# Should We (USA) Attack Syria? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [December 16, 2004, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-usa-attack-syria/280200 "2004-12-16T20:20:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![annaplurabelle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/919ad9/32.png) [@annaplurabelle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/annaplurabelle)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-usa-attack-syria/280200/61 "2004-12-17T21:46:24Z")
> [@Squink](#): > > Simple. Franklin/AIPAC looked to me like it was dying down through november, then on Dec 1, the FBI serves new search warrants, and now there’s rumors (linked above) of significant tension developing at a high level between US and Israel over it. (The rumored demand may or may not be real, but its publication means that someone thinks there’s still much juice to be wrung out of this particular turnip.) > You’re right to some extent in that the CIA housecleaning could help produce a more anti-Syria stance by the US, but the pentagon is cleaning house too, and, surprisingly, the FBI still looks to be on this like a dog on a bone. That’s nothing to worry about if you think that there’s nothing to be found, but _is_ that really the case here? I certainly hope you are right, **Squink** , but my hope is in short supply at this time. AIPAC has been investigated before. The shake-ups at Justice and State don’t bode well for any of your claims. Hear anything about the Plame case, for example? And what about Ghadry’s claims? The recent purges prove him right. I now take these people at face value. Scoffing at them hasn’t worked out as I’d hoped. This isn’t a done deal, by any means. But nothing bodes well for the forces of truth at this time. ---
**Author:** ![barbitu8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/839c29/32.png) [@barbitu8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barbitu8)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-usa-attack-syria/280200/62 "2004-12-17T21:50:43Z")
[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A5886-2004Dec16.html?sub=AR](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A5886-2004Dec16.html?sub=AR) > [@](#): > > These men, from the former governing party of deposed president Saddam Hussein, are “operating out of Syria with impunity and providing direction and financing for the insurgency,” said Gen. George W. Casey Jr. ---
**Author:** ![Myakot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/49beb7/32.png) [@Myakot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Myakot)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-usa-attack-syria/280200/63 "2004-12-17T21:53:21Z")
> [@ninetypercent](#): > > They’re aiding our enemy. No, they are aiding their allies. We are the enemy this time, remember? So easy to forget. In any event, _WE_ shouldn’t attack anyone. The UN should be utilized in a far more aggressive manner. ---
**Author:** ![annaplurabelle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/919ad9/32.png) [@annaplurabelle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/annaplurabelle)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-usa-attack-syria/280200/64 "2004-12-17T21:53:53Z")
> [@Ryan\_Liam](#): > > well they’d be out of Lebanon for a start. And this benefits the **USA** _how_, dear? Read up on the water problem in the Middle East. Keep an eye out for the **Litani River** , which runs through Lebanon. Why is Lebanon so coveted, by both Syria and Israel? Think. ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-usa-attack-syria/280200/65 "2004-12-17T22:02:16Z")
> [@annaplurabelle](#): > > And this benefits the **USA** _how_, dear? > > Think. When I think of all that lovely Lebanese water flowing into Hetch Hetchy, filling the valley, and providing clean, fresh agua to millions of thirsty San Franciscans, it gives me pause. Maybe it _is_ in America’s interest to conquer Syria. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-usa-attack-syria/280200/66 "2004-12-17T22:06:31Z")
Cuisine? Not for me, of course. I can’t eat Lebanese food, it makes me feel awful. But **Anna** has put her finger to it, water, indeed, is the coming issue. Israel is often praised for making the deserts bloom, but we forget that deserts don’t bloom because…well, they’re deserts. They’re not \*supposed \* to bloom, and any effort to make them do so requires an extravagant squandering of water. Witness our own negotiations with Mexico over how much of the Colorado river they can have once we’re done peeing in it. ---
