09.07.2013 08:50 PM

In Sunday’s Sun: Syria and the red line

Rallying support for military action — or, more broadly, actual war — is no simple thing these days. Writing paeans to peace, in a modern democracy, is a lot easier.

Barack Obama has had this problem for a while now. Slightly more than a year ago, in July, a spokesman for Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad let it be known that the outlaw regime had stockpiled chemical weapons.

A newspaper called the New York Times reported it, and Assad did not seek a correction. His representatives gave on-the-record interviews, in fact, stating the chemical weapons — they acknowledged they were “weapons of mass destruction” — would “never be used against the Syrian people.”

The Syrian stockpiles included sarin gas, mustard gas and cyanide. Sarin is a nerve agent that goes to work within a minute, paralyzing your lungs.

Mustard gas is a cytotoxic agent that forms big blisters on your skin and lungs, and it has been around for almost 200 years. Its first known use was by the Germans, against British and Canadian soldiers in France in 1917 during the First World War.

Anyone familiar with the movies knows about cyanide; a tiny amount of hydrogen cyanide will kill you in minutes.

A year ago, Obama knew that Syria had the third-largest stockpile of chemical weapons in the world. He also knew that Syria was one of only a few states that had never ratified the international convention against the use of chemical weapons (along with Angola, Myanmar, Egypt, Israel, North Korea, and Sudan).

Knowing all this — knowing that Syria has in fact been making chemical weapons since the 1980s — Obama issued a warning. Famously, he said the use of chemical weapons was a “red line,” and the crossing of it by Assad would draw a swift and mighty response.

Last month, Assad used sarin gas in a predominantly Sunni Muslim area, just east of Damascus. This has been confirmed by the British, the French, the Israelis, the Turks, the Americans and even Doctors Without Borders. For its part, the United Nations stated that it believed chemical weapons had been deployed on at least four occasions during the nearly three-year Syrian civil war, although it couldn’t say which side was responsible.

In the not-so-distant past, all of that should have been enough. The red line had been crossed.

But in the modern era — buffeted as it is by Photoshopped images, and Internet hoaxes, and widespread cynicism fed by presidents and prime ministers spinning about “weapons of mass destruction” — Obama’s task was not made any easier.

Obama made appeals to decency, and references to the body count, and the strategic necessity of it all. In every respect — in every way — he was right. So far, however, the American people are not onside — and likewise many erstwhile allies. Congress evinced no enthusiasm for any of it, but has reluctantly gone along.

The consequences of failing to act, to some of us, were readily apparent. It will embolden Assad, and persuade him to use chemical weapons again and again. It will encourage his terroristic allies in Iran and Hezbollah, and lunatic states like North Korea.

It will suggest laws and conventions against chemical weapons are a crude joke — and likely reduce the American superpower to an international laughingstock.

It will isolate and jeopardize western allies in the region, like Saudi Arabia and Turkey and Israel.

It will magnify the refugee crisis caused by the Syrian civil war — now affecting more than 1.5 million men, women and children.

But most of all, it will render us less human. Nearly 1,500 innocent civilians were murdered by Bashar al-Assad on the morning of Aug. 21. One third of them were children.

Rallying support for military force is, as noted, no simple task. No one likes it.

But on Aug. 21, a red line was truly crossed. And if we do not acknowledge that — and if we do not act on that — we are indeed slightly less human than we once were.

History, as someone once said, is watching.

57 Comments

  1. Vega says:

    We need to stop bombing other people and focus on how to keep the peace… Let’s drop flowers instead of bombs! —-> http://teespring.com/flowerbombs

    • Bugzy says:

      it appears the people of Syria people need help from the world powers. How would you like it if it was Canada and some idiot said, focus on peace and drop flowers.

      That’s why laymen like ourselves stay out of the we should do this etc.

  2. Contrary to this article Doctors Without Borders has not said which side used the sarin gas. In fact they won’t even confirm it was sarin gas.

    Disclaimer Concerning Information Purportedly About MSF in Syria

    September 2, 2013—Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is aware that incorrect, manipulated information about MSF and Syria is circulating on the internet and social media.

