29 Years Later, the Story Repeats Itself

What an awful feeling to wake up one day and find that what you lived back as a child, more than 29 years ago, is only happening again, in front of your own eyes. The same nightmare, the same killing, the same army, the same place.. and the same last name.

The nightame is : the regime’s brutal crackdown
The killing is : the killing of civilians
The army is : the Syrian Arab Army
The place is : Hama
The last name is : Assad

How could I ever forget how, as a child back in 1982, I would be heading to school in Damascus and the school bus would stop in Abbasiyin Square (Abbasid Square) near my home. The bus driver would show us the hung men of the day. They would usually get hung around 5am, if I remember well. Their bodies hanging on a rope from the throat, dressed in white including their covered face and head, would be left there for us to see them.

I had no idea why they were hung. I had no idea who they were. But I was appalled every time I saw 2 or 3 of them in the morning. I thought of them as evil men.

The bus driver would say : Look children, this is what happens if you don’t behave!

The first Hama Massacre started on 2 February 1982, led by the Hafez al-Assad’s brother, Rifaat al-Assad. Today it is led by Maher al-Assad, Bashar al-Assad’s brother.

A whole city was punished back in 1982 because it started an (Islamist) uprising against the regime. In Aleppo my cousin’s best friend was hung too. They were both students at the Medicine Facutly of Aleppo University. My cousin never recovered from the shock.

I did not understand then what was happening. Today I do not understand either why this is happening again. How could a whole lifetime have passed by and history would repeat itself in a new massacre in Hama?

How could the world just watch? We all expected it was going to happen.. didn’t we?

It only makes one feel helpless. It only makes one feel depressed.

One difference I know between 29 years ago and now is that it is not just Hama this time. It is much more, it is way beyond.

The price of freedom is turning out to be truly hefty. One day before the start of Ramadan has recorded the highest toll to date since the start of March 15 uprising in Syria. Most of the killed are in Hama today after the army stormed into the city at dawn.

The regime is worried. Every day in Ramadan could turn to be a Friday where people gather in the mosque then go out to protest. Hama has seen the biggest protests of all Syrian cities in past few weeks, with more than 1 million protesters just in Hama and Deir ez-Zor alone.

The price of freedom is turning out to be very hefty. I don’t know if the world was watching back in 1982. It is watching in 2011. The 1982 silence should not repeat itself.

Deema elKhatib

Today’s theme should be: Enough is Enough!!

Four months into this loggerhead situation have brought this country to the edge of civil war. The Syrian economy is hurting and people are fearful for what might become of their country. Relations between the various sects of Syrian society have been badly damaged and in need of urgent repair. Like him or not, Bashar is Syria best option for NOW and must be allowed to restore order completely and immediately. Only then, GRADUAL and SECULAR reform must be implemented. Personally, I have to trust that Bashar is sincere about reform, and I do believe he is popular enough to win in a free election, which I hope will be held next year (we’ll see)…

The integrity of Syria as a country is in jeopardy as thugs have taken over parts of several cities in an attempt to establish their own little Islamic emirates. I don’t know of any country in the world, presently or historically, that would allow such breakup to occur. The American civil war is the best example I can think of, where nearly a million Americans died fighting each other over the future of their country. President Lincoln back then was hated by about half the population for imposing the Union’s will on the country and preserving it from breaking up. Today he is revered as the greatest president in American history.

Enough of this Islamist chaos and propaganda; I’m not fooled by their cries for democracy. We all want democracy, but only a secular one that is free of Islamic extremists. Democracy and freedom are not part of the Islamists’ vocabulary, let alone their agenda. They don’t understand the meaning of these words. They have always demonized the west for their free and open society, and now they’re pretending to champion these causes?! They’re using those causes today to cover their true intention of gaining power so they may rob the rest of us of our freedom. Give me a break…

On twitter please tweet #RamadanMassacre; we need to make our voices heard. This is absolute madness from a cornered regime, un régime aux abois. The people will prevail.

#2,

“Enough of this Islamist chaos and propaganda; I’m not fooled by their cries for democracy. We all want democracy, but only a secular one that is free of Islamic extremists. Democracy and freedom are not part of the Islamists’ vocabulary, let alone their agenda. They don’t understand the meaning of these words. They have always demonized the west for their free and open society, and now they’re pretending to champion these causes?! They’re using those causes today to cover their true intention of gaining power so they may rob the rest of us of our freedom. Give me a break… ”

REREAD WHAT YOU WROTE AND REPLACE ISLAMIST WITH ASSAD/BASHAR

Today’s theme: RAMADAN MASSACRE, ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!

This is from a Lebanese, on Twitter:

“THIS IS HOW WE HAVE LIVED FOR THE LAST 40+ YEARS IN THE LEVANT. UNDER THE BAATHIST ASSAD DYNASTY. NOW DO YOU SEE?”

حقائق مما يجري في حماه.. فهل نتحرر من شبيحة النظام وشبيحة المعارضة؟!
الكاتب بسام القاضي
31/ 07/ 2011
ما الذي حدث في حماه اليوم، 13 تموز 2011؟ ولماذا حدث ما حدث؟ وهل يغطي مجرمو الفضائيات مثل حكم الباب وخلف الخلف ولؤي حسين وخالد العبود وشريف شحادة وغيرهم.. واقعا بات كل سوري وسورية شركاء في الخروج به إلى بر الأمان، مثلما هم شركاء في الإيقاع به في هاوية العنف والتقسيم؟!

لم تكن تغطية محطات الإجرام مثل الجزيرة والعربية من جهة، والدنيا ومن لف لفها من جهة أخرى، خلال الأسابيع الماضية لواقع ما يجري في حماه إلا مقدمات مدروسة لتغطية أحداث اليوم. حيث تبارى كل من جانبي الإجرام في إبراز قدراته على الكذب والنفاق والفبركة لصالح أجندته الخاصة التي لا تشبع من دم ما دام يخدمها!

فالجزيرة تخدم مشروعها الأصولي القذر الذي يحلو له أن يسيطر طوال الذقون والسيوف، باتروا الأعنق، على الساحة العربية والإقليمية كلها. فينتصر “إسلامهم” الإرهابي القذر على كل إسلام وعقيدة وإنسان!
والعربية تخدم مشروعها السعودي السياسي المواجه منذ زمن للسياسة السورية، ولا مانع لديها من حرق الشعب السوري عن بكرة أبيه خدمة لهذا الصراع السياسي الإقليمي.
والدنيا تخدم مشروع مموليها الذين لم يروا يوما في السوريين إلا قطيع غنم وبقر يدرّ عليهم الحليب، وجاهز للذبح في أية لحظة يحين فيها وقت ذبحه..

إلا أن الواقع ليس عند أي من تجار الدم هؤلاء. بل هو في المدينة التي حملت كل تناقضات أحداث الأشهر الأخيرة، وتداخلت فيها كل المعطيات البائسة للواقع السوري.

فحماه عانت خلال الأسابيع الثلاثة الماضية (على الأقل) من فلتان أمني، وغياب شبه كامل للدولة وأجهزتها، وسيطرة ثلل من المراهقين المسلحين والمجرمين (قسرا عن عيون السفير الأمريكي الغولية) قطعت الشوارع فعلا، واستباحت المدينة، وصار كل مجرم منهم ملك على مزبلته بحيث يمكنه أن يوقف أي شخص ليطلب هويته، مع كل الاحتمالات المفتوحة على هذا السلوك..

بل إن قيادات في الحكومة صارت قيد الإقامة الجبرية بشكل أو بآخر نظرا لعدم تمكنها من التجول في المدينة، وبعضهم لم يكن قادرا حتى على مغادرة منزله إلى مقر عمله!

ونُصح، ومُنع أحيانا، الكثير من الموظفين من خارج ملاك المدينة من الوصول إلى أعمالهم.

وتقاتل المجرمون في الشوارع بعضها ببعض نتيجة خلافات بعضها غاية في التفاهة، وبعضها متعلق بمخططات شل المدينة عبر فرض الإضراب على كل محل وعمل فيها.

وتجول المسلحون بالمسدسات والبنادق، بل حتى الرشاشات الآلية (الفردية المتوسطة) راجلين أو على دراجات نارية ناشرين الذعر في كل مكان من المدينة التي هجرها قسم كبير من أهلها، جلهم ليس خوفا من اقتحام الدبابات للمدينة كما أشاع البعض، بل هربا من خطر الشوارع الذي بات خطرا يهدد الحياة كل لحظة.

وحرقت مقار حكومية ونهب كل ما فيها بالشاحنات. ونهبت شاحنات الإطفاء وسيارات الشرطة والإسعاف وصارت “مغانم للثوار” يتجولون فيها بأسلحتهم ويعلنون انتصارهم البين..

وصنعت آلاف قنابل المولوتوف، ووزعت الأسلحة في بضع أماكن علنا.

هذا بعض من صورة الواقع قبيل بدء مجنزرات مختلفة (ليست دبابات بالتأكيد لمن يهتم بأن يتمتع بأدنى قدر من المصداقية، وهذا فرق عسكري هام) تابعة للجيش السوري في محاولة الدخول إلى المدينة فجر هذا اليوم.

ونقول “محاولة الدخول” لأن جنون مثقفي سورية وفضائياتهم جعل الأمر يبدو كما لو أن الجيش قد دخل المدينة فعلا، كل شارع فيها وكل حارة. فيما الواقع على الأرض يقول أن هذه المجنزرات لم تتجاوز بعض الساحات في المدينة، نتيجة للمقاومة المسلحة، نؤكد: المسلحة، التي واجهت بها، والتي جعلت الإصرار على دخول المدينة يعني اتخاذ قرار بقبول نتائج كارثة بكل معنى الكلمة لن توفر أحدا لا في حماه، ولا في أي مكان آخر من سورية.

ولا يقلل هذا الوصف قيد انملة من حقيقة أن سقوط نحو 100 ضحية في حماه اليوم، هو كارثة بحد ذاتها. لكنها كارثة هي مجرد نزهة أمام النتائج الواقعية لما كان سيحدث فيما لو اتخذ القرار بدخول حماه كلها.

في الوقت نفسه، فإن الجنون نفسه هو ما دفع هؤلاء إلى تلفيق حادث انشقاق الجيش في حماه وانضمام المنشقين إلى المتظاهرين. فالواقع أن بعض تلك المجنزرات حوصرت بالناس من كل صوب، بحيث ما كان بإمكانها التقدم ولا التراجع دون أن تدهس الآلاف بطريقها. فاتبع طاقمها لعبة للتخلص من الموقف إذ أظهروا انضمامهم للناس، ثم الطلب إليهم افساح المجال لهم للتحرك. وما إن أفسح المجال حتى التفت المجنزرات للعودة إلى زملائهم في الجيش.

إذا، لنضع الصورة أمامنا للتفكير قبل أن نطلق أحكاما يرددها مجرمو الفضائيات المسمين بالمعارضة أو المثقفين أو النخبة، خاصة مجرمو إعلان دمشق واتباعهم، أو أحكاما يرددها مجرمو النظام ممن تسموا باسم المحللين السياسيين.

لنضع الصورة ونفكر بها مليا: ماذا يجب أن يحدث؟ بل ماذا يمكن أن يحدث؟

– مدينة يسيطر عليها السلاح والمراهقون ومدعو الثورة ويقيمون فيها “دولة” مستقلة دون إعلانها. وتحمل السلاح مستعدة لخوض معركة “حتى النهاية” ضد أجهزة الدولة وكل من لا يتفق معهم (المسلحون).
– مدينة مثقلة بذاكرة جنازير دبابات المجرم الذي نفد من العقاب قبل ثلاثين عاما والمسمى برفعت الأسد، وهو الذراع الضاربة التي قتلت ودمرت وشردت.
– مدينة مثقلة بذاكرة مجرمي الأخوان المسلمين الذين استخدموا الناس دروعا بشرية قبل ثلاثين عاما، واشعلوا القتل الطائفي وكانوا شركاء في مآساة أهل حماه وغيرها.
– جيش يقف شبه عاجز أمام خيارين أحلاهما مر: أن يقتحم المدينة ليعيد سلطة الدولة إليها، مهما كان الثمن، وهو ثمن باهظ جدا. أو أن يغامر بهيبته وقوته ويبقى متفرجا على انتزاع مدينة من أرض سورية واستباحتها.
– نظام قدم أكثر بكثير مما كان يمكن لأحد أن يتوقع خلال مدة زمنية قصيرة. وبات في مواجهة مع حقيقية بسيطة تقول أن من يطالبون بإسقاطه لا يعرفن شيئا عن معنى كلمة “نظام”، ولا يريدون إسقاط النظام بل يريدون الانتقام والثأر من أشخاص بالاسم.
– نظام يفشل حتى في إيصال مجرميه المكشوفين والمفضوحين (عدا عن من لم يكشف بعد)، مثل عاطف نجيب وفيصل كلثوم ومحمد المفلح وغيرهم.. يفشل في إيصالهم إلى محاكم علنية، مضحيا ببلد فداء لصراميهم القذرة قذارة رؤوسهم وقلوبهم.
– مجرمون في النظام، خاصة من أجهزة الأمن، يشربون كأس هذه التطورات التي تفتح لهم أملا، وإن ضئيلا، باستعادة أمجادهم عبر إلغاء رفع حالة الطوارئ، والعودة إلى سورية المحكومة ببساطيرهم.
– شارع سوري بات محتقنا إلى حد بعيد. ليس فقط فيمن يسمون متظاهرين، السلميين منهم والمسلحين والمجرمين، بل أيضا الموالاة وغلاة الموالاة من المسلحين، وأيضا من يريدون إحداث تغييرات جذرية وعميقة ويرفضون إجرام “الثورة” وطائفيتها مثلما رفضوا إجرام النظام وطائفيته.
– تدخل خارجي بات أوقح من أن يوصف، مستندا إلى خونة عملاء يسجدون في أروقة البيت الأبيض والشانزلزيه مستجدين الاحتلال الغربي من أمثال عمار عبد الحميد وغسان المفلح، وأنوار العمر.. وخبراء في التلفيق والكذب مثل رامي نخلة وفداء السيد…

والكثير من التفاصيل… تشكل جميعها واقعنا اليوم الذي تختزله حماه بشكل أو بآخر..

وهذه الصورة، مرة أخرى، ليست إلا اختزالا لواقع سورية اليوم. فالأمر نفسه عموما (مع اختلاف بعض التفاصيل) في الرمل الجنوبي باللاذقية. وفي دير الزور، وغيرهما..

والآن: لنفكر معا: كيف يمكن التعامل مع هذ الواقع؟!
لا ينفع هنا ترداد عبارات ببغائية عن “الحل السياسي” شيئا. ولا رفض “الحل الأمني” أو دعمه “على العمياني” شيئا. فكل هذه الاسطوانات باتت مشروخة كليا ولا تعبر، في أحسن النوايا، إلا عن غباء مدقع لمطلقيها الذين برهنوا على كل حال، من سميراميس واحد إلى صحارى، أنهم علاكين طلاب كراسي وسلطة، لا يهمهم دم ولا شعب، لا حرية ولا أمن، لا ديمقراطية ولا استقرار.. بل يهمهم فقط أن يضمنوا كراسيهم التي ستزلزل تحتهم قبل أن يجلسوا عليها، إذا جلسوا.

لا ينفع هنا أن نطلق عبارات التشبيح باسم الان أو باسم الحرية.. فقد مضى وقت هذا النفاق الصريح..

ما ينفع هو أن نحك ذهننا جيدا: هذا هو الواقع، شاء شبيحة المعارضة والنظام أم لم يشاؤوا.

كيف يمكن التعامل مع هذا الواقع، إذا؟!
سؤال أمام كل سوري وسورية يستخدم عقله كاملا، مستقلا، متحررا من كافة أنواع الضلالات الإعلامية، ومن كل اسماء المنافقين في اليسار واليمين، في العلمانية والسلفية والوهابية، في النظام وخارجه.. وما لم يفعل ذلك، سيكون شريكا في تدمير سورية، وشريكا في المزيد من العنف والقتل..

http://www.bassam-alkadi.com/content/view/624/44/

“By early evening, activists in Hama told the BBC that the city was quiet, and that the tanks had pulled out to the city’s perimeters after failing to gain control of the centre.”
“But our correspondent says the people of Hama remain defiant, with some still out in streets shouting: “We will not be killed again,” a reference to a massacre in 1982 when tens of thousands were killed.”