**Author:** ![Ryan\_Liam](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ryan_liam/32/3965_2.png) [@Ryan\_Liam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ryan_Liam)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-usa-attack-syria/280200/67 "2004-12-17T22:09:20Z")
> [@annaplurabelle](#): > > And this benefits the **USA** _how_, dear? > > Read up on the water problem in the Middle East. Keep an eye out for the **Litani River** , which runs through Lebanon. > > Why is Lebanon so coveted, by both Syria and Israel? > > Think. Well the fact that Lebanese have an elected Parliament and wanted to get rid of the pro Syrian PM, and Syrians allowing a militia, you may of heard of them, Hezbollah? To strike into Israeli territory, maybe something of a good thing to get rid of. ---
**Author:** ![Myakot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/49beb7/32.png) [@Myakot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Myakot)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-usa-attack-syria/280200/68 "2004-12-17T22:13:01Z")
> [@Ryan\_Liam](#): > > Well the fact that Lebanese have an elected Parliament and wanted to get rid of the pro Syrian PM, and Syrians allowing a militia, you may of heard of them, Hezbollah? To strike into Israeli territory, maybe something of a good thing to get rid of. I agree. We should launch into action in Sudan, too, right? Maybe swing by Ethiopia on the way home… Hell, those Saudis are still a monarchy! Oh, wait, they’re our friends… ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-usa-attack-syria/280200/69 "2004-12-17T22:13:28Z")
**Ryan** , I wish to present you with a potentially unsettling thought. Brace yourself. That which is good for Israel is not necessarily good for the US. We are their best friend, and they are their best friend as well. ---
**Author:** ![annaplurabelle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/919ad9/32.png) [@annaplurabelle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/annaplurabelle)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-usa-attack-syria/280200/70 "2004-12-17T22:18:25Z")
> [@Ryan\_Liam](#): > > Well the fact that Lebanese have an elected Parliament and wanted to get rid of the pro Syrian PM, and Syrians allowing a militia, you may of heard of them, Hezbollah? To strike into Israeli territory, maybe something of a good thing to get rid of. I asked you to _think_, petal. Pity you can’t humour an old woman. Reminds me of why the Brits have at least 17 words for idiot. ---
**Author:** ![Myakot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/49beb7/32.png) [@Myakot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Myakot)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-usa-attack-syria/280200/71 "2004-12-17T22:20:10Z")
> [@annaplurabelle](#): > > I asked you to _think_, petal. > > Pity you can’t humour an old woman. Reminds me of why the Brits have at least 17 words for idiot. Careful, **Gaudere** has an itchy trigger finger. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-usa-attack-syria/280200/72 "2004-12-17T22:58:28Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > **Ryan** , I wish to present you with a potentially unsettling thought. Brace yourself. That which is good for Israel is not necessarily good for the US. We are their best friend, and they are their best friend as well. That’s unfair, **Elucidator**. Every nation is its own best friend - that’s as it should be. We also like to think of Israel as very close as and very loyal to the U.S., and we have nothing but respect for our “big brother.” You may not see it from where you’re standing but the amount of influence America has on Israel is immense, far more than the other way around. Generally speaking, Jerusalem does what Washington wants it to do. _You’re_ the leader in these parts. We didn’t ask you to invade Iraq, although we didn’t really object, either - Iraq had been at war with us for 55 years, and nobody minds watching their enemy get their asses handed to them. And we’re not asking you to invade Syria either, at least not for our sake. You’re forces are stretched too thin as it is, and you’re having enough problems with your (in out opinion) hopeless dream of installing democracy in an Arab nation. Besides, Syria isn’t much of a threat to us, not nowadays, and Hizballa have been mostly quiet lately, so there’s no real need to waste lives rooting them out. If anyone has to take Syria out, it’s us, not you; we’ve done it before, we’ll do it again. Despite what you may believe, we don’t like seeing U.S. troops die. Up until now, not a single American soldier has ever died to protect Israel, and we’d like it to stay that way. ---
