APPARENTLY WE ARE ALL NATO SLAVES... OR SOMETHING

It seems popular among the simple minded these days to lash out against a misconceived common evil known under a few umbrella terms, such as "the western world", "america", "NATO", that's invading a noble, sovereign, wealthy and prosperous heaven on Earth called Libya.

If I'd have believed every stupid chain mail about Libya I get to my inbox these days, I'd probably be packing my bags right now and looking for google advice on what kind of hairdos Libyan chicks dig most these days (only way to get a citizenship is through marriage anyway!) 

Stupidities go something like this:

Apparently Lybia is an economic wonderland even in these post financial crisis times. Claims are being made that people make from $1K onwards (some go as far as saying they're making $60K annually on average). Everything's free, from health care to electricity and oil. The government pays for half of the car you purchase. Schooling is of course free and even though it's free kind leader Gaddafi still pays compensation for parents who have school going children. Anyone who starts up a company gets $20K start up capital, which doesn't have to be returned even in case of bankrupcy (of course all debts from the business is covered by the government). When a student wants to study abroad all he needs to do is point a finger on a map and he'll be sent to wherever he wants.

Come on. All such fairy tale stories of this Arabic bliss are forgetting one thing. It didn't start as a western intervention. This is not the new Iraq or Afghanistan. It started as an internal struggle after people of Libya had enough of Gaddafi's shit, as a reaction to other similar uprisings across the Arabic world. I have no doubt that if Gaddafi was left to do whatever he wanted a bloody massacre would ensue after he defeated the rebels. His rhetoric before the western military intervention was quite scary. "We are coming! No mercy!" he shouted to people who dared to rebel his long standing tyrany. 

Lets get a few facts straight about Lybia: It's nominal GNP for 2010 was $11,852 per capita according to data by International Monetary Fund. While this is certainly not in accordance with widespread tales of Arabic bliss, it has to be said it's not really in the empoverished territory (as a comparison; Slovenia: $23.005, USA: $47,132). However...

GNP tells you almost nothing about the quality of life in a country. What's more telling is data regarding how much of that GNP gets through to citizens. In the EU countries the minimal gross national wage represents (depending on the country) from 35 till high 50s percentage points. While in Libya that percentage is - 13. Which results in an average libyan citizen earning no more than approximately $3000 annually (minimum wage standing at $1700 annually). This in a country that has immense riches from it's oil exports and only 6 million citizens to feed. It becomes kind of apparent most of the oil money never left colonel Gaddafi's sticky fingers. His family amassed an unimaginable wealth, while he propagated his version of "islamic socialism". This was a leader who is pretty much proven to be a vital part of the Lockerbie bombing in 1988 which brought down a Pan Am Boeing 747, killing 270 innocent people (the only convicted mastermind behind the attack was released a few years ago from a Scottish prison and welcomed by Gaddafi as a national hero).A leader that organized hit squads that tracked down and murdered Libyan dissidents abroad. There were a few dozen assassinations committed by his "diplomats". A leader that was accused several times by the United Nation human rights committee to imprisoning, torturing and killing his ideological and political opponents. A leader that want his sons as pre-place his as hairs to the self appointed throne, creating a true hegemony.

With a man like that there is absolutely no doubt in my mind a huge killing spree would follow a defeat of the rebels. These rebels who were in no way "sponsored by the west", but by dissatisfaction of Libyan people.  

Why is the west intervening? It's all about the oil? Is it really or is that just a simple minded headline, which rolls of the tongue of brainless people easily? Libya's oil reserves - although large - have no defining influence on the major global users. If anything the subsequent oil price spikes following the attack is the last thing western allies want in these times when most economies are still recovering. It's not like the new government will just start handing oil out for free once they overthrow Gaddafi - if anything we can at least hope that wealth will be spread a bit more evenly, although it's hardly a given. In fact the National Transitional Council created by the rebel movements already expressed it's view, that it sees western allies as liberators, but once the uprising is over and the new government gets elected, they want them out. 

Also one additional thing has to be noted: This is not a strike lead by the USA. It was first a combined effort of selected European countries and the USA, while now NATO took over all military operations. Even China and Russia (Who both have their own interests to keep Gaddafi in power), didn't issue a veto as was their right as permanent members of the Security Council (which de facto means they gave their quiet blessing)

So what is the west (in this case NATO) to do? It's a case of damned if they do damned if they don't. If they didn't then they'd be criticized for just letting a mass murder happen, like they did in Bosnia. And now when they did, brainless public will start shouting the oil nonsense. 

If anything... I want people to get out of this stereotype rut, that America (along with the rest of the western world led by the EU), is just out to conquer and steal other country's natural resources. So popular this overused notion has become, that people feel the need to start pulling bogus facts out of their asses just to justify their preconcieved, skewed notions of what reality really is. We should be applauding Arab nations for finally standing up for their rights, overthrowing their tyrants and getting rid of social injustices so innate to that part of the world. We can guide and support them in their plight, while not messing with their internal affairs. True democracy comes from the inside out - it's in the power of the people, that real revolutionary changes happen. This is one reason why Libya has nothing to do with Iraq. This is also a reason why all Arab uprisings are so important to the modern world - they were started by common people aided by the internet, particularly social networks liek Facebook and Twitter. This is hopefully a sign of the new world order - where nothing can be hidden anymore, not even by a tyrannic regime. Rather than spewing out untrue nonsense about how good they've had it before, lets wish them well. It's their 1789 right now.