Brave, but misguided sectarian people will now take another step to armed rebellion. Encouraged by foreign commentators by default following their governments or agendas.
The army goal today was not to take city (no one except Syria leadership knows that goal). Taking a city would take 10k soldiers and different approach. That may still come, though, if Syria government convinces majority of Syrians there is a situation in Hama similar to 1982. I am not from Syria, but it seems in 1982 majority did support end of MB terrorism by whatever means…and government delivered.

Landis headline “Hama subdued” is unbelievable, A more apt headline would be Hama massacred. Landis attempt to put the regime and innocent unarmed protesters who are asking for dignity and their god given rights on the same platform of moral equivalency is pathetic. No moral person would put a victim and a perpetrator the same moral wavelength. Landis assertion of neutrality is at best a suspect.

@7 Ales

“Taking a city would take 10k soldiers and different approach”

That’s if the city had armed defenders. An unarmed populace is a much easier prospect. The fact that the regime sends in lightly armored ZSU-23 AA-vehicles, and tanks without infantry support, just shows that they do not expect any armed resistance.

This was not a case of overcoming an armed opposition, but an attempt at terrorizing a people who would pay any price to be free. Junior is an unsophisticated moron, and so doesn’t realize that such people can never be beaten by tanks and shabiha scum who get paid by the Fridays.

“President Lincoln back then was hated by about half the population for imposing the Union’s will on the country and preserving it from breaking up. ”

Stalin, Hitler and Mussolini were in their days acknowledged as brutal and bloody thirsty mass murderers. 60 years later, that view hasn’t changed.

And your citing Lincoln just proves once more that a little bit of knowledge is a dangerous thing in the hands of an idiot, such as those that fill the ranks of the Baathist propagandists. The Southern states had a constitutional right to secede, while Lincoln had none to force them to remain in the Union.

Oh, and add Pol Pot to the list of mass murderers. I do not think the Americans will much appreciate a menhebak comparing Lincoln to Baffled Besho, commander of the Besho Brigades.

Aboud,

If army went to city to kill people it’s criminal and worth all condemnation.
If army went in on orders to dismantle barricades and got attacked, it’s different story.

With so much false information circling around, I don’t know what is truth. It may be in the middle.

Sorry Ales, but pleading “we don’t have all the facts so don’t pressure me to take a stand!” just will not wash. Al-Jazeera was broadcasting *live* feed from Hama all day along. The composition of the civilian casualties proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that people were targeted at random.

For an entire month, no one died or was hurt in Hama. In one day, the Besho Brigades moved in and over a hundred were massacred.

None of the state TV stations even bothered to show up at Hama. The regime’s propagandists are reduced to denying there was even an incursion of tanks.

Apparently, everything we have seen on TV, and all the interviews CNN and the BBC did with activists inside the city, was the most brilliantly devised and well put fake war movie ever shot on a mobile phone. Please excuse me while I roll my eyes to the moon.

frankly-speaking, I do not care if Bashar ordered this incursion by the army or not,he is still responsible and he gave us another proof of his incompetence and lack of political savvy,he needs to resign or be removed by the army which had no business going inside Hama.
opportunists,namely Islamist groups,and criminals will try to dominate the government or take revenge against minorities,and that is why we need the army.
calling on Bashar to resign or the army to take over may not happen but I do not see a better solution for this crisis. remember the
$ billions Syria already lost since March,this needs to end,and Bashar’s confessed love for Syria must be translated into a swift plan to transfer power.

That’s it? The bloodiest day in Syria in almost 29 years, this is all the regime’s propagandists have to say? A semi-hysterical dinosaur on Al-Arabiya who claims that the entire bloodbath on Hama was one fake Youtube video?

Pathetic. Listen carefully, Besho (edited for insult) If your pseudo president sends in dozens of tanks, then the burden of proof is ON HIM to justify such an action. He, and the rest of you, have not come even close. I can see most of you craven trumpets haven’t even tried.

These days we need an uplifting story about Syrians in the US , This is one ,

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Article published Jul 31, 2011

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Syria native’s skills help keep state police safe
Deploys laptops, manages data

By Linda Bock TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
lbock@telegram.com

FRAMINGHAM — Nabgh “Nab” A. Abdulky always liked computers, but little did the Syrian-born man ever imagine he would wind up as a systems analyst for the Massachusetts State Police.

Mr. Abdulky, 32, was born in Hassake, in northeast Syria, and now calls Worcester home.

“My dad always wanted us to get the best education,” Mr. Abdulky said. “And the education here is the best in the world.”

Mr. Abdulky came to the United States on a student visa in fall 1999. His first stop was for an intensive year of English as a second language study at Johnson & Wales University in Providence. He transferred to Worcester State College, and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in computer science in 2005.

“Chemistry and pharmacology weren’t my thing,” Mr. Abdulky said. He initially studied in Ukraine to become a pharmacist and his oldest brother graduated from University of Massachusetts and received his master’s at WPI. Mr. Abdulky then became a computer engineer for a private corporation. “My brother told me I could come here and study computers.”

Mr. Abdulky loved his time at Worcester State and played on the men’s soccer team. Before graduating, he did an internship at the Worcester District Attorney’s office, which had a profound effect on him because he found law enforcement so interesting. It was also the first time he was asked to translate from Arabic to English for detectives.

“I had a lot of offers from private companies to work,” Mr. Abdulky said. “EMC was one of them. But I applied to the state police and they hired me in April 2006 as a systems analyst.”

State police rely on their IT department for managing their computers, including the laptops for all the cruisers, and computer databases.

“I’m in charge of deploying laptops — mobile data terminals — to cruisers,” Mr. Abdulky said. “The majority of problems we handle with my PC.”

The first thing a trooper does when making a motor vehicle stop is run the license plates through the database using his laptop.

“They need to be able to run that plate. … It’s a safety issue for that trooper,” Mr. Abdulky said. “Nowadays everything is computer. Our job is to make sure the computers are up and running.”

Mr. Abdulky also enrolled in the master’s program when he got hired, and received his master’s degree in business administration in 2008. He worked full time from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., and attended school at night.

“It wasn’t exactly a piece of cake,” Mr. Abdulky said. “I decided part of the payback was being a great citizen. My first priority was to become a citizen of this great country.”

He applied to become a U.S. citizen, a process that took five years. Mr. Abdulky recently raised his right hand in Mechanics Hall, said the Pledge of Allegiance and took the Oath of Citizenship.

“I love working for the state police,” Mr. Abdulky said. “I believe I’m helping somehow. This country gave me everything.”

In Syria, he grew up in a city near the borders with Turkey and Iraq. His family lived among a wide variety of ethnic groups, including Arab Bedouins, Kurds, Armenians, Assyrians, Sunnis and Shiites. Mr. Abdulky said his experiences gave him valuable insights into different cultures.

“I’m a Christian; I grew up in a Christian city,” he said. “Hassake is a cosmopolitan city. What I like is nobody talks about religion, and you can express your own religion. It was a good experience, it makes you open.”

Mr. Abdulky said the federal government has offered him jobs because of his background and skills. He is fluent in Arabic, and frequently helps the state police translate 911 calls, as well as interpret documents from Arabic to English. He has also helped other state agencies throughout the years, as well as federal and local agencies translating documents.

“I study the Middle East,” he said.

Phillip W. Henderson, another state police analyst, has worked alongside Mr. Abdulky since he started. The two men “deployed” more than 250 laptops to state police last year.

“Nab is a very hard worker, and he’s always willing to go above and beyond,” Mr. Henderson said.

Mr. Abdulky said he visits Syria at Christmas every year. He said he loves Worcester and has lots of family and friends in the Tatnuck area.

“It’s my new home now,” Mr. Abdulky said.

——————————————————————————–
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Copyright 2011 Worcester Telegram & Gazette Corp.

“Hama being subdued before Ramadan” .. What a miserable choice of words. From what I could see on YT, Hama clearly isn’t being subdued. It was an attempt to terrorize the Hamwis, but I hear them singing and chanting while the tanks roll and bomb. Brave strong people.

Could be that the July 31 event is one brutality too much.
.

Memo To: ABOUD

RE: “…The Southern states had a constitutional right to secede, while Lincoln had none to force them to remain in the Union…”

No, they didn’t and yes, he did. I suggest you stick to Syrian matters, (edited for insult). You’re on less shaky ground there.

Meanwhile, in Syria, the month of Ramadan is upon us. A Shabiha Scumbag points to a mass of kneeling men and turns to his master.

“Look, Bashar All Highest and All Knowing,” the Scumbag exclaims. “Look how they kneel!”

“Yeah, they kneel,” mutters Bashar al-Assad as he looks through his binoculars. “But they kneel to God, not to us.”

He turns to Asma who, wearing Prada, is supervising thirty Servants packing trunks with gold, frankincense, myrrh and video games.

[Edited for dirty language]

@15 Unlike you, I’ve read an autobiography on Lincoln.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secession_in_the_United_States

Stay around. Not sure where your venom against Syrians comes from, but I’m sure whatever stick you were shafted with was very well deserved. Must have been a mighty big stick for you to hold a grudge all this time *cough redneck*

Hehe, just noticed that half your post was edited out. All that hard work for nothing.

Aboud

July 31, 2011 marks the moral fall of mnhebaks in my eyes. 125 were slaughtered in Syria today and we heard no word of condemnation from anybody. They continued to deceive themselves with lies and fabrication of pseudo-armed gangs that failed to take any human life in Hama over the last month or two.

Dale at #15 that’s not funny.

I tend to trust Angry Arab and he has this to say about the regime
“Bashshar: In the footsteps of his murderous father

No argument can or shall be made in favor of the lousy Syrian regime. By any measure or any criteria, this is a failed and lousy regime that does not deserve any support whatsoever. The Syrian regime has given reason for the Syrian people to revolt in any way possible to overthrow it.
The only progressive argument that I can see being made is for its overthrow. Bashshar Al-Asad is just another ugly face of an ugly regime that is rotten to the core and that deserve only overthrow.
All its slogans are empty and bogus: its record against Israel is lousy: its army and intelligence services only show courage against unarmed civilians.
It is a regime that accepts humiliation by Israel at every corner. It is a regime that betrayed its own slogans on social justice, freedom, or Arab unity. It is a regime that lies as a matter of official policy.
Any support for the Syrian regime translates as support for its war crimes. It is a time for paying tribute to the innocent civilians who are being massacred by the criminal arms of the regime.
Posted by As’ad AbuKhalil @http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2011/07/bashshar-in-footsteps-of-his-murderous.html

Amir,

Hama will never be subdued. I know Hamwis very well. This is a regime fantasy that will never come true. Hama was the first town where Hafez Assad statue was put down and will be the catalyst for the overthrow of the regime.

Take a look at the videos posted by the revolution Facebook pages this evening. DOES ANY PART OF SYRIA LOOK SUBDUED TO YOU? Even Tadmur came out to demonstrate this evening.

Oh right, Baffled Besho and Cro-Magnon Maher still have Qurdaha.

1. N.Z. said:

“29 Years Later, the Story Repeats Itself”

It is most unfortunate that a proud and historical city like Hamma goes such cycles that the innocent people all ways pay the price. Prior to 1982, off course Hamma had another violent encounter during the presidency of Amin Al-Hafiz who also destroyed a Mosque with MB in it. He was secular Sunni to the last cell.

Maybe there is something more serious in Hamma that brings these cycles.

“Ivashov: Syria Experiencing Wide Scale Campaign Targeting Its Independent Policy and Support for Resistance, Jul 30, 2011”

I really can’t understand why such material is posted here- with no commentary provided to explain why it is included. Commentary that for instance might point out the level of incredible propaganda that has no substantial evidence attached to it whatsoever. Otherwise including such amazing garbage only serves to perpetuate the extreme paranoia theories that Syrians are now being barraged with. What really is the purpose?? I think it pretty irresponsible.

120 dead as tanks sweep into Hama in Syrian uprising’s worst day of violence

Phil Sands
Aug 1, 2011

http://www.thenational.ae/news/worldwide/middle-east/120-dead-as-tanks-sweep-into-hama-in-syrian-uprisings-worst-day-of-violence

DAMASCUS // Syrian security forces killed more than 120 people yesterday in what human rights activists called the bloodiest single day since the current uprising began almost five months ago.

Army operations hit multiple parts of the country simultaneously. Tank-backed infantry units firing shells and heavy machine guns swept into Hama at dawn, heralding the start of a long-anticipated crackdown on a city that had become a model for large-scale peaceful dissent.

Abdul Karim Rehawi, head of the Syrian Human Rights League, an independent civil-liberties group based in Damascus, said: “It’s a day of disaster, there are many dead, many have been seriously wounded and will die, and hundreds have been arrested.

“It seems the authorities have decided to try to finish everything at the start of Ramadan. They have seen cities out of their control and they are moving to crush it.”

For weeks, non-violent demonstrations calling for the toppling of the president, Bashar Al Assad, and the autocratic system of government he heads had routinely involved more than half a million people, prompting some to declare Hama “liberated”.

The prospect of such a major urban centre slipping beyond the authorities’ control appears to have prompted yesterday’s significant military escalation.

More than 90 civilians were killed by security services in Hama, activists said. Residents and medical staff described rooftop security-force snipers shooting at people in the streets with the wounded and dying overwhelming hospital facilities. Electricity, water and communications were cut.

Syrian security forces also conducted deadly offensives yesterday in the eastern city of Deir Ezzor, another rebellious city with growing mass protests, and in parts of southern Syria and working-class districts surrounding the capital, Damascus.

The repression in Hama has a huge symbolic resonance. During the 1980s, President Hafez Al Assad, the current leader’s father, despatched elite armoured units against the city in response to a militant Islamist uprising. Entire districts were razed and tens of thousands of people killed, leaving a permanent scar on the psyche of the nation.

In Deir Ezzor city, in the heart of Syria’s Arab tribal region, at least 19 people were killed by security forces yesterday, activists said, with further deaths in Abu Kamal on the Syria-Iraq border and in Harak, a village in the Houran plain, close to the city of Deraa, the original centre of the uprising.

Moadamiya, on the outskirts of Damascus, was placed under a renewed military siege, while residents in Harasta, also on the edge of the capital, said more than 40 protesters were wounded when pro-government forces threw fragmentation bombs into a crowd.

State-run media accused “terrorist groups” of shooting at civilians and attacking security forces in Hama and Deir Ezzor, killing at least two police officers, overrunning security buildings and stealing weapons.
… more

The fact remains tat no one was dying in Hama until Junior sent his tanks to the city. Where are these murderous gangs who only killed civilians when Junior’s thugs show up. His father is no doubt rotting in hell, but junior will get his in this world.

Syrian protests pile pressure on the value of the pound
Hussain Abdul-Hussain
Aug 1, 2011
http://www.thenational.ae/thenationalconversation/comment/syrian-protests-pile-pressure-on-the-value-of-the-pound
The Syrian economy has been in ruins since mid-March. Tourism has come to a halt and foreign investments have stopped. The situation puts the Syrian currency, the pound, in a precarious position.

Adib Mayyaleh, the central bank governor, insists that the nation’s monetary situation is sound, but the reality looks quite different. The imminent shortage of foreign exchange reserves threatens the value of the national currency.
….
As of yesterday reports from Syria had it that the US dollar is worth 67 Syrian pounds on the black market, while the official rate is around 47.5.

Just as many Lebanese people did during the civil war, many Syrians have rushed to their banks in recent months and tried to exchange their pounds for foreign currencies, to preserve the worth of their savings.
….
Less than two weeks ago, Syria went to Kuwait asking for a loan of $105 million, which revealed a desperate need for foreign currency, perhaps not only to prevent hyperinflation but also to pay the growing bill for security forces and pro-regime thugs.

The Assad regime might not fall under pressure from mass rallies. But when it comes to the economy, it might find itself running on empty, and eventually might be forced to pull over.

Alqurabee interview in Panorama at Alarabya is on. From the heart. Tune in.

