It is a murky bog of politics and corporate media.
I am not an investigative journalist, let me be very clear on the topic. However, being the citizen of the world, I have the full right to express my views and opinions on things I feel concerned about. And I have the right to conduct my own amateur-ish research on what I consider important. Educate me in case I have missed something. Don’t bash.
The Syrian crisis has explained us why corporate media is a sham. Lies galore, misinformation breeds. As I have discussed in one of my articles on the Dakota Access Pipeline issue, there is a dire need to let independent journalism sprout come to the forefront. Of course, one cannot wholeheartedly believe that their reports aren’t rigged, but at least we can have a fresh perspective, something divorced from what we are fed everyday on our dining room tables.
Here are some of my observations on the Syrian crisis. They are not necessarily solutions, but something that we all need to ponder upon to understand the mechanism of a war.
Here I end with laying a groundwork for myself and I begin with the real ground work.
1. Hospital bombings
I somehow don’t find it very convincing that the entire onus of responsibility on bombing the hospitals is being placed on the Russian-led coalition. And I have a reason to be suspicious about it. On July 5, 2014, 46 nurses held as hostages in Iraq (where the ISIS probably mushroomed first) landed at Kochi International Airport.
Nurses. Exactly. This is why and how I doubt the United States’ antithesis the most. They were definitely members of the Islamic State, there is no denying that. The testimonies of these nurses suggest that, and so does the Indian media. Those “rebels” (since the nurses quoted them clearly that they have issues with the government and hence such a militant step was taken) were armed with rifles; stored bombs and grenades in the hospitals.
With the current narrative of major media houses and especially the MSF, it seems as if this Russian-led coalition is deliberately attacking hospitals. I understand the problem, and as I had previously written, no one should be bombing hospitals, especially in the times of war. But to completely ignore the possibility that there are Islamists inside hospitals is not something that I do not support.
The problem is the way the coalition is going about it which makes it inhuman. Incessantly bombing these hospitals will cost more Syrian lives than decimate the Islamists. I haven’t come across a report that vividly speaks of the possibility of Islamists in hospitals. Many do pretend as if what happened with the Indian nurses is a fictional account of distant past which now needs to be forgotten to pave a way for falsities.
Why are we completely discounting the possibility that there are hospitals under siege by these terrorists?
2. The Qatar-Turkey Pipeline
The Qatar-Turkey pipeline is a proposed pipeline that is supposed to provide oil to the European population. Saudi has stakes in it (because, why not). It was supposed to pass through Syria, which the Russia-backed Assad refused, causing a major halt to its construction.
Activist, Robert F. Kennedy Jr in an essay titled “Why the Arabs Don’t Want Us in Syria” explained that the reason to overthrow the Assad regime was mainly due to the rejection of this pipeline. Everything was planned and planted in 2009.
Okay, so if you’re one of those who believes that this is all yapping and “pipeline” conspiracy theories, listen to what I say very carefully:
Ukraine is rich in natural gas, and that is known by the world. Viktor Yanukovich, the Russia-backed President of the nation had refused to share his resources with the rest of the world, of course. I am not here to justify Yanukovich’s rule. I see no difference between Russia and US. But take this – after Yanukovich was replaced by the Western-backed Petro Poroshenko, Hunter Biden, Joe Biden’s son became the board member of Ukraine’s largest natural gas provider – Burisma. Cherry on the top – Burisma is the biggest oligarch in Ukraine.
3. Some problems with independent journalists
War is for opportunists, of opportunists and by opportunists. Of course Assad’s army would be handpicking activists and unarmed protesters in Eastern Aleppo, no doubt about that.
I want to believe that the Syrian army is mindlessly killing civilians, but I have no reason to believe that. It doesn’t sound much appealing to me that a dictator will have his civilians be killed for no absolute reason because he believes that they might be rebels. That doesn’t convince me an iota. However, I do have a concrete reason to believe as to why the Syrian army will be killing people who have previously protested against their dictatorial leader, who like all others had only given up himself to excesses of wealth from taxpayers’ money.
I am not ready to believe independent journalists like Eva Bartlett, because if you follow her activism, there is no single critique of the Assad regime in her reportage, which really makes me frown. How can that happen? How has a journalist claiming to provide true, on-ground news about Syria has missed the point about Assad?
4. Social media websites in the name of citizen activism
There are pages operating like “Live Updates From Syria”. I do not mean to belittle their effort but there is something else that made me doubt whether the site is credible. The reason?
Well, they have one of their videos on their website which records the Syrian army bullying a civilian. While all that is entirely enraging, one is left to wonder – why is the video called “This Is How Assad’s Shia Army Treats Aleppo Civilians”?
It completely put me off. And what helped me realize that there are pages which are making an anti-Shia narrative slip under this entire civil war narrative. When the Saudi is involved with its deep Wahabbism, you can really expect that to happen.
People might not go so far as to wonder that the person being tortured by the ISIS is an extremist Sunni group which had killed thousands of people. When we talk of Islamists/terrorists, the entire world would come to one discourse – of being or not being a Muslim. The identity of Sunni is mildly present but not on your face. With the video this page has posted, it seemed sick.
What was the admin trying to say, exactly? How can someone not follow these dangerous ways propaganda is being fed? How can one not recognize that by doing this, the entire Shia population is being threatened?
David Kanheman, in his book, Thinking, Fast and Slow has explained that companies urge you to buy their products not only through advertisements. They try to register them in your subconscious by inserting those products in little things you see (like an actress drinking Pepsi, and the scene is incorporated in the trailer). This helps them establish themselves in the subconscious of the viewer.
Remove advertisements and put propaganda in its place. Read Kanheman’s work. It seems very dangerous now.
This is a very murky situation. The reason for giving all those points to you is to direct your anger more clearly. Let’s not direct it at Russia or the US. Let us direct it at civilians being killed in general, hospitals being destroyed, children being maimed.
Our war is against all the superpowers be it Russia or the US. Let us direct it where it is necessary. Let us not get swayed by the media reports.
Let us support the Syrians. Let us speak against war.
Let us speak for peace.
Here are two articles to help you understand that there is no side which actually holds the beacon for goodness:
