Nowhere Man

If you were hit in the head with a brick and spent the last year in a coma, then you'd have a viable reason as to why you haven't heard anything about the Arab Spring. As of right now, the Arab Spring, as a whole movement, is probably the largest pro-democracy movement the world has ever seen. As of right now, the formerly dictatorial regimes in Tunisia, Yemen, Egypt, and Libya have all fallen, whether it was through public pressure or rebel insurgency. Also as of right now, many countries still face huge public opposition, notably Syria, Lebanon, and Bahrain.

I suppose the question I want to ask is, does NATO's intervention in Libya to help overthrow Moammar Ghaddafi create a precedent?

To put it in more eloquent terms, because of the supposed mission in Libya where NATO promised to arm and defend civilians with the express purpose of ending the human rights abuses in Libya, is it now incumbent upon NATO to intervene in other countries in the middle of their Arab Spring uprising?

(Unfortunately, the 2nd half of this did not save, so I'll try to reconstruct what I wrote from memory.)

In my opinion, yes, NATO has the obligation of intervention in the Arab Spring, especially in cases where there are gross human rights violations. In Syria right now, there have been multiple cases reported of the Syrian army massacring entire villages, shelling towns with mortars, entering houses and gunning down families, etc.

So, what is the difference between Libya and Syria? What do they have in common?

• A dictator? [Yes.]
• A rebel army? [Yup.]
• Human rights violations? [Definitely.]
• International condemnation? [As always.]
  
• A large oil cache? [Uh huh.]

So what is the difference between then and now? Elections. The US is the principle actor in NATO, typically authorizing and overseeing its actions. Obama knows that he has lost a good share of his support over the past 4 years due to his inability to close Guantanamo Bay, his support of nuclear energy, bailouts, etc. He also knows that if he takes action against Syria, the Republicans, to the malaise and exasperation of the non-FOX viewers, will lambaste him for "wasting tax dollars" or some other reason. (I'm quite sure that if a Republican were in office and were to take action against Syria, they would justify it as "ensuring democracy" or whatnot. Partisanship is tiresome.)

If I were President Obama, I would have done away with his ill-advised attempts at partisanship years ago and acted like the man who had so much promise so long ago and who was given the Nobel Peace Prize simply for not being George Bush. The Republicans will berate you no matter what. And, you know what, you're the president; you have access to the greatest resources in the world. Use them. Sway the American people.

Since Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has been intransigent and unwilling to yield, it falls upon the international community to act on behalf of the people being massacred, especially NATO, since there is now the idea that the large democratic countries will support democratic movements.

So, NATO should at least show the same support for the Syrian rebels that they showed for the Libyan ones, just to show that for once, election-time doesn't predominate above what should be done.

That's all for now,
Das Flüg

Intervention in Libya: The Line

The UN Security Council last week approved the institution of a no-fly zone over Libya in order to “protect civilians” from Colonel Qaddafi’s merciless force of mercenaries. The United States, England, and France, along with members of the Arab League, have offered to lend planes and warships to uphold the no-fly zone. President Barack Obama has stated that the United States will soon take a back seat in the operation, eventually ceding responsibility to either NATO or the European nations, but many have criticized him for the use of force.
Much of the criticism comes from President Obama’s deployment of warships into the Mediterranean in order to comply with the Security Council resolution, as many state that the president does not have the authority to launch strikes without congressional approval. The famous War Powers Resolution, passed under Nixon, states that the President can deploy forces only with approval from congress or if the United States is under direct attack. As the president did not receive approval from congress, the question is whether or not the president overstepped his bounds.
While it is not within presidential powers to deploy forces without congressional approval, the Constitution does not have any provisions mentioning forces under international treatise or an international organization, such as NATO or the UN. The document was originally written to prevent the eventuality of a monarch or a dominating house, such as congress, which is why military powers are divided among the two branches. The document does not lend any credence to international organizations or coalition militaries, which is why, in a case such as this, the Constitution may have to be circumvented.
I am not saying to completely disregard the Constitution; there is no slippery slope here. We must accept the limits and faults of the Constitution and be willing to step into a world where international cooperation is becoming a fact rather than a hypothetical action. If we cannot cooperate willingly and amiably with the world, we set a poor example as the self-proclaimed world leaders. What needs to be done in Libya will be done, and after the necessary amount of time, strategic forces will move under an allied command. There will be no ground troops committed, no American armor fighting Libyan armor, no American soldiers teaching Libyan rebels how to march, nothing; there will be the enforcement of a no-fly zone, and that is it. Those with the delusion of another formal (or informal) war should recognize that this situation, in all of its minute details, is infinitely different.

