Comments on: Libya and selective US intervention

By: bag85

bag85 — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 02:32:51 +0000

Bernd leads the way; but increase the momentum with http://www.thenoflieszone.com and maybe some day we’ll bring back sanity for our children. Human rights and universals should be the guiding light for policy—not 2500 year old dogma or hypocritical special interests.

By: ibizaal29

ibizaal29 — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 22:17:08 +0000

Forgive me for saying but as a new follewer of this website & currently on a 3 week vacation inFrance & Spain I can’t help feeling that we’re losing a grip on reality. The problems in the middle east are not something we should ignore & as a sceptic towards politics in the UK (where I am a resident) or any
other civiilised community I find it hard to take in the attrocities that are going on the world over. Whether it be Iraq, Sudan, Libya, The Congo wherever……. ! Am I the only person in this god forsaken world that thinks the natural & unnnatural warings of this precious planet that we take so much for granted is giving us warnings ? ! Christ ! ! We are our own worst enemies & although I find it incomprenhensible about what is going on in the oppressed/depressed world. I just can’t help feeling that the planet i was born in to is so out of my influence or control. If only we could see the planet that we have left our Great/Grandchildren to inherit then possibly we might have second thought’s on the thing’s we do now ! To be honest, I’ve spent enough time thinking about something I have no influence on. In with anger out with LOVE !!!

By: Av8ts

Av8ts — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 16:31:22 +0000

Bernd,

Last time I checked it was a NATO conducted intervention. Not just the United States.

And, YES, our National Security (Corporate America), comes first before any thing else. Pays the bills.

America, work in progress, since 1776. Still better than most.

By: fred5407

fred5407 — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 16:02:05 +0000

It is hard to comment when not all the pieces of the puzzle are even on the table for putting together. Somewhere and somehow the minority, or majority, must be allowed to speak and to be part of the decision making process. There can be stability even with discord. Everyone has to ask, “Could I do Better”?

By: johncabell

johncabell — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 15:02:23 +0000

I take as a given that it is impossible for sovereign states to be consistent in any meaningful way, and that there are degrees of pretense to projecting consistency.

What interests me here is that there isn’t any particular US interest in eradicating the world of Gaddafi, and apart from the bluster of attacking his own people bent on attacking him (a peculiarly internal matter, one might even argue) no new one from a month or so ago.

So given that world leaders pick and choose their rationales like fruit at a Middle East market, we can only judge (I think) the intent by how far today’s rationale is from self-interest. As I see it, Obama’s failure here is entirely in the realm of domestic politics, which as these things go is exactly the right place you want to weak when lives are at stake.

Which has no bearing on the creation of a new precedent that cannot possibly be consistently adhered to without new conditions to tomorrow’s rational for action, or inaction.

By: mheld45

mheld45 — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 15:43:27 +0000

Well, as usual the author makes a series of factually accurate statements, but does little to aid understanding, leaving the reader with a somewhat hollow feeling. Does the author propose intervention everywhere we see a lack of democracy or human rights OR does he propose that we cease promoting these values through our words and occasionally our actions? Or perhaps we should only preach our values in places we think we can make a difference, leaving the vast majority of miserable places unnoticed. Obviously, none of these three options are desirable, leaving the path that is actually pursued by the US: continuous moral support for those seeking freedom and occasional intervention… when and where we can make a difference. In reality, this is the only feasible approach.

By: JK22

JK22 — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 15:40:49 +0000

What was said was correct but hardly a revelation. Another way of looking at it is as David Cameron said. Just because we often don’t do the right thing doesn’t mean we should never do the right thing. In this case it was morally justified and doable. The Libyan regime has a small army which is falling apart absent its heavy weapons. The core and privileged security forces have much to lose but the other half have no loyalty. The leader is unstable and has killed westerners before. So it should not be a difficult decision to topple him when it is doable, morally acceptable and in our self-interest.

By: RussellB

RussellB — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 00:32:30 +0000

Well said Bernd,

“Extend fundamental freedom everywhere in the world” needs to be unselfish. There are other dictators much worse than Gadhafi. Gadhafi wanted to cleanse Libya house by house.

There are other genocidal regimes (some with no oil) still carrying out ethnic cleansing and minority subjugation with oppression to media.

By: faye56

faye56 — Sat, 26 Mar 2011 22:29:33 +0000

gadhafi pushed out bin laden around 6 years ago when they tried to get in the country now the rebels force is led by a man who fought against us in afganistan a few years back are we going to give libya to them? we may not like him but he,s on our side

By: stambo2001

stambo2001 — Sat, 26 Mar 2011 18:57:09 +0000

The US is a stinking, burnt-out and decaying corpse of what it was. Nowadays the entire world knows that the US exists only for itself and its’ own interests.

By definition the USA is hardly even a country anymore. The US is completely dependent on foreign money and energy. More than 65% of the American daily energy consumption is based on imported oil. Understand that. Let it sink in. There is no USA without foreign oil, beginning and ending of story. The gig was up when energy policy became national security policy. Further, without foreign countries continually buying into the American debt ponzi scheme the wheels would have stopped turning long, long ago.

The US is almost completely broken, just barely standing on the shoulders of the dictators that permit cheap US oil at the cost of their own citizens well being.

Remember that the founding fathers of America were steadfast against democracy, do not forget this fact. And irony of irony is that the US touts ‘democracy’ all the while living in terror if the idea of a ‘muslim democracy’.