We tend to exonerate ourselves from the blame we share for the catastrophes we suffer. That tendency, of course, foreshadows the catastrophes to which we will therefore contribute in the future. The best example of this is Syria.
In the beginning, protesters in Syria were calling for reforms. Their demands were socioeconomic demands, and calls for greater political representation. The government response was brutal. At that point, there was a choice; stop the protests, continue the protests, or undertake armed struggle. Obviously, each of these choices would have consequences; but in my opinion (and it was my opinion ever since I was in jail), the first option was the best option. Stop the protests, assess the situation, and work on alternative strategies. Would this choice have resulted in suffering? Surely; but not a level of suffering notably greater than what the people were already enduring.
Today you show me pictures of babies being pulled out of the rubble of a bombed building, and I really don’t know what you want me to say. You knew from the beginning that you were dealing with a regime that responds viciously to even nonviolent confrontation; and you chose to confront them violently. What exactly did you expect?
And if I lament the deaths of innocents, and criticize the armed struggle that caused them, you will tell me to celebrate their martyrdom. So, sorry, are you showing me these pictures so that I will cheer for the martyrdom of Muslim babies? Or so that I will increase in my hatred for the regime? Or so that I will give charity to the victims?
Excuse me, but there is a profound level of psychological illness here.
I lament the deaths of innocents, I pray for them to be accepted as martyrs, I hate the regime, I give charity, and I blame you.
Western Syria is going to remain under Bashar, there will be either a unified Kurdistan, or a divided one, and the “liberated” areas of Syria will be demilitarized zones likely occupied by UN peacekeepers under American command; with no economy, no services, no freedom, no rights, for probably more than a decade. The refugees will not return if they have a choice. The resources will be usurped by foreign corporations. This is the glorious outcome of the decision to take up arms. And it is an outcome that was entirely predictable.