    We reiterate what we stated in our press release on August 24:

    *MSF does not have the capacity to identify the cause of the neurotoxic symptoms of patients reported by three clinics supplied by MSF in Damascus governorate.
    *MSF was not and is not directly present at these clinics.
    *MSF does not possess the capacity or ability to determine or assign responsibility for the event that caused these reported symptoms to occur.

    Any statement or story that asserts any of these things is false.

    We ask you to please continue checking MSF’s official websites to find accurate, correct information on MSF communications and activities in Syria.

    Thank you.

    http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/press/release.cfm?id=7042&cat=press-release#sthash.0YLRWSL8.dpuf

  3. Admiral says:

    “Nearly 1,500 innocent civilians were murdered by Bashar al-Assad on the morning of Aug. 21. One third of them were children.”

    So you and Obama claim, but why should we believe you without direct proof that Assad ordered the sarin gassing? There is no direct public proof and yet Obama is bent on launching cruise missiles against the Assad regime. Why?

    Let me remind you that the Russians will have several of their naval vessels in the Mediterranean in Syrian coastal waters, presumably to evacuate Russian citizens in Syria. If the US cruise missiles pass over these Russian ships, that will be just cause for the Russians to intercept and destroy the missiles that have invaded their defensive air space. What will Obama do next if that happens? Run to the UN claiming interference by the Russians? Or will he launch attacks against the Russian ships by air and water, which does not break his promise of “no boots on the ground”?

    Perhaps Obama, like Trudeau, is getting “in over his head”!

    • smelter rat says:

      Except Trudeau is NOT in over his head. You’re thinking of Harper.

      • Admiral says:

        Harper is sucking up to Obama by supporting his Syria initiative, particularly since Canada will not be involved militarily. He’s doing this to win brownie points for Obama’s approval of the Keystone XL pipeline, which is so obvious. Harper is looking out for Canadian interests first and giving lip service for Obama’s planned attack on Syria. Does Trudeau have an opinion on Syria, other than getting stoned?

  4. Michael Bussiere says:

    Fine, military action. But would someone advocating this please answer the following question: then what!?

    • Admiral says:

      Obama will boast that he sent a stern message to Assad to not use sarin gas on his people. But then, there appears to be another sarin gas attack killing thousands of Syrians. What does Obama do then, assume that Assad is precipitating another US response? Or will Obama visit the UN and claim that the international community must step in and “put boots on the ground” to stop the slaughter of innocent civilians by Assad’s WMD?

      What if it becomes evident that the Assad regime is not launching sarin gas attacks, but it is some rebel factions acquiring sarin from friendly ‘sources’ and attempting to precipitate a confrontation? Then Russia and Iran will have just cause to send “boots on the ground” to protect the Syrian people from criminal rebels. Ever think of that?

      • davidray says:

        I wish.
        Russia and Iran, (besides being the real culprits here) would love nothing more than to bleed out the Americans one more time. No, Russia and Iran and especially Saudi Arabia have thousands of ignorant and radicalized idiots to send into Syria as useful proxies.

  5. Other Hockey Dad says:

    Didn’t you see the video where Obama says “I didn’t draw a red line…”? Even he’s disavowing his red line and trying to punt it to “the world”. And you want us to follow this lightweight to war. No thanks.

  6. johnny was says:

    What might come after Assad is most likely a different kind of bad, just like in Libya and Iraq. It’s no time to be glib, but I’ve been hammering the Onion line in the classroom for some time:

    Experts Point To Long, Glorious History Of Successful U.S. Bombing Campaigns
    News in Brief • war • barack obama • News • ISSUE 49•35 • Aug 27, 2013

