DDGD –
October 7, 2015
Editorial Comment
The times are always interesting, but we are not always
interested. This is why we have so many demons around. This is why we all get
to be demons, at least some of the time. How interesting! Are you interested?
Articles & Commentary
Russia’s
Holy War in Syria. This is a link to my article on the Lawfare Blog, in
which I argue that Russian President, Valdimir Putin, is seeking to capitalize
on the Syrian conflict and on the weakness of the Assad regime to establish an
even larger presence on the Mediterranean than a simple base in the city of
Tartus. In doing this, Putin is reminding Iran of its place as a junior partner
in the alliance, and will seek to shore up Assad, at least for a while, to
provide him with the necessary cover to legitimate what is fast becoming a de
facto occupation.
*
Enter the Dragon? Days after warning the world about
the dangers of arbitrary intervention in Syria, China
seems poised to interfere there alongside its Russian and Iranian allies,
with the alleged intention of bombing positions controlled by terrorist groups,
who are said to include
a number of ethnic Uighur Jihadis. The actual number seems to be
exaggerated on purpose in order to give China a legitimate excuse to enter the
fray.
But, while the potential decision by China to enter the Syrian
fray could be motivated more by calculations related more to the situation in South
China Sea, which China is now claiming
lock, stock and barrel, than to that prevailing in Syria, its move there is bound
to complicate an already too complicated and messy scene. So, unless the
Chinese have already won the war before even joining it, to paraphrase Sun Tzu,
there is something “arbitrary”
and, therefore, ominous about their decision to intervene, should they indeed make
it.
Anecdote
A bear and a dragon
go into a bar. On the menu: slow roasted “lion*” and rabbit stew.
Factoid
The original surname
of the Assad family is wahesh, which in Arabic means “monster.” The family’s
grandfather is credited with changing it to assad, which means “lion.”
*
While technology is proving useful in managing certain ongoing
programs
to help Syrian refugees, we should not allow this success and such heartwarming/breaking
stories as this one
to lull us back into the observer mode. There is much more that needs to done
on all fronts. The challenge of supporting Syrian refugees is daunting indeed,
but the world has to learn how to manage it in order to ready itself for coping
with the numerous other crises looming ahead.
For should leaders of the United States and the European
Union continue to hold on to their current noninterventionist ethos, then, the least
that they could do is find effective ways for coping with the rising influx of
refugees who will flood their shores in search of a safer and better life, as
conflicts metastasize and multiply. Indeed David Miliband is right when assert says
that the “refugee
crisis is here to stay.”
Meanwhile, and as governments struggle to cope with this “crisis,”
there is ample room for entrepreneurs, like
five visionary ones, to step in.
*
In Syria, even history is in danger of being erased. It started
with the Assad
regime’s own disregard for historical sites, then, various
rebel groups stepped in, then, it was the Islamic
State’s turn, and now Russia.
“To see what is right
and not do it is cowardice.” Confucius
The No-Fly Zone: comments that just make no sense (i.e. they don’t
fly)
“A Russian forecaster predicts ‘excellent weather’ for
bombing Syria. Broadcast on a Russian TV channel POCCNR24, the forecaster says
that October is a great month for flying in Syria. She goes on to give average
wind speeds and rainfall for the month. This is edited with footage from a
bombing raid.” Source: The
Guardian.
The weather is excellent for
bombing, my love.
Think of me when you bomb that
school.
Don't look down to see the children
bleed,
Or look up to see how the clouds drool
In anticipation of the feast.
Video(s) of the Day
Artistic Delirium
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"The Drowning" by Ammar Abdulhamid from "Reflections on Liberty and Revolution Series - a digital deconstruction of Delacroix's famous Oeuvre "Liberty leading the people." |
Cartoons
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