I confess that I have had a lot of trouble following the Syrian affairs.
I think Assad is bad, but probably the least bad of anyone over there.
I couldn’t tell what side Obama was on, but I’m pretty sure it was the terrorists.
I couldn’t tell what side Trump was on, but I’m pretty sure it wasn’t the terrorists.
I have no idea if Trump is happy with the current outcome.
I have no idea if Putin is happy with the current outcome.
If we had actual journalism in the US, I’d probably have a better understanding of this matter.
Good summary. I agree that the Syria situation is virtually impossible to unravel unless you follow it very closely, and even then it might be difficult to know who all the players are and what the best outcome might be.
That’ll work for me.
You win the Internet with that summary! Well stated.
Any country in the Middle East, if Christians are doing better than I’m pretty pleased.
Ditto that.
Perfectly said.
Well, let’s see if a semi-casual observer can decode this:
>I confess that I have had a lot of trouble following the Syrian affairs.
No surprise there, it’s somewhat deliberately obfuscated.
>I think Assad is bad, but probably the least bad of anyone over there.
Assad is bad. As were Khadafy & Saddam. We’ve since learned how well taking out K&S worked out. I still think that taking S out was a good idea, but the aftermath was very badly mishandled. we’ve found out over the last decade or so about the ‘devil you know’ argument, and how that works out.
> I couldn’t tell what side Obama was on, but I’m pretty sure it was the terrorists.
Yup. That, and (if you believe the theory...) his KSA overlords who want to run a pipeline through to Europe, for those sweet Petro/NG $$$. My other suspicion is that this was all in the category of preparing the region for the coming caliphate/kingdom, but that’s another matter.
>I couldn’t tell what side Trump was on, but I’m pretty sure it wasn’t the terrorists.
Again, yup. That, and he’s actually on _our_ side, which is a rather nice change of pace.
>I have no idea if Trump is happy with the current outcome.
I think he’s okay with it as long as ISIS is destroyed, and things are brought back to a dull roar - that doesn’t affect our own security here.
>I have no idea if Putin is happy with the current outcome.
Most likely, very. If you believe the pipeline theory, he’s glad to take out the competition. That aside, stabilizing his ally and maintaining access to a Med naval base/seaport have to make him happy.
>If we had actual journalism in the US, I’d probably have a better understanding of this matter.
Yes, but that’s not the point. The point is to ensure that we don’t understand the matter, aside from what we’ve been told to believe. Years ago, Pelosi was making state visits to Syria and the media was writing puff pieces on how Assad Jr. was such a nice, progressive dictator. Until he became inconvenient. Then, suddenly, he had to go. It’s all very curious. We’re left with half truths and tea leaves, and who knows what to think or believe anymore, it’s mostly crap.
Personally, I think it would be best off if the French just re-colonized the area, but we know that’s not going to happen. (semi-sarcastic)
Realistically, short of starting a direct war with Russia, which is probably not a smart idea, we have little or no business in the area, and the best we can do is clean up the mess and leave it to Assad.
Huzzah.
(That and something about Serbia not being worth one drop of Pomeranian blood or something like that)
The following is from L.A. Times in 2016
Syrian militias armed by different parts of the U.S. war machine have begun to fight each other on the plains between the besieged city of Aleppo and the Turkish border, highlighting how little control U.S. intelligence officers and military planners have over the groups they have financed and trained in the bitter five-year-old civil war.
It’s no wonder you’re confused. Obama’s policy was nonsensical.
Thanks! I thought I was the only one.”
“I think Assad is bad, but probably the least bad of anyone over there.
I couldn’t tell what side Obama was on, but I’m pretty sure it was the terrorists.
I couldn’t tell what side Trump was on, but I’m pretty sure it wasn’t the terrorists.
I have no idea if Trump is happy with the current outcome.
I have no idea if Putin is happy with the current outcome.”
Not hard. There are two sides - the government and Terrorists. The government is a well-know entity, they protect minorities, particularly Christians, but they’re harsh as hell on those who threaten them.
The Terrorists have one thing in common, they all want to bring down Assad and establish an Islamic country with an IRON FIST. If they didn’t want that, they wouldn’t be fighting Assad. There is no Thomas Jefferson in Syria, nor in any other Arab country - if you win, it’s by the sword, and if you hold power, it’s by the sword. This is something that Neocons will NEVER learn. Maybe in a 1000 years they’ll be ready for full-up democracy, as it took us in the West that long (if not longer) to do the same.
So, that’s it. A government that ENSLAVES the people it doesn’t like, or a government that protects people who don’t fight it, even though they do crack down on those who do fight it.
This PBS documentary (of all networks) will show you just how much we are being PLAYED on this issue by the media. You’ll be hooked in 2 minutes, it’s that good:
https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/film/inside-assads-syria/
Assad refers to EVERYONE against him as "ISIS" or "rebels" yet he has no problem empowering terrorist organizations like HAMAS and Hezbollah to establish strangleholds in his country. And if anyone other than Trump were President right now, Iran would be only be gaining in steam and power.
North Korea: The Assad family also has a long time *personal* relationship with the Kim dynasty in North Korea with a long history of weapons exchange including chemicals. There are even parks and streets named for Kim Il Sung in Damascus.
"Orthodox Church says blah blah" - which one? The Orthodox Church communities around the world are divided. The *Russian* Orthodox church will say whatever burnishes Putin regime. Speaking of North Korea, They too have a "church" in North Korea and have had for years. Are they really saving Christians though? Christians in Syria (Orthodox or otherwise) may be under pressure or else face fall out for daring to criticize Assad at all.
But all that aside...
I really appreciate this insight from Philippe Nassif, the head of the organization "In Defense of Christians."
Assad’s cleverly crafted narrative has for years gained acceptance from some DC policymakers, religious freedom communities, and Christian activists that my organization, In Defense of Christians, operates among. That is, he portrays himself as the protector of Syria’s Christians and other religious minorities, such as the Druzes, Yezidis, and his own Alawites, to name a few. In the face of the Islamic State scourge and many other Islamist rebels who despise Christians and other minorities, Assad was right. Christians were better off living in government-controlled areas and have stuck by, reluctantly, to his regime. But the narrative has quickly crumbled the last two years as the world has learned about the Syrian government crushing dissent and accepting tens of thousands of Shia mercenaries from places like Pakistan and Afghanistan, along with Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Iranian military forces, to fight for his regime.
As the war grinds on into its seventh year and the economy buckles under the conflict’s devastation, Christians are starting to leave Syria for good. Although no official numbers are available, Syrian Christians may now represent less than 3 percent of the population, down from a high of 7 percent eight years ago. Their elimination would be devastating for Christianity in the region. But that is exactly what is happening, and Bashar al-Assad is partly to blame.
The regime has exploited Christians for years. Assad effectively handed the country’s security to Shia militias that in Iraq showed little regard for allowing Christians to return home after the genocide there. Those militias are repeating the same practices in Syria.
- Providence Magazine