Jeevan Robinson
Tuesday, August 27, 2013
Dear President Obama,
Respectfully, I am adding my voice to the chorus of those saying no to military action in Syria.
Don't do it Mr President. Consider carefully, against the chorus of pressure from Sen.John McCain and other hawks calling for military action against Syria. You have done well so far to go through the U.N, seeking an international mandate, let the diplomacy run its course Mr President.
Syria has been accused of using chemical weapons on its own people, hence the loud march to military action. If he did do this, he is wrong and has already shown himself to be a despicable human being in the treatment of his people.
However, I ask, is this any different, in terms of loss of lives than what we have witnessed for the past two years plus of Assad killing his own people? Additionally, who are these so called rebels that we in the West are lending our ears to and soon our military might? Who are they? Are they organised and functional to fill any power vacuum if Assad be killed or he runs away into hiding, or are they opportunists for power? I know these are all issues you will have considered in your reflections, and they are indeed worthy considerations.
Do not get me wrong Mr President, Syria is a grave situation that needs some form of resolution. In the initial stages of the crisis, I wrote a piece calling for you and the West on a whole to halt the atrocities and bring Assad to his knees. Assad still needs to be brought to his knees, but my views have shifted somewhat. You see Mr President, the Arab Spring brought revolutionary voices and revolutionary change. But look at Egypt and their dalliance with democracy. Bloodshed and chaos. Look at Iraq. Instability and wanton bombings. Look at Libya. Power and wealth grab and an ungrateful showing towards the West.
Why are our Western governments seeking to expend on more confrontations in the Middle East when we have serious economic woes here at home? Our treasuries are under strain, people are losing jobs, healthcare and basic services are being cut back, so why are we now seeking to add to our already overburdened debts? Our economies are finally showing signs of a rebound, do we need a confrontation in the Middle East that may escalate to unknown proportions to tax us once again.
This all the while, whilst Arab countries sit handsomely on their petro-dollars; investing in luxury, massive infrastructure installations and the like. Why is the Arab League not putting vocal and economic pressure on Assad if in fact he did kill his own people with chemical weapons?
Keep Western bombs out of Syria Mr President, I do not see this as having a good outcome. The situation in that region and the dynamics of Iran & Israel being drawn in are too grave a risk.
Respectfully,
Jeevan A. Robinson
Editor-in-Chief
Marketing, News & Information (MNI Alive)
