The People v. Gadaffi?

                                                                                                            

Every news channel has something to say about the Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi. Libya is in the midst of a civil war, much in the fashion we witnessed several weeks ago in Egypt. Gaddafi is however far more power-hungry than Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and has refused to hand over power, engaging his forces directly with the opposition. I’d like to provide a bit of an overview before I provide my own opinions just to give you a sense of where I’m coming from. Gaddafi is killing Libyan citizens and escalating this conflict to a level of unparalleled proportions and has demonstrated his intent to maintain power at absolutely all costs. Needless to say, this becomes an American issue. Whether you see the connection or not, or just refuse to acknowledge it. Our image in the middle east is already abysmal and keeping our nose clean can really only effectively get us so far. Should Gaddafi be overthrown, the United States government needs to establish close ties with the new regime. This does not call for direct interference or a democratically imposed government. The United States needs to understand that Libya wants to handle its own problems directly. Our interference will only be interpreted as an occupation, as evidenced by the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. However, supporting the opposition in the event of a Gaddafi victory would further divide what is already a rather weak relationship. Do we support the case of right, against a man who is clearly a tyrant in every sense of the word or do we watch our own backs? Only President Obama and his advisors can really decide on this, but whatever the case, the United States can not afford any more enemies in the east. We need to be supporters and advocates of Democracy without telling governments how it is to be done. This is a situation that must be monitored carefully and not pushed aside.