Am I in the Twilight Zone? Why are all of my politically Left friends supporting the Libya bombing?

I am writing this post to ATS to get some feedback on what, to me, is absolute craziness to me. Alright, so, since the start of the bombing of Libya, almost all of my friends have been saying the most sophomoric and supportive things concerning the United States bombing of Libya. Things like, "Well, it's bad, but Gaddafi is a dictator, and he needs to be ousted." Or, "If we don't do anything, the rebels will lose." Or, "He's killing his own people."

Basically, the responses fall either in a mentality that the United States (along with Britain and France), are superior countries, and that they need to step in like the "good guys" and help the poor, and helpless Libyans. Or, they end up parroting "facts" that are most obviously is being peddaled by the propagandist media. I mean, I must have asked, like, twenty people here in New Orleans, all "liberal"-minded people and only two of them said anything against it. The rest were for it!

Either way, I don't know anyone who is a "right-winger", that is to say a neo-con, and therefore a war-hawk. All of the people I know would label themselves as "liberal" or "Democrat".

And that's the weird thing about it; when did people suddenly start thinking that 1) The media has/is telling us the truth about the Libyan situation, and 2) That the government of this country uses it's military on another country to truly help people without getting something out of the deal.

These are people that during the eight years of the Bush II, had learned the two lessons above. Now, under some weird spell, they all are defending it. It's absolute craziness.

My hunch (and I don't want to skew what are hopefully going to be good responses) is that my "liberal" "Democratic" friends are still defending Obama. And that they believe that because he got on television and talked, that he meant what he said and that it was the truth. That's my only explanation. It doesn't make sense, but that's what I think it is.

Just to clarify, too, I am not liberal, nor a conservative, more an independent person.

So, has anyone else been experiencing absolute complacency from your "once upon a time" anti-war, anti-imperialist friends?

reply to post by franklin555


It's Newthink, the ability to believe in mutually contradictory ideas at the same time. Just as conservatives supported Bush when his spending policies were the absolute antithesis of conservatism.

Since all of the eyes are on Japan right now, its very easy to understand that America and the other nations are there for more than helping the Libyans, aka takeover lmao

When stuff like this happens it shows you who just watches the news and believes what ever they say.

The brainwashing is really thick.

Okay not even reading what you said (yet), I'm just going to answer your question in the title.

Originally posted by franklin555Am I in the Twilight Zone? Why are all of my politically Left friends supporting the Libya bombing?

Because Obama says it is a good thing.

Done.

Originally posted by franklin555
My hunch (and I don't want to skew what are hopefully going to be good responses) is that my "liberal" "Democratic" friends are still defending Obama. And that they believe that because he got on television and talked, that he meant what he said and that it was the truth. That's my only explanation. It doesn't make sense, but that's what I think it is.

See? I knew you were smart. More or less nailed it.

reply to post by downtown436


I agree, and I'm not going to start a thread as to the inconsistencies with the official media demonization, I'll leave that for someone else with a lot of time on their hands, but I will say that for proof that this has been a "behind the scenes" plan for quite sometime, the Republican Reagan was talking about getting rid of Gaddafi back during his tenure.

There have been a few here on ATS getting caught up in the feeding frenzy with the spilling of blood like a pack of sharks. Thankfully there are also a few more evolved creatures around as well to try and put some common sense into the situation. The media is becoming as far removed from reality as the twilight zone, as there would be quite a power shift if a lot of realities did get out. It good to see there are still some people left doing their homework and not relying on heavily filtered, censored and bias MSM reports.

reply to post by franklin555


Let me introduce myself. I am a true blue conservative (not a Repub). What you are seeing are all the sheep following their leader over the edge of the cliff. You see, Liberals, and a lot of democrats will squawk, condemn, and protest war when a Republican is in the office. Just as they will decry women's rights violations and hate speech and death threats when they are against Liberals and other wacky fringe groups in their alliance, but will stay silent when the same is done to a Repub or a conservative. I give you Wisconsin, Sarah Palin, and Christine O'Donnell for examples. They will allow black thugs to carry baseball bats to election booths to frighten white people, yet they will not defend the victims.

My point here is the hypocrisy, and this is why you cannot trust anything a Liberal or Democrat tells you. Look at their Imperial leader King Obama, He promised peace, hope, change, and a nation brought together under a common patriotic bond of love for country and fellow man. He promised an end to the era of spending. He promised a more open and civil government. He lied. And that makes him a liar.

So when you see Lefties simply walk off the cliff for their leader, don't be surprised. It's just the way they are and always will be. No matter if the truth is standing in the way begging them to change and be independent minded and think for themselves.

Personally, I would find some new friends that are not robots for the unions, community organizations, and Democratic party.


