- Re: Syria's self defence is non-negotiable... Archived Message
Posted by Thomas Newfield
on November 6, 2019, 4:42 pm, in reply to "Re: Syria's self defence is non-negotiable..."
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-I must confess I have never understood the acceptance by Chomsky, the Davids, etc of this "Assad the monster" characterisation. Surely no mystery there. In the UK we may call it Anglocentrism, in the US USamericanocentrisizm, or something: basically the solipsistic / autistic belief, subliminal or otherwise, that the world is your backyard, or, that it may be divided into 2 domains: the over here and the over there and the latter must conform to the former. The corollary is about identity: should you cease to define the abroad in your own terms, you will be an outcast, rightly so (in a way), for you will be undermining the basis of local identity and confidence. Should these local heroes question the "Assad the monster" nonsense, they'll be needing to put aside Western enlightenment values in favour of tolerance of another model, moreover one with a lot of history with the West because it's not only Arab but Hellenic, which we in the west have always sought to destroy. The Daves probably feel short of friends (of the right sort) and just can't stomach the thought of dealing exclusively with fellow-outcasts. With Chomsky it's even clearer. He doesn't really question the reality of any of the founding myths of American identity: US democracy, freedom of speech, let alone the desirability of applying these in foreign climes. BTW AFAI remember: I think Syria is more like 80% Sunni, who are themselves a diverse group, as evidenced in Syria where a majority appear to support the government. |