The proverb “the first victim of war is truth” has proven to be one of the most reliable constants of warfare. Deceit is another of the constants, and in the war on Syria both have proven their reliability. The extent, however, to which everything from strongly biased reporting, to plainly manufactured lies have been sold as truth by Western and Arab Media, including so called “progressive media” such as Democracy Now or Al Jazeera, is astounding, and has endowed the proverb the first victim or war being the truth, and the strategy of war by deceit with a new dimension of mass manipulation.
If one is asking the question if the US Military made the decision to re-define PSYOP, or Psychological Operations as MISO, Military Information Support Operation in 2011 because Western Main Stream Media had been catching up with Western Civilian and Military Intelligence Services and Armed Forces Propaganda, one may risk to intellectually give the impression of being the proverbial dog that is trying to catch his own tail.
The saddening truth is, that even most of the so called progressive media, humanist media, and by what other name they sale themselves to a public that is willing to look beyond the obvious propaganda, have been co-opted, reigned in, and become part and parcel with NATO´s war´s under the pretense of being humanitarian, supporting legitimate opposition that is being brutally oppressed by the dictator Assad.
One question that begs serious consideration for citizens in so called Western Democracies is, if a participatory political system can function when media has been co-opted by the very institutions that it is supposed to be a watchdog against. The question is rhetoric, true. But the question needs to be urgently answered, and the question that arises as a consequence of the answer needs to be urgently debated and more importantly, it`s answer needs to be acted upon.
“What moral and ethical right does any US-Administration, EU-Member States Government have to promote Democracy in Syria, as long as the Patriot Act, the National Defense Authorization Act, E.U. Terror Laws, and National European Nations anti terror laws based on them, have undermined each and every of the checks and balances, civil liberties and rights, that distinguish democratic, participatory systems from tyranny and fascism ? “A relatively correct answer would be ” as much as the totalitarian regimes of Saudi Arabia and Qatar, whose citizens never had the privilege of being able to vote for their governments” but then comes the big BUT.
BUT, when you spice tyranny with a sufficient amount of MISO, people don´t realize that they are tasting a fascist boot in their face. In fact one of the greatest successes of NATO`s political and military leadership is, that they have succeeded at co-opting so called progressive media with the result that even parties under the International Humanist umbrella and national peace movements are decrying anyone who opposes yet another humanitarian war as “supporter of tyranny“, “the fourth column of Assad and Russia”, and what not.
At the heart of the matter is the fact that NATO is waging an illegal and dangerous war on Syria, that it has plans to wage a war on Iran and Hezbollah, the fact that the ongoing war has the potential to develop into a regional and global armed conflict at any given moment. Moreover, it has succeeded at duping Western progressives into supporting it´s illegal wars, which was only possible by co-opting sp called progressive media who made them chew on a military boot laced with MISO. “Tastes like Humanitarian Spirit” they sing.
The criminal energy, the criminal network, and the criminal intention are as present in NATO`s political and military leadership today as they were present in Nazi Germany. To make matters worse, the populations of NATO member states are as well trained and conditioned to ask for a war as the population of Germany was when Hitler asked “An thus I ask You, People of Germany, do You want the Total War” and the crowds where cheering, “Yes, Sig Heil”. And progressives join the quire.
Propaganda has developed into Social Engineering, Social Engineering into PSYOP, PSYOP has developed into MISO, but beyond the difference in flavor and appearance we can taste the same tyranny and we the people seem to like it. That is, we do until the war is brought to our own doorstep.
As long as the war is kept far enough away from our own doorstep those disputed figures, 2000 dead, 5000 dead, and how many of them are actually peaceful protesters, how many of the peaceful protesters were murdered by the Syrian Military, and how many of them are actually armed insurgents are entertaining at our work places.
And some of us with lefty tendencies, who feel oh so liberated and progressive may even subscribe to such intellectual marvels of media who question if not many of the casualties are armed insurgents and Syrian Military forces. As long as the status quo of Propaganda is maintained everything is fluffy and fine.
So who is supposed to ask the tough questions then ? Amie Goodman ?
Here is a number of questions that somewhat awake journalists could try to answer if they dare.
After the Syrian military has succeeded in liberating the city of Homs and Baab Amr from the grabs of NATO trained, payed, and armed mercenaries, the bulk of the armed insurgents are located in Idlib, near the border o Turkey, in Hama, near the border to Lebanon, and in Dara, near the border to Jordan.
What international law is applicable for Jordan`s hosting of some 40.000 foreign fighters who are infiltrating the region around Dara, murdering Syrians, and when will we see a war crimes tribunal where King Abdullah is indicted ?
What international law is applicable for Saudi Arabia`s material support of Al Qaeda, and it´s Omar Brigade that has been deployed to Syria in September 2011, and when will we see a war crimes tribunal against the Saudi Minister of the Interior who is their controller ?
What international law is applicable for Turkeys housing, training, financing and arming Muslim Brotherhood fighters on Turkish / NATO military bases; insurgents who are infiltrating and murdering Syrians in and near Idlib.
What law is applicable for Turkey having established an operations room and recruitment office for mercenaries in Amman, Jordan, sending foreign fighters to murder Syrians. When will we see a war crimes tribunal against Turkish political and military leaders.
What international law is applicable for Qatar´s and the USA´s massive material, military and financial support of the Al Qaeda associated Libyan Islamic Fighting Group, the at least 18.000 LIFG / NATO mercenaries that have been deployed under the command of known terrorist and NATO asset Abdelhakim Belhadj, who are murdering Syrian citizens in Dara and Dara region of Syria, and when will we see Qatari, US, and Libyan political and military leaders at a war crimes tribunal ?
What international law is applicable for the case of Saudi-Lebanese citizen Saad Hariri and the leader of the Druze community in Lebanon, Walid Jumblatt, who both are heavily involved in financing and arming insurgents in Syria, who murder Syrian citizens, and when will we see a war crimes tribunal against them ?
Since the establishment of a separate contract between the UN and NATO, providing NATO a de facto privilege as UN´s official world military force, and the subsequent NATO abuses of the UNSC, is the ICC at the Haag credible and can it legally indict anyone who has been suffering a UN or NATO sanctioned aggression ? Do we need to re think the UN and international law ? Do we have a de facto world wide, NATO dominated state of legal tyranny ? And what should be done about it ?
Another question the so called progressive press fails to ask is, how it can be that we are publishing casualty figures after casualty figures, without asking the question how those casualty figures might be related to the massive number of foreign insurgents who murder Syrian citizens.
Another relevant question would be, where precisely NATO is treating it´s wounded mercenaries and or hire murderers who are getting wounded. Are they included in the figures that are provided by the one or the other Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, and if so, are they counted as peaceful protesters ?
But – I doubt that Amy Goodman and colleagues will ask those questions. Rather decry people who ask those kind of questions as supporters of tyranny while demanding Democracy. Now! Sadly, it seems that democracy Amy Goodman and Al Jazeera style has been co-opted for propagating democracy Qatar and Saudi Style – So when will we have a chop chop square in London, Paris, New York?
It seems the fashion of the day, and after all there are a lot of dangerous elements out there, who are attempting a subversion of the prevalent fascism. Radicals who demand that war criminals are brought to justice, NATO criminals included, and not at a ICC Kangaroo Court. Dangerous elements who refuse to sing “Long Live The Humanitarian War – War Is Peace – Long Live Comrade Belhadj”.
It´s for those dangerous elements that we need a Patriot Act; Hej Obama, please keep Guantanamo open for these radicals; A National Defense Authorization Act, EU Anti Terror Laws. Let´s lock them away forever. Lets throw away the key. Murder them with impunity, those radicals! The Israelis have done it for decades, it`s high time we also protect our democracy! Let`s live in our brave new world of Democracy. NOW!
Dr. Christof Lehmann