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Most everyone believes that Kosovo was a successful humanitarian intervention. But after the intervention, winners started slaughtering losers, most certainly including citizens who never participated in any of the atrocities. And that's the essential lie of humanitarian intervention, that it prevents killing. It just decides who wins and who loses and who gets to do the killing afterwards.
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Funny you mention that. I just got done reading Chris Hedges' War is the Force that Gives Us Meaning, which is one of the great anti-war books of our age, and he literally only defends one war: the bombing of Kosovo.
Not that I disagree with your point (he, himself, acknowledges it) but anytime someone out flanks Hedges from the anti-war left I just want to tip my hat. Game respects game.
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That book is fantastic. His descriptions of Kosovo were terrifying: streets literally filled with blood and organs. If memory serves it was his worst experience of war?
Don't recalled if he ranked them per se but I'd say his most harrowing images and meditations are in regards to Kosovo.
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While it's clear a lot of the rebel fighters are religious extremists, I'm dubious, as a rule, of any accusation dependent on the word "linked" for its entire existence.
Most stories that are "Group X has been 'linked' to Group Y" are one "Coincidence? You decide!" away from Loose Change-esque sophistry.
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I'm also dubious too that the chemical weapons attack are linked to Assad. From a new German report, it's clear he did not approve the attack. Unfortunately uncertainly doesn't enter into Obama's thinking.
4
al-nusra has openly declared allegiance to al-qaeda big cheese ayman zawahri, and zawahri himself has called al-nusra "an independent branch of al-qaeda" ... so they are linked ... if not in lock-step
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So let's call al-nusra an "ideological franchise".
The word "linked" is vague to point of meaninglessness. I co-founded a company with a guy who consulted for the NSA, now I'm "NSA-linked internet commenter JMS?". It's a word that is, by designed, conspiratorial, meant to provide innuendo not insight.
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although i am loath to agree with anyone who has ties to the nsa, i am with you 100% on the use of the word "linked", and the usage "al-qaeda-linked" in particular
i'm just saying that, in this case, the link is openly admitted ... though i would prefer the term "allied", which is exactly what they are ... i would not, however, complain if the media referred to them as "saudi-linked" ... however vague, that phrase would at least be food for american thought
5
I kinda said something like before. Why does the US act like the neighbor you had in college that would always call the cops before actually talking to you? We arent the world's police force. Just stop and focus on our own broke ass country.
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Halliburton execs still do the Doogie, Macarena, Boot skoot and boogy
1
There's a sort of symbolism in play here though...not that I like the implications either way. If we don't do anything in the face of someone breaking the conventions that the Western world has peddled as righteous behavior by all sane and civilized countries, we're basically ceding the notion that we can actually project power effectively.
The Onion summed it up nicely with the Assad 'your move' spoof in that we can't actually project this power well due to systemic problems at home... Problem is, when we officially give up the position..it's gone and America's position in the world changes. Maybe only subtly at first, but it definitely changes.
Interesting statement. And I agree with some of your thoughts that I hadnt considered before. I guess my stance has to be if Syria gasses itself to death it must be better than a huge multi-lateral war with armies that have nukes. The only conclusion I can come to is that US isnt the shit anymore, and should probably fix problems within the US.
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great post phunkshun
1
Like the Iraq Invasion helped the 100,000 Christians that once lived in Iraq?
