No cease fire, no pull back, no compliance

Many excuses as always to everyone for more rants but living in the Middle east what can you do but scream? (the place has become obsessively interesting since last "spring" but exasperating as well) The scream is as always on Syria since we live close by in the ME and can't ignore what's going on there-- please excuse us for obsessing on this point -- but when you live in a place, u can't avoid observing, knowing and feeling responsible for what's going on. Even though I'm not.

Nevertheless a year of bloodshed and continued cries for help from the Syrian population cause me once again to get on the blog site and say: that although we have heard much of the Kofi Annan "cease-fire" peace plan in fact we have seen not one iota of change from the stance and behavior of the Basher government. yes, "a measurable decrease in violence" but how hopeful is this when Basher hasn't allowed one measurable iota of change on Syrian streets. Shelling in Homs for example, reported today. Does that sound familiar? Basher's batallions still occupying the main squares and intimidating the population. Killing demonstrators (but on a reportably smaller scale). Does that sound familiar? Kofi Annan's plan is really impressive so far -- no compliance,not one concession by the main malefactor. Not one significant change on behavior since all the Kofi Annan intervention began., Of course a miracle could occur any minute and Basher and fellow criminals could turn themselves in at the local crimes against humanity police station, but this is doubtful. Basher's almost perfect integrity as a tyrant -- he doesn't deal with anyone -- is at this moment almost perfectly preserved.

I think the best comparison would be with Hitler in the 1930 & 40s. A population has been screaming for help for over a year. Don't they have the right to defend themselves? Think of rebels against Basher as Jews revolting from Hitler. Wouldn't we automatically fly to their rescue? if Hitler managed a plan whereby he only killed one hundred Jews per day, would we say, well, that's too small a number to concern us? Or would we rather float off to a place called "Desolation Row" where nobody has to think too much? (Dylan, 1968).

PS My dearest hope sis that Kofi succeeds; but the deep misguidedness of his mission-as others have pointed out is that it strengthens Basher. If his plan succeeds nevertheless and he is seen to have saved lives, I will say hurray and (give him the) Nobel peace prize! Unfortunately though at this point, it seems his idealistic UN guided intervention will have to be revised.
PPS The point I didn't make is the lack of any clear way to verify what's going on in Syria; Kofi should have insisted on an unrestricted press at least, so as to remove the "we don't really know what's gong on there anyway" cop out I hear on the part of many.
For a keen witted comment on the situation by a local source, see J. Kechichian "Syria Deserves Better than Kofi Annan plan". Gulf News Op ed page 19 April. (Dubai).

Cheers etc.
James

More Useless thoughts on Syria year 2 daily massacres

[Why anyone thought that negotiation with basher would do any good is beyond me, I may be terribly wrong and totally naive but it seemed obvious from the beginning that Basher & associates would listen only to the language they speak. He continues to discredit himself with every move and I'm looking forward to the day when Syrians’ demands for such things as freedom, dignity democracy & human rights will be taken seriously. If we let the slaughter continue, we’re saying in effect Syrians and Arabs don’t deserve the same basic rights that we take for granted in the West. Not only Syrians but the world too would be a lot better off without the Basher daily death quota –cannily limiting his murders to a fixed quota every day just short of the "massacre" limit, say around 100 per day, but all the more intolerable for a normal conscience. Of course without any professional press permitted inside Syria, no one can prove any of it is happening, so maybe that should be Annans's non negotiable first condition: to let in the press to verify any agreement. I write out of anger at Basher and concern for the gutsy Syrian people of whatever sect who have braved the onslaught for over a year and deserve admiration but even more help. If liberals don't start making more noise about the basic rights being demanded by Syrians today, it may be the McCains who eventually get the credit for saving this population... We know a monster like basher can't last forever with most of his population and the world against him so to whom will the Syrians be grateful in the end?]

[[I bracket these thoughts to emphasize their uselessness and the fact that we live here in a less drastic but analogous way.]]

Yours truly,
Harry James