Peachy Heresies!

Is the Syrian regime finally off the hook? Does the international community, headed by France and the US, seem to be backing down at this stage allowing Bashar & Co. to continue to rule Syria for a little while longer for fear of creating another failed state in the region at such inopportune times? If this is so, does this mean that Bashar’s strategy of wagging the Islamists worked, especially with the indirect aid of the Amman terrorist attacks? Moreover, is Syria planning to crackdown against PKK outposts in the northeastern parts of the country to curry favor with Turkey?

There are those who seem willing indeed to say “yes” to most if not all of these questions, albeit it is too early in the game for that. Naturally though, I am not one of them. I remain a stalwart naysayer in this regard.

For, experience with this regime has taught me not to get my “hopes” up with it, no matter how peachy things might look sometimes, no, especially when things look so peachy. In times like these, I always expect the worst, and I usually don’t have to wait that long for it to happen. I know I can always trust this regime to do the wrong thing sooner rather than later and to keep on hurting itself, and the country with it of course. The regime is simply too flawed. Those who insist on working with it, no matter how begrudgingly, will pay dearly for their gamble, and sooner than they expect.

So, and regardless of how “sound” the reasoning behind wanting to back-down at this stage, as a strategy, it is bound to backfire. This regime is simply nonviable. No amount of wishful thinking is going to change that. A failed state in Syria will come more as a result of this regime's staying in power rather than its outright ouster. The sooner we see that the better for all of us, whether we are Americans, French, Syrians, or even Israelis. This regime cannot serve its own interests anymore, not to mention anybody else’s.