Note to Mods: I know some of you are in this group as every one of my Obama Threads were shut down during the election process. I ask you to be fair and not put duct tape on this post. It is after all, the truth.

Thanks

reply to post by franklin555


Hmm. Let me see.

Iraq...
Invasion of a foreign country with no UN Mandate to do so on the pretext of a lie (WMD) and occupation of said country since 2003.

Libya
No invasion, imposition of a no-fly zone and air strikes against a regime targetting its own people, following a UN backed mandate to carry out such actions to protect civilians..

Whats happening in Libya now is what should have happened in Iraq in 1988 when Saddam Hussien gassed the kurds (but the West let it pass because Hussein was a 'useful asset' countering the Iranians) and what should have happened in 1991 when we promised the rebels in Iraq we would back them taking down Hussein (and then Bush 1st pulled the plug)

See the difference now? I do.

Originally posted by neformore
reply to post by franklin555

 

Hmm. Let me see.

Iraq...
Invasion of a foreign country with no UN Mandate to do so on the pretext of a lie (WMD) and occupation of said country since 2003.

Libya
No invasion, imposition of a no-fly zone and air strikes against a regime targetting its own people, following a UN backed mandate to carry out such actions to protect civilians..

Whats happening in Libya now is what should have happened in Iraq in 1988 when Saddam Hussien gassed the kurds (but the West let it pass because Hussein was a 'useful asset' countering the Iranians) and what should have happened in 1991 when we promised the rebels in Iraq we would back them taking down Hussein (and then Bush 1st pulled the plug)

See the difference now? I do.

Oh, I see. So this is what should be happening? You have a bizarre moral compass.

Marines Open Fire on Villagers

Tensions with Britain as Gates rebukes UK government over suggestion Gaddafi could be assassinated
French propose a new political 'committee' to oversee operations
Germany pulls equipment out of NATO coalition over disagreement over campaign's direction
Italians accuse French of backing NATO in exchange for oil contracts
No-fly zone called into question after first wave of strikes 'neutralises' Libyan military machine
U.K. ministers say war could last '30 years' Italy to 'take back control' of bases used by allies unless NATO leadership put in charge of the mission
Russians tell U.S. to stop bombing in order to protect civilians - calls bombing a 'crusade' Read more:

Who's in Charge...

US Bombs Wreckage of F15 Fighter Jet that Went Down

Partisan stupidity can justify anything.

i'm not supporting it, we don't know what kind of government is going to rise up to replace it. the US needs to get out of the the foriegn war business. all the other countries are happily letting us use up our money, as they sit back and spend theirs on their own country. a 700 billion dollar a year military, and the GOP wants to cut funding to NPR. the US is being deliberately bankrupted...but THANK GOD, the wealthest got their 40 billion dollar a year tax break...because once they drain this country, they will simply move to another one, which to me is looking more and more like their plan all along.

reply to post by franklin555


I'm a liberal and I support the actions we're taking in conjunction with the international community in Libya.

I can't, for the life of me, look at every issue as black or white. I can't look at Iraq and say I'm against it while looking at Kosovo and saying I'm for it without understanding the issues behind it. No one should.

Lately, when it comes to international issues, the left has been focusing on the plight of the people of North Africa and the Arabian peninsula. I remember the conservative talking heads saying we should be supportive of the Mubarak regime because he's been an ally for so long, while ignoring the actions he's taken against his people. I feel a similiar sentiment with Libya, that we should support the rebels in Libya through words alone. Very few people, if anyone, want to come out and say they're for Ghadafi. However, if you've been following the conflict there you'd realize that the momentum the rebels had was halted as soon as Ghadafi began hiring mercenaries and bombing his own towns.

Is that to say there aren't people in the world who blindly follow whatever their party (dem or rep) is doing? No, there are plenty of sheeple out there. The intelligent people in the world realize there are gray areas, that not every issue is the same. We let ourselves get pigeon-holed into a 'liberal/conservative' absolutely believes in x, y, or z. There are very few absolutes, when you realize that you break free of the stereotypes.

I've seen the exact same thing in my circle of friends, it really is disheartening.

People really couldn't care less about the actual actions of our nation anymore it's just about being 'right' and proving others 'wrong.'

reply to post by franklin555

I don't know, I am often called a socialist, communist, left wing nut, whatever.....
and, well....
hamptonroads.com...

as far as I am concerned, if the polywogs can't do better than this............
they have no business keeping us in the two wars we are in, let alone starting a third war!!!

we need a third political party, or heck, let's just draft the idiots to lead us!! we'll probably have better results!

