Foxnews and US Conservatives: Assad's Unlikely Allies

If anyone has failed to notice as I have, the issue in Syria, you know, the biggest event in world news currently happening and the number one issue in the Middle East other than discussions of Iran's nuclear program is all but completely off the radar.

Lets make it clear the word "Syria" does not exist on a single headline on their webpage.  Now granted most of fox's regular viewers are a bunch of xenophobic, Muslim hating pseudo-fascists, so I suppose not having major reports against Assad shouldn't be a big surprise, but really, a "pastor" in Iran potentially facing a death sentence for apostasy ranks higher that nearly 100 people killed every day in Syria?  The cover up is outlandish.  We should not be surprised.  Anyone who falls American conservative media would realize that many of the self-ordained conservative "human rights" squawkers, and pro-Israeli conservatives (IE evangelical Zionists as opposed to actual Israeli and Jewish Zionists, most of whom are far less scary).

WND (World Net Daily) avoids the Syria discussion on its front page as readily as Fox. A search of pork eating "Jewish" Pamela Geller (used lightly for a woman who derides kosher and halal slaughter whether by accident or on purpose and who has a problem with Muslims not wanting to eat pork and Muslims residing in the US in general unless not actually Muslim), reveals that in the last 12 months since the rose of the Syrian revolution very few references to the mass slaughter there. Her strange bed fellow and hero "Wafa Sultan" is a self proclaimed ex Muslim, who tells everyone the "evils" of "Islam" by deriding Sunni Islam, a religion she never belonged to, and knows nothing about.  Her criticism of Islam, are entirely those of an outsider, as a loosely secular Alawite, a religion that is pretty far and wide from being a average Muslims.  Wafa preaches the Syrian government lies about the 1982 Massacre and accepts the Assad regimes propaganda on the subject and the Muslim Brotherhood, hook line and sinker.  So when it comes down to it Assad and Geller have a lot in common when it comes to the demonization of the "Muslim brotherhood" and make for interesting allies.  I have no doubt that Sultan is supporting Assad's bloody regime, albeit silently with her Christian extremist friends and believer of nothing Geller. 

I think what would be interesting is that many of these individuals would give lip service against Assad but then say things like "What about the Christians".  Their sin is one

Not Actually "Debunking" State Department photos?

So Sharmine Narwani thinks she can just lambast the State Department and all Western journalists and the thousands of deaths in Syria with intellectual dishonesty and subterfuge.  Well I will not allow her too.  She discusses a potential mistake by CNN as if it were damning but as all secretly pro-regime liars do relies on the fact that aid and journalism agencies are banned from reporting the truth or having a presence in Syria.  She takes full advantage of the subterfuge created by the regime to point out how "unverified" everything is.

On the other hand she makes a very clear and hypocritical mistake and shows the extent to which her bias and intellectual dishonesty when she sites the "Moon of Alabama" site as if it were true.  While she lacks the journalistic integrity to scrutinize he "work" let alone the ability, I have managed to do so myself.  Here is what I came up with:

http://english.al-akhbar.com/blogs/sandbox/high-tech-trickery-homs
http://www.moonofalabama.org/2012/02/lying-with-pictures.html

1. First I have to ask how the "author" knows SO much about where and what is a military base in Syria unless he is part of the paid Shabiha paid to make up revolution facts...
2. While the Author points out the distances required between equipment in military manuals... he neglects to point out a variety of points to include a reference to such a manual. To assume Assad's goons actually follow rules in manuals is the first mistake. One assumes that the Syrian Army is a professional organization carefully implementing safety rules, but anyone who has ever served in or with a military in the Arab world knows better than this. Of course as it is easy to see here the artillery being used to pound Homs or Baba Amru is in fact sitting in the middle of an area seeming to have craters. An Army concerned with the safety of its Soldiers and equipment would not operate in such an area without cleaning it up first.

2. He is right that "There are many dug out U-type emplacements that shield from the front and the sides and allow to pull out to the back." This is absolutely correct, except for none of them are being used for that purpose here, but rather they are being set up facing directly at Baba Amro to the point where straight line distances are quite obvious, a point neglected by the author for obvious reasons it is very damning.

