Syria Today 02/26/2012….A Tale of Two Syrian women…. And a Butcher’s Referendum...by Jamil Shawwa

These two Syrian women below represent Syria today; the first is for A Syrian woman carrying her referendum voting card with two circles, the green to indicate an approval for the new constitution that the Syrian president Bashar Al-Assad- picture in the back- proposed, and a grey circle that indicates a non-approval. The second woman is carrying the freedom banner; the banner that will prevail in Syria, soon. As for the referendum, Al- Assad will continue to cook the books and rig the ballot boxes and forge the will of the Syrian people, but might fake it even more this time; might not get the famous pre Arabs Rise, 99.999% approval rating. But forget Al-Assad for few moments- he is a tiny historical footnote that will disappear soon, and look at their eyes; the eyes of these two un-known Syrian victims of Al-Assad; in the first, the one carrying the card, you see pain, and fear and tragedy. And in the second you see hope, victory, and triumph. Syrian women, throughout history, have been famous in hiding their pain from their butchers and "their husbands " and appear joyful, while inside, they are torn apart.

Now that I have presented in a professional and unbiased manner that piece of news, it is time for me to show a side, a professional side too but custom tailored and fits only Al-Assad; the dictator and murderer that he and his family, tribe and party- Al-Ba’ath -have been in a continuous state of rape to everything that exists in Syria. I’m only talking record; his record. I want to see the results of this referendum. On the other hand, let me put it this way, Al-Assad as I have been saying since March of 2011 and much before actually, since 11/02/2005, check ArabAmericanWire http://arabamericanwire.blogspot.com/2005/11/begining-of-end-of-baath-in-syria.html that Al-Assad is gone. He and his family and his party and his militia, and his gangs, and his mercenaries, and his killers and his rapist, are finished. The process now is for a transition and he is playing a game, maybe, according to some news reports, with the so called friends of Syria to transition. Let us see, who knows, maybe Al-Assad will leave without committing a suicide, like the rest of his party elites have been doing since 1963 when the axe falls.

Homs.....You City of Fools...By Jamil Shawwa

The tyrants are burning you and burning your children; it is their daily ritual to compensate for their manhood’s inferiority complex, and their criminal souls. The city that has been and still is to all Syrians, except for you the Homsies, probably, the village fools, is making history on a daily basis. What a shame; it is making history for being butchered by merciless mercenaries, their own countrymen.The Syrian government, army, party; in Syria, all are one and the same, left the Syrian people with no other choice but to use violence. How can you can kill peaceful demonstrators, kill their children going to schools, kill their women and mothers and men going shopping and expect nothing but Obedience and ongoing slavery style acceptance. The Syrian people have been enslaved for over 40 years, by butchers who have no mercy, and no sense of humanity. The time is now for the people there to reclaim their very basic human rights; to live as humans, free from dictatorship, free from arbitrary prosecution and illegal arrests and seizure and to enjoy freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and the right to go to the streets peacefully and ask for change. The time is now for every Arab country including Gaza and the West Bank were Hamas and the PLO rules, to hold their oppressive rulers accountable, do it now, because if not now, when. Another Syrian city, Idleb, is not letting Homs to cry alone, and is not letting Homs alone to have "the honorific" of being the only Syrian city of fools; all Syrian cities are competing- and slowly but surely, the prime cities in Syria, Aleppo and Damascus, will follow suit very forcefully-to be called the cities  of fools in support of  Hama, Homs and Idleb, they are  jumping in and in thunderous voice, to protest, a Syrian nightmare, a UN Security Council No action on the fate of Al-Assad which just added fuel to the fire that is raging in every Syrian house and every Syrian heart. The Russians and the Chinese might have tried to save what appears to be a manhood inferiority complex, has made the rest of the world aware, even more, of the plight of the Syrian people. Syria is crying this morning and every morning, but with joy of what is coming ahead and not of what looks like temporary setbacks. Al-Assad is starting to say his goodbyes and packing his luggage; but those Ba’athist, based on history, commit suicide, they do not retreat with dignity; they hate a word called dignity. The US closed its embassy in Damascus and ordered the diplomats to leave. The US Representative at the UN, Dr. Rice, said few days ago that Al-Assad days are numbered and that he is in his way out. But it is those Protesters that are taking over and setting the agenda from the politicians. Taking this human cause to the streets of the world because it is the decade and the century of the protesters everywhere. The time to act is now. The protesters are adding momentum where the politicians all over the world have failed.  And you, Homs, “the city of the fools” as the Syrians, your countrymen, call you, refuses but to stand up for the forces of evil and despair. You the city of fools are defending those that have always looked down at you and your residents. Al-Assad is a goner, a scratch note in a scratch book, but it is the book, not the scratch note that will endure. Is it destiny that the "fools" lead the historical Arab rising in their respective countries; it was that poor disillusioned Tunisian peddler that ignited the flame that started to uproot the dictators of the Arab countries who thought that they were immune and protected in their castles of fear and shame, it was those Egyptians in the cities and towns that forced the dictator to abdicate. The same "fools" in Libya, Yemen and the rest coming and will follow. I'm now looking for more “fools” in every Arab country and Iran, and the West Bank and Gaza- to face the PLO and Hamas- who can ignite the dormant flame and can bring the best in every human. The price is so high, but it  is ok, we, the self-proclaimed intellectuals have nothing to worry about, we are all over the world, and claiming and suggesting, we do not have to worry, we have the " fools" doing the job, and then we will set around and set back, and claim ownership and claim victory , and the Fools or whoever remained from them, will be there with us, smiling, and clapping and cheering ; they made it happen, and we ,falsely, will claim victory.  Long live the cities of fools; long live Homs and Hama and Idleb, keep up the sacrifices, and do not worry about us, when the time comes, we will be there for you , first to cry your courage and then to claim your victory.

Liverpool And not Manchester United by Jamil Shawwa

While in Gaza, the English  football was one of those premier sports events that I used to watch, in addition to the football in Gaza, the West Bank, and the State of Israel.  When  I went to a boarding  school in Jerusalem at 10 years old, I probably can say  that it was the time that I actually picked up a team; Leeds United, to be  a favorite. But I recall very well, Liverpool, it has always been  a team that captured the attention, at that time, around 1974-1977, it was the premiere English league top team; actually, Mancheter United did not have all that spark during those years if I remember well.  But later on, I came to know that Manchester United, historically, has been and until now, England's top team. Just to flex my muscles and show off my knowledge of football in England and Brittain- not a joke, there is a difference when it comes to football in Britain between England and Brittain; they are not the  same. England , Scotland and Wales have separate football leagues and compete in World Cup qualification. Of course, the United Kingdom is all three entities combined and still is as far as I'm concerned and know- I did not  research to see if anything has changed- too lazy this  morning to go beyond the obvious and the known.   I used I buy an English football magazines called Shoot!and another one called Football,  sometimes exchanged with other friends in that boarding school in Ramallah- the boarding school, St.George, was in Jerusalem but the boarding house was in Ramallah. In the picture from goal.com are England's top teams Manchester United and Liverpool playing this weekend, and I 'm calling this one for Liverpool, again, against all odds.

The Second Reconciliation; Hamas and The West Bank Takeover, by Jamil Shawwa

The first reconciliation between the PLO and Hamas resulted in the humiliating defeat of Fateh- the PLO main faction- in Gaza in the summer of 2007, and the Hamas takeover of that little, yet naughty, Mediterranean city. 

The first agreement was in Saudi Arabia and the second, now, in Qatar; both countries have dubious tribal political systems, of course. Qatar is a country in a news station, which is fine. Al-Jazeera, no one can deny, has changed the Arabs in their respective countries in fundamental and profound ways and became a world class, will, maybe, I should not use Class when describing Al-Jazeera, but still a worldwide best known Arabic news channel. Now they (Al-Jazeera) have an English one. 

Money can do few things, of course, but politics is the bottom line- A US approved and blessed role for Qatar in regard to missions or On-demand tasks in the Middle East. 

Back to Hamas and the PLO, both inherited and contributed to the Palestinian headaches and pain- to say the very least. Two years ago I mentioned that the only Palestinian right now that has Yasser Arafat deviousness and shrewdness, not like him though, is Marwan Barghouti,  currently serving a jail sentence for committing, as an Israeli court ruled, terrorist acts against the State of Israel.  In other words, sometimes, in that part of the world leaders or potential future leaders get "Preserved" in jail until their  moment arrives-South Africa did the same for over 24 years with Nelson Mandela and Turkey is doing now with the Kurdish leader/terrorist Abdullah Öcalan. 

