Ten years after the Iraq war began, another major intervention in the Middle East is picking up momentum as the United States openly discusses launching a strike on Syria for crossing its “red line” of using chemical weapons.
This might sound familiar, since chemical weapons were also the pretense under which the U.S. invaded Iraq under former President Bush. The difference between now and then is quite startling in the reaction to this potential intervention.
Consistent polls continue to show that al-Assad has the support of the majority of the people and a conflict that could have easily ended a year or more ago is kept going on with the outside support of the West and Saudi Arabia.
The Obama administration speaks as if it has moral ground, while the same president presides over kill lists and targets civilians in countries like Pakistan, Somalia, and other nations with drones and other weapons.
Even Gen. Colin Powell recognizes the complexity of the situation — during a recent interview with “Face the Nation” he called it an “internal struggle” that is beyond U.S. capabilities.
The same liberals who, 10 years ago under a Republican president, stood up against an unnecessary intervention — like former presidential candidate and current Secretary of State John Kerry — are now military hawks calling for strikes with ballistic cruise missiles before an official United Nations inspection is even complete.
Intervention in Syria will turn an already tragic situation into one where the casualties are further raised, and the potential of skirmishes with countries like Russia and Iran are more likely.
The U.S., with its imperialist foreign policy, seeks regime change in every nation that doesn’t fully open itself up to America’s influence. The Obama administration has continued the hawkish policies of his predecessor George Bush, and his supporters have fallen for it simply because he’s a Democratic president.
The American people, now more than ever, need to stand up against our nation’s foreign policy, which rejects self-determination of people in non-Western nations and seeks to further subjugate others so it can prop itself up.
Intervention was wrong in 2003 in Iraq, and it’s just as wrong in 2013. We, the people, need to rally together, become involved and send a clear message: Hands off of Syria.
This letter to the editor ran on page 7 on 8/30/2013 under the headline "US doomed to repeat the past unless citizens take a stand"