3. We must ask therefore, why "training" has all the artillery facing a residential area that is well within range of the equipment? Obviously not to fire live rounds for "training purposes"

4. "They point into various directions." The Author is correct: the training dugouts are indeed pointing in various direction in fact in a formation likely useful for training for conventional warfare. As a major road in fact this site is probably seen as a major holding point were any conventional war to occur, except... the author dishonestly points to the direction of the dugouts and not the artillery pieces that are clearly pointed at the city. The dugouts point to large fields: ideal places to fire at. Again the artillery face the city.

5. "There are also blast holes in the ground likely from the earlier use of training ammunition in the area." This proves the lack of concern of authorities for everyone with knowledge in this area knows that unexploded ordinance is a huge risk in using former bombardment sites. Later uses in the page about "manual safety" neglect to point out that the regime is already not adhering to safety standards.
6. "The guns shown are out in the open, not camouflaged" the author makes this point as if it matters. What he forgets or NEGLECTS to mention is the fact that camouflage of positions in such a case are for hiding positions in conventional warfare. That they feel no need to do so to fire on the innocent civilians of Homs who have no air support or ability to use artillery in return speaks volumes.

7. "and with no ammunition stacks or the like visible nearby." We can actually see several trucks that could easily deliver ammunition, we also see near many of the guns small structures that could easily in fact be the very ammunition stacks that this "piece" claims aren't there.

8. His point about the site of the bombardments speaks volumes. This individual assumes that these pieces could not be fired at Homs simply because it is already military ground, and claims a barracks is nearby. That doesn't prove anything... ooops.

9. "So while the State Department says these picture are showing guns "operationally deployed" It is clear that they are in fact "deployed" in such a function despite the authors feigned cry of foul.

10. The rest is at best speculation from an individual who claims the State department chose regular images of a "known military training area" but I have shown this to be false.

11. The Author claims to be a former tank officer: for which army is my question, and what does the set up of tanks have to do with knowledge of detailed knowledge of efficient deployed artillery which relies on very different range, positions, maneuverability, etc. so much for his "expert" opinion.
What a bunch of obscene pro-regime propaganda. Viva la revolution!

The popular revolution in Syria still continues even while the pro-regime defamers of the revolution push hard against it with both propaganda and lies. The brave members of the free Syrian Army and Baba Amro have pushed back hard against it, and showed brave resistance in the face of massacres and adversity.

People like Narwani who use subterfuge and spout pro-regime propaganda and secretly wish for Syrians to die or be silent, while they deny the facts on the ground as verified by a number of dead and injured journalists  who actually bravely report and speak the truth.

For the Silent "Minorities"

While as a Muslim I have my own holy book to draw from, I would like to remind our forebears, the silent Eastern Christians of the teachings of the wise and holy man Jesus of Nazareth:


'Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons.  For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me a drink. I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’
“Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?’
“And he will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’

I have been looking through the bible for a part where it says "thou shalt ignore the suffering of others if  thine acting could be to thy detriment" or "though shalt obey and support tyrants who permit you to celebrate Easter and Christmas in peace to slaughter unbelievers."

What I found instead was "They shall know we our Christians by our love".  Perhaps open support of a brutal dictator who mocks you with a Sham of a constitution is what Paul meant by love?  Perhaps silence during oppression and turning away from murder due to bigoted stereotypes about "Salafis" and extremists make their blood have less value.


Is this what Jesus meant when he pronounced "Love thy neighbor"?  Perhaps it is a matter of interpretation?

Damascus, where is your honor?

You let your orchards be trampled with steamrollers,
and your river be paved with cement.
Once you were a pure city, a brave city
But you have let the stone floors of your buildings dull,
The tiles of mosque of the Ommayids and your palaces no longer shine,
Your rose water has lost its scent.
The basins of spices in your market have become stale.
Your minarets once heralded the exploits of heroes
But they are now silent, and what good is a silent minaret?
Your residents only speak in whispers,
No one dares to sing or dance, they fear for their pennies,
While the Assi river brews new batches of fresh perfumes,
The Bareda river flows with sewage.

