This
should end the war in Libya, a war reported as “civil” because it was
between the rebels opposing and the infamous, longtime leader of Libya, the now-deceased
Moammar Gadhafi. Gadhafi was brutally killed last week by those pursuing
him on behalf of the U.S.-sanctioned National Transitional Council (NTC),
the new interim government of Libya. America’s involvement - however shady - should
end our combat operations in the region, right? I mean, President Obama
announced the troops in Iraq will be home for Christmas and all we have
left is Afghanistan…yet like a late-night TV infomercial, “but wait, there’s
more!”
Even
though the American people are tiring of Middle East wars, Sen. John McCain
(R-Ariz.) said Sunday that military action to protect civilians in Syria
might be considered now that NATO’s air campaign in Libya is ending. Success is addicting…
McCain
spoke at the World Economic Forum in Jordan, saying “Now that military operations in
Libya are ending, there will be renewed focus on
what practical military operations might be considered to protect civilian
lives in Syria.”
That was the story sold to us by our government in Libya: protecting civilian lives. If that was
the case, then why, days after Gadhafi was captured and executed (by the
peace-loving rebels), were 53 Gadhafi loyalists found dead in a hotel
just after Gadhafi’s corpse was put on public display?
What
I know is, the thought of teaching American ideals
to those we want as allies is a scary proposition. You see, we claim to
bring democracy to regions where we make cameo appearances, and for whatever
reason, we fail to bring democracy. Hell, we wanted immunity in exchange
for staying on in Iraq. Isn’t due process a part of democracy? If
you do something illicit - say, kill someone - aren’t you
supposed to own up to it, accept responsibility? Gadhafi was sodomized
and tortured when captured by the U.S.-sanctioned rebels. We’re teaching
everything other than democratic values.
“The
Assad regime should not consider that it can get away with mass murder.
Gadhafi made that mistake and it cost him everything,” McCain also said.
Didn’t we provide the resources to NATO so that they could bomb
Libya?
Isn’t killing large numbers of people the definition of “mass murder?”
This is his precursor to knocking down another domino in the Middle Eastern
theater.
It appears
that the United States
is indeed on a mission, a mission to imperialize (and I don’t use that
term often) the entire Middle East on behalf of Israel. Each “enemy” happens
to be a nation with a majority Islamic population. It’s really hard for
any reasonably breathing person not to think it’s about religion, but
of course, its not. It’s purportedly all about democracy, peace and a
better way of life (i.e., capitalism).
Speaking
of capitalism, isn’t it strange that the only countries America
devotes resources to topple are countries with something to give (or be
taken) in return? We went to get Sadaam; he had oil and Gadhafi? Well,
he had oil and he also
had 143.8 tons of gold…the real reason for the invasion. Wherever there
are resources, there the United
States will
be. Can’t you see that you are facilitating evil, murder and greed? Not
to mention a Russian article titled, “Bombing of Libya: Punishment for
Gadhafi for His Attempt to Refuse US Dollar”, where Gadhafi did as deposed
Iraq leader Sadaam Hussein tried to do: he initiated a movement to refuse
the dollar and the euro, and called on Arab and African nations to use
a new currency instead, the gold dinar. Gadhafi suggested establishing
a united African continent, with its 200 million people using this single
currency.
General
Wesley Clark, who commanded the NATO bombing campaign in the Kosovo war,
recounted in Winning Modern Wars, his 2003 book, being told in
November 2001 by a friend at the Pentagon, that Secretary of Defense Donald
Rumsfeld’s and his deputy Paul Wolfowitz’s take-down list included Iraq,
Iran, Lebanon, Libya, Syria, Sudan and Somalia.
Though
I’m an Arab Spring conspiracy theorist, let’s look at those countries
for the sake of argument. There’s Tunisia
(which just had elections yesterday), Egypt,
Bahrain, Jordan, Morocco
and Oman…strategic
stones in the pond of conquest. Syria
is a geographical and political keystone in the heart of the Middle East,
bordering five countries with which it shares religious and ethnic minorities
and, in Israel’s
case, a fragile truce. Its web of alliances extends to Lebanon’s powerful Hezbollah movement and Iran’s Shiite theocracy.
There are worries that a destabilized Syria could send unsettling ripples through the
region.
McCain
has also threatened Iran. Will it be so easy to tip that domino? The
elite Revolutionary Guard, Iran’s
most powerful military force, has warned that there would be a strong
Iranian response if the U.S.
military were to take action against them. The only way to get that domino
is to put feet on the ground…like more in Africa.
President Obama announced Friday
he is sending roughly 100 “combat-equipped” troops to Uganda as part of
an effort to capture rebel leader Joseph Kony. Kony sits on mineral resources
by the way.
Kony is wanted
by the International Criminal Court for war crimes charges because of
his role as the head of the Lord’s Resistance Army, a rebel group that
has waged a 20-year war against government forces in northern Uganda.
I have
to ask, when is enough, enough? Iran is the end game, but next on tap, Syria. Stay tuned
because, though you may not have asked for it, you get more for your money.
This infomercial will run all night long if you let it. Libya was just a
bump in the road.
BlackCommentator.com
Columnist, Perry
Redd, is the former Executive Director of
the workers rights advocacy, Sincere Seven, and author of the on-line
commentary, “The
Other Side of the Tracks.” He is the host of the internet-based talk
radio show, Socially
Speaking in
Washington,
DC. Click
here to contact Mr.
Redd.
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