    WASHINGTON—In light of increased pressure on President Obama to order a military strike on Syria, leading historians and military experts on Tuesday simply pointed to the United States’ longstanding and absolutely impeccable record of successful bombing campaigns over the past 60 years. “The record clearly shows that, in every instance since the Second World War in which the U.S. government has launched strategic missile attacks on foreign soil, our military forces easily targeted enemy assailants with total precision, leaving no civilian casualties, collateral damage, or any long-term negative consequences for the affected country or region, American foreign policy, or international relations as a whole,” said Harvard University historian Dr. Michael Carmona, adding that such past U.S. bombing operations have gone particularly well in Middle Eastern countries over the last century. “Just look at the 1954 bombings in Guatemala, the 1965-to-1973 bombings in Laos and Cambodia, the 1982 bombings in Beirut, the 1986 bombings in Libya, the 1987 bombings in Iran, the 1998 bombings in Iraq, the 1998 bombings in Sudan, the 1998 bombings in Afghanistan, routine airstrikes in Pakistan since 2005, the 2007 bombings in Somalia, the 2011 bombings in Somalia, and essentially the entire American military effort in Vietnam from 1960 to 1975. Those were all executed perfectly, and led, in the long run, to the most desirable possible outcome.” All experts on the subject then agreed unanimously that, if you want to create positive and lasting change in a troubled region, change that you will one day look back on with a deep sense of confidence, pride, and assurance that you did the right thing, then bombing campaigns are almost always the way to go.

  7. kelly says:

    History watched as both sides in this conflict shot and shelled and beheaded each other. History watched as the USA used white phosphorus and depleted uranium in Iraq. History watched as the USA sent innocent citizens to be tortured in Syria. History watched as Saddam gassed Iranians while the Americans cheered from the sidelines. History watched as Turkey massacred millions of Albanians. History watches every day as our “ally” Saudi Arabia tortures and maimes and kills and beheads its women…

    Sorry Warren you can’t win this one. Yeah gassing people sucks but so does shooting them, so does Saudi Arabia, and Iran (the two countries really at war in this) and we now know that the USA really really can’t be trusted when they tell us anything. Obama still hasn’t prosecuted the bastards on Wall street who ruined the lives of millions, he expanded spying, he still hasn’t shut down quantanamo, he’s weakened unions and he’s enriched health insurance companies instead of fighting for real health reform. He’s looking more and more like a sell-out and no real progressive takes him seriously anymore or the Democratic party either, for that matter.

    • Brammer says:

      I was “hope”-ing Obama would have a toolkit containing more than just military strikes. Evidently, not.

    • frmr disgruntled Con now Happy Lib says:

      Just a note…..I think you meant “Armenians” for “Albanians”……no doubt the Ottoman Empire oppressed the citizens of its one time province of Albania as well…..but nothing like the wholesale genocide of its Armenian subjects…..

      • kelly says:

        Yes I meant the Armenians. Thanks. But you are right, the ottomans were equal opportunity oppressors…and when they lost WWi the French and Brits were happy to step in (though maybe not quite as brutally — then again Churchill did advocate gassing the so-called “uncivilized tribes” in the region so . . .

  8. !o! says:

    1) A military attack would be illegal. UN Charter, Article 2(4), it’s illegal for any country to use force or threaten to use force against another country and Article 2(7) prohibits intervention in an internal or domestic dispute in another country.

    2) Irrational. The US gov’t insists military action is not to change the regime, and is only a response to chemical weapons use. Syria’s chemical weapons facilities are located in civilian areas, others are fortified underground and can’t be reached by missile strikes. Striking ones in civilian areas would release toxins into the air. This would kill many more people. It also wouldn’t act as a deterrent either. The initial threat Obama uttered a year ago failed to deter the attacks this time.

    3) or 2.5) It would just lead to more death and more destruction. Studies on intervention during repression demonstrate that it tends to increase violence, and extends duration of civil wars. (http://jcr.sagepub.com/content/50/5/736.short, http://jcr.sagepub.com/content/55/5/735.refs?patientinform-links=yes&legid=spjcr;55/5/735 )

    4) US credibility problem in this area… storming into Syria chest thumping will not restore US credibility to anyone who actually doubts US credibility.

    5) A military attack that does not aim for regime change would strengthen the Syrian regime. They already have the support of a large minority. Anti-US sentiment would boil over if there was anything more than a few strikes (which as mentioned above, would be fruitless to begin with). This would serve to prop up the regime.

    6) There’s no tactical reason that a surgical strike would end the conflict. None. The conflict is at a stalemate, there is no decisive military victory in the near future.