Jad,whether you agree with him or not,copied the only post worth reading today. Yes, Hama was ,and still is,on its way to become a safe haven for thugs and criminals,however,the army should have not been asked to enter the city if it can not finish the job or it had no job in the first place (my humble opinion). Only political solutions can end this travesty. Bashar failed as a leader and needs to start a transitional process that ends with his departure. Some suggested that he allows free and monitored elections to certify what his supporters claim that he is still trusted by most Syrians to be president,if that does not happen and the unrest continues ,then only the army can end this stalemate. Forcing Syria into a bankruptcy or a civil war is unacceptable but sadly enough that is still a viable option for some Syrians,mostly expats and islamists,and many foreign Arab and non Arab government. Pity the nation that introduced the alphabet and gave so much to civilization. My heart is bleeding…

As tanks rolling in on Hama, the soldiers comments were recorded by one of them.  One of the many comments was  والله لنفلح فيكم فلاحة

Dear all,

It is really surprising that most people are really astonished about what happened today in Hama. The opposition and the street coordinators have been promising the regime that Ramadan will be the month of its downfall. So what do you expect of this regime? To sit and wait for that moment to come. I have expected that the regime would go on a preemptive move to destablize the opposition. Would it work? Time will tell.

Very graphic

New video form Al Jisr , more criminals caught on camera , ‘peacefully’ demonstrating ,what country in the world tolerant criminals just because they hold signs saying peaceful in one hand ,and a gun in the other hand .

Tara, the decision to involve the army was wrong. More than one hundred people got killed but that number could have been in the thousands if those soldiers were to fire on everybody and “subdue” the city,instead the army withdrew when one General with a brain realized the grave mistake the regime made when it sent tanks in. My point is,Bashar needs to go and a political process must start
which must end with his departure.
I followed your advice and listened to mr Qurabi and I was disappointed,he does not have a vision and had no problem broadcasting his tunnel vision about this
crisis. The other two guests including the pro regime Al-hajj,were not much
better. I yet have to hear anybody debating why it is wrong for BASHAR to resign and the army to be in charge forba transitional period. The cycle of violence must stop,people needs to go to work,and security has to be restored.

Louai

Keep creating noise. You are very good at it.

Care to post the clip of the 3 yo baby girl killed by Jr? Care to post a link for tanks and the mighty army terrorizing Hama? Not really.

I am beyond disappointed…

Abughassan

I thank you for your stand on Hama and I respect your opinion on qurrabi. I agree he did not provide vision. He echoed my rage and that why I liked it.

Abughassan,

I do not know why you think that the army will do better without Bashar Assad, The army is an ideological army and represent Syria and the Baath party and is doing everything to control the situation and restore security, The problem is that the army and the Baath party understand that the goal of the opposition is not only to change the president but the total collapse of the Syrian government as we saw happen in Iraq and that is making the army and the Baath party fight for their lives, therefore i see no chance for a peaceful solution as long as the opposition is not willing to talk, I still think that the president has to move forward with reform and to cancel article 8 and announce election in the next 6 months to include all parties and announce his willing not to run in the next presidential election, then move on the offensive to restore order and security to prepare for the elections, even if many people have to die in the process. keeping the country united and safe should be his first goal.

Tara

This video is important because it show the same people demonstrating peacefully, for real , in one part ,then ,distributing weapons, in another part .plus admitting arresting the security officers , do you care about that? I hope you do.

the army entered Hama to remove the barricades ,and faced resistance, in the first hour, we started to get names of martyrs also in the first houre!! ,how can that be? any way ,i am not commenting on the army entering Hama because i don’t belive a word of the opposition youtube staff any more , sorry to disappoint you ,i hope you were at least disappointed to see 120 Syrian soldiers slaughtered by the people you support, in the name of democracy . I am showing the nature of this uprising, if you want to see, just open your eyes.

Germany requests U.N. council meeting on Syria

.

updated 2 hours 10 minutes ago
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UNITED NATIONS — Germany has requested that the U.N. Security Council meet on Monday to discuss the worsening violence in Syria, a spokesman for the German mission at the United Nations said.

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The request came after human rights groups said 80 people had been killed in the Syrian city of Hama when government troops stormed in on Sunday to crush protests amid a five-month-old uprising against President Bashar al-Assad.

Germany holds the rotating Security Council presidency until midnight on Sunday, then India takes over for the month of August.

German spokesman Alexander Eberl said his mission had asked the Indian mission to schedule closed-door council consultations for Monday and it was likely to take place in the afternoon, New York time.

Practical council action on Syria has been paralyzed for weeks by disagreements within the 15-nation body.

Western European countries circulated a draft resolution on June 8 that would condemn the Syrian crackdown on protesters, but Russia and China, both allies of Damascus, have threatened to veto it.

Temporary council members Brazil, India, Lebanon and South Africa have also said they do not support the resolution. They say they fear that even a simple condemnation could be the first step toward Western military intervention in Syria, as happened in Libya in March.

Copyright 2011 Thomson Reuters. Click for restrictions.

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People keep saying that the government need to find a solution by talking to the opposition groups. Does the opposition have any influence or control over the so called thugs patrolling the streets of Hama, Homs and other places or is control only through Qaradawi, Ar’oor and Saudi money? Does any one have any facts?

Tara,

How about the noise of the ‘peaceful protesters’ when they were throwing the bodies of security and law enforcement personnel in the Assi river, they said Allah w Akbar during their vicious acts and uses quite a few obscene words while they were doing it. So when you talk about noise, differentiate between the noise of someone wanting stability to return to their beloved country, and the noise terrorists that are behind this revolution make. Make sure you watch it an take note that of what is the ugly sound of murder and terror, the ugly sound of this revolution.

Louai,

This clip clearly shows some of the murderers of the Jisr Alshughour massacre in the act of hurling the bodies of their victims in the river. This is the reality of what the revolutionists are trying to cover up.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fSYQzkxapB4

Supporting this so called revolution is supporting terror.

Syau

There are no armed gangs in Hama. It is a pretext the regime invents to crush dissent. Supporting this regime is giving up on your humanity.

I will like to ask a question, why were Malik Jandali’s parents attacked in Damascus by the regime thugs?

Jandali, a Syrian pianist living in America, he was part of a anti-protest that took place in Washington DC, he sang “My Homeland” while playing the piano. They invaded his parents home, knocked his mother teeth off, bruised her forehead…..

Is it ” the nature of the opposition” as a humanist commented earlier, MB or Salafis ?

Tara,

Denying the fact that there are armed gangs/terrorists in Hama is basically deluding yourself. Armed gangs are terrorising civilians, imposing blockades and killing security personnel.

Supporting the revolution in Syria is supporting terrorism.

Attempting to cover up or excuse the acts of vandalism, destruction of infrastructure, terror and murder of the ‘peaceful’ armed gangs is denying the truth of this ‘revolution’ and supporting their terrorist behaviour.

بن لادن حماة وزرقاوي دير الزور
صبحي حديدي
2011-07-31

مع دخول دبابات ماهر الأسد إلى مدينتَيْ حماة ودير الزور (باتفاق تامّ مع، أو بأمر مباشر من، شقيقه بشار الأسد… لكي لا يظنّ أحد أننا نضع الأخير في صفّ حمائم النظام، وهو رئيس الجوارح ورأس الكواسر)؛ في إطار تنفيذ عمليات وحشية، وانتحارية يائسة، ضدّ الحمويين والديريين، أهل التظاهرات المليونية؛ تترافق قذائف الدبابات مع قصف إعلامي يتولاه أزلام النظام، وكأنهم ينفخون الأكذوبة ذاتها، عبر البوق الواحد، بالنشاز المنكَر إياه. المهمة هذه تنقلب إلى ما يشبه نقيق الضفادع، خاصّة حين يجترّ بوق أوّل كلاماً هالكاً عن ‘مندسين’ و’إمارات سلفية’ و’مخرّبين’، أو يلعب بوق ثانٍ على مخاوف مستهلَكة مثل تخريب سكة قطار أو تفجير أنبوب نفط.

آخر منتجات ذلك القصف هو القول بأنّ ‘الجيش الوطني’ إنما يدخل إلى حماة بناء على طلب ‘الأخوة المواطنين’ (وهذا نغم ابتدائي في الأسطوانة المشروخة)، لتطهير المدينة من ‘فلول المخرّبين’ (وهنا تنويع مملّ على النغمة الإبتدائية)، و… القضاء على ‘خلايا منظمة القاعدة’ التي تحتلّ المدينة (وهنا أقصى التطوير في النغم)! المرء، بادىء ذي بدء، يتذكّر ما كشفت عنه وثائق ‘ويكيليكس’، عن الاجتماع المشهود الذي شهدته العاصمة السورية، في شباط (فبراير) العام الماضي، بين دانييل بنيامين، منسّق مكافحة الإرهاب في وزارة الخارجية الأمريكية، وفيصل المقداد، نائب وزير الخارجية السوري. التفصيل المثير هو حضور اللواء علي مملوك، مدير إدارة المخابرات العامة، على نحو لم يكن مقرراً في الأصل، وكيف بدا انضمامه إلى الاجتماع بمثابة ‘اقتحام مباغت’، كما سيقول بنيامين؛ بأمر مباشر من الأسد، كما ستقول برقية الخارجية الأمريكية بعدئذ.

ولأنّ واشنطن كانت على علم بأنّ مسائل ضبط الحدود مع العراق ليست في عهدة إدارة مملوك، وأنّ سيّد الملفّ الفعلي هو العميد ذو الهمة شاليش، مرافق الأسد وابن عمّته؛ فإنّ حضور مملوك كان يبعث برسالة المقايضة التالية: هذا اجتماع في الوقت الضائع، وحين تكون إدارة أوباما جادّة في تحسين العلاقات مع النظام، عندئذ سوف يكون شاليش حاضراً في أيّ اجتماع قادم! الدليل على هذا هو الكلام الفجّ الذي صدر عن اللواء مملوك أثناء الاجتماع، وصار ذائع الصيت اليوم: ‘في محاربة الإرهاب على نطاق المنطقة، كانت سورية أكثر نجاحاً من الولايات المتحدة، لأننا كنّا عمليين وليس نظريين’. ذلك لأنّ ‘النجاح السوري تمثل في اختراق المجموعات الإرهابية، وحصول سورية على ثروة من المعلومات. نحن من حيث المبدأ لا نهاجمهم أو نقتلهم، بل نتمدد داخل هذه المنظمات عن طريق اختراقها بعناصرنا’. خاتمة المداخلة كانت أشبه بإطلاق رصاصة الرحمة على المقاربة الأمنية الأمريكية بأسرها: ‘الفارق بيننا وبينكم هو أنكم تحاربون الإرهاب وجهاً لوجه، أمّا نحن فنخترق صفوفه’!

جانب آخر من المسألة تكفّل سيمور هيرش، المحقق الصحافي الأمريكي الشهير، بتسليط الأضواء على وقائعه، في تقرير مأثور نشرته مجلة ‘نيويوركر: الأمريكية، صيف 2003. لقد روى الرجل أنّ المخابرات المركزية الأمريكية ومكتب التحقيقات الفيدرالي عملتا في مدينة حلب، ضمن ما يشبه تفويض الـ’كارت بلانش’ من السلطة، على دراسة وتدقيق آلاف الملفات الوثائق والمستندات السرية التي تخصّ رجالات ‘القاعدة’. كذلك كان للأجهزة السورية فضل إفشال عمليتين ضدّ القوّات الأمريكية: واحدة ضدّ الأسطول الخامس في البحرين، والثانية ضدّ هدف في أوتاوا بكندا. وهيرش يؤكد، استناداً إلى معلومات متعددة المصادر، وإلى مقابلة مباشرة مع بشار الأسد، أنّ النظام السوري كان يسعى إلى بناء ‘قناة خلفية’ للحوار مع البيت الأبيض، مستغلاً استماتة الأجهزة الأمنية الأمريكية في حيازة معلومات ملموسة عن كوادر ‘القاعدة’ وخلاياها.

فكيف حدث أنّ منظمة ‘القاعدة’ صارت تحتلّ حماة ودير الزور، رغم دبابات العميد الأسد، ومفارز اللواء مملوك، و’شبّيحة’ شاليش ومجموعات مهــــرّبي السلاح، لكي لا يتساءل المرء عن عناصر المخابرات العسكرية، والأمن السياسي، ومخابرات القوى الجوية؟ وإذا كانت حماة قد انقلبت إلى ‘قندهار جديدة’، في توصيف منحطّ أطلقته صحافة رقيعة، يحكمها بن لادن الحـــموي؛ وتحوّلت دير الزور إلى ‘بعقوبة ثانية’، بإمرة الزرقــــاوي الديــــري مثلاً… فأين ذهب ‘اخــــتراق’ صفوف الإرهابيـــين، و’التمدّد’ داخل منظماتهم، و’ثروة’ المعلومات التي جمعــها العباقرة من ضباط أمن النظام؟ وإذا صـــحّ أنّ النظام أفشل عمليـــتين لـ’القــــاعدة’ ضدّ أهداف أمريكية، فكيف عجز عن إحباط مخططات منظمة ‘القاعدة’، ويحتاج اليوم إلى عشرات الدبابات لمحاربتها؟

حبل الكذب، هنا، ليس قصيراً فحسب، بل هو فحشاء قصوى ينحطّ إليها نظــــام استنفد أغراض وجوده جمعاء، وصار نقيض الحياة وخصمها، وبات عاجزاً حتى عن استثمار سبطانة الدبابة وبوق الأكذوبة.

وللصامتين أن يلوذوا برهاب من أيّ نوع، في تصديق ما تنفخه الأبواق من مخاوف كاذبة؛ وللدجالين المتذرعين بالحرص على ‘علمانية’ البلد، أن يتواطأوا مع ما يرتكبه نظام الإستبداد والفساد من مجازر. ولكن… إذا كانت العدالة تنتظر مجرمي الحرب، على اختلاف مواقعهم، ذات يوم قريب آتٍ لا محالة؛ فإنّ مزبلة التاريخ، وازدراء الملايين، فضلاً عن خسران شرف المشاركة في صناعة سورية المستقبل، هي مآل الصامت ومصير الدجال.

some guy in damascus.

to be honest i had a long list of answers to your questions but at the touch of a button i lost it all. so i wont rewrite it ill just type up a short version for you.

first of all im going to answer the question you most want me to answer. i do believe that Bashar is providing us with freedom of opinion. but if the salafis idea of freedom of speech and to object means armed gangs roaming the streets of Syria mutilating army personnel and attacking army bases then they have another thing coming.they have already killed the Syrian economy and tourism not to mention many good Syrian soldiers.

i dont believe that Bashar is prone to making mistakes or that he is some sort of prophet. everybody makes mistakes. i just dont think that in his 11 or so years of leadership that he has made many.

3atef najibs actions. well there is not really much i can say about that. i dont condemn murder. so i think that his actions are unacceptable. the president as you know is dealing with these issues responsibly and effectively. this man is now being investigated.

another thing that caught my eye in your comment is your belief that no one else has the chance to become president. who or what made you believe that? Bashar was voted president by his people. and on another note Khaddam was president for a month or so in 2000 but he was no good at it.

to me this regime is ridiculous and and these salafi gangs are causing havoc. they need to be wiped out. the sooner the better.
as for Rami Makhlouf i wrote my opinion on him. im afraid i dont have anything to write unless you can be more specific with your question.

Allah Souria Bashar ou Bas

I watched Mr Qurabi, on AlArabyieh.he was forcefull and convincing ,he won the debate, While Ahmad Al Haj Ali, he looked like he is taking halucinating drug.
Those who hope that Bashar will do reform, they have to wait for ever,he has no intention to do reform, and he is convinced that he should not.
I watch what happened in Hama, it is not a surprise, the same thing that the regime did in Deraa and Homs and other cities, they did in Hama, they are not reforming , they are resorting to suppression,
This is a regime ,and his supporters on SC, are realizing it is the end,the regime is to blame for fighting back,he is to blame for the destructions that will lead Syria to, and those who are supporting the regime, need to know they have had five months to realize their mistake,The syrian people will not forget.
Those who abandoned SC, they either are reading SC daily, or they are realizing their mistake.

The ultimate arrogance and ignorance is when this “Menehbek” group members insist to keep defending the killer “ junior” and his bunch of thugs.

I’m extremely gutted to see secular people who do defend the separation of (Religion/ State) are failing, even mentally, to separate (Family/ State)

I wish everyone would see that there are horrible things committed by all sides, from the shabee7a who attacked Malek’s parents, to these peaceful Hama democracy activists. This delusional denial is killing more people. Only national dialogue can save lives.

Syau

The delusion is all yours. There was no single violent act in Hama last month except for removing the throat of the famous Hama’ singer done by Jr’ thugs.

I have no expectation anymore and I’m starting to lose the nicest part of my Syrian identity.

Do not bother a reply. It is futile.

Joshua and all:

I think it times like this, your new positive/negative ticker was very, very wrong to implement. By installing this tool, you are instilling hatred of Syrian-against-Syrian. This is very sectarian thing that we all deplore.

I also know for a fact that some hard core pro-regime or anti-regime commentators can sway the score simply from logging in from different computers and giving themselves multiple (even dozens) of false thumbs up or/and thumbs down for those they disagree with.

I tried it myself from home, my laptop, my mobile, and office. At our office, I have access to at least 20 computers and if I wanted to I could cheat your system. I am not saying that all of SC commentators would do such a thing, but I can tell you for certain that a dozen hard core would.

This silly tool is nothing but another way to bully commentators. If I would type a neutral positive comment like “I love Syria” I would still get thumbs down, perhaps as much as half because some people want to put me down as a person and nothing to do with what I said. Perhaps your intention was good, but please remember that Syrians are dying daily, therefore, Joshua please I urge you do your part and remove this silly tool.

Ramadan Kareem to all of you.

An official military source stated that after armed terrorist groups cut off main and side roads in the city of Hama and attempted to isolate and suffocate it after cutting of highways connecting it to other provinces, a number of army units attempted to open the external roads connecting the city to the surrounding areas in order to restore normal life in it.

The source pointed out that while army units were carrying out this task, they were attacked by medium firearms while armed terrorist groups burned a number of police, army and security forces stations and vandalized public facilities.

The source said that these armed terrorist groups will be dealt with according to the developments, noting that all that was said about tanks entering the city of Hama is completely false.

anything to say tara?

Talking to a wall is better than attempting to rationalize with people paid by the Syrian Government.

They have too much to lose to support what’s right. Their status and their money is the kaleidoscope to their reality. Can you guys give up? It it the same story, with minor variations:
-Islamist
-Armed Gangs
-Democracy=Iraq
-Security Forces are disciplined. They are only responding to fire.
-Foreign interference
etc.

All their games are quite transparent to me. They also like to flood the blogsphere with this “unbiased” assessment: While the regime is making mistakes, it is better to settle for them to strive for a democracy (because it’s too hard!). In the end – the regime gets what it wants – the seat. The seat of power. He doesn’t want to give it up under any circumstances. خلص end of story. “You want reform? OK, it has to be slowly and you should accept it.” It took 11 years for one law to change, and the law only changed under threat. And even after the law changed, it is as if no law changed whatsoever. In this same time, the US had 3 different Presidents – one of which was an قرد. But the nice thing is that the US doesn’t have an قرد for life. However, in Syria, we have a ثور for life.

@ 42

“Supporting the revolution in Syria is supporting terrorism”
Seriously!!! This is the most absurd (edited for bad language) I ever come across for ages

Dude!! please go learn some politics before adopting your lord’s school of empty terms and slogans. I bet you’ll fail to define what’s a “revolution”?

and yeah while you’re trying to find the answer please don’t use your Bathisit fellows “8th March revolution” as a reference?

Tara,

The ‘removal of the throat’ of the Hamwi singer was done by none other than the MB. They have a long history of sacrificing each other to further their cause. Security personnel killing the singer is counterproductive and anyone who thinks rationally would know that.

MM

the only (edited for personal attack) around here is you and your salafi boars. when you speak of the president try to have a little more respect. i dont see you becoming any type of leader other than Satans right hand. but then again taking to you and every other anti Bashar thug is like talking to a wall.

Allah Yehmik ya habibna Bashar

Dear True

The lackeys (as Aboud calls them, Besho (edited for insult) kissers) on Syria Comment are not secular, they are pure sectarians. They shame every secular thinker.

No true secular will display anti-women attitude as these bozos do, or be as homophonic and hateful as these thugs are.

SYAU
You are beyond dellusional, you are reaching the pathetic stage very rapidly

ALI
Your tall laughing accidental dictator worked very hard to forfeit respect, he only deserves contempt. Do not begrudge him his accomplishment; it takes special skills to become as contemptible as besho is now

Dear TARA
The illiterates of the electronic army can only do one assignment since they can’t compose a good English phrase, or probably read one, their job is reduced to pushing the like and dislike buttons. Guess they have a list of names, pretty much like their bosses in Mukhabarat work with lists of names one for arrest and torture, and others for liquidation.

The more thumbs down the better. I challenge you bozos of the electronic army to reach a 100 thumbs down for this message. I guess there are only a limited number of proxies for the point and click computer illiterate crowds of the electronic army. What happened, the Iranian experts packed and went home?

OTW
I like the article you posted, and mostly the last paragraph

وللصامتين أن يلوذوا برهاب من أيّ نوع، في تصديق ما تنفخه الأبواق من مخاوف كاذبة؛ وللدجالين المتذرعين بالحرص على ‘علمانية’ البلد، أن يتواطأوا مع ما يرتكبه نظام الإستبداد والفساد من مجازر. ولكن… إذا كانت العدالة تنتظر مجرمي الحرب، على اختلاف مواقعهم، ذات يوم قريب آتٍ لا محالة؛ فإنّ مزبلة التاريخ، وازدراء الملايين، فضلاً عن خسران شرف المشاركة في صناعة سورية المستقبل، هي مآل الصامت ومصير الدجال

Today is another sad day in Syria with more blood spilled and more to come.

This was expected and no one could pretend otherwise. Civil war is cooking on low flames, but it may reach the boiling point soon with events like today and what to come in other hot spots.

The Assad government’s move is expected with the coming of Ramadan to assert control.

But it should have not used its heavy hand causing this high number of death, and the demonstrators should have not resisted because they should have known better.

We are going to hear about death among the security forces and the army no doubt. Sad day indeed, and more sadness is coming on the way unless cool heads step up at do something.

to MM

There is no point in chaging laws in a country ruled ( not governed) by a lawless mafia regime. Laws are for governments not for mafias and gangs.

To Majabali
Here is a tissue, wipe out your Crocodile tears
See Hadidi’s article about Charlatans

Syrian Hamster,

Crawl back into your hole, the tree top is affecting your ability to see reality, therefore your ability to admit the terror that is evident in this terrorist movement which you call a revolution.

copied article by دكتور مصعب الحريري

قبل شهر وبتاريخ 29/06/2011 كتبت مقالا بعنوان (الأسباب العشرون لفشل الثورة السورية )، وبدأت حفلة السباب والشتم والتخوين وهذا ليس مستغربا فنحن لم نعتد بعد ثقافة الحوار واختلاف الرأي لأننا نعيش في بوتقة الرأي الواحد منذ عقود و لندع هذا الحديث جانبا الأن . اليوم وبعد شهر كامل حافل بالتطورات إليكم عشرون سبب أخر توحي بفشل الثورة السورية (الكبرى ) رغم ما يشاع من أن شهر رمضان سيكون حاسما حازما وسيغير مجرى الأحداث وبرأيي أن الثورة قد تبلغ شهر رمضان ولكنها لن تبلغ العيد إلا بشكل خجول ربما وذلك للأسباب العشرين التالية

–          1- تركيا : لقد بلع أردوغان لسانه الذي طال كثيرا ً بل وكثيرا ً جدا حتى بلغ به الأمر أن أعطى للقيادة السورية سلسلة مطالب وجدولا زمنيا وإلا فإنه سيتخذ إجراءات (صارمة ) . منذ شهر تقريبا لم يتفوه أردوغان البتة . لا من قريب ولا من بعيد إلا من خلال حديثه عن عزمه الذهاب إلى غزة ؟؟!! غزة التي نسيها عندما كان يتحدث عن حماة

–          2- اللاجئون السوريون: غاب اللاجئون السوريون عن كل وسائل الإعلام بشكل نهائي بعدما شغلوا شاشتها طولا وعرضا بل وزارتهم أنجلينا جولي لتعطي للموضوع أبعادا عالمية ( لم تذهب إلى الصومال الأن ) . غاب الحدث إعلاميا ً . عاد أكثر من نصفهم إلى بلادهم وبيوتهم . أبدت تركيا معاملة سيئة لهم فالخدمات شحيحة وسيئة ومنعتهم من الحديث مع أي وسيلة إعلامية .. كل ما سبق ينتج عنه إلغاء فكرة منطقة عازلة أو تدخل دولي لحماية المدنيين

–          3- أمريكا : قالت هيلاري كلنتون إن الأسد فقد الشرعية بعدما ذهب سفير أمريكا إلى حماة . وبعد يومين صرح مصدر مسؤول في وزارة الخارجية الأمريكية : كلام هيلاري كان ارتجاليا والسفير ذهب دون علم الوزارة ؟ طبعا هذا غير صحيح بل هو التفاف على الأمر حفظا لماء الوجه . منذ متى كان وزراء الخارجية يرتجلون عندما يقرأون بيانا مكتوبا ؟! . أمريكا راجعت حساباتها واقعيا فالتزمت الصمت وتراجعت عن التصعيد السابق

–          4- الدول العربية : دعم كويتي بمبلغ 30 مليون دينار ! قرض سعودي بمبلغ 375 مليون ريال . إيقاف خطيب مسجد في الكويت (نبيل العوضي ) بسبب تدخله بشؤون سوريا . استثمار إماراتي في سوريا بمبلغ 5 مليار دولار في منطقة العدوي بدمشق . وتضييق من بعض الدول العربية على الناشطيين السياسيين السوريين ! عشاء دعم للقيادة السورية وبرنامجها الإصلاحي في السفارة السورية في عمان ! نبيل العربي يدعم شرعية الأسد ! انطلاق حكومة لبنان بعيدا عن الحريري وجماعة 14 أذار . صمت مصري مطبق ! رسالة دعم من رئيس العراق ! تقارب سوري عراقي اقتصادي بوفد سوري في بغداد بتاريخ 26و27 تموز الجاري ! مواقف داعمة وشاكرة من السلطة الفلسطينية وحماس وخاصة بعد اعتراف سورية بدولة فلسطينية على حدود 1967 ! لا يحتاج الأمر لتعليق أو شرح ؟!

–          5- فشل المعارضة (بنقطة أو بدون نقطة – الأمر سيان -) في استصدار ولو بيان واضح واحد موحد أو اجتماعها في مؤتمر واحد . على العكس من ذلك اجتمعوا فاختلفوا فتفرقوا وذهبت ريحهم وحار العرب والغرب معهم . قلنا سابقا ،هم يختلفون على المناصب لا على المبادىء (راجع المقالة الأولى ). وحتى تتبلور قيادة واضحة لهم يحتاج الأمر وقتا طويلا جدا. وأنا أعتقد بل متأكد أنهم لم ولن يجتمعوا على قرار واحد أبد الدهر .

–          6- تماسك الجيش : رغم كل (الإنشقاقات ) على قناة الجزيرة وغيرها لكن الأمر واقعيا غير ذلك بل عكس ذلك تماما . مازال الجيش متماسكا متلاحما وليس من بوادر واضحة لأي انشقاق البتة -على الأقل في المدى المنظور-

–          7- تقارب إيراني سعودي تجلى في تصريحات وزيري خارجية البلدين قبل بضعة أيام  واليوم أصبح أكثر وضوحا في تصريحات سفير السعودية في الرياض السيد محمد جواد محلاتي بتاريخ 27/7/2011   قائلا : مستعدون لفتح منشأتنا النووية أمام خبراء سعوديين ( وهذا الكلام ليس ارتجاليا على طريقة هيلاري كلنتون) . الامر الذي يعني أن إيران والسعودية متفقتان على ضرورة بقاء الأسد (ولو بشكل أضعف )- أو- ولو بتحالفات جديدة أراها تتبلور اتفاقا قريبا خاصة بعد اشتباكات طائفية لن تسلم من نارها البلدان المتناحران فيما لو استعرت .

–          8- سياسة اللعب بالنار : أو سياسية حافة الهاوية فليس لدى النظام ما يخسره بعد كل ما صدر من عقوبات اوروبية وأمريكية . فليس لدى أوروبا وأمريكا من أساليب ضغط أخرى غير الحوار مع النظام وهذا ليس ببعيد (بعد أن يقوم وليد المعلم بإعادة أوروبا إلى الخارطة ) أو يستمر فيهضم أمريكا وهذا مستبعد جدا .

–          9- ليبيا مجددا : فشل العالم في الإطاحة بالقذافي وراحوا يفاوضونه وسمحوا له (مشكورين) بالبقاء في بلده المحتل . بتاريخ 26/07/2011 رئيس وزراء ليبيا البغدادي المحمودي يضع شروطا لبدء الحوار أولها وقف الهجمات الجوية بعدما كان كل العالم حتى مصطفى عبد الجليل يقول لا حوار مع القذافي ولا مكان له في ليبا . هذا الأمر يعني فيما يعنيه أن الغرب لن يتدخل عسكريا في سوريا ولو بلغ عدد القتلى أضعافا . وفد ألماني يقول للمعارضة السورية عليكم بالحوار مع النظام . هذا الوفد كان يتحدث من دمشق بعد لقاء مع المعلم وأقصد وليد ؟!

–          10- أسباب اقتصادية : عوّل العالم كله على انهيار اقتصادي في سوريا . حتى اليوم لم تتأخر الحكومة في دفع راتب موظف واحد بل مازالت تسمح بالتحويل للخارج دون شروط أو قيود . وما كانت لتسمح بذلك لولا أنها تملك مخزونا احتياطيا كبيرا من السيولة ولو جاءها من دعم إيران كما تقول بعض الصحف وتنفيه سوريا . بينما يترنح الغرب كله على انهيار اقتصادي شامل بمن فيهم أمريكا انتظروا الثاني من أغسطس القادم  ؟!

–          11- انخفاض عدد القتلى في سوريا : وذلك بسبب لجوء الأمن إلى سياسة الإعتقال والجرح بعدما كان الرصاص الحي يدوي في الأيام السابقة . هذا الأمر سيخفف من الضغط الخارجي . فالجريح حتى ولو في حالة خطرة لا يحدث صدمة أو تأثيرا كما القتيل سواء على الصعيد الداخلي أو الخارجي . هذا يعني تراجع الضغط الخارجي

–          12- تراجع تأييد الأقليات بعد ممارسات طائفية ضدهم . وبغض النظر عمن هو السبب في بدء صراع طائفي (السلطة أو المتظاهرون ) فإن استهداف الأقليات جعلهم يتراجعون إلى الصمت إن لم نقل إلى الـتأييد بعدما كان قسم كبير منهم يهب ّ للمشاركة . تراجع شعبي

–          13- حلب : وما أدراك ما حلب لا تعطي ولا تهب . مازلت خارج اللعبة بل ما زالت مسيرات التأييد حاضرة بقوة . فلو كانت هناك بوادر انضمامها للثورة لكانت على الأقل تمر بمرحلة صمت وليس مسيرات تأييد كبيرة جدا ( ليسوا موظفين كما يقول بعضهم . تستطيع أن تأخذ الموظف إلى المسيرة لكنك لا تستطيع أن تجعله يرقص ويغني فرحا ) ؟!

–          14- الإعلام : انكشاف كثير من فبركات الإعلام . الأمر الذي جعل كل شخص يشكك في كل ما يراه ويحتاج دليلا وهذه ظاهرة جديدة . بعضهم يطالب بالاسم الثلاثي لأي شهيد و تصوير مقابلات حقيقة مع ذويه .

–          15- الحل الأمني : نجاح الحل الأمني في بعض المناطق . درعا كانت تشهد مظاهرات بمئات الألوف . اليوم لا يزيد عدد المتظاهرين عن بضع مئات وبشكل متفرق وسريع . بغض النظر عما تبثه الجزيرة وتقول (بث مباشر ) .

–          16- الحسم : قررت القيادة السورية الحسم بعد الدمار والخراب في الممتلكات الخاصة والعامة . وهذا ما بدا واضحا جليا منذ 23/07/2011 . حيث تنفذ السلطات الأمنية حملات سريعة ليلية للقبض على المطلوبين والناشطين واعتقالهم ووضعهم في السجن وليس الإكتفاء بتوقيعهم على تعهد ما يلبثوا أن ينقضوه في يوم الجمعة التالي .

