingly killing innocent people out of selfish interest, that person deserves to be put to death. I think the answer really is simple, and it is an answer we have known for 50,000 years. Murderous psychopaths and sociopaths should be put to death. That is a risky proposition that can cost lives, including nearby innocent lives, but is indeed the right and righteous thing to do. Not “sending a message” with MORE innocent lives, but permanently ending, without question, any future carnage of the bad actor in question. We shouldn’t have sent a message to Assad, but to the world: Send 50 Tomahawks to level every corner we think he might be hiding in. The message is we will not suffer such people to live.
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April 7, 2017 at 8:51 pm
I note that Robert Kagan in the WAPO just said: “But Thursday’s action needs to be just the opening salvo in a broader campaign not only to protect the Syrian people from the brutality of the Bashar al-Assad regime but also to reverse the downward spiral of U.S. power and influence in the Middle East and throughout the world. ”
Did he really just say that the US needs to beat up a classmate or the other students might stop being intimidated by us? I think he said that to keep all the other students in line the, every once in a while the US has to beat somebody up.
Eeny, meeny, miny, moe ….
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April 7, 2017 at 9:45 pm
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April 7, 2017 at 10:50 pm
”but also to reverse the downward spiral of U.S. power and influence in the Middle East and throughout the world. ”
Did he really just say that the US needs to beat up a classmate or the other students might stop being intimidated by us? ”
BFM,
I think you re-stated the clear meaning of the Kagan statement perfectly. The “adults in the room” clearly are NOT adults.
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April 7, 2017 at 10:51 pm
-Murderous psychopaths and sociopaths should be put to death.-
MM,
I agree, yet this missile strike posed not even a flicker of harm to the safety of Assad. It was a beau geste signifying nothing but the inflation of the Trump ego.
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April 7, 2017 at 11:23 pm
https://images.spot.im/image/upload/q_70,fl_lossy,dpr_1.0,c_limit/v200/6f1b38e21bd6e15a282e623f86c0eb28
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April 7, 2017 at 11:26 pm
One day I’m going to learn how to properly post GIF’s.
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April 8, 2017 at 9:18 am
Pete,
One day I am going to figure out what GIF’s are.
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April 8, 2017 at 9:24 am
Mike: I know this didn’t harm Assad; that was my point. I am disgusted by the “gentleman’s agreement” that heads of state are off limits as targets no matter how horrific their crimes; this idea that it is acceptable to kill their soldiers that often face a choice of death by execution if they don’t follow orders; but not acceptable to kill the person deciding to commit a war crime or other crime against humanity. I hate privileged position that extends even to life itself. Do you think NOBODY died at that base as a result of 50 tomahawk missiles? I have no evidence of course, I am not on the site, but I would not be surprised to learn that soldiers and office workers with zero choice in what happened (short of dying or being killed for their principles in a gesture that would not have changed the outcome one bit) actually DID die, Trump killed innocent people to send a pointless message to a psychopath that doesn’t care for one moment about the deaths of his citizens or his soldiers. If innocents are bound to die either way, I’d rather see Assad amongst the dead. Nothing constrains the actions of a psychopath other than actual force or the credible threat of force, personal injury or personal death. Nothing. The “gentleman’s agreement” on heads of state takes away the only tool humanity has as a defense against dictatorships, and therefore encourages the continued proliferation of them.
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April 8, 2017 at 9:35 pm
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April 13, 2017 at 1:13 pm
Trump dropped a monster bomb on Afghanistan today. He said he would bomb the “shit of them” and he is.
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April 13, 2017 at 2:21 pm
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April 13, 2017 at 3:03 pm
Well … it is huge!
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