Another US-supported tyrant is about to fall
A VERY GOOD COMMENT
by Justin Raimondo, February 28, 2011
"Tens of thousands gather in the streets of Sa’na, demanding the ouster of President Ali Abdullah Saleh—it’s the Yemeni edition of the Great Arab Awakening sweeping the Middle East and toppling governments previously counted as US allies. Aside from framing events within this rather broad narrative, however, what is really going on inside Yemen—and why is it important to the rest of the world? What can we, as outsiders, really say about events there that has any reality apart from the ideological narratives we invent for our own purposes?
Such invention has been a staple of US policy in the region and “expert” commentary emanating from Washington, much of it originating with the present government of Yemen, headed up by President Ali Abdullah Saleh. According to the official Yemeni government line, the regime is facing as many as three “terrorist” threats: from rebels in the north, from secessionists in the south, and from the biggest bogeyman of them all—al Qaeda.
Let’s start with the situation in the north, where Saleh is apparently taking his cues from another despot of the Gulf, King Hamad of Bahrain—who still insists the largely Shi’ite upsurge in his island kingdom is supported and motivated by the Iranians. The Saleh regime has similarly blamed Iran for inciting Shi’ite rebels in the northern provinces, who have been waging a growing insurgent campaign against the central government for the past five years.....
The idea that US interests in the region are at war with the natural impulse of people to be free is nonsense: we would gain more friends if we just stood aside and let the Arabs awaken from their long slumber. Instead, however, I fear we’ll just try to lull them back to sleep again with empty promises of “reform”—and only succeed in provoking rising resentment. Whispering advice in the ears of President Saleh and King Hamad (of Bahrain) will not save either of these crooks from the wrath of their subjects. There’s just one strategy that will work for Washington in this situation, and it can be summed up quite succinctly: get out of the way."
A VERY GOOD COMMENT
by Justin Raimondo, February 28, 2011
"Tens of thousands gather in the streets of Sa’na, demanding the ouster of President Ali Abdullah Saleh—it’s the Yemeni edition of the Great Arab Awakening sweeping the Middle East and toppling governments previously counted as US allies. Aside from framing events within this rather broad narrative, however, what is really going on inside Yemen—and why is it important to the rest of the world? What can we, as outsiders, really say about events there that has any reality apart from the ideological narratives we invent for our own purposes?
Such invention has been a staple of US policy in the region and “expert” commentary emanating from Washington, much of it originating with the present government of Yemen, headed up by President Ali Abdullah Saleh. According to the official Yemeni government line, the regime is facing as many as three “terrorist” threats: from rebels in the north, from secessionists in the south, and from the biggest bogeyman of them all—al Qaeda.
Let’s start with the situation in the north, where Saleh is apparently taking his cues from another despot of the Gulf, King Hamad of Bahrain—who still insists the largely Shi’ite upsurge in his island kingdom is supported and motivated by the Iranians. The Saleh regime has similarly blamed Iran for inciting Shi’ite rebels in the northern provinces, who have been waging a growing insurgent campaign against the central government for the past five years.....
The idea that US interests in the region are at war with the natural impulse of people to be free is nonsense: we would gain more friends if we just stood aside and let the Arabs awaken from their long slumber. Instead, however, I fear we’ll just try to lull them back to sleep again with empty promises of “reform”—and only succeed in provoking rising resentment. Whispering advice in the ears of President Saleh and King Hamad (of Bahrain) will not save either of these crooks from the wrath of their subjects. There’s just one strategy that will work for Washington in this situation, and it can be summed up quite succinctly: get out of the way."
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