    7) Contrary to Warren’s post earlier about the public being ‘on board’, they are actually strongly opposed. Only 9% think Obama should act on Syria, and 60% are opposed to any involvement in Syria whatsoever. Even if it was concluded beyond any doubt that the regime used chemical weapons on civilians, only 25% would support some action, with 46% opposed. http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/08/25/us-syria-crisis-usa-poll-idUSBRE97O00E20130825

  9. deb s says:

    I wonder what the conspiracy theorists are saying right now. I dunno if its legitimate on either side…for or against. But hell it seems the usa is always beating the war drum every few years, and its gotta be someone manipulating it. I mean why cant more countries be like the swiss…and stay the fuck out! No one likes to see children murdered…but there has to be a better solution than bombing the crap out of a country so more innocent civilians ( including children) die. I just think the only winner in these political intrigues are the bomb manufacturers. not a unique perspective and pretty much all been said before…but why does the states keep falling for these traps/or intrigues.

    • davidray says:

      do you believe turbans in a cave
      knocked down the towers in a fit of rage
      i don’t know so
      sure was told so
      wasn’t there so
      I guess so
      do you believe your sons and daughters
      should bleed on the sand like ink on a blotter
      i don’t know so
      sure was told so
      wasn’t there so
      I guess so
      what I do know
      is that old men keep lying
      bombs fall and children keep dying
      oh Lord
      why why why why why
      is it always the innocent that die

      I no longer believe.

      • rogerray says:

        obama obama believa obama
        he fights for democracy today
        so you can sing sing sing away
        obama obama believa obama
        he blows up dictators in his way
        so arab oil can flow our way
        obama obama believa obama
        he deeply loves america
        so we can twerk toke’n tata
        obama obama believa obama

    • billg says:

      “no one likes to see children murdered..but…”
      They begged us for help from Communism and we helped.
      They begged us for help from the Nazi’s and we helped.
      Why did they have to beg? Why do they always have to beg?
      If war is never the answer, why does it seem to always be the answer?
      In the last 90 years of human evolution when wasnt war the only answer?
      And, name me one time when humans were being slaughtered in the thousands did anyone ever say..”get the Swiss on the line we need help”…
      Hey Deb, your house is on fire and your kid is stuck and cant get out, but, you know, I dont like to pry so Im off to Starbucks to read for a bit…thats the fucking Swiss.

      • davidray says:

        I’m rinsing and repeating here but

        if you can’t control the money
        you can’t control the gun
        if you can’t control the gun
        you can’t get anything done

        and boy do the Swiss control the money. It’s why no-one ever bothers them.

  10. deb s says:

    and this article gives a detailed synopsis of why obama if faking it, I hope the article is right.
    http://www.policymic.com/articles/62177/you-think-obama-wants-to-strike-syria-you-re-wrong

  11. Ronald O'Dowd says:

    Michael,

    It seems that is up to the principle reactive world power otherwise known as Russia. Putin’s strategy can either help or hinder a positive outcome for the Syrian people. The choice is his to make.

    Meanwhile, Obama needs to present iron-clad evidence to the Security Council. Diplomatic Job One is to convince China by way of irrefutable evidence. If the United States can do that, Russia will have to adjust her view accordingly.

    • Admiral says:

      “Baird accepts the evidence that Assad was behind the Aug. 21 gassing while acknowledging that evidence is not 100 per cent. “Nothing in life is 100 per cent,’’ he says.”

      http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2013/09/08/john_baird_fears_assad_poised_to_gas_citizens_again_tim_harper.html

      There ya go… the ‘evidence’ is not 100%… and not fit for public disclosure either! Wonder why! Is it beyond a reasonable doubt? Show us!

    • Michael Bussiere says:

      I think my biggest concern is that Syria with end up like Egypt minus the authority of the military. Furthermore, the Americans have zero, I mean zero, credibility among the population, zip, none. I know firsthand what it means to the Christian 10% in Syria. There is currently a situation where an al-Qaeda linked Islamic militant faction has taken over a Christian town. What is their fate? Who will control the military? What kind of role would a dictator like Putin play in influencing a post-Assad Syria? A million questions with no predictable answers. It is so unbelievably complex, volatile, and chaotic that no serious plan can be devised or implemented.

