Here we, here we, here we Fucking Go!

Rewind 25 years. In 1986 the US, with the help and backing of Britain launched air strikes on Libya. In retaliation for terrorist attacks across Europe that had been linked to Gaddafi’s government, including one at a Berlin disco when one American was killed. These air strikes did not have either the backing of the UN, or countries in the Arab world, ironically 1986 was the UN year of peace.
Here we are in 2011and off we go again, this time the US have taken less of a lead in the rhetoric, which may go some way to explain the support this latest intervention has received from the UN and Arab world. Rather than let a sleeping mad dog lie, the West pokes him with a stick. Rightly or wrongly, when Blair and Brown cosied up to Gaddafi, it kept stability in the region, and moderated Gaddafi’s excesses, now after the recent uprisings across North Africa and Egypt the region has been plunged into turmoil, I’m sure Western forces have been involved in covert operations in the region prior to the uprisings, I mean look at that recent Diplomatic Mission to Libya, were the group was arrested and found to be in possession of Guns and ammunition. When the Libyan people rose up unlike Egypt, their government was prepared to turn the guns against its citizens, who in turn were prepared to stand and fight. It seems that the West like this idea, and after 25 years have decided that enough is enough and an alliance of countries led by Britain and the US has developed, who despite what they tell us are involved in an operation to oust Gaddafi, something they could have done years ago, but for economic and political reasons they chose to leave him in power and after 9/11 go after Sadham Hussain instead, who was a nasty man to his people, but unlike Gaddafi had no links to terror attacks against the West, from allegedly supplying money and munitions to the IRA, to the Lockerbie Bombing, Libya’s name was in the frame. The rhetoric of this latest action taking place in order to protect Libyan citizens from Gaddafi’s forces is just a smokescreen, because by that logic and argument why aren’t and haven’t missiles rained down on China for its treatment of the Tibetans, why is Robert Mugabe still in power and why aren’t we supporting the people of Bahrain in their struggle. No this is regieme change through bomb bay doors. Will it be another Iraq? Well I can’t see Gaddafi going quickly or quietly, but then can Britain afford another fight? What price for freedom and democracy across the world when the Armed Forces budget is being cut, but then….this latest military involvement could be used as a reason by some for not making as many military cut backs as originally planned! Or alternatively the West lets the Arab nations sort it all out amongst themselves, because at the end of the day who are we to impose our values on other nations. In the bombing raids that have taken place already and those that will no doubt take place in the future days, I wonder how many of the civilians the West is supposed to be protecting will die. Probably less than did 25 years ago, what with all the hi-tech weaponry that has been developed and tested in Iraq and Afghanistan, perhaps Libya is gonna be another testing ground for some more state of the art guided missiles. When and if the pictures of the innocent casualties of these attacks are beamed in to our living rooms, that’s when we’ll find out just how much the people of the West are prepared to pay for the freedom and democracy of others, and whether it can be achieved through force, and does it make our leaders any better than those they wish to depose? No….they’re all the fucking same! It’s just the way they treat their people that is different!