So many questions and what a ‘to do’
My brain tells me this is not my fight and this hunk of meat then bombards me with a thousand and one questions. WHY??? Why are we and in particular the US taking the moral high ground regarding this heinous act? Is any sane man (or woman) suggesting those innocent people were not victims of a poisonous gas attack?
Does any sane person not accept that government forces were shelling\bombarding that rebel held area during the relevant time of that attack? France and the USA state they have intelligence showing government forces wearing gas masks during the alleged time of this attack although this information has not been made public. If American so called ‘Intelligence’ told me it was daylight outside, I would look out the window just to confirm that suggestion. I do accept it is not beyond the powers of possibility that the rebels bombarded their own forces with chemicals but….
If I were the Syrian President and I was accused of this act then why oh why would I not insist on having the resident weapon inspectors come in IMMEDIATELY and carry out whatever tests they deem necessary? I say resident inspectors simply because they were but a short distance away from the attacked area (they were in the same city). Instead of inviting in these inspectors the Syrian Government refused entry and for days carried on bombarding that area in the FULL KNOWLEDGE that their actions were destroying any evidence that might be of use in the detection of what was used? Bottom line however is the FACT that the inspectors will NOT investigate who is responsible for the attack, but instead they are only tasked with trying to discover if a chemical was used and to me that is a farce!!
I am a sad person that listened to our parliamentarians debate this issue from start to the finish but what a farce. This was more about politicians claiming expenses for being recalled as opposed to educated people debating a serious topic.. Our government even had a female minister and one of her male assistants shut away in a small room having ‘a discussion’ rather than casting their vote over an issue as important as this. They claim not to have heard the bell but I wonder what bell they did hear when votes were being cast?
When it came to those that contributed to this debate then this person certainly raised a number of points.
but I must confess that I enjoy listening to him when he speaks.
Great Britain voted not to take action against Syria and I guess that is something we have to accept and at first I congratulated President Obama for his stance but then my brain decided to ask even more questions… If this issue was so important then should American politicians be recalled and discuss what actions should be taken, or are their holidays more of a priority? If chemical weapons are such a big no, no, then how do they justify Agent Orange Is that a chemical? Was it used against civilians? (as well as Americans)
If the US wants to draw a line on the ground and say this far, and no further then sadly they are making a HUGE rod for their own backs. Both North Korea and China have humiliated this super power and is the USA now backing themselves into a corner in the Middle East? I accept that the use of chemical weapons is bad but what bigger slap in the face is there when we consider how a sovereign state has a captured US warship on display and uses it as a museum piece? US sailors were fired on, there were deaths and I believe this ship is still in commission. Is it right to take action against someone that lacks any ability to fight back, but ignore the deeds of those who can defend themselves?? The word bully comes to mind!!
If they do back down then what does this say to Iran if it insists on developing a nuclear weapon? Is this more about Super Powers flexing their muscles? Are both Russia and China giving the west the finger and saying keep out? Russia and China both of whom have an awful reputation when it comes to committing atrocities against their own population or countries they have occupied? (I am thinking Chechnya and Tibet) It appears we dare not highlight their atrocities but it is okay to hammer smaller countries that commit lesser acts.
Should the USA take out Syrian Command and Control assets or should we look away and let these evil people carry on murdering innocent women and children? I am undecided as to me evil is evil but I just feel it wrong to differentiate and is it right that we are giving in excess of £400m a year in foreign aid to Syria and its neighbours? That to me is madness.
Would it be so wrong to use long range missiles to take out the command and Control capability of the Syrian Government? I ask this but straight away my brain throws another question at me.. What would the reaction be if these missiles were taken out by the latest surface to air Russian assets that might now be in place in Syria? would the US be embarrassed, would the Middle East laugh at the demise of this type of weapon?
I am not taking sides and am undecided about this issue but is force the right answer? No matter how we talk about this, if we drop missiles onto a sovereign state we are surely declaring war on that nation even if we do not actually say the words? Could Syria launch a retaliatory attack against Cyprus?
Regards
John the armchair warrior