A Turn for the Worse

Two of the largest news stories in the world have taken a turn for the worse:
First, in Japan, as everyone is probably well aware of already, the death toll continues to rise and the threat of a nuclear meltdown seems to become more likely as each day passes. Cities have been swept into the ocean, and the death toll is believed to be more than 10,000, at the least. People have gone for days without clean water, food, heat, etc. If you can, please donate to the Red Cross, UNICEF, Doctors Without Borders, etc.
Second, in Libya, pro-Gaddafi forces are striking at the rebels with superior air and naval power as a rebel victory continually seems to be slipping out of reach. Debates have been raging as to whether or not to impose a no-fly zone, help with foreign troops, etc., though there has been little action by the international community. The Arab League has asked NATO and the Group of Eight to impose a no-fly zone, though Turkey (NATO) and Russia and China (G8) do not support the notion. It is a tricky situation.

What do I think about Libya? The rebels are clearly outgunned, as they do not have (to my knowledge) any naval or air capabilities, as well as a small, if not negligible amount of artillery. They are being pushed back east and will likely be forced to flee the country if Gaddafi's forces march to the border with Egypt. In my opinion, the US and other countries should, at least, declare recognition of the rebel's transitional government as the authority of Libya, and thus open trade relations with them, selling arms at low prices. That's what I would do, at least.

Aside from international matters, I'm on spring break. Hooray for a week spent in my boxers.

That's all for now,
Das Flüg

A Current

The US media has seemingly set its news stories into a constant cycle of reporting on the civil war in Libya, the budget crisis, Charlie Sheen, and even a bunch of Christians proclaiming the end of the world is near; what I would like to focus on is journalistic integrity.
Journalistic integrity, as I see it, is the duty of every professional journalist to report a story objectively and without inserting their own bias; if there must be an opinion in a story, then there also must be a valid counter-opinion to balance the substance of the story. This definition immediately negates the Sean Hannitys and the Glenn Becks of the world, as they have been known to present arguments with both no basis in fact or logic.
Journalism and journalism media in general has been regarded as the fourth branch of the government, in that journalism media is supposed to provide another check on the government by making it accountable to the populace. Ideally, all (or most) people would read or hear the news, make a valid judgment and vote/contact their representatives based on that judgment in order to better participate in the democratic process.
Everyone and their mother knows that this is far from the truth. Unfortunately, news media is a product owned by corporations (with the exception of public news such as NPR), and is made to be sold. If a story, such as Charlie Sheen's antics, is selling, you focus more on Charlie Sheen then, say, the most conservative members of congress desiring to cut large percentages of planned parenthood and education from the budget. Thus, viewership/readership goes up, and due to that, increased revenue from advertisers desiring to display their product to the average consumer.
Regardless of this desire to increase revenue, journalists should still look to present stories in, as Fox News purports to do, a fair and balanced manner. Unfortunately, there is no Hippocratic oath of journalism for me to call upon when demanding that all journalists remain loyal to the distribution of truth rather than truth as they see it. There is only the integrity of the field and the tradition of journalists such as Edward R. Murrow to guide every prodigal journalist along the journey; unfortunately, this does not count for much anymore. For example, Dan Rather, one of the more respected journalists today, did not report on the fallacy of the buildup to the Iraq War; instead, he touted his American pride by continually reporting on American firepower and the resoluteness of soldiers to fight. As a journalist, he failed the American people.
Increasingly, journalists are being replaced by pundits for creating opinions in people, and the result is disheartening, to say the least. A pundit's opinion, however skewered and factually incorrect, is accepted willingly simply because the pundit's beliefs coincide with the viewer's.
Is the field salvageable? Of course; nothing is ever completely lost. As of right now, though, it will take a lot of work to recover.