  12. Eric Weiss says:

    I’m ex-military. Did five overseas missions in my time. I’m heartbroken about this, but if I learned one thing I learned is that we cannot solve the world’s problems by getting involved in other peoples blood feuds. A tragic as it is, a Syrian life is not more imortant than the life of any of our service people. Not one.

  13. thomas gallezot says:

    Very good article. And a courageous stand. As the French Lawyer Jacques Verges used to say, when you see the sheep going somewhere, run in the opposite direction! The prevailent attitude reminds me of French and Britons cheering Daladier and Chamberlain after Munich. It’s this kind of Ponce Pilate attitude that enabled the ethnic cleansing in Bosnia and Kosovo and the genocide in Rwanda. The saddest part is that the kind of action that Obama plans is anything but a war. Maybe it will be drone strikes, which anyways happen everydays in other parts of the world, maybe it will be the enforcement of a no flight zone, maybe it will be a naval blockade. Nobody knows what is planned, but they are already against it, effectively destroying an important element of Obama’s action: the psychological pressure on Assad. People should rely a little bit less on the internet for information and read some good old history books unless they don’t mind contributing to the decadance of the West.

  14. Bill From Willowdale says:

    Should we also bomb Britain for knowingly selling Syria the ingredients for the manufacture of Sarin gas?

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2415081/Britain-sent-poison-chemicals-Assad-Proof-UK-delivered-Sarin-agent-Syrian-regime.html

    Bombing Syria is incredibly dangerous with no positive outcome for West. If Assad survives air strikes then will a ground war be necessary? More madness that we can ill afford. A wise man once said, “a proof is a proof”. Let’s “keep our powder dry” until we know the real situation.

    • I have seen a number of people bull-shitting about the US or UK supplying the ‘secret ingredient’ for Sarin to Syria. It is pure bullshit, as Sodium Flouride is used in bulk for fluoridating water, making toothpaste, preserving foodstuffs, manufacturing some pesticides, etc. It is a very common substance. that virtually every country in the world has access to, for legitimate uses.

  15. Admiral says:

    http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2013/09/08/john_baird_fears_assad_poised_to_gas_citizens_again_tim_harper.html

    How can Baird predict this to happen unless he knows the rebel forces did the first gassing to involve the US in the Syrian civil war? Now he predicts the rebels will release more sarin gas requiring more US action. Believe it or not!

  16. MoS says:

    This is going to render us “less human” than we were when we sat idle during the Rwandan genocide or the slaughter of 5-million people in the Congo or the recent atrocities in Central African Republic. How about the humanity of leaving vast swathes of Vietnam under the scourge of Agent Orange that is believed to be persistent in the soil and ground water for up to 600 years? Or our humanity in leaving Afghans and Iraqis to inhale depleted uranium dust which will be persistent for decades, perhaps generations. Or all the bomblets from the cluster bomb salvoes Israel fired into southern Lebanon in the hours immediately before the ceasefire? Didn’t you work for a guy who essentially absolved Israel for its assault on Gaza that featured its lavish use of white phosphorus rounds in populated areas? Nice spin job, Warren.

  17. Ian Howard says:

    “less human than we once were”
    The only real red line was in the Garden of Eden and we blew that up along time ago.
    Hyperbole is a dangerous thing that can be used to justify just about anything. Did standing by as genocide was committed in Rwanda make us less human, fire bombing Dresden, or allowing America to cause for no good reason.

    23· North Vietnamese military personnel and Vietcong reported to have died in

    combat 444,000 .

    24· Estimated number of Vietnamese civilians killed in the war 587,000.

    25· Estimated number of Vietnamese civilians wounded in the war 935,000.