خوف الأسد

اين قرفان يا بشار يا كلب

لماذا  المفكرون العظماء, مثل قباني و غيرهم

يجب ان يموتوا في البلدان الغربية؟

لماذا, أيها الأسد الادرد, انت تخاف من الأقلام 

و ترتعب من كلمات الشعراء الرقيقة

و رؤى الفلاسفة

و اقتراحات الخبراء

ولكن لا تخاف من الله؟ 

On the Turning Away

A list of those who are starting to realize the crime that is the Assad Regime:

The Syrian People
The Saudi Government
The Turkish Government
The Lebanese people
The Mustaqbal Party
Fatah and the PLO
The United States
The European Union
The Arab League
The Alliance of Gulf States
The Jordanian opposition

Who is on the side of the Regime:
Parts of the Jordanian Government
Hezbollah
Iran
Russia
Comfortable Morons in Syria

It would be nice if those protesting realize that America is as much the enemy of Bashar Al-Assad as they are...
Indeed how could Bashar be the agent of America while be the lap dog of the new Persian empire and their other dog Hassan Nasrallah?

Justice

The night is churning
As the people wait,
The moon was full and is waning
And destiny approaches.
Vigilance is all the dogs of war can muster
As they wait atop their ivory painted towers
Over moats of blood of the martyrs.
They know their time approaches,
That the soft whisper of fate is in the air,
That there is no escaping it.
They howl in their desperation
As the ranks of freedom approach to lay siege.

Sectarian War or Sectarian Engineering?

The regime claims that this entirely sectarian based, though in the end it would appear that only the regime is acting in accordance with a sectarian based agenda.

It is well known that Europe and the USA are less likely to interfere in the case of Sectarian violence, a risk that didn't exist in western intervention with Egypt and Libya, which were essentially monolithic in the Sunni Islamic sect.  After centuries of their own sectarian strife, massacres and wars Europeans and Westerners are loath to become involved in an internal religious dispute.  The wages of sectarianism are what we see in Iraq, and saw previously in Lebanon leaves a pit in the stomach of western spectators.

To top it off since all of the regimes real allies are Shiite, it would appear that the government is willing to use its allies to perpetuate the sectarian image of this conflict.  They have sought the support of the Shiite run Iraqi government, thugs (I am sorry "revolutionary guard" troops) from Iran and Hezbollah's thugs.  It is in the best interests of the Syrian regime to transfer this into a sectarian conflict by shaping it into one intentionally.

One tactic used to do this is the nature of crackdowns and detentions.  When a large group of Sunnis is involved in a protest collective punishment is dolled out on their area, but small numbers of minority protestors, Christians and Druze only face individual punishment in order to inflame the sensibilities of only one ethnic group.  Christians as a whole and the heavily Christian Halab remain incredibly mum so far in this conflict.  The goal of the regime is to engineer the quiet for as long as possible so that they fill face later more open anger from Sunnis who are being harshly beat down, in the midst of apparent Alawi, Christian and Druze silence rooted in fear of the Muslim Brotherhood.

Sunni Hamas has remained neutral, and their affiliation with the Muslim Brotherhood, who has until now been somewhat mum, makes it hard for them to take a side, as Iran and Syria are their bread and butter.  They claim their silence is due to "not wanting to interfere in another nations internal issues" but they don't seem to have a problem with Syria interfering in their own internal issues or those of its other neighbors... and their real reason for silence is to avoid risking their own gravy train.  They are affectively no more than yet another tentacle of Iranian imperialism in the Middle East.

Of course the sectarian nature of this is not lost to the gulf, for whom the specter of a future Iran run Shia based empire is of great concern.  Iran funds terrorists and dissension of Shia in every Gulf country trying to expand their influence over the Gulf and revive the old Persian empire under the guise of the Shiite revolution.  It is both fortunate and unfortunate that Gulf countries are starting to put aside their concern for continuing Arab springs with the ethnic repression Syrian and Iran are exerting on Syria's Sunni majority.  They may unwittingly contribute to Syria's conflict becoming more sectarian as well.  One must wonder if inclusion of Hezbollah and Iran bore this goal from the get go.