That's all for now,
Das Flüg

P.S. Don't forget to click here!

EDIT------

Apparently, there is a journalistic code of ethics. Just goes to show that I should take a journalism class in college. Even so, that makes it that much sadder.

Democratization

As everyone probably knows by now, people's movements have deposed the former governments in Tunisia and Egypt, all by the power of the people, as it were. It seems that a domino effect has been set into motion, as there are now movements in Algeria, Bahrain, Yemen, Libya, and Iran (again). In these movements, however, the presiding government has not been reluctant to display its force.

In Bahrain, for example, 20,000 peaceful protesters were beaten by police indiscriminately on the order of the government. Women and children, doctors, and innocent people in general were chased down and beaten by government forces.

In Iran, peaceful marches were dispersed immediately by the Revolutionary Guard in an apparent act of hypocrisy by the Ayatollah who praised the Egyptian people for their work in Egypt (just for clarification: the Ayatollah claimed that the movement was largely Shiite, which Iran predominantly is).

So, is a people's democratic movement possible in these countries where there is no reluctance to use force on their people? It seems that the movements in these countries may take to two extremes (if they continue): 1. The people become indefatigable and relentless in their pursuit of revolution, but the government continues to beat them mercilessly; eventually, either the people end their movement or the police decide to cease their atrocities and side with the people; 2. The police forces become increasingly more violent, leading to a violent rebuke by the people in an effort to secure a revolution by guerrilla warfare. The success of this depends largely on the dedication of the people.

What is occurring now is truly an astonishing show of embracing the concept of a government without a monarch. That being said, I do concede that there have been benevolent dictators, but the overwhelming majority have been thieves, scoundrels, selfish, greedy, etc. For example, the Mubarak family took advantage of the Egyptian economy to make millions of dollars off of the private sector (Gamal Mubarak, mostly).

I think that this movement has more strength than the Iranian Green Movement did after the contested elections. I think that the youth in these countries can actually achieve their goals. They're motivated, they're connected, and they have concrete plans. Here's hoping that the youth can change the world.

That's all for now,
Das Flüg

P.S. You should check this out. It's quite intense.

A Serious Man Post

Since I haven't done a political piece in a while, I figure that the one person who actually reads my blog (You) would appreciate something well-written and erudite. Hooray for consideration!

What's on my mind right now is the possible connection between the release of the Lockerbie bomber and BP's drilling contract with Libya. Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi, also known as the Lockerbie Bomber, was sentenced for life imprisonment after the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103, which killed 270 people. (There is speculation that he was simply a scapegoat, but that is a topic about which I know too little.) He was released last year to a hero's welcome in Libya due to a diagnosis of terminal prostate cancer. This obviously raised quite the disturbance in Scotland, as many wondered why a man who senselessly killed hundreds should be given compassion at the end of his life. But, that is only the beginning of the story.

It seems that BP, the highly-revered defenders of all that is black and grimy, influenced the UK government's decision to release Megrahi in order to secure an oil contract with Libya. If BP did not already seem like the dominatrix of the world, whipping us while we enjoyed it, now BP appears to be Hedonism Bot from Futurama, basically doing whatever feels like it would give them pleasure.



Corporate greed at its finest. So, what happens now? Well, if I were president (which only happens in approximately 3 of the infinite parallel universes), I would likely cut all contracts with BP, have them fined, and send them to work on the next Michael Bay movie because, let's face it, Transformers 2 was worse than waterboarding.

On a side note, I'm pretty sure those Russian spies caught in the US were the rejects from the KGB, since the information they were searching for could easily be found on the internet. Hell, it's posted on whitehouse.gov, opensecrets.org, etc. They were probably the kids who ate the crayons during KGB school.

That's all for now,
Das Flüg

P.S. Check out my friend's and my Youtube channel at www.youtube.com/uguestsproductions. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll subscribe to our channel because you love us. :)