It is deeply sad to see so many progressives jump on the bandwagon in support of Assad’s dictatorship & Russian intervention in Syria. Their opposition to US intervention is less persuasive since they spend almost no time analyzing how regime change is being pursued & more time denying the popular revolution against Assad or identifying it with the ISIS & Al-Qaeda type terrorists.
Those who uncritically support the prevailing views in support of Assad need to consider who their allies are: primarily fascist forces, white supremacists, Islamophobes & anti-Semites, & in Syria, the fascistic capitalist class. Tens of thousands of revolutionists are in Assad’s gulag or have already been tortured to death & are lying in mass graves.
Those who support Assad should consider that if the revolution they deny is defeated, it does not mean Syria will go back to what it was before with Assad ruling with an iron fist. If the revolution for a democratic society does not defeat Assad, the counter-revolutionary forces, including the US, Russia, Iran, Hezbollah, ISIS, Al-Qaeda will prevail. Syria will never again be what it was under Assad’s dictatorship. It is mortgaged to the counter-revolution & will likely be divided with the US one, but not the only, controlling factor.
Mostly progressives need to ask themselves if they want to make the massive political concessions to the hatred of Muslims & Jews which is so fundamental to Assadist ideology. And they need to ask themselves if they are willing to risk helping usher in fascism in Syria. This is no “oops, I made a wee mistake” moment but a historic betrayal with monumental consequences for all of humanity.
Not everyone has the time to study Syria & a knowledge of Syrian history & culture is not necessary. One has only to take a principled stand against the bombing of civilians & a determined stand in opposition to all foreign military intervention into Syria. When you oppose US intervention but support Syrian & Russian intervention, you stand with the counter-revolution whether you understand that or not.
Which side are you on?