The Humanist Cafe
Wednesday, Sep. 18,
7:00 to 8:30 pm
Topic: The Syrian Crisis: To Bomb, Or Not To Bomb?
What are the implications for the Middle East and the World?
Presenter: Barry Webster
moderator: John Pope
Some History
The news has provided us with much that would favour a military attack on Syria. There appears to be more to the story, and as almost always is the case, it’s not a simple binary choice facing the rest of the world.
“The urge to do something, anything, to stem the bloodshed in Syria is intense. Ryan Crocker served as US ambassador to six countries including Syria, 1998 to 2001. Now a Kissinger senior fellow at Yale University, he reviews the history and explains how the civil war in Syria began well before the Arab Spring protests.” intro to Ryan Crocker, YaleGlobal, 23 July 2013
Questions:
What would be the consequences of a US attack on Syria? Iran and Russia both say that there will be retaliation. What kind of retaliation could be expected?
What would be the consequences of no US attack with Syria allowing UN weapons inspectors in to monitor these weapons. What would happen to the Syrian ‘rebels’ chances of overthrowing the Syrian regime? Who are these ‘rebel’s and what do they represent?
Is US ‘intelligence’ reliable? Critics point to the debacle in Iraq where an attack was based on false evidence for weapons of mass destruction. Who do we believe – the US intelligence agencies, or reports from lesser-known news sources who claim to have forst hand knowledge (see the links below).
What are the implications for the Middle East, or the rest of the World, in either of the two scenarios mentioned above?
What is the official Canadian position on this? Where is Canadian public opinion on this?
What media sources should be be watching? How can we know what is really going on? How can we argue about it if we don’t?
Some links:
US Tries to Back Out of demand for UN Probe:http://www.truth-out.org/opinion/item/18548-the-lie-of-limited-war-in-syria
Possible consequences of a US military attack:
http://www.ipsnews.net/2013/08/in-rush-to-strike-syria-u-s-tried-to-derail-u-n-probe/
Nerve gas use – who dunnit and why? Rebels admit it was an accident (with Saudi-suppled canisters):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iz0TxVmq3-Q&feature=youtu.be
See you there!