I had the impression that Assad was like Albert I of Belgium 1914-1818 making the point that he wasn't the creature of the Great Powers, merely asking them to uphold their treaty obligations. Resisting the US invasion was only part of the maintaining of sovereignty.

This is an invasion to my intelligence, to be clear. It's an effing meaningless throw-away comment without proper citations, more or less as usual. Not expecting anytime soon to have anything 'proper', so to speak hehe.

I am glad you have got rid of:

The last working class hero crap comment at the end.

I'll drop the narcissism as an issue now.

Meanwhile it concerns me about the dead felines you cite in your comment that we still see at the end of your comment.

I've had similar heartbreaks meself as a kid (with felines, rabbits, turtles etc.).

And .. it surely doesn't compare with heartbrakes that disappearing humans can cause, in many ways. I just had one of my best friends in coma and death. Doubt I will comment on this board in a same manner ...

We are different ..