**Author:** ![Ryan\_Liam](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ryan_liam/32/3965_2.png) [@Ryan\_Liam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ryan_Liam)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-usa-attack-syria/280200/73 "2004-12-17T22:58:52Z")
> [@annaplurabelle](#): > > I asked you to _think_, petal. > > Pity you can’t humour an old woman. Reminds me of why the Brits have at least 17 words for idiot. Yes, I did think precious special angel, and I came up with that reason. 🙂 Freedom is on the march. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Ryan\_Liam](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ryan_liam/32/3965_2.png) [@Ryan\_Liam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ryan_Liam)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-usa-attack-syria/280200/74 "2004-12-17T23:05:29Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > **Ryan** , I wish to present you with a potentially unsettling thought. Brace yourself. That which is good for Israel is not necessarily good for the US. We are their best friend, and they are their best friend as well. Just like the UK I guess, we’re the Greece to your Rome. Think about that. I don’t see a problem in being supportive of a democractic government in the Middle East, isn’t that our mandate now anyway? To foster up representative govs in that region. Oh and for the woman who called me Petal, why wouldn’t the US not want to see Syria out of Lebanon? Or is the reason Syria is there is because they know if they were to pull out, Lebanon would immediately become an ally of the West and in general the US? Maybe that thought should cross your mind. Yes 17 words for idiot, choose one to use against yourself. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-usa-attack-syria/280200/75 "2004-12-17T23:21:16Z")
Well and fairly said, **Allessan** , and point well taken by a sympathetic ear. But you simplify, (for the sake of brevity, I am sure, and not to obfuscate.) As your countryman Amos Oz put it, approximately, true tragedy occurs when both antagonists have legitimate greivances. Much needs be done, to be sure, and you and I will not settle the matter here, however many threads we hi-jack. Suffice to say that I have many criticisms, but my essential sympathy remains undiminished. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-usa-attack-syria/280200/76 "2004-12-17T23:29:57Z")
> [@Ryan\_Liam](#): > > …Yes 17 words for idiot, choose one to use against yourself. Well, if I must, I’d probably go with “wanker”, it has a pleasant ring to it. Don’t know the others. Thank you for your generous suggestion. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-usa-attack-syria/280200/77 "2004-12-17T23:33:17Z")
> [@Ryan\_Liam](#): > > I don’t see a problem in being supportive of a democractic government in the Middle East, isn’t that our mandate now anyway? To foster up representative govs in that region. When was this mandate given, and who has the authority to make a mandate like that? ---
**Author:** ![annaplurabelle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/919ad9/32.png) [@annaplurabelle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/annaplurabelle)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-usa-attack-syria/280200/78 "2004-12-17T23:34:10Z")
> [@Ryan\_Liam](#): > > Oh and for the woman who called me Petal, why wouldn’t the US not want to see Syria out of Lebanon? Or is the reason Syria is there is because they know if they were to pull out, Lebanon would immediately become an ally of the West and in general the US? Maybe that thought should cross your mind. > > Yes 17 words for idiot, choose one to use against yourself. I’ve heard many of them used against myself. How else do you think I learned of them? Also, if “petal” is a greater insult than I’d realised, I apologise. I don’t have the benefit of sensibility of any one culture, since I was raised in 3 different countries. But to the point of the OP: I’ve provided many cites, and have laid out a clear position for my views based on facts. What do you have to say about the water problem? What do you have to say about Bashar Assad? What do you really know about Bashar Assad or Syria? You fail to make a case for how a regime change in Syria would benefit the US. Or how a “beneficial” regime change might happen considering the demographics of Syria. Perhaps you could address those questions. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-usa-attack-syria/280200/79 "2004-12-17T23:36:11Z")
How fortunate we are, then, to have allies such as Pakistan’s Musharaff, who stands in the very front rank of military dictators, in terms of his staunch committment to democracy and egalitarianism. ---
**Author:** ![Myakot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/49beb7/32.png) [@Myakot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Myakot)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2004, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-usa-attack-syria/280200/80 "2004-12-17T23:39:20Z")
> [@annaplurabelle](#): > > You fail to make a case for how a regime change in Syria would benefit the US. Why should any action be restricted to that which benefits the US? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-usa-attack-syria/280200.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-we-usa-attack-syria/280200.md?page=5)