Of course apparent hypocrisy, is in part in that it is OK to crack down on Shia in gulf states, but not on Sunnis in Syria.  Then again the Sunni revolts in Syria are not part of some foreign perpetrator's desire for imperial expansion, despite what the regime claims, as they are in the gulf states.  That the crack down is by the same players creating their own dissension it makes sense.  The Syrian people are now the enemy of Iran, and Iran is the enemy of the gulf states.

The New Overture

Amid international pressure and to improve their imagine the Assad regime has taken upon itself to make further fake overtures to the protesters.  Certainly Arab league condemnation, EU, US and UN words have created a situation to take some heat off.

This is not the first offer.  After all... The emergency law has ended, can't you tell by watching the news?  It is no longer legal to make broad sweeping detentions and there is accountability within the government that wasn't before right?  I suppose the lack of change from the last overtures and the continues detention of tens of thousands and the death of over 2000 people up until this point, has left a sour taste in the mouth's of the Syrian people.

I think it is only fair to talk openly about what the regime is really offering.

1. Political Parties can now be formed, but may not have and ethnic basis, a religious basis, a particular trade represented and may not be tied to any international or other national party.

2. Free general elections by the end of the year.

There things are certainly attempts to quell something, but what?  I infer that it is first to quell international condemnation by making seemingly reasonable offers but let us talk about what is not said.

The regime targets four groups with these offers.
1. International players are meant to see the offer as reasonable, but since he continues his crack down it is likely to both have no effect.  So far the regimes calls that religious extremists are at the root of this revolt has fell on deaf ears, thank god.  Even the far right conservatives and the US and Europeans obsessed with the Muslim brotherhood in Egypt are concerned that the Americans and Europeans are not doing enough, so they can't rely on the hate of Muslims among the west to create callousness towards the protesters.

2. Domestic supporters of the president, most of whom are misled but innocent sheep in comfy government positions, may see the measures as reasonable and therefore view the lack of response of the protester actions as further proof of the degree to which protestors are unreasonable and justify the regime's fairy tale that foreign and Islamist influences are the sole reason for the country's revolt.  It is also meant to display this to minorities who still remain mostly silence due both the fear of the regime and of the potential of Muslim Brotherhood rule in Syria. When coupled with recent actions towards Christians in Iraq and Egypt these are not unreasonable concerns, and the regime feeds on this.

3. To the draftees who are carefully kept isolated from family and international news it is meant to be further proof the foreign and extremist roots of the protestors.  The goal is to dehumanize the protesters into extremist and Zionist and American stooges.  However, defections are still occurring on a limited scale and this will likely not be effective.  You can't replace by regurgitation to the soldiers, the 18-23 year old roots of family opinion and morals whispered in secret behind the backs of the regime.  Key to this is, however sending draftees to areas different to the areas the are familiar with and grew up in, and the culling of high ranking Sunnis in the security forces through fake "resistance" attacks, that are just a little bit to effective.

4. The final reason is to create division in the resistance.  Liberal Muslims and Christians who envision a secular liberal democracy are meant to separate from Islamists  and moderate Muslims who desire at the very least the flavor of Syria's Islamic culture be present in any new government.  It appears, however that this will have little effect on the resistance who would rather hash those problems out later on.

In the end the measures have no clothes.  The new law didn't alter the fact that the Ba'ath party is still to be the top party.  It doesn't change decades of lack of trust, as like in Egypt the protestors fear a premature acceptance of concessions will create a scenario where the can be rounded up in private at the regimes leisure.  Finally what party affiliation do they expect people to have?  With the current limitations there can be no Islamic parties (not a bad thing to secularists like me, except that the Alawi brotherhood party would still continue in force).  But there also can be no "Future Movement" as it would be considered a branch of a Lebanese party, no labor party because it could be consider a trade, no communist party, as that would also be linked to international organizations as well.  Perhaps they expect the Syrian people to start a "Misled Dogs of the regime party.

Who Are Enemies Who are Friends

For many years the people of Syria have had a positive view towards Hezbollah, in great part due to their role in the eventual expulsion of around 15 years of Israeli occupation of Southern Lebanon.

Yet one must ask who are the real enemies of the Syrian people today?