    26. Number of South Vietnamese military personnel killed during the war 440,357

    27· Number of South Vietnamese military personnel wounded during the war 499,000

    There is no crime so vile we cannot commit and intervention will only equalize the playing field as the Americans remove the Syrian air threat. This will cause hundreds of thousands more to die by conventional means. Face it short of occupation the sorry tragedy that is Syria will go on until one side wins or all parties tire of war. Perhaps that is the only deterrent that will ever stop anyone else. China doesn’t want convincing because it doesn’t care. In my opinion being human doesn’t count for much

  18. Admiral says:

    PEOPLE… THE RUSSIANS (and Iranians) WILL NOT SIT IDLY BY IF US WARSHIPS LAUNCH CRUISE MISSILES AGAINST THEIR ALLY SYRIA!!!

    The Russians have a naval base in Tartus, Syria, and Russian naval ships are now docked there with more on the way. If a US cruise missile comes across the Syrian coast, the Russians can legally claim under international law that they can defend themselves from an incoming attack in their defensive air space. This could force the US to get to Syria over Lebanon or Turkey, which could mean grave consequences. The ME would go up in flames if the US sets fire to the region.

    You heard it here first!

  19. Jemery says:

    I heard JT on CTV news this morning giving kudos to Harper for his response to the situation in Syria. I agree with Harper for once in his pathetic tenure as PM. I also agree with JT that Harper could be doing a helluva lot more in terms of giving financial aid to them. I am absoultly shocked at the fact that the Harper government has given only 43 million towards Syrian aid. How can this be in a nation as wealthy as Canada. There is also no reason why Canada shouldn’t take many, if not most, of these refugees into our country and offer them a new life and democracy.

    • MCBellecourt says:

      Uh, dude, we’re in the hole, thanks to Harper. We have people “living” on the streets that need shelter. We have children going to bed hungry. If Syria needs aid, there are countries in far better shape than we are that can pony up.

      • Eric Weiss says:

        “Uh, dude, we’re in the hole, thanks to Harper.”

        And the Liberals, including JT that voted for the deficit budget that put us there.

        • MCBellecourt says:

          …because they, and many of us voters, foolishly thought that Harper might actually use the funds wisely. What did we get instead? Gazebos, fake lakes, fauxActionPlan ads and lots and lots of free jobs for temporary foreign workers. Harper squandered what was given to him, and, since he has his “precious” (majority), he and his gang of idiots gets to forever wear the label “Penny Wise And Pound Fucking Stupid”.

          BTW, anyone found that missing $3.1 Billion yet?

      • Jemery says:

        Yes I know we’re on the hole cause of Harper believe me I know. I also know that we must not only put billions into social programs in Canada but we must also set an example to the world. We have plenty of jobs here in Canada that refugees would love to do. But we must pave the way for them financially so that they may have a better life. We are a filthy stinking rich nation that doesn’t use it’s tax possibilities enough. We have multi billionaires in this country who do not and have never paid their fair share.

        • MCBellecourt says:

          Re. your last sentence, jemery?

          Bubblegum Machine Done Hit The JackPot!! And Harper is determined to maintain that part of the status quo come hell or high water.

          Canada doesn’t have that wealth because it’s being hoarded by little men with big wallets. The average Canadian finds it harder and harder to make ends meet. We are the ones who carry the load, and the money is stolen from us through tax breaks for the filthy rich.

  20. Sean says:

    What a fantastic article. I’m afraid that when push comes to shove, the US stood alone. But not any longer. They seem poised to join the Kumbaya crowd who believe that strumming a guitar, smoking pot and singing Bob Dylan songs will win the peace.

    • davidray says:

      Sean…

      Dylan wrote

      Masters of war
      With God on our side and
      Hard rain’s going to fall with one unforgettable line that said…

      Ill know my song well before I start singing it. I think he wrote that just for you.

  21. Paul says:

    Folks are being gassed – someone needs to stand up for them…will it create havoc – yes – is middle east a powder keg – yes – problem was obama waited too long – still needs to go with or without support of others – if gas is okay , then nuclear should be alright too – we just need to mind our own business??? – it will be our business if these guys like Assad are allowed to do at will what they want and thumb their noses at the world…

    $43,000,000 is a lot of smack – govt should match private donations – other countries need to open the vault too –

  22. dave says:

    Syrians know Israel will attack on the flimsiest of pretexts, Israel has nukes, Syria is not allowed to defend itself with nukes, or even from nukes, so Syria has chem (and probably bios)
    UNO investigators said in May that looked like rebels used chems, that investigation was shut down.
    France (get that old empire back), UK( hide evidence we sent them chems), and USA( control those regional pipelines -Qatar and Turkmenistan through Syria to get the European market and undercut Russia), Saudis (get those Sunnis and allies in charge) need an excuse.
    West says it will attack if chems used.
    All of a sudden…chems are used…story goes that Syrian regime waited till UNO chem inspectors landed in Damascus then used chems, not on a military target, but on kids…I guess Syrian regime did not know thatusing chems was bad, or that west would attack if chems used, so used chems on a miltarily unimportant target…yup,yup,yup!
    West go to war types say all the world wants to punish Assad …(well, except China, India, Brazil, Russia, Africa, most thinking ordinary citizens…but otherwise,all the world…)

    The gas/chems are an excuse…look at the geo politics and resource management of the area…

    WE can’t allow gas attacks on kids…who do they think they’re faluja-ing!

  23. davidray says:

    the sarin attack by Assad was the feather on the scale but who put it there and why now. Something is not passing the smell test.
    bear with me.
    What if I told you another country is doing the same thing to us and it’s right on our collective borders but we don’t do anything about it.
    There is a faction in another country that has murdered thousands and thousands of innocent civilians for no more than being in the wrong place at the wrong time. This faction poisons millions of Americans and Canadians with slow acting but far more insidious chemicals than Sarin gas but we do nothing about it except put the victims of these poisonings in jail.
    Yes, I’m speaking of the drug cartels operating out of Juarez Mexico. They’ve murdered, beheaded and tortured thousands and thousands of innocent Mexicans. Does this sound familiar? The details are different than Syria but the barbarity is the same. And, like Assad we know exactly where the drug lords are. A few drones could take them out easily.
    Nothing will happen.
    Follow the money.

    • deb s says:

      exactly, there are many atrocities out there in the big world, its just soo convenient that when the middle east suddenly has another episode, its man the guns and start the wars…jesus…there are tragedies every day in africa that go unreported, starving kids, brutality, abuse beyond measure…and yeah…no help for them. No democracy necessary as Africa isnt big oil country.
      when will people wake up to the way they are being played by the socalled world leaders,…and I dont mean Obama or Harper and any of their ilk. Those guys are the paid lackies:P

  24. Ronald O'Dowd says:

    Warren,

    Two of my great-uncles, Richard and Donald Boulanger were gassed by the Germans. Thankfully, they were lucky enough to survive WWI.

    Our greatest enemy on this planet is neither called communist nor fascist. Rather it is called isolationalism or worse yet, incomprehensible indifference.

  25. Sean says:

    Osama bin Laden believed the West was finished, the low fruit ready to be picked. He viewed us as old, exhausted, self-centered, infertile, and ready to be took. He believed that the Muslim world would unite in jihad against the decrepit crusaders. Given a choice between a weak horse and a strong horse, people would choose the strong one. What was missing from his calculus was George W Bush.

    Jihadists in Europe see the demographic future, and within 30 years or less, European states will begin to fall. Already Holland and Sweden have Islamic regions which are never policed by the state.

    In a curious footnote to this is ancient Rome. A first indicator of how weak Rome had become was in it’s central authority- no one listened to it. Rome also began to become heavily balkanized with kingdoms forming within it. The population was Christianized and assumed the Kumbaya aspect of the faith.After 410, sacking Rome became a piece of cake. Of course none of this runs parallel to the world today.

    • dave says:

      On the other hand, I sometimes think of a dying dinosaur, still all powerful, but having nothing except thrashing around, destroying everything around it.

      • Sean says:

        You’re right. After 410 Rome just wasn’t the same kick ass regime that it once was. But for two hundred years after, it attempted to regain some of what it lost, On the other hand, the eastern Roman empire ( Byzantine Empire ) endured until the Ottomans took it out

  26. Candyman says:

    I am a cowardly shit who lectures others on courage without using my real name.

  27. Michael Reintjes says:

    Just a quick note….gas was first used against Canadians at Ypres somewhere around the 3rd week of April 1915…..

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