Rebel Libyans Stalling While the World Debates
Word that someone flew a plane into Gaddafi's palace is still but a word. I think we'd all love to hear more about that, should it have happened! Otherwise, back in Libya, well… "Libyan rebels are retreating from the strategic town of Ajdabiya under heavy bombardment by Muammar Gaddafi's forces." Anti-Gaddafi forces seem to only hold three cities, and they're isolated from each other; and government forces are trying to beat down the road to Benghazi, which has about 2/3rds of a million people. What is happening there is truly terrible. And what will happen if the revolution really does fail is even worse: two defeated generations dead or rotting in jails. All that being said, what would foreign intervention do? And… by whom? That said, it's not over yet.
At least responding to the rebel (and Arab league etc) please for a no-fly zone would be great. Right now China and Russia are holding everyone back — yet the rebels are blaming "the West" for betraying them. That doesn't seem good for us no matter who prevails for now. Also, hang in there rebels!
i am not trying to be a dick (i know, i know ~ it comes naturally and i don't have to try) but i've been wondering about the logistics of this proposal. what would be our mission objective? what would be our conditions of disengagement? what would be our contingency plan for a pilot being shot down over government controlled territory?
it's not an easy task to keep libya's planes out of the air. to do that we would have to destroy or disable libya's command and control infrastructure as well as the air defenses. that would require firing on live targets and that would be an act of war. do we really want to be engaged in three wars simultaneously?
please understand that i am in favor of the libyan people being freed from the maddog but i don't think it is as simplistic as many believe to impose a no-fly zone. i'm much more in favor of a "one shot. one kill" solution in this situation. the arab league could provide the sniper.
you're not being a dick — and I don't mean to sound like a neo con. Yes, it's complicated, and yes I know that aggression against one dictator would make every other dictator all nervy and righteous. (Although Bahrain and Yemen seem to be just leapin' right into the vacuum of reprisals.) I wonder if just some more publicity backbone about the fact that it's not "the West" would get the message across … but maybe not. You, madam or sir, have a cooler head than I in this frustrating situation.
What a stupid, raving idiotic post! I'd read on the intertubes that this is where the smart Gawker readers went, I see now that this is where the gay children came to cry – I'll take teh soccer moms @ Gawker, they have bigger balls than Choire. You Fag. Please stop covering international/national politics and stick to NYC hipster shit, that's what I want from you now, bitches. If anybody wants to read some INTERESTING foreign policy coverage visit http://exiledonline.com/
thanks for your input mr. gaddafi
Do we even know what the rebels are about or support or what they want Libya to look like other than that it not be led by the current leader?