–          17- تماسك ديبلوماسي : رغم كل المغريات لم ينشق سفير واحد حتى اليوم . عكس ما حدث مع ( الشيخ ) القذافي الذي يستشهد بالأحاديث والأيات هذه الأيام . فمنذ اليوم الأول انشق عنه وزيران بينهم وزير الداخلية وعدة سفراء بينهم مندوب ليبيا في الأمم المتحدة . في سوريا لم يحدث أي من هذا ( انشقاق قنصل سابق منذ 10 سنوات في بلد مثل بلغاريا لا يعني شيئا أبدا ) حتى أبناء المناطق المنكوبة ( درعا – حمص – إدلب – حماة ) لم ينشق منها أي ديبلوماسي ولا حتى أي عسكري ذي قيمة رغم المحاولات والمغريات .

–          18- الأخوان المسلمون : أو كارثة سورية قديما وحديثا ومستقبلا ودائما  حيث بدا واضحا أن أغلبية الحضور في مؤتمرات المعارضة هم من الأخوان المسلمين الأمر الذي جعل كثير من السوريين يتراجع عن حركة الإحتجاج . هل تتصوروا معنى أن تحكم سورية حركة الأخوان المسلمين ؟؟!! ليس صحيحا أن لهم ثقل جماهيري ( باستثناء مدينة حماة)

–          19- وجود غطاء أمريكي راح يتوضح جليا من خلال زيارة سفيرها لحماة .واستغلال النظام لهذا الموضوع بشكل جيد فتاريخ أمريكا أسود في المنطقة وفي العالم كله وأشد ما يكون سوادا في العراق الذي يعاني من نقص الكهرباء بعدما كان البلد العربي الأكثر تطورا قبل عشرين عاما . هذه التخلف يأتي بعد 8 سنوات من الإحتلال الأمريكي ونشر الديمقراطية في بلاد الرافدين . المالكي اليوم هو صدام الأمس وزد على ذلك تراجع الخدمات وازدياد الأمية والجهل في بلد عربي استطاع أن ينجب علماء عربا سابقا. السوريون لا يثقون بأمريكا وسياساتها وخوفهم من مصير مماثل حدا بهم للسكون إن لم نقل للعودة إلى أيام الصمت الرهيب في مملكة الصمت

–          20- العامل الداخلي : أولاً: القيادات في حلب السنية الصامتة والمتظاهرون في درعا وحمص وهذا يعني انفصال تام بين القيادات والقواعد ( غسان النجار – حسن عبد العظيم – البيانوني – عبد الحميد منجونة …. الخ كلهم من محافظة حلب )

بينما لا توجد قيادات فعالة من درعا أو حمص ودائما تبقى حماة استثناء لأسباب معروفة

–                               ثانيا: ازدياد البطالة بسبب طول فترة الثورة . تسريح عمالة إغلاق محال وشركات . تخفيض رواتب …. الخ ؟ وحتّاما يستطيع المواطنون الفقراء الإنفاق من مدخراتهم ( إن وجدت ) فصمت خير من صمت وفقر .

ثالثا : انكشاف أمر قيادات المعارضة عند كل السوريين و غياب وجودهم على الأرض فعليا : من يستطيع أن يسمي لي اسما واحدا لمتظاهر واحد في كل سورية تربطه بمعارض واحد أي صلة قرابة ( ابن – أخ – ….. أخ بالرضاعة ) ؟؟!!

رابعا : الدروز مازالوا خارج الثورة رغم تاريخهم النضالي الطويل حيث كانوا سباقين دائما للثورات . وهو وإن كانوا أقلية لكنهم مكون أساسي من مكونات سورية ولهم خصوصية كونهم يتجمعون في محافظة واحدة مع وجود لهم في بعض المناطق الأخرى ( ريف إدلب – جبل الشيخ وقراه – الجولان – القنيطرة ) . وهم ليسوا مع النظام أبدا لكنهم لم يثوروا ؟

قد نختلف في بعض النقاط ترتيبا أو محتوى لكن يجب ألا نختلف في النتيجة وهي : الثورة السورية فشلت وانتهت وقضي الأمر الذي فيه نختلف . وحتى تستطيع المعارضة تشكيل قيادة واحدة تقف خلفها كل الأصوات المعارضة نقول لكم تصبحون على ثورة ليس فيها رضوان زيادة (وغيره ) الذي يجلس في واشنطن يطالب بعقوبات على قطاع النفط والغاز ( في مقابلة مباشرة على قناة الجزيرة مع عبد الرحيم فقراء بتاريخ 26/07/2011 ) وهو يدرك أن العقوبات تطال الشعب ولن تطال َ النظام وطبعا السيد زيادة لن يعاني أبناؤه في أمريكا من برد الكانونين الأول والثاني الذين كما يقول السوريون ( بيقصوا المسمار) كناية عن البرد الشديد . فسوريا بدون عقوبات على النفط تعاني نقصا في المازوت و شحا فيه في الصيف فماذا سيحدث في الشتاء حيث يشتد الطلب عليه ويزيد البرد و عقوبات إضافية . سيبرد الشعب ويجوع والنظام لن يتأثر أزلامه وبالطبع لن يعاني زيادة و مجموعته أيضا ً

هنا لابد أن نشكر السيد نمرود سليمان ( العلوي – الكافر-  وليس سنيا – مؤمنا –  مثل رضوان زيادة ) الذي قال له على الهواء مباشرة مستنكرا طلبه مستغربا هكذا طلب من (منقذ) سوريا:  قال نمرود سليمان : إن العقوبات ستطال الشعب لا النظام والعراق أكبر دليل في عقوباته التي استمرت 13 عاما . تلون وجه زيادة وراح يفسر دونما جدوى

تصبحون على وطن فيه معارضة وطنية تحمل رؤية وفكرا وبرنامجا وأيضا حظا أوفر في ثورة قادمة أتمنى ألا تتكأ على كثيرن من الموجودين على ساحتها حاليا يجلسون في فنادق العواصم ويتهيأون لشغل مناصب تبدو أكبر منهم بل فضفاضة عليهم

عاشت سورية حرة أبية ديمقراطية مدنية تعددية لا دينية. بعلم واحد وصوت واحد وقلب واحد وليس فيها صوت طائفي عرعوري وليس فيها أخوان بل فيه أخوة . تتسع لكل السوريين تحضنهم بدفئها وتسقيهم من بردى والفرات والعاصي ودجلة وينابيع الجولان و منابع اللواء السليب دون تفرقة أبدا

د . مصعب الحريري / باحث و أكاديمي – متخصص في القضايا السورية – لندن حاليا  –

ــــــــــــــــــــــــ

(*)ـ ملاحظة من التحرير : نحن نختلف مع “سوداوية” الكاتب الذي لا نعرفه ، والذي ـ كما يبدو ـ يكتب باسم مستعار . إلا أن ما يورده من أفكار قد يكون جديرا بانتباه المعنيين بالشأن السوري ، داخلا وخارجا.

تتمة المواد في قضايا وآراء
جنبلاط العائد من موسكو: رؤية لسورية والمنطقة 31 تموز/يوليو 2011
خريطة اجتماعية سياسية اقتصادية للاحتجاجات في سورية 30 تموز/يوليو 2011

Dear SYAU,

i do not know what our government is waiting for? What our media is doing? the combination between reform and restoring security is NOT working ,security should be first !!!

Dear Alex, welcome back

Can you please explain to me how can you compare the savages who harassed Malik’s family (if ever happened, I’m not sure, but it sound genuine) and the terrorists who did the horrible act of terror in the video SYAU and you linked? the government should strike without mercy any one who touch a weapon or even a stone to use it against our soldiers .
The country is lost, if order was not restored, at any price.

@ 54. SYRIAN HAMSTER

Mate I totally agree and it does not take you long at all to spot their super LOW intelligence quotient level, they fail to build a rational argument so they switch to classic tactic of glorifying their God the killer “Besho” or alternatively they go hard out on pressing like/dislike.

On another note, I have to admit I was deceived by those electronic thugs, you know when someone says something you give him the benefit of the doubt and assume he’s being honest. Clearly they have no idea what is the “secularism” and by considering their low ability I would understand why they’re worshiping this family.

@ ALI “speak of the president try to have a little more respect”

Oh c’mon give me a break you’re not in Kafersosa intelligence division!! Try , just try, to take this virus of security attitude out of your empty brain. And tell your Besho the “killer” if he pays respect to people who’re funding his famly business then people will respect him back and for now he’s the killer till further notice.

30. Dear MNA
You said: “It is really surprising that most people are really astonished about what happened today in Hama. The opposition and the street coordinators have been promising the regime that Ramadan will be the month of its downfall”

I say:
I personally find your remark to be cold, insensitive, and sick!
It shows more than apathy; shamateh!
I, like other pro-freedom Syrians, including those on this blog were astonished as well as shocked by the savage regime response; for one thing the city was peaceful for the last four weeks now!

Dellusional SYAU

Fine, I get it, hyenas don’t like hamsters

To editor
Wow, here is a riddle

Bum
Bum
Edit
Bum
Edit
kiss
kiss
edit
bum
edit
Kiss
edit

It is sad that many of you guys are unwilling to listen to the other side and admit that the mess in Syria today is not exclusively caused by one side.Some of the most horrific crimes that were committed in Syria since March have the obvious finger prints and the DNA of violent thugs who want to topple the regime at any cost,and to hear some of you and many opposition “leaders” deny this fact is a demonstration of how deep hatred and division is in Syria today. I will not be naive and divide the blame equally,I truly think that Syria’s most serious problem is its corrupt and brutal regime,but there is no military solution to this crisis whether you admit this or not. Blood will lead,but it can only lead to a dark deep hole that will spare nobody..
Bashar needs to step down and a new leadership will emerge in time after security is restored,enough blood shed.

Alex @ 46,

This is an awful, awful video.

I think it is very clear how peaceful these “peaceful demonstrators” really are. The amazing thing is that even videos as horrific and as shockingly clear as this one, is not enough to jolt people back into rationality. Many people I know are still fixated on one thing and on one thing only: to topple the regime.

Many so called “pacifists”, committed to non-violence had promised months ago that if they ever see any signs that this revolution is deviating from being fully peaceful, that they would no longer support it. Today, they are still as rabid as ever in their fixation on toppling the regime and nothing else.

What does that mean? I think it means that they were lying, and were hiding behind a veneer of pacifist jargon but it was only a means to an end. When that means failed, they had no problem in doing away with it and focusing on the only thing they really agree on.

Dear Louai,

There are different shades of evil, I don’t think it is useful here to rate them. Lawless state will lead to violence of various types and the state must find a way to maintain its authority while allowing some freedom of expression. Each one of us has his definition of what freedoms should be tolerated and I have no doubt the 23 million Syrians will not agree on that question. The revolutionaries want to settle disagreements by forcing the regime out. This will only lead to bloodshed… national dialogue is the only civilized way to discuss disagreements. Anything else is wrong.

This was reported in a Western newspaper, obviously tainted by EU/Jew/al-Qaeda/Salafi/Saudi/CIA ideology:

“…the Syrian news agency SANA reported yesterday that in celebration of the 66th anniversary of the founding of the Syrian Arab Army, the People’s Army magazine published a speech to the armed forces by Assad in which he called the military a model of commitment to the nation’s causes and a defender of its rights…”

Now we know Besho is delusional, calling his personal army “a model of commitment”…LOL!

Syria will undermine “new chapter of conspiracy”: president
2011-08-01

DAMASCUS, July 31 (Xinhua) — Syrian President Bashar Assad said Sunday that he is ultimately confident that Syria will undermine “this new chapter of conspiracy” which he said aims at ” dividing the country as a prelude for dividing the entire region to conflicting states.”

In an interview with Ash-Shaeb magazine to commemorate the 66th anniversary of the Syrian army’s foundation, Assad said “Syria has its own characteristics that are immune to all conspiracies and conspirators.”

“We are now more determined to go on with the process of dignity with confident steps … We will let war-makers and blood traders suffer the bitterness of defeat, disappointment and frustration,” he said.

Assad reasserted that his country is subject to sectarian sedition, but indicated that the Syrian people were aware to what is being intrigued against them and were able to “bury sedition.”

He pledged to go on with the process of an overall reform, noting that Syria will export an example of democracy, freedom and political pluralism.

Assad reiterated that the Syrians would remain “free in our national decision and masters in our international relations.”

Syria has been in unrest since mid March when anti-government protests broke out in the southern province of Daraa and spread to other cities. The Syrian authorities blamed the unrest on “armed groups and foreign conspiracy” and stressed that it would track down gunmen who have intimidated people and damaged public and private properties.

47 by Tara “Syau The delusion is all yours. There was no single violent act in Hama last month except for removing the throat of the famous Hama’ singer done by Jr’ thugs”

What do you think about the video posted by Alex # comment 46. It spleaks books about your friends who are again:

Islamic-Radicals-Alah Wa Akbar- discusting- killers who kill people with cold blood and they say ALAH WA AKBAR before, while, and after they kill. Can you please tell me what kind of god you pray for?????and what type of god you will be fasting for?????

[para deleted for bad language and more]

Dear Alex

thank you for explaining , i agree with all what you said ,the video is just terrifying ,it made me cry and angry ! i just cant take it any more ,the government is calling for dialogue , clearly no one is interested , we should start to call things by their names from now on ,starting with the demonstrations are not all peaceful the terror is organized and not random

i am so sad to see how cheap our life is .

Comment 63 “It is sad that many of you guys are unwilling to listen to the other side and admit that the mess in Syria today is not exclusively caused by one side.Some of the most horrific crimes that were committed in Syria since March have the obvious finger prints and the DNA of violent thugs who want to topple the regime at any cost”

Nicely said.

WATCH VIDEO 46 guys to see the peaceful ALAH WA AKBAR [edited for bad language]. These people are similar to the cold blooded Qaeda who organized the attackes on Sep 11. These are the same people who killed many docs and engineers back in the 1980s in Syria, these are the same thugs who are killing in the name of GOD. These are the same people who blow off buses holding children in Egypt 40 years ago.

There is no talk or negotiation with such animals, these needs to eliminated so the rest of the wrold would have peace. This is an awful video.

Zenobia,

I try to post everything. I thought about not posting the Ivashov article because of its conspiracy content, but it probably portrays a viewpoint from Moscow and like capitals. I include most article that I personally believe are irresponsible or with which I disagree. They have their constituents. I cannot comment on them all. That is why I have a comment section. So people like you can explain why they are wrong. Just gathering all this stuff in one place is a day long task. I put up lots of video that I cannot verify. Frequently, I find they are deceptive. But that usually comes out in the comment section.

I think it is better to get it all out there. Many readers have suggested that I not repeat or publish anything from SANA for the same reasons, but it is important to hear the various sides. The truth will out with critical attention and time.

Many of the various battle stories continue to be revised.

If you think a point of view or evidence is being overlooked, please post it in the comment section and I will bring it to the post.

I get most of my stories by reviewing the comment section. Please remember to include the html link with the story. It is a big help.

Alex,

Bashar had 11 years to dialog. Why did he not use them?
You know very well that most of the killing is being done by the regime and its thugs. And how about the thousands or tens of thousands that Bashar has imprisoned and are rotting in jails?

It is so easy to show a video of one side’s acts, but until you admit that most of the violence and all the responsibility lies at the feet of the regime, it is just propaganda. Yes, killing people is despicable, but denying millions of people their freedom and dignity for 40 years is the mother of all evils and if Bashar does not wake up will lead to civil war.

Bashar needs to prove he is serious. He needs to declare free elections with a multi party system in 6-18 months. He needs to free ALL political prisoners and accept the other conditions Kilo put forward. Otherwise, the opposition will be idiots to dialog with him and his regime. He will just play games with them to stay in power and of course nothing will change.

@ “Menhebek” group and all who worship the killer “besho”

Evidence indicates that poor mental health is correlated with celebrity worship. Researchers have examined the relationship between celebrity worship and mental health in United Kingdom adult samples. Maltby et al. (2001) found evidence to suggest that the intense-personal celebrity worship dimension was related to higher levels of depression and anxiety. Similarly, Maltby et al., in 2004, found that the intense-personal celebrity worship dimension was not only related to higher levels of depression and anxiety, but also higher levels of stress, negative effect, and reports of illness.

SS, Louai and others,

Your hypocrisy is just beyond any belief. It is the Assad regime that is hosting and supporting Hamas for years. Why did you not complain about that? Did you like Muslim extremists then? Save us your crocodile tears. You only complain about religious extremism when it is aimed at you but you have no problem supporting Hamas, Hezbollah and the Iranian theocracy. Assad has for years fostered religious extremism and you supported him. Why are you even surprised that religious extremism rears its ugly head?

Dear HUSSAM @ 48

Thanks for the kind wishes.

I look at the counts of likes and dislikes and laugh my (edited part of body) out. I just take it with a dose of 23 mg of Cynicodium-X3 (found at any rodent specialized veterinarian, I know a pharmacist who can get the human equivalent). But it seems that the pros are more at it than the anti.

A nice game would be to post one of your long and eloquent comments with multiple and complex paragraphs and then come back and post each paragraph on its own. Enjoy the experiment.

I must thank whoever programmed that tool into the comment section. The electronic army needs something to play with. It keeps them busy and reduces the time they have to threaten bloggers such as Anas Qteish and Hakam Al-baba.

true

Besho the killer? i can think of a few names for you too but why should i waste my time on something thats just going to be edited.
and your wahabi, satan driven, murderous, evil, sectarian, poisonous,filthy animal salafis are as peaceful as they come hey?

Syrian Hamster.
i was getting excited thinking you were planning on staying in that hole of yours. or another hole for that matter… but no such luck. if you haven’t noticed this is not for childish comments or “riddles”. grow up

Allah yehmikon ya jash Souri.
Allah Souria Bashar ou bas

Hamster
Why are you out of your hole so much today,be careful your the peaceful revolutionists may think that you are not an mb hamster,they will kill you ,put you in a wagon,drive you across the bridge,and say The Big Hamster Akber They will then threw you in a muddy and felthy river.your Rat friends like Aboud will say after what happened to my Hamster friend I think it is ok to use nuclear power against his killers,and Tara will say I think it is time for armed resistance against hamster killers.

Alex

The link you posted in #46 as happened in Hama was posted by Syau in #39 as happened in Jisr al Shoghur.

Do you care to explain?

Ali

Nor is this the time to worship a failing privileged pretender, whose claim to leadership was the result of a cynically orchestrated contemptuous inheritance dance as if the country is an Assadian farm. Your concluding slogan is the utmost sign of childishness, arrogance, and contempt for Syria and its citizens at home and in exile. No, Bashar is not Syria, nor is he synonymous to Syria, never been, and will never be. His name will go in history as nothing more than pathetic character who was given countless opportunities and refused but to squander them all, along with the blood of Syrians.

SNK

Is that all you could muster, keep trying, so far, your writing sucks and will only impress teenagers and frat boys of the menhebbakite type.

AIG

You think if Israel today decided to seriously seek a peaceful settlement (going back to the 67 borders) Syria and the Arabs will refuse to talk saying “israel had 45 years to make peace with the Palestinians, return the illegally occupied lands and abide by UN resolutions, why did it not”?

No, they will move forward regardless of what happened or what did not happen in the past.

Hamser

To ignore watching the video linked by SYAU , you are talking about the like and dislike tool .

HUSSAM is right, you can like or dislike as much as you can as long as you are using different devices, but this tool is available for both pro-terrorism and pro-stability, pro-death and pro-life , you are annoyed to see the real reaction to your Wit and wisdom? End this subject and go watch the video again, but don’t touch yourself whilst doing so ,I know you find it exiting .

true.

worshiping satan taught you a lot about your mental health issues.
i see you’ve done your research. taken your meds today?

Alex,

Israel has been seriously trying to seek a peace settlement for years. It has peace agreements with Egypt and Jordan. Israel returned the Sinai, which was more than half its total land to Egypt. It signed the Oslo agreements with Arafat. And even still, most Arabs don’t think Israel is serious about peace.

So why should they think that Assad is serious about reforms? Has Assad shown any seriousness about reforms? Any reform he made, he later reversed. Kilo put forward a set of very reasonable demands. Let’s see Assad accept them first.

Do the regime supporters have the ability to view only videos of one kind? The regime has perpetuated 1000 times the violence the opposition has. The regime is centrally controlled, the opposition is not. The responsibility for the violence lies mostly with one side, the mafia regime. The regime is also responsible for religious extremism as it is a leading supporter of Hamas, Hezbollah and the Iranian theocracy.

Frat mabehebak hamster girl
That is my duty.
Colonel Syria no Kandahar
Syrian electric army
Monthly salary 30000$ I should get my check from Bashar tomorrow.

Alex,

When Assad funded the Hamas suicide bombing campaign in Israel that killed 1000 Israeli civilians, did you complain about religious extremism? When Damascus was the hub for suicide bombers going to Iraq did you complain about religious extremism and its violence? Of course not. So, what is your principled position? Religious extremism and terrorism is fine as long as it is not pointed at Syria?

To LOUAI

I ignore all videos except for the one from hama with the slain bard singing about a guy and his brother who will be kicked out sooner than later.

I call my self a rat, make fun of my rat hole, and you think reactions to my comments will annoy me. Come on you are smarter than that, and I mean it.

BTW, to be unpopular amongst the menhebbakites is rewarding.

SNK
Nop, not good enough. Still lacks oomph.

Hi Tara, I have no idea where this happened, I don’t trust titles that go with these videos. But if the same video was uploaded to You Tube long time ago then it is more likely related to what happened in Jisr Asheghoor. But all the version of this clip I found so far were uploaded today. It does not prove this is new of course.

Here are the comments from one revolution FB page when they uploaded the video themselves:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8eehCAl43U0&feature=player_detailpage#t=18s

AIG,

hmm …. We have a number of opinion polls that tell us very very few Arabs trust Israel has good intentions today.

Most Syrians (in my opinion, and you don’t have to like it) want dialogue.

Good night.

AIG, Israel might have interest in peace but has not shown seriousness. The Saudi initiative of a comprehensive peace plan to 1967 borders and full normalization of ties with all Arab countries was a historic opportunity, but was totally ignored by Israel’s government and its people.

The initiative was put forward for a second time recently and again rejected by the Israeli government. Perhaps, if Israelis’ want so much peace, you need an uprising against the hawks who are pushing Israel to be more hard line than ever to reclaim you secular identity.

Personally, I would think that Israeli interests would have been much better served by a comprehensive peace with Syria by gladly returning Golan, even if it meant bending backward, as the economic benefits for Israeli companies and business would have been enormous.

Alex,

You write:
“Most Syrians (in my opinion, and you don’t have to like it) want dialogue.”

Most Syrians want freedom and dignity and real multi party elections. But why not just have real free elections to find out what the people want? Because they are “not ready for democracy”? Because you need another 7 years of Bashar rule? Because you get by “opinion” to decide what the Syrian people want? You see, you may be right with your opinion, but the only way to find out if you are right is to incorporate real reforms which Assad will not do. He wants to dialog with the opposition? About what? About which jail he will send them to?

Allow freedom of speech and press. Free all political prisoners. Allow formation of parties. Stop all army and muchabarat violence. Announce free elections in a specified period of time and then I am sure everyone will be happy to dialog as much as Assad wants. But until Assad accepts these basic conditions, negotiations are a farce.

DARRYL,

Just like it is up to the Syrian people to decide if they want peace with Israel, it is up to the Israelis to decide on peace. And the fact is I
(and most other Israelis) would never in a million years give the Golan to Assad and reward a brutal dictator that financed the Hamas suicide bombing campaign in Israel. Once Syria becomes a democracy, it is a different story and attitudes in Israel will change.

Alex

Hello.

So for intellectual integrity, I hope you agree
that this horrible act is not incriminating to Hama per se and should not be used as an evidence by the regime’ supporters to prove the armed gang theory as a pretext to invade Hama today. Am I wrong?

AIG,

Since when does Israel care if there’s a brutal dictator somewhere or not? We’ve had diplomatic relations with plenty of nations run by such regimes.

I agree that it is inconceivable right now that Bibi would negotiate with Bashar, but let’s not pretend to be these freedom-loving people who just want to give back the Golan to a democratically-elected regime, rather than a dictatorship.

That same Sinai you spoke of was handed back to a dictator, and we enjoyed a cold-peace and non-war with Egypt ever since. Egypt hasn’t funded Hamas, or Hezbollah, or Iran, and from voices coming out of its “current dictatorship”, it doesn’t plan to do so in the future as well.

Israel seems to be doing just fine without the Sinai. Not giving back the Golan because the Syrian people aren’t free is a nonsensical excuse. I haven’t heard a single Israeli politician ever say it.

Like everything else in Israel, we won’t give it back until we’re forced to.

Hamster ,
the only posts of yours that make sense are the first ones, the ones you write carefully , then you stop making any sense to any one ,when some one talk to you live, you quickly jump to use labels like Mukhabarat shabbiha and what ever comes to your mind, from your limited knowledge of Syria, my country is bleeding and you are enjoying watching and trying to be funny , ,maybe you are funny but please practice that away ,or try to be constructive .

Shai,

Good to see you here. It feels like 2010!

AIG,

Khaled Mashsal enjoyed a good life in Jordan for ten years during the nineties, at the same time King Hussein was Israel’s favorite Arab leader. But you made peace with King Hussein without using the Hamas excuse because you did not have to give back a significant piece of occupied land.

When Mashal finally left King Hussein’s Jordan he was still an extremist who refused to recognize Israel within the 67 borders. While living in Damascus, he was influenced by Syria’s moderate foreign policy and he strongly hinted his organization is now ready to accept Israel within the 67 borders if Israel can also accept the 67 borders settlement. But Your right wing coalition in power is far from that.

Anyway … now many things changed and I would not waste your time with any of that. Let’s just see what takes place in the future.

Tara,

True, but very few You Tube clips can be used as conclusive evidence for either camp.

This particular one carries a 50% reliability for being a Hama related evidence but has a high enough reliability for being an evidence that there are violent anti regime extremists in the country, and that’s the point I was trying to make by posting it… I do not think it is helpful to sit and claim absolute moral superiority to those Syrians we disagree with.

I did see many clips from Hama proper today where young men are armed. All clips uploaded by opposition.

AIG, your comment makes no sense as your leaders have spoken with Hafez Assad and have spoken to Bashar and Syria was not democratic at all and things were the same with Hamas and Hizbo-Allah and what not. Truth is Israel is not interested period unless it is on you own fluid terms, democracy or no democracy. This is standard Israeli protocol to always find an obstacle, which suits the Arab States anyway.

I will bet the house and farm, if Syria goes democratic and I hope it does very soon, Bibi and Likud will have another execuse and the American congress and EU will give them a standing ovation.

If Israelis’ had a conscious, they would have demanded their government draw an immediate treaty and get the Arab states to sign on the Saudi plan. Off course the Israeli controlled congress even dismissed the Saudi plan.

@50 “The source pointed out that while army units were carrying out this task, they were attacked by medium firearms while armed terrorist groups burned a number of police, army and security forces stations and vandalized public facilities.”

Bullshit. Show us the pictures or videos of these burnt out facilities? Yet again, you people cannot back up what comes out of your mouths.

Only a menhebak would be so disgraceful as to justify mass murder against one’s own people. To the Besho Bum Kissers any lie and any atrocity is worth it to keep that incompetent fool in power.

@54 “when you speak of the president try to have a little more respect”

Who, Baffled Bashar? Cro Magnon Maher? The failed eye doctor? The Bungling Brothers? Bashar Al-ath-ath-athad? And I have a few choice words for you, Ali the War Crimes Supporter.

Ya Bashar esma3 wa shoof,
3am en sibak 3al makshoof.

I hope it burns.

@SYAU “Crawl back into your hole,”

And you slither back under the menhebak rocks with the rest of the sycophants. Only a Baathist would keep supporting the disgusting filth who killed in cold blood so many of their countrymen. You people do not deserve to be called Syrian, there is no Syria to the likes of you. To you, it is Athadstan. Not any more losers.

@66 “The revolutionaries want to settle disagreements by forcing the regime out. ”

And the regime wants dialogue? Is that a joke? Fine, maybe you will be the first person to tell me Why is Najati Tayara still in jail.

Enough with the “dialogue” BS, enough with posting videos of the scum in Jisr Al Shoghour who shot up a funeral and themselves got killed by defecting army units. In four months, neither you nor the rest of the regime supporters have offered one shred of evidence for the existence of Salafi/Hariri/Bandarite/Turkish/Lebanese/Jordanian terror gangs.

I will say it again, if junior sends in tanks against a civilian population, the burden of proof is on him to prove it was called for. Posting a video from Jisr al Shoghour and claiming it is in Hama does not come close.

@95 “my country is bleeding ”

Take your fake crocodile tears and shove them. You disgraceful regime supporters bought the country to this point. You are lacking in any moral standing or intellectual honesty. Since you cannot possibly justify the mass murder of Hamwis, you keep posting a video from Jisr al Shoghour. Of course you would feign tears over *scum* who shot up a funeral.

From now on, don’t whine if the civilian population arm themselves and start to fight back. It is the natural response of any people. The *Besho Brigades* were inept against an unarmed populace, you menhebaks shouldn’t hold out any hopes they will do any better once people start to arm themselves.

And don’t go claiming that people are already armed, neither SANA or Dunya TV have offered one shred of proof that is the case.

But then, Besho lovers don’t need proof, they just take things on faith, like some crazy cult.

I would like to ask Alex, since he has taken on the role of defending the regime’s atrocity, whether his analysis of the killed and injured in Hama, leads him to believe that the attack was anything but a random bloody rampage by a regime run amok.

Because as I see it, the menhebaks have, in 24 hours, failed utterly to provide one shred of proof that the armored assault on Hama was justified (you people still haven’t touched on the barbaric assaults on Dayr el Zor and Abukamal and the area around Dar’a).

They just post videos from Jisr al Shoghour to justify 1,600 deaths, blithely ignoring the fact that it was the shabiha scum who shot up a funeral there. Just what do you expect someone to do in such a situation?

Apparently, the regime reserves for itself only the right to retaliation…except when it comes to Israel, of course. Then, junior is as quite as a scared little mouse.

And I will keep repeating the question no mehebak dare answer. Why is Najati Tayara in jail?

If, like a certain clueless menhebak, you don’t know the significance of that question, then you have absolutely no business in preaching dialogue.

Landis said that no group in the opposition has the authority to negotiate with the regime. From what I see, it looks like junior doesn’t seem to have the authority to negotiate with anyone from the opposition.

President al-Assad to Armed Forces: Our National Army Embodies Dignity and Pride, We Will Remain Free in National Decision-Making

Aug 01, 2011

DAMASCUS, (SANA) – President Bashar al-Assad addressed the armed forces in a speech published in the People’s Army magazine on Sunday on occasion of the 66th anniversary of forming the Syrian Arab Army.

In the speech, President al-Assad saluted the members of the armed forces and wished them well on this occasion, saying that since its inception, the Syrian Army was a model of commitment to the nation’s causes and a defender of its rights, proving to be an impregnable fortress foiling the dreams and suspect plans of enemies, allowing Syria to remain a role model of national unity, amity, fraternity and coexistence.

President al-Assad said that Syria, destined to be at the heart of this geo-strategic area, is made the beating heart of the nation by the will of its sons, and that Syrians believe that adherence to national and pan-Arab stances increases the enmity against them, yet they still remain fully confident that Syria is capable of foiling the new chapter in the conspiracy through the awareness of its people and national unity.

The President pointed out that the conspiracy was carefully plotted to fragment Syria in order to fragment the entire area, but the people who concocted the conspiracy forgot that Syria has unique characteristics that make it immune to conspiracies.

“Syria is used to creating victories and defeating the enemies of the country and nation… today we are more determined to follow the course of dignity with sure steps based on personal abilities… it knows how to do it to add a new victories and leave warmongers and blood merchants to taste the bitterness of defeat and disappointment,” President al-Assad said.

The President pointed out that the conspirators wished to cause sedition that leaves nothing behind, but the Syrian people proved bigger than plots and managed to end sedition and make a responsible stand to explore the areas of weakness and deal with them, opening prospects of comprehensive reform that will not stop despite the financial, technological, diplomatic, media and military resources that are deployed against Syria.

“This vicious attack won’t fare any better than the previous ones… all of Syria’s honest people are confident that we will emerge from the crisis more powerful, more present and more effective regionally and internationally,” President al-Assad said, stressing that the Syrian Army proved its loyalty to its people, country and creed, and that its efforts and sacrifices will be admired, adding that these sacrifices succeeded in foiling the enemies of the country and ending sedition, preserving Syria.

President al-Assad said that Syria will present its own model of freedom, democracy and political pluralism, paving the way to a future made by Syrians according to their convictions and interests, not according to what the nation’s enemies want.

The President pointed out that those who think that pressures and conspiracies can make Syria relinquish some of its rights and principles are wrong, and that Syria’s belief in just and comprehensive peace doesn’t mean relinquishing a speck of soil or a drop of water, affirming that the Syrian Arab Golan will remain Arab and Syrian and will return to the homeland Syria.

“We will remain free in our national decision-making and sovereign in our international relations and our resistant course to achieve just and comprehensive peace according to international legitimacy resolutions that stipulate for Israeli withdrawal from the occupied Arab lands up to the June 4th 1967 line… those who bet on other than that are delusional… hardships make us more resilient, conspiracies make us stronger, and pressure causes it to adhere more to our standards and rights that cannot be liquidated or marginalized,” President al-Assad said.

The President affirmed that in spite of its enemies, Syria will remain a symbol of amity, peace, security, safety and stability that preserves the dignity of the state and the dignity of citizens.

President al-Assad concluded by saluting the members of the armed forces, the martyrs who sacrificed their lives for Syria, the families of martyrs, the families of armed forces personnel, and the entire Syrian people who proved capable of preserving national unity and coexistence through national awareness, affirming that a new victory is imminent and a bright future that meets the aspirations of the Syrian people is approaching.

H. Sabbagh
http://sana.sy/eng/21/2011/08/01/361548.htm

Disclaimers:
Discussing anonymous fabricated Youtube videos is like building on quicksand.
A Tweeter with one brain cannot beat a crowd of Retweeters with one neuron.
Words may kill , Videos can massacre .

@ ALI
beautiful!
ok you deflected the question about 3atef najib, slayer of kids and cousin of bashar citing that bashar will deal with him later. ali we live in a “republic” where we have 3 branches. judicial, executive and legislative…its up to the judicial branch to deal with him not bashar.5!!! months have passed and he still lingers in some villa.
about the equal opportunity for being president and the ummmm lets say freedom of speech thingy. i want you to put your life where your mouth is. go to any police station in Syria and say any of the following:
-bashar is a bad president because of his poor administration of state affairs( there is no disrespect and this is truly an opinion)
– i want to be president some day!.
if you manage to return home untouched then you have proven that there truly is freedom of opinion is syria and i will become a supporter of bashar.

the authorities are sending buses full of the shabeeha scum to await taraweeh worshippers. i was in jahez park yesterday and i was surprised that they sent a bus to badr mosque!!( THE VERY MOSQUE BESHO PRAYED IN LAST EID!!) midan was in a huge uproar yesterday, i think the whole Hama incursion just added fuel to the fire.

bashar al assad: putting laughter back into slaughter.

Alex,

I’m still visiting SC. It’s very sad what has taken place over the past number of months. Naturally, I don’t have anything wise to say about it, nor is it my place even if I thought I did.

I pray for the Syrian people, who deserve freedom no less than any other. I still hope the Middle East can become a safe and peaceful place to raise our children in.

Thank you and Joshua for taking care of SC, despite what I’m sure are great difficulties at times.

Ramadan Kareem

Majedkhaldoon and Housam

Ramadan Kareem to you too and to Syria.

Shai

Hello, please add dignity to your prayer too. We appreciate moral support. Thank you

Shai’s Dumb Comparison

I agree with AIG.

Shai,

Mubarak was a “brutal dictator”?

1.) OK, where was the last Egyptian “Hama” where Mubarak flattened an Egyptian city causing some 20,000 deaths?

2.) And where was the lastest Egyptian civil war and how many protesters did the Egyptian government kill?

The answer to 1 and 2 is: none and none

In fact, Mubarak was intelligent enough and decent enough to step down when the Egyptians protesters wouldn’t stop.

Moreover, he signed a peace treaty and did a fairly good job promoting peace in the region. He helped broker talks between Israel and the Palestinians.

Was Mubarak perfect? No, but he is no Assad, and I wouldn’t compare the two.

Here’s the first webpage I found when I Googled “mubarak crimes against humanity”:

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=34956479799

Mubarak’s fault was he despised the MB. Could this be because the MB killed his President Anwar Sadat? I’m sure it had a lot to do with it.

AIG’s point is right-on. Syria’s hand is finally getting bit by the same fanatics they’ve supported for years while trying to thwart peace at every opportunity. No love lost there. And I’m not convinced “muslim fanatics” are leading the Syrian revolution. I believe the Syrian revolution is headed by the poor who have nothing to lose.

If Israel is overrun by the Palestinians, then Israel is to blame and no one else. Similarly, if Syrian Baathism is overrun by democracy seekers, the Baathists are to blame. The difference is Syria remains an independent nation, but Israel becomes another Arab state.

Looks like Assad is going after his own people again, this time, with tanks. I don’t recall Mubarak using tanks against his own people. Oh well….

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-14363559

some guy in damascus.

why are you in such a rush to get things done so quickly? does it really matter if he lives in a tip or a villa? the bottom line is that he is getting dealt with and if found guilty he will be punished. you cant expect everything to be done in the blink of an eye.

why dont you go to the white house and tell Obama to get off his high horse and stop interfering with issues that doesn’t concern him or his country, kill and mutilate the bodies of his security personnel, use “peaceful protesters” to do your dirty work for you, fabricate as many videos as you possibly can and gather as many of those pathetic low life salafi thugs and try to kill the economy.

im sure he wont give you a hug and a kiss for being honest.

Allah yehmik ya Assad elkel

i made up the whole go to the police station proposal to highlight an issue: that there is no freedom of opinion in syria.
you replied by telling me to go to the white house and tell obama :”to get off his high horse and stop interfering with issues that doesn’t concern him or his country…..”
im sure if i did that infront of the white house, no one would lay a finger on me( there have been many pro-regime demonstration infront of the white house, and no one harmed them)
so im telling you again, do you think you can go to any police station in syria and say:
-bashar is a bad president because of his poor administration of state affairs
– i want to be president some day!.
im pretty sure if you did that you would find your self in trouble.

Generic Sycophant @107

“and gather as many of those pathetic low life salafi thugs”

And what does it say about your shabiha scum that after almost five months you haven’t managed to subdue what you call the salafi thugs, even with the resources of the state on your side?

Feeble. Completely and utterly feeble. We could lose half the generic menhebaks here and it wouldn’t make a difference, they all just yap the same thing.

Hey menhebaks, this is a real teaser for you lot.

Last week, there was supposedly

1) An attack on a train near Homs

2) An attack on the military academy in Homs

3) An attack on a pipeline near Homs

And yet what are the Besho Brigades doing? Attacking Hama, Dayr el Zour and Abukamal.

So either the security forces are utterly inept, or not even the regime believes its own tales of saboteurs. There is just no way around it, your president is either a liar or an incompetent, and that’s the best case scenarios.

If I was a menhebak (there but for the grace of God go I), I’d be livid that nothing was being done to track down these so called saboteurs. Tsk tsk, how shocking.

Besho thinks by massacring Hama, this will come to an end. if Hama were to be Massacred…Damascus will wake up. the crowds of midan yesterday were huuuuuuugeeeeeee.

people shouldn’t be afraid of their governments, governments should be afraid of it’s people.

I’m watching the regime trumpet Ahmed Haj Ali on Al-Jazeera. The guy sounds hysterical, like a teenager who isn’t allowed out on a school day. The pressure of trying to come up with more lies must be getting to him.

Akbar,

Please adopt the age-old practice of careful reading. Did I call Mubarak a “brutal dictator”? No, I didn’t even make reference to Mubarak. If you read carefully, you’ll see that I said “dictator”, and made clear reference to Anwar Sadat. I said we gave back the Sinai to “a dictator”, which of course both Anwar Sadat and Mubarak have been.

The excuse of “brutal dictator” also doesn’t work with Bashar’s case, because prior to 4 months ago none of you could have called him that. Bashar was not his father, and despite their identical last name, Bashar (as of 4 months ago) did not exhibit the same level of brutality as his father did in Hama. You, and AIG, had a different excuse prior to 4 months ago, and now it’s “brutal dictator”. The excuses change with the wind.

My point was that Israel is friend to many a dictators, and not giving back the Golan until the Syrian people are “free”, is nonsense.

Shai’s Excuses Nothwithstanding

The excuse of “brutal dictator” also doesn’t work with Bashar’s case, because prior to 4 months ago none of you could have called him that.

OK Shai,

Why don’t you spell out the “brutal dictator(s)” you were referring to when you stated:

Since when does Israel care if there’s a brutal dictator somewhere or not? We’ve had diplomatic relations with plenty of nations run by such regimes.

We were discussing Mubarak when you mentioned the term “brutal dictator”, so why not just give us your list showing all these “plenty of nations” Israel has relations with. In fact, of the 5 or 6 nations the US State Dept has on the list of nations that support terrorism, Israel has no relations with ANY of them.

You, and AIG, had a different excuse prior to 4 months ago, and now it’s “brutal dictator”.

Really? AIG has been saying for YEARS that Israel should only be negotiating with a democratic Syrian leadership. At the same time, I said Syria needed to drop their relationship with the leading terror regime of Iran before concluding an agreement, realizing democracy in Syria was probably an impossibility.

It has been the Israeli liberals who want to negotiate with anybody, anywhere, for anything with the most repressive regimes out there.

Once again, the Israeli liberals have been shown to be the idiots. First with Arafat and now with “Junior” (hat tip: Aboud).

PS – Did you buy your tent yet?

106. AKBAR PALACE said:

Firstly, your logic is impeccable being only one way, that is the Israeli misleading way. Mubarak promoting peace and signed treaty, with who? Under this promotion of peace, the Palestinians lost more land, Jewish west bank population went from 10 thousand Jewish squatters to over 500 thousands, Palestinian lands now look like Swiss cheese dotted with Jewish settlements, Many Palestinian children and innocent lives lost, Many Jewish lives lost and peace between Syria and Israel was undermined. But I tell you, with all that, he probably deserved the Nobel peace prize much better than Obama who did bugger all, at least Mubarak helped Israel more than Obama and for that he should have won it, the only reason he didn’t get it because he can’t run for US presidency, the other bugger can.

“Mubarak’s fault was he despised the MB. Could this be because the MB killed his President Anwar Sadat? I’m sure it had a lot to do with it.”

This statement is far from the truth, as he ruled with their consent behind closed doors and permitted the Saudi backed Salafi movement to flourish and Egyptian society became more sectarian than any other time in the history of Egypt. Compare how many Copts were killed under his presidency, how many Churches were destroyed and how badly the Copts faired under his rule compared with previous presidents.

“In fact, Mubarak was intelligent enough and decent enough to step down when the Egyptians protesters wouldn’t stop.”

You have by now made a fool of your self, he was basically shoved out of the job by Tantawi and the military echelon most likely by pointing a gun at his head. The military council made a back door coup against him and his son, otherwise he would have died in office. In hind sight, it was a strategic miscalculation that will cost him his life anyway.

at any rate you should flood the internet with letters of support for Mr Mubarak, as history will prove he was the best friend Israel had and will ever have in the Middle East. He actually can use a few good Layers from New York to get him off on perhaps insanity plea.

How is it that Al-Jazeera can get a live feed from Hama, but Al-Dunya and Syrian state TV don’t dare?

I’m not surprised the menhebaks would sooner get whipped than answer my question from #110. I’ll just repeat it here.

Besho Bum Kissers, if, as the regime claims, there were terrorist attacks near Homs against a train, pipeline and the military academy, why haven’t we seen military operations to catch the culprits? Why instead is the army killing unarmed civilians in Hama, Abukamal and Dayr el Zour?

That’s the kind of analysis I expect to see on this blog; the regime seems quite unconcerned with alleged acts of sabotage, but will murder dozens to prevent Ramadan demonstrations.

Darryl’s “Logic” Redux

Darryl states:

Firstly, your logic is impeccable being only one way, that is the Israeli misleading way. Mubarak promoting peace and signed treaty, with who? Under this promotion of peace, the Palestinians lost more land…

Darryl,

When dealing with Israel and the Palestinians, I’m afraid “logic” is the first thing that gets thrown out the window. As I’ve noted before, Israel and the Palestinians are judged by a whole set of criteria apart from the rest of the ME.

How is returning sovereignty of Gaza for nothing in return except missiles “losing more land”?

You have by now made a fool of your self, he was basically shoved out of the job by Tantawi and the military echelon most likely by pointing a gun at his head.

Darryl,

So Mubarak is a criminal and the “military echelon” saved Egypt. Yet, Mubarak takes full responsibility when he’s in power w/o demonstrations. The bottom line is, the Mubarak and the military echelon were one and the same. I hope the military leaders today actually come through and implement a true multi-party democracy. At this point, it is too early to tell.

And if the military continues to rule Egypt w/o free elections, who do we blame next?

… as history will prove he was the best friend Israel had and will ever have in the Middle East.

So what? You’re not happy you got the Sinai back? Is that all you care about, who’s friends with Israel or not?

Shai,

I keep telling you what Israelis want, and you keep telling me what Israeli politicians did in the past. Well it turns out that what I have been saying for years is right. I said that Israel should not waste time on Arab dictators because they will be gone soon and the treaties with them will be worthless. And lo and behold, exactly what I say has come to pass.

Israelis see the changes around them and understand that taking chances for peace with Arab dictators is stupid. If we had followed your advice, we would be having huge problems now and we would be in a position of having to support Assad to save a worthless peace treaty. We would be on the wrong side of history and denying people freedom and dignity exactly like the stand some of our politicians took on Egypt, a stand that is despicable. Our long term interest lies in peace with the people, not the dictators and we must stand with the demands of the Arab people for freedom and dignity. We must never support dictators just because we have vested short term interest in stability.

And just pointing out mistakes Israel made in the past, will not help your argument which at the bottom line is anti-democracy to the core. There is a new wind blowing in the middle east. Feel the breeze.

Alex,

Hamas was funded and aided by Damascus during the second intifada, not by Jordan or anyone else. That is when Hamas killed 1000 Israelis with suicide bombings. They bombed discos, buses, restaurants, hotels. While Israeli children were being blown up, Assad was sitting in Damascus and laughing. If you think the Israeli public has such a short memory, you are just wrong.

So really the crocodile tears of the regime supporters about religious extremism and religious terrorism are really hilarious. As a supporter of religious terrorism, why are you complaining about it?

ME Myth No. 49C

“It’s the Occubation Stubid!”

AIG, Hamas was funded by rich Arab states private donations. Damascus is not too rich.
And don’t forget that Israel is the one that was so smart in the beginning to help establish Hamas.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123275572295011847.html

And the US is at it now again trying to promote more extremists:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/03/19/extremists-among-libya-rebels_n_837894.html

About yesterday’s clip, a friend sent me his photos from last June (2010) of Jisr Elsheghoor’s bridge, Hama on the Assi river, and I added a snapshot that shows the bridge from which the bodies were dumped. It is not on Jisr Elsheghoor’s bridge (after which the city is named). It is near a city because of its construction. Someone from that area should be able to find out near which town or city it is.

https://www.joshualandis.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/el-assi-bridges.jpg

Alex

Could be a city in..Iraq?

Why was it uploaded on you tube specifically yesterday for the first time while the regime was killing 145 mostly in Hama? To create a noise? To blur the truth.

No. The accent is absolutely Syrian … closer to Hama accent than Jisr Elsheghoor accent.

This it NOT in el-ghab for sure (there are hills).

This is not Hama and not Jisr … there aren’t many pridges on el-assi btw. Someone can go to Google Earth and find potential bridges.

Why was this uploaded now? … just like both sides upload clips that suit their argument. Is is evil for one side to engage in propaganda but not the others?

Btw .. this was uploaded by an opposition FB page too. some of their members were first proud of it.

Alex

Like there is a restricted access to upload links to anti regime members on the revolution websites. I have not heard that they give their supporters password to identify them as anti regime in order to leave a link. Any electronic shabeeh could have linked it.

I am not denying that it could’ve happened in Syria. Actually, incidents of counter-violence is an expected reaction anywhere. I do not condone it but it is a natural consequence of persistently bloody events.

Alex,

At this point, Syria is killing more Arabs than Israel. Why?

Because the president you’ve supported all these years doesn’t want to share power with his own people. Did the people launch missiles at population centers like Hamas and Hezbollah? No.

Their crime was demonstrating.

Now the Syrian government is pulling an “Iraq”/”Afghanistan” by shooting everything in sight and pointing outward.

The mess the Assad regime has created and is RESPONSIBLE for should be returned to the Assads in kind.

That’s the situation in a nutshell. Hope you’re happy.

AIG,

You said: “I keep telling you what Israelis want…” Well, you’re not. Besides you, I’ve never heard a single Israeli (politician or not) utter those words. No one, besides you, ever said we should wait to make peace with democratic Arab states. As you well know, the two peace treaties we’ve signed were with non-democracies, and I don’t see anyone in Israel claiming that “the treaties with them will be worthless…” Again, it is only YOU that makes these ludicrous claims. I challenge you to provide proof that anyone in Israel supports your thesis, either today, or in the past.

You said: “We must never support dictators just because we have vested short term interest in stability.” I’ll answer this one for Akbar’s sake as well.

So how come Israeli leaders haven’t thought of that one? Why did Israel support the regime of the Shah of Iran? Why did Israel arm and train troops that protected the Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos? How about Israel’s super-close political, military, and economic ties with the Apartheid regime of South Africa? What about the same, very lucrative, relations with Zaire, Haiti, Chile, or Nicaragua?

Please, let’s stop playing this pretend-game. Israel has NEVER been about dealing only with democracies. Democracy is not amongst the top of the list of Israeli interests, and it never has been.

I’m feeling the breeze alright. I see that “Jewish Spring” arriving only after it arrived in the Arab world. Funny how the children of non-democracies are teaching us how and when to speak up against the ruling “regime”. That hasn’t happened in Israel in a very very long time.

No Akbar, I haven’t bought my tent yet. But those tents will soon make your friends and relatives in the West Bank settlement of Efrat feel very uncomfortable. I would not want to be in their shoes right now…

Shai,

I cannot understand why you are defending the Assad regime and its brutality. Are those the kind of people you want to do business with? I do not trust Assad at all. And most Israelis are just like me.

As usual, you keep pointing out to mistakes made by Israeli politicians in the past. What are you trying to prove? That we should repeat our mistakes? Dealing with dictators at the expense of their people is dumb and Israel should not do it. I am not the only one that says this. There are plenty of people in Israel that are waking up to this reality. I don’t have time right now to find links but when the Arab Spring begun, there were quite a few columnist in Israel that supported my view.

Wanted: GPS for lost Israeli liberal

Funny how the children of non-democracies are teaching us how and when to speak up against the ruling “regime”.

Shai,

What’s wrong, you can’t vote? Drop the melodrama and kiss your tahat you don’t live under any of the 22 Arab “utopias”.

(right, signing a peace treaty with Egypt and Jordan along with the international community was a “mistake”….NOT!)

Tara, … without getting into “what if a regime supporter pretending to be a revolutionary” scenarios that are possible but invite similar suspicions on absolutely anything we see online, the point of this clip is to show that regime supporters also have fears of the very real violence on the other side. It does not help to engage in chicken and egg discussions (“this started only after the regime committed violence”). Being able to murder like these men did, does not come after the regime commits violence. It takes a built-in compatibility with such violence.

I find many supporters of both sides who write repulsive statements … many pro regime types write “Burn Daraaa and all its traitors”, and revolutionaries write “God will help us drink the blood of Assad’s supporters”

Akbar,

I have a long answer to your impressions, coming soon.

Alex,

Hamas was funded and supported by the Assad regime. Its leadership was given a safe haven during the second intifada and Assad was delighted to see Hamas so successful and Israeli kids being blown up. Isn’t this what you call his brilliant foreign policy?

Israel did not found Hamas. Yes, Israel tolerated Hamas because it thought it could be a good counter to Fatah but quickly realized that this is a mistake. Once Hamas started being violent, Israel stopped supporting them. However your Assad supported them BECAUSE they were violent and because they helped his regional standing.

So now you are complaining about religious extremism after calling Assad a genius for exploiting it? So again I ask, are you only against religious extremism when it is targeted at you? All the crocodile tears by regime supporters about religious extremism and terrorism are hilarious. Having problems taking your own medicine? If Assad who you support had the right to us religious extremism to further his goals, why can’t others?

Happy, safe, and peaceful Ramadan to all!

AIG,

Of course I’m not supporting brutal dictators. Only a twisted mind would gather that from my words. I am pointing out the hypocrisy, and inaccuracy, in suggesting that Israel has ever cared about democracies in the region. Will it start to care now? I don’t know. Like you, of course I hope it will.

But we must also be realistic. Like America, we too have growing diplomatic, military, and economic relations with China. Its record of human rights is well known. It is the farthest thing from Democracy. And yet we say nothing, and do nothing. When it comes to our interests, I have yet to hear a leader place democracy and freedom up top, or anywhere for that matter.

Akbar,

I haven’t thought of that one – the GPS – could be very useful for your Efrat buddies soon. They need to be reminded how to get back into Israel.

I love your “would you rather live there” comparisons. Reminds me of AIG’s defense of the great lives Israeli Arabs enjoy in Israel, far better than anywhere in the Arab World. I used to compare that to an Alabaman in the 50’s suggesting “his negroes” are faring far better than they would, in Africa.

AIG,

Enjoying moral superiority it seems?
I answered everything you are repeating here a hundred times already. I learned a long time ago that you only listen to your own words. Just search the comments section if you miss reading my opinion.

Alex

I don’t disagree. It does take an inherent capacity to commit atrocious murders like what the clip showed and I could never claim that the anti- regime are all angels.

The problem, as I see it, is that while most of the anti regime, at least on SC, acknowledge the fear of the minorities, most of the pro regime can not see the vast majority of the demonstrators for what they really are, average people some want bread and most want freedom and dignity. They paint us all as either MB or conspirators. They refused to give any legitimacy to the revolution and therefore the only solution in their eyes is to crush it all. They continue to thrive in a denials stage of the legitimacy of this revolution and refuse to accept the facts.

Alex,

When the regime you favor is killing and putting in prison its own people moral superiority is very easy to come by. It takes a special kind of regime to kill and suffocate its own. And yes, almost all other regimes are morally superior to it.

Well well, just after spirits were raised somewhat with the election bill getting discussed we see appalling number of deaths and injuries again and denounced by more and more countries.

Of course because of the lack of medias on the ground and again contradictory accounts, the tit for tat arguments won’t end.

For heaven’s sake pro-regimers, have a bit of compassion and at least agree that you can be anti-islamist / sectarian and still condemn this murderous behaviour. How can you think you are superior, with the ‘best’ solution to avoid sectarian war ? You can also firmly be against all forms of sectarian violence if you are so intellectually superior. You could also accept that there are also armed civilians who have attacked other civilians.

At the same time, those who refuse to accept that there are armed gangs who have done nasty things, people who are brainwashed so much that their brains are reduced to dried up soap powder, believing the same monotonous soap opera for 1400 years, could realize that these repeated denials doesn’t make them sound credible.

Violence begets violence, this is obvious and isn’t the best solution. I do agree with many of Aboud’s positions and arguments, but his call for (or acceptance of) armed defence isn’t really the best solution. I know that people must be desperate, but the enemy has the force and they will die. That’s not a solution, as much as they idealize martyrism. A life is a life, all are equal. I am against the death penalty, even for the worst criminals. Life must be valued over death and that is a serious problem with muslims.

The problem about foreign intervention :

This is not clear when people say that they are against, because we realize that some are meaning ‘the west, or ‘zionists’ and others mean Iran, Iraq or even Turkey. (So glad that they are standing out with condemnations)

I saw the same arguments in 2009 with the Iranian opposition, they were tweeting ‘no foreign intervention’, and others ‘where is foreign support ?’ So it’s wrong if you do and wrong if you don’t.

As a guy on Aljazeera has just said, ‘it’s a real mess, we can’t get involved’.

At least the Russians are finally waking up and agree to condemn this terrible behaviour.

The only solution as I see it today is that syrians stop all this silly and dangerous denial of “their” favourite sides’ wrongdoings, and unite on a general platform with pledges to real elections and democratic education, with all the needed support – independent medias, training, from trusted and competent people, clever civil disobedience in front of tanks and regime crackdown, and tons of other things that I’m sure the real people involved will know about..

And, not follow this health masochism called ramadan that makes people faint from dehydration and over-eating when they should be sleeping, and dizzy when they should be making important decisions.

I totally agree. Nothing inferior morally to killing your own people. Nothing! It is an act not comparable to any.

Tara, if that’s in reply to me, so true, thnx

Tara,

I agree that dignity is (and should be) near the top of the reasons those young people are demonstrating. The behavior of many (not all) in the security forces is a disaster.

But everyone who is asking for maximal demands is guaranteeing that more people will die… demonstrators have many legitimate demands but when they insist on killing bashar or on regime change, they are asking for a civil war or for foreign invasion of Syria. The regime’s mistakes do not justify any one who takes us to civil war.

In Lebanon you still have the same Walid Jumblatts, Gemayels, Geagea, and Aoun who are responsible for 250,000 people dying in Lebanon’s civil war. Everyone decided to forgive them and move on.

But if some Syrians are more interested in revenge then they will get bloodshed like they’ve never seen before … the problem is that the majority of Syrians want progress and not revenge. It is really unfair for the extremists on both sides to force the country into a deeper hole. Extremists include:

1) Security forces that rely on violence and humiliation before exhausting all other possibilities

2) Salafi takfiri types (we have many)

3) demonstrators and their supporters who will accept nothing less that overthrowing the regime and humiliating or killing the President and many more.

4) Regime supporters who just can’t understand that old style worship of the President and wanting him “forever” and humiliating supporters of demonstrators is bad for the country and for the President they love.

Stop Hassling Bashar Assad NewZ

But we must also be realistic.

Shai,

I’d rather be a liberal idelogue and talk about “negroes”. It makes me feel better.

@Alex

you sound like a balanced person, you agree with me then ? Your #/4 seems to be THE point.. but we will see

Tara,

Please notice that according to Alex there are no extremists in the regime itself. Please notice also that Alex is not willing to say that the regime is responsible for the violence. He is not willing to say that the regime should release all political prisoners or say when free elections will happen. It is always the protesters asking too much that are responsible for things. Not, according the Alex, the regime even though it is the most organized force in Syria.

Alex

Agree with all you stated in principal. Agree that majority of Syrians want progress and not revenge that can lead us to civil war. I hear it from many and I want the same. What majority of Syrians do not want though is pseudo- progress and Pseudo-reform. While Bashar and company do not miss an opportunity to express that Syria would “export democracy” to the world in the future, there has been no SINGLE measure of real reform apparent to make the mass trust him. Do you know any?

AIG, I am not interested in discussing whatever is making you so enthusiastic these days. You love to criticize the Syrian weather when it is raining. Have fun for it is raining these days.

Tara, yes, there are improvements but there is no consistency…

If you demonstrate against item number 8, hey would love to host you on Syrian TV as a credible opposition figure. But they are not too friendly to demonstrators who want to kill Bahsar and his family.

Most of those who traveled to Turkey to take part in opposition conferences or called Aljazeera calling for an end to Assad are mostly still free (very few of them were arrested, for a week I think).

The opposition conference that was held in Damascus … not perfect, but a serious improvement.

Remember that in Egypt it is going slower … changing the head of the regime will not change much. It will take years anyway. Until then there will be ups and downs… two steps forward, one back.

Now we have more freedom of speech but more political detainees .. but they do not stay in prison for decades like their fathers used to… but they still get slapped and humiliated verbally…

I’ll write more later. working on a long article.

Alex,

I want freedom and dignity for the Syrian people. The difference between us is that you think the Assad regime can deliver it, and I don’t. I have been saying for years that what happened in Syria and Egypt is inevitable. You were saying that reforms over 7-10 years were needed and perhaps even longer, all the while the reforms never came but the 7-10 time horizon remained. And here we are.

Hi. I’m an American living in California. I just wanted to say that I support the protestors! You all are very brave. Power to the Syrian people! We here in California ARE WITH YOU!!!!!

ALICCIE

My #4 goes with #3 … both groups of Syrians need to move to the center in their demands and expectations. New parties, removing item 8, allowing totally free elections. Deciding on practical timing considerations and details in National dialogue

AIG

And I still believe that the 7-10 year range was the wiser one, but most of the Syrian people want faster reforms. That acceleration will come at an increased price and risk… I am still not interested in paying that price but if most of the Syrian people want to pay that price in exchange for accelerated reforms then that is what we will have.

Alex is here today. Lately, he is only around when Master Bashar and his thugs commit major atrocities.
Yes. It is OK to ask for dignity but not freedom. How dare these people ask for their rights? They have way too many demands. So you know where Alex lives right now (Canada) that is punishable by death. Stop dehumanizing and belittling the Syrian people.

The majority of the Syrian people want this family and their thugs out. Yes the whole gang needs to be removed from power. Souria does not belong to the Assads or any other family for that matter. It belongs to all of us.

We need to have free elections and not secret polling. If the majority elects the stupidest most backward person on earth, that person will get my respect as long as he/she respects the rule of the law.

I wonder how many people in the MidEast would vote for Master Bashar in a popularity contest.

Alicci,
Right on.

Alex

You need to name a single concrete evidence of a serious reform measure. Serious by objective standards. You, I’m sure realize, can’t impress a Mamnhebak with a subjective feeling of how the Damascus opposition meeting went on as we all saw a guy being beaten up by ” intellectual” sabbiha.

The issue here, Alex, is Syrians are not stupid nor are they children. I do not mean to sound a bit aggressive discussing the issue with you. It ain’t my intention. The regime continues to underestimate our intelligence, misguided that hollow words of refom could impress us. It is a different generation altogather. People are objectively evaluating the steps taken by the regime and finding no substance.

Alex,

Don’t you see that most Syrians are already paying a huge price because of Assad’s insistence on staying in power? He has made millions of Syrians hopeless. Only his quick removal can change that. The risk you were taking and it blew up in your face was not insisting on fast enough reforms. You believed the status quo would hold for many years because you believed Assad was really liked and that he was doing good things for Syria. You were wrong.

Ziadsoury, you are too smart for me. I will have to concede to everything you wrote.

Tara, I will leave my computer now, but will answer your last comment:

You decided to pick on the second meeting where a man was attacked for calling for overthrowing the regime, and not the first opposition meeting which included respected opposition figures like Louai Hussein and Jawdat Said.

http://youtu.be/Vgs95pseo5M

You also decided to ignore the other parts I mentioned.

When people are this selective, they are biased (we all are to various degrees) … they do not want to see anything but the information that is harmonious with their biases.

As I said earlier, there are many steps backward recently and if you want to feel comfortable with the position you took (the regime is only playing tricks) then you will find enough negativity from the regime to justify your views.

148. ziadsoury said:

“If the majority elects the stupidest most backward person on earth, that person will get my respect as long as he/she respects the rule of the law.”

The rest of your comment was reasonable, how come this bit ?? In case you don’t understand your comment, it means that you will accept anyone, however stupid, ‘if he respects the law’, but if he’s stupid, he WON’T respect any law.

This is Hama this week:

Continued prayers for Syria.

The nation has great potential. It must be a centre of stability, order, benevolence and expansiveness. I am sure the vast majority of Syrians want to live in peace amongst themselves and their neighbours.

Guest Post: BRICS in the UNSC and the Prospects for Syria

Posted on Monday, August 1, 2011

http://blogs.cfr.org/patrick/2011/08/01/guest-post-brics-in-the-unsc-and-the-prospects-for-syria/

Iran issues tough warning to Turkey on Syria

Monday, August 1, 2011

http://www.worldtribune.com/worldtribune/WTARC/2011/me_iran0958_08_01.asp

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[…] and Shaikh are convinced that government led dialogue with the opposition that Patrick Seale  recommends is fruitless. In this, they are so far correct. But they tip-toe around Seale’s central […]