So a scenario would be to release Barghouti, or electing him while in jail as a Palestinian authority president, and then releasing him, or let him “govern" from Jail. News reports continue to indicate that Barghouti is the only one that can defeat any Hamas contender. Defeating Hamas does not mean eliminating Hamas; eliminating Hamas has never, so far, been on the agenda, not by The State of Israel, or The PLO- the PLO does not have a choice probably- or The United States, but on the agenda have been maneuvers and playing politics and the give and take, and all the other stuff that make the Middle East a "very special place". 

Now, back to politics, if we have drifted, the way things are moving right now, and if history is any indication to us, it looks like, I mentioned it on Facebook, in a post from 12/22/2011, main page, Jamil M Shawwa, that Hamas will join the PLO, take over, and finalize the deal with the State of Israel. In that case, if this Scenario takes place, it would mean that the conservatives in the State of Israel will be negotiating with the so called, arbitrarily speaking, conservatives in the West Bank and Gaza, both hard in their positions about each other, and both will agree eventually to compromise with each other. 

The whole political trend in every country in the Middle East right now is moving towards so called Religious political parties winning popular elections and forming popular governments. Politics will move toward those that can muster popular support, are clever enough to reach the people; we are not talking clean politics here, if there is anything called clean politics and we are not including those that falsely claim a right to govern because they falsely think that they deserve it, or falsely believe that their families should run it- I'm in particular addressing the Arab countries and the West Bank and Gaza. We are on the verge of huge changes; this could mean that Hamas, an unprincipled, demagogue and some say smart organization will take over, the Muslim Brotherhood style, and run the Palestinian State in Gaza and the West Bank.

Once a Santorum Night ..... by Jamil Shawwa

Rick Santorum, the one I asked last week to change style because he reminded me of the most boring politician on earth, Al Gore, check Facebook-02/04/2012- Jamil M. Shawwa main page;  did exactly that, changed style, yesterday, not sure for how long though, but it paid off. Rick Santorum, the shy, little boy coming all the way from his protection, politically protected neighborhood in Pennsylvania to play with big hitters, you know, Newt and Romney and the rest, that was so overwhelmed to be among the pros and running against the pros, that he was caught in action and sounded faking an elitist accent like Al Gore, has changed things around. He went to the mountains where irrelevancy is relevant, and talked to the mountains and the mountains responded back. Of course I’m talking about Missouri, Minnesota, and Colorado- I went once to Colorado, stayed there for couple of days and left, I could not afford it, oh, Aspen and the Ski resorts, forget it, I’m a common man, I ski in my backyard- if that. What we call the mountain states; almost on the map, to the left of the Midwest, the mountain states, which Colorado is the premier one. Santorum won the three aforementioned states, symbolic, delegates to the convention can change minds, will not make a big difference but the symbols are already out there and mainly within the Republican party, Obama is ok, and watching, but the Republicans are realizing the miss they are in and realizing how hard the game could be when there are no inspiring leaders; but enough with that, I have been giving them so much clues that they might end up beating Obama in the general elections. Just look at what Santorum, the Pennsylvania spoiled boy did just by reading my note……Self-promotion, I know.

