The US is claiming to be bombing Syria for alleged and unproven use of chemical weapons. Screaming that the Syrian government is responsible for any use of chemical weapons. Claiming that we are dropping bombs in urban areas to protect civilians.
Let's just look at that last part first, shall we? The claim is that there are chemical weapons factories in urban areas. So toxic nerve agents and “precursors” are stored in buildings near or directly in a civilian population. Solution? BOMB those buildings.
If such toxic chemicals existed in these locations, the obvious result would be that the bombing would result in the uncontrolled mass release of those chemicals into the same civilian area. Potentially killing hundreds, even thousands of people.
Then, nobody asks, what is a “precursor”?
Much of the time, a precursor is either a poison in and of itself. Such as castor beans or castor bean liquid concentrate is a precursor to Ricin. In actuality, Ricin is the name of the poison naturally contained in castor beans. It is one of the deadliest poisons known in natural form. Weaponized, it is merely concentrated and made into a form which can be delivered, either powder or liquid. Bombs would send liquid flying, scatter powder into the atmosphere. The entire area would be too deadly to enter without protective gear for some time.
Other times, precursors are industrial chemicals. Many precursors are household chemicals. Chlorine? That's bleach. It's used for laundry, sterilizing medical equipment, sanitizing drinking water, cleaning, etc. You drink it in your tap water every day. Ammonia is a precursor. Again, used for cleaning plus agriculture, tanning leather, processing foods and an almost infinite list of other uses. The dreaded “organophosphates” ARE highly dangerous but are still used in some areas as insecticides. They were commonly used in US farming until only a few years ago. Phosphates are commonly used fertilizers. (It is the P in the N-P-K noted on fertilizer bags.) So is sulfur. Nearly any insecticide can be considered a precursor. Your home is filled with precursors. Any chemist could walk through your home and make nerve agents from your household chemicals.
This is all aside from the fact that dropping bombs which destroy communities, send shrapnel flying, possibly bury people in rubble and even turn the buildings themselves into first flying shrapnel and then areas too dangerous to venture into would not be how you “save civilians”. The bombs had the potential to kill many more civilians than the initial alleged attack, which has been deeply called into question whether there was any such attack at all.
Many people have pointed out that the timing and circumstances of the alleged attack presented no benefit and indeed did far more harm to the Syrian government than any tactical or political advantage it could have offered. Interviews and videos of Syrian forces illustrate the fact that they do not carry gas masks or chemical protective gear into battle. That tends to be a mostly American thing. Since that has been extensively covered, I won't go too far into it.
What is our government and media quiet about? The comparison between roughly 100 people in Syria being allegedly attacked and the KNOWN shooting of peaceful protesters in Palestine by our “friends” in Israel. THOUSANDS of men, women and children injured and killed for peaceful protest. Because bullets which rip through human bodies are considered acceptable, while temporary respiratory distress (which could well be from smoke and dust inhalation) is a monstrosity. Why? Because they say so.
Now consider the US use and enabling of chemical weapons only in my lifetime.
Agent Orange in Vietnam. Millions still suffer the effects, either directly or birth defects generations later.
We GAVE Saddam Hussein chemical weapons which he used against Iran and his own people.
We DIRECTLY used depleted uranium in both Iraq and Syria. This has resulted in cancer, birth defects and the poisoning of the areas bombed with it for decades. Many victims will suffer for the rest of their lives thanks to OUR actions.
We have DIRECTLY used white phosphorous in both Syria and Iraq. Plus we have supplied it to Israel who used it against Palestinian civilians. White phosphorous burns with such intensity that it is used to burn through steel plate armor. It goes through flesh and bone without pause. Nothing will stop it from burning until it exhausts itself. No water, no foam, nothing stops it. It will actively burn under water. Look up images of it's use and you see clearly that it is dispersed widely, NOT targeted at equipment, which is the ONLY authorized use.
There are many allegations against Syria. Yet inspections by the OPCW have shown clearly that the Syrian government had disposed of ALL of their chemical weapons and manufacturing facilities as of 2014. While the US still has tens of TONS of chemical weapons which were due to be destroyed years ago but that process has not been completed. The areas where they were stored and destroyed are PERMANENTLY quarantined due to the contamination. There is no expectation those areas will EVER be available for any human or industrial use. There are fears and some evidence that water runoff from those areas have contaminated ground water nearby.
Taking all the above into account, it is far beyond time for the American public to wake up. Demand that our government and corporate owned media stop promoting regime change and more warfare. End the hypocrisy and fear mongering. Leave other countries to their own sovereignty and self determination. Engage in diplomacy and put the weapons down. Demand proof. Wait for unbiased investigations to be completed. Stop being the global bullies.
It's time for America to start being what we have always been told America is. Because we are NOT the good guys. We can change that. If we make that choice. The government is not going to make it for us. It is up to us. Start NOW.