Originally posted by franklin555
I am writing this post to ATS to get some feedback on what, to me, is absolute craziness to me. Alright, so, since the start of the bombing of Libya, almost all of my friends have been saying the most sophomoric and supportive things concerning the United States bombing of Libya. Things like, "Well, it's bad, but Gaddafi is a dictator, and he needs to be ousted." Or, "If we don't do anything, the rebels will lose." Or, "He's killing his own people."

Basically, the responses fall either in a mentality that the United States (along with Britain and France), are superior countries, and that they need to step in like the "good guys" and help the poor, and helpless Libyans. Or, they end up parroting "facts" that are most obviously is being peddaled by the propagandist media. I mean, I must have asked, like, twenty people here in New Orleans, all "liberal"-minded people and only two of them said anything against it. The rest were for it!

Either way, I don't know anyone who is a "right-winger", that is to say a neo-con, and therefore a war-hawk. All of the people I know would label themselves as "liberal" or "Democrat".

And that's the weird thing about it; when did people suddenly start thinking that 1) The media has/is telling us the truth about the Libyan situation, and 2) That the government of this country uses it's military on another country to truly help people without getting something out of the deal.

These are people that during the eight years of the Bush II, had learned the two lessons above. Now, under some weird spell, they all are defending it. It's absolute craziness.

My hunch (and I don't want to skew what are hopefully going to be good responses) is that my "liberal" "Democratic" friends are still defending Obama. And that they believe that because he got on television and talked, that he meant what he said and that it was the truth. That's my only explanation. It doesn't make sense, but that's what I think it is.

Just to clarify, too, I am not liberal, nor a conservative, more an independent person.

So, has anyone else been experiencing absolute complacency from your "once upon a time" anti-war, anti-imperialist friends?

edit on 23-3-2011 by franklin555 because: Forgot to mention...

I don't support this nwo gang rape of the middle east.

These war mongering lunatics are truly insane.

Since they can't blame Bush or Palin for Libya, they HAVE to support it.

Has there ever been a time our past where we directly intervened in a country's civil war?

'Cause that's what we're doing now.

As for sides, speculation has it that Al Qeada/Muslim Brotherhood is behind much of the protesters. Then you have Moo-mar Quaddafi, voted least likely to be a human being in high school.

Frankly, I'd run away from this mess faster than Jeaneene Garafello when shown a bar of soap.

reply to post by Fromabove


Dear Sir or Madam:

I suggest you replace lefties with righties, liberals with conservatives, democrats with republicans, Obama with _________(insert Republican president here), and unions and community organizers with large corporations.

It's the same no matter which party, and that is the fundamental problem: we condemn others for doing exactly what we do when the other is on office. Conservatives do the same thing: they blame the liberals for the exact same things they are either currently doing, or used to do when they had control.

It's really quite simple, actually.

reply to post by franklin555


I completely agree with your entire OP. It's almost like, once the president for whom one has voted is in office, logic, critical thinking, and reasoning fly out the window as if "that guy" is gonna do everything right so i don't have to worry, just blindly accept what is said. BS. As soon as people get off the Partisan crap and hold a president accountable for his actions as they relate to the larger context and interconnectedness of situations, and until they analyze everything a president--regardless of party--does to see if it fits within the framework of true innate humanity and ethics, noting will change.

Until people will think for themselves, not what they are told, we will all go in circles.

My hunch (and I don't want to skew what are hopefully going to be good responses) is that my "liberal" "Democratic" friends are still defending Obama. And that they believe that because he got on television and talked, that he meant what he said and that it was the truth.

And you know, i think you answered your own question. I too have liberal friends who support the--uh, intervention. When i try to make them understand the situation differently, they too use the justifications "he's a madman," "he's killing unarmed people," etc. Just the other day i received an email from a staunch anti-war Vietnam Veteran Democrat who said something to the effect, "It's humanitarian and it's not Iraq." I rolled my eyes, thinking: you aid people by dropping bombs and firing missiles??? It's a sovereign nation that has not attacked us!

While the (publicly stated) intentions are just (which probably aren't the true intentions), the actions are not.

So, i think it boils down to people still believing--without question--what "their" leader says. I say "their" because partisan opinion creates the distinction and illusion between "my" president and "your" president. Basically, Obama says it's humanitarian and we are "helping" the people," so it is exactly that and it is completely justified, regardless of the true reasons.

I do not share this view. Even as a liberal, i am against what is taking place and have been from the moment Obama addressed the nation last Friday.

Notice how they are using the same arguments they used with Saddam? He's a dictator so it's a necessary evil to start a war. What they won't say, and what your liberal friends won't address is that the Iraq humanitarian issue cost 1 million Iraqi lives and 4000 U.S. soldier's lives, but hey, I'm sure this Libya thing will be cakewalk, Obama even took a vacation to South America while it was going on.

You call it Twilight Zone , I've been saying we fell