Mosque in America and The NYPD tape; Revisted..... By Jamil Shawwa

In an **Expose by the New York Times that needs to be looked at from much larger picture and from much clearer lenses, it is well known and customary for security, intelligence and police departments all over the world to motivate their individuals against potential terror from potential groups by showing real and propaganda- not real- materials. Nothing out of the ordinary here. However, as the Expose reported, this particular video was a complete fabrication and targeted not terrorists or potential terrorists or threats to America, but targeted a population of The United States, a religion that almost 2 billion of humans believe in. Here it needs a review, and it is being reviewed and it has been pulled out as I understood it. America again does not like to and it is not bigot- there are of course individuals, but they are on the fringes, even across different sectors of the society, in companies, towns, cities and they could be found prejudiced against anything, could be against those that believe in Christianity or sects within it, or Judaism or Hindus, anything or because someone wears a skirt, or have a beard- it is human, unfortunately by nature to be prejudice. Having said that, the vast majority of humans either keep their prejudices to themselves, are clever enough not to show it, or pretend not to be prejudice, or spread them legally through freedom of speech; another legal venue until courts decide if a particular bigotry or prejudice cross the line to actually violate existing laws, and an entity or individual or individuals claim and say so and bring them to the attention of the courts system. Those individuals throughout history; very few, but unfortunate, choose terror to claim a message, are the ones that you target; those that claim religions to spread a message of hate violently. The danger of these individuals resides in the fact that for the vast majority of people, just the mention of religion makes them jump. I'm not jumping though; I'm sharing as the New York Times, a perspective, something that could help America become smarter and forceful and on target regarding individuals that seek to harm it. In 2001, America was a target of individuals from Arab countries that said or claimed, before committing their crimes and terror, on tape or somewhere, that they have attacked America in the name of Islam. Now, any human being, again, with any active brain cell, unless they are running an agenda, would know that logically and practically this cannot be; religions do no kill or terrorize; individuals with agendas do. Those individuals are everywhere, and smart intelligence would use smart methods to identify. To repeat, these propaganda methods are used everywhere. Historically, in Europe, the Middle East, there are bigots as well that spread propaganda about people of Christian faith or Jewish faith; amazingly unfortunate, but it exists and it needs to be fought, period. America takes on its part to be more sensitive to prejudice, more forceful, maybe, in trying to be right and smart and practical. This video and similar propaganda charge the emotions but it blinds the brains, it clouds judgment and it creates mini isolated societies within the same country. Continue to fight those that in the name of security and safety and national security use methods that to say the least not smart and not true or about true, not helpful, to be practical here, to spread a message that is so important which is that the country will fight terrorism and terrorists regardless of their claim falsely of religious back ground that made them do what they do. History proves that those that have claimed religious motives or religious inspirations have almost always been motivated by political agendas far from the religion, that the religion if it can talk, it would scream so loud...Foul play. But things will continue, there is no utopia on earth, and accordingly, we, normal and law abiding citizens, need to continue to think and expose those that claim falsely claims and allegations that they cannot substantiate, scale or quantify.

** White House Image in this blog and background information is from the New York Times in an article by Michael Powell with the title “In Police Training, a Dark Film on U.S. Muslims “from 01/23/2012,link: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/24/nyregion/in-police-training-a-dark-film-on-us-muslims.html?emc=eta1

*The End of Al-Assad ...The UN Security Council Countdown by Jamil Shawwa

The momentums to finalize the end of the political system of Bashar Al-Assad are in place; first regional, with the symbolic Arab League sending "observers" to the UN political handling which now is taking place in the Security Council to come up with a resolution to end formally the regime of the Syrian Alawis tribe, the Ba’ath party and ideology and the president. News reports continue to point to Putin's Russia objecting, arguing that such resolution will only result in an eruption of a civil war in Syria. Russia has played the same role historically with Korea in the 1950; it pretended that its ambassador was in the bathroom or somewhere and cleverly did not use the veto to prevent a Security Council resolution and in the same time did not object to the UN Security Council sending troops to the 38^th line that separates the two Koreas. There is no way that China and Russia would veto a resolution on Syria. Syria will continue as a country but Al Assad is gone. Al-Assad is a huge liability, a burned card, a footnote in history books, a passing by trespasser, an occupier to Syria's brains and minds, and last but not least , a criminal against humanity. What could be worse than what is going on now in Syria; over 5000 dead, a sectarian divide that is getting worse where mainly Sunni Muslim cities like Homs taking the lead in resistance, a new freedom fighters formulating by the name of The Free Syria Army and political groups lining up with demands that none can be done except after the removal of the symbol of the sectarian divide; Al-Assad himself. Even within the Alawis, a minority in Syria, most are objecting to Al-Assad’s family decades of monopolizing privileges. A son of a Stalinist style dictator, Al -Assad came to power in 2000, after the death of his father, Hafez Al-Assad. Senior was an important player in the game of politics in the Middle East during and by and after the end of communism and the end of the Soviet Union itself and the cold war; with a sound victory to America and the free enterprise system. After the attacks on America in 2001, the game needed to change, Saddam and the Iraqi Ba’ath finished, the Arabs revolted against their vicious dictators, their oppressors, their dreams killers. Tunisia first, then Egypt, Libya, Yemen, and now Syria and the rest will follow one way or the other. Syria’s dictatorial political system is the last one remaining in The Middle East that belongs to the same class of dictators that Qazzafi of Libya and Saddam of Iraq. His end is inevitable; his presence defies time, and the Arabs Rise in their respective countries. If politics and logic ever meet, so rarely, they both meet in the already finalized conclusion that the Ba'ath fascist party that used to rule in Iraq and is ruling now in Syria, must disappear from the ground and the mind. Al-Assad is history before he becomes history.



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