In Hama in 1982 tens of thousands were dead, city blocks flattened.  Not by Israelis, but by a sectarian headed regime trying to keep a strangle hold on the nation.  Then too, they blamed outside influences rather than a campaign of forced secularization that were a natural result of the regime's alliance with atheist Russia.

And today Russia continues their support of the regime amid the new crack down.

Now today we see it clearly once more: The Syrian people are being killed by Hezbollah, The Alawite rooted Mafia known as Shabiha, who terrorized Lebanon for decades, Iran, and the Syrian regime.

It would seem clear who the allies of the Syrian people are and who are their enemies. 

The people of Syria and the people of Iran have a common enemy: Mahmud Ahmedi Nejad, and his Revolutionary Guard.

The Syrian people have a common enemy with the people of Lebanon: Hezbollah, the political coercers of false elections in their mini state that has gained political control of Lebanon.

They have a common enemy in the political party of Imail Lehud, the Shabiha and the Syrian government.  Yet the Mustaqbal party, and Saed Al-Hariri are the real defenders of freedom in greater Sham against these enemies.

Turkey, however, appears to be the great hero of this massacre.  If only they would do more.

الشعب يريد أسقط النظام

It mean "The people want the collapse of the regime"

You can hear it chanted loudly from every video from across Syria.
Here is a good video or two

Libya

Syria
Shouting Freedom, Freedom, Freedom and God is the greatest
By blood, and soul we will give our lives, yeah martyrs

The people want the fall of the regime


Another Video with a good overview so far in English

يربحون

هم يربحون

هم يكسبون المعركة

دباباتهم صفت في الطريق

وجوههم تضحك

هم لا يكترثون

الكلمة الصادقة تبعث الرعب

المشي في الطريق للأغنياء و الجرذان فقط

و إنه للأشباح و الفساد أيضاً

وهم يلقون التحية على الجرذان

عندما يمرون بجانبهم

كل هذا قد حصل من قبل 

وسوف يحصل مرة اخرى

  النير حول اعناقهم ليست محكمة الربط

افكار اصحاب السرك

ربما يجب ان نطعمهم للاسود

امام جميع مشاهدينا الخائفين 

ربما سوف يتسلون 

ربما سوف يبقوا صامتين

Soon to be in Arabic

We will be translating comments into both Arabic and English in due time, please be patient.

Some Good Songs

On the Turning Away -Pink Floyd
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AX_Fu6JW0fM

The Pretty Maids All in a Row -The Eagles
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRSUBH5JFf4

Sunday Bloody Sunday
http://www.lyricsfreak.com/u/u2/sunday+bloody+sunday_20141428.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EM4vblG6BVQ&ob=av3e

Or in Syria... Bloody Sunday, Bloody Monday, Bloody Tuesday....

Requiem Part 1

For those who seized their voice,
And for those who only took an evening stroll
and for those who were scared and silent,
but passed on anyway.
For silence does not buy peace from rabid wolves
They can smell fear and it hungers them.

We are Silent

We watch the wolves and beasts tear at the children in horror,
We condemn them loudly from our chairs,
once they start to clean their teeth,
and recline from their meal.

The audience covered their children's eyes
and turn their heads, but they still sit in their seats.
While the beasts below yelp at each other,
and recline on the bloody rocks.

We secretly revel in the coliseum display,
as we read celebrity journals
with blood soaked covers,
and we remain silent once more.

Nothing is Real

The world does not exist,
The seas do not exist,
The stars do not exist,
Nothing exists but their domain.

They close their eyes as the waves crash at their feet,
The king asks his court to sing a tune,
The dogs start to bark and rip their food to pieces,
One quivering morsel at a time.

If they say tomorrow the week has eight days
They will believe themselves
If they declare that Paris is only in fairy tales
The Eiffel Tower will become a framed picture.

They are Winning

They are winning,
Their tanks line the streets,
Their faces are smiling,
They do not care.

A single word causes fear,
To walk in the streets is for the rich and the rats,
It is for the ghosts and the corrupt,
They nod at the rats as they walk by.

This has all happened before,
It will all happen again.
"Their yokes were not tight enough"
Think the circus owners.
"Perhaps we should feed them to the lions,
in front of our horrified silent audience.
Perhaps they will be entertained.
Perhaps they will stay silent."