Editorial by Ben Reinach
The situation in Syria has made a move in the right direction since the ordeal began with what seems to be a peaceful compromise that the United States, Russia, and Syria can all agree on.
The story all started with Bashar al-Assads use of chemical weapons on innocent civilians. Reports and video evidence flooded the front pages of social media websites on August 21st. The Syrian Government strongly denied the use of chemical weapons, going as far as stating that these “false claims” were influenced by Western opinion. These comments were not at all truthful seeing that hospitals reported patients being admitted with neurotoxic symptoms the very same day. As time went on, The United States became involved in figuring out the best solution for removing these chemical weapons. At first, President Barack Obama discussed the use of cruise missiles to fire at key targets yet as time progressed a stunning turn of events took place during a meeting between Russia, The United States, and Syria. Russia proposed that the chemical weapons that Syria had be placed under international control as to prevent any further Syrian deaths and to remove the threat of military retaliation by the US. The United States gave an unexpected answer to an unexpected question by stating that the proposal was an acceptable compromise. These series of events are a rare occurrence in today’s politics when every party involved is satisfied by an agreement. The sudden action taken by the US is slightly worrisome due to how the US Government prioritizes their actions based on the information they receive. Before the use of chemical weapons, Syria was in civil unrest due to gun battles in the streets, car bombs either injuring or killing innocent civilians, and attacks on embassies. These actions are just as serious as the use of chemical weapons yet the United States only takes interest when an illegal weapon is involved. I would prefer that the US at least recognize these everyday occurrences and act accordingly in a non-violent manner. This could be in the form of constructing a more fortified embassy building or having a larger perimeter between the city streets and the embassy buildings to make room for a screening process so that any bomb that went off would be set off at a distance that wouldn’t cause harm on the streets or in the embassy.
I was honestly surprised to hear that President Barrack Obama was considering military action instead of seeking out a more diplomatic solution as his first option. The more peaceful solution could improve Obama’s self image and could be seen as a step in the right direction towards a less militarized view of the United States.
The United States role as the “world police” has gone on for decades and is a role that other world powers exploit when a situation such as Syria develops. I’m not saying that the United States hasn’t helped in the past by providing military support though it would be a nice change of pace to see the US Government only involve themselves with the diplomatic end of the situation rather than the military. After the meeting between the US, Syria, and Russia the tension of there being possible Military action by the US government has been greatly reduced with Syria agreeing to hand over the chemical weapons so that they may be placed under international control, the final verdict has not been reached and remains open ended. I strongly support a non-aggressive conclusion to this potential war starter and remain skeptical to how each party will react and respond to each other’s actions.
The story all started with Bashar al-Assads use of chemical weapons on innocent civilians. Reports and video evidence flooded the front pages of social media websites on August 21st. The Syrian Government strongly denied the use of chemical weapons, going as far as stating that these “false claims” were influenced by Western opinion. These comments were not at all truthful seeing that hospitals reported patients being admitted with neurotoxic symptoms the very same day. As time went on, The United States became involved in figuring out the best solution for removing these chemical weapons. At first, President Barack Obama discussed the use of cruise missiles to fire at key targets yet as time progressed a stunning turn of events took place during a meeting between Russia, The United States, and Syria. Russia proposed that the chemical weapons that Syria had be placed under international control as to prevent any further Syrian deaths and to remove the threat of military retaliation by the US. The United States gave an unexpected answer to an unexpected question by stating that the proposal was an acceptable compromise. These series of events are a rare occurrence in today’s politics when every party involved is satisfied by an agreement. The sudden action taken by the US is slightly worrisome due to how the US Government prioritizes their actions based on the information they receive. Before the use of chemical weapons, Syria was in civil unrest due to gun battles in the streets, car bombs either injuring or killing innocent civilians, and attacks on embassies. These actions are just as serious as the use of chemical weapons yet the United States only takes interest when an illegal weapon is involved. I would prefer that the US at least recognize these everyday occurrences and act accordingly in a non-violent manner. This could be in the form of constructing a more fortified embassy building or having a larger perimeter between the city streets and the embassy buildings to make room for a screening process so that any bomb that went off would be set off at a distance that wouldn’t cause harm on the streets or in the embassy.
I was honestly surprised to hear that President Barrack Obama was considering military action instead of seeking out a more diplomatic solution as his first option. The more peaceful solution could improve Obama’s self image and could be seen as a step in the right direction towards a less militarized view of the United States.
The United States role as the “world police” has gone on for decades and is a role that other world powers exploit when a situation such as Syria develops. I’m not saying that the United States hasn’t helped in the past by providing military support though it would be a nice change of pace to see the US Government only involve themselves with the diplomatic end of the situation rather than the military. After the meeting between the US, Syria, and Russia the tension of there being possible Military action by the US government has been greatly reduced with Syria agreeing to hand over the chemical weapons so that they may be placed under international control, the final verdict has not been reached and remains open ended. I strongly support a non-aggressive conclusion to this potential war starter and remain skeptical to how each party will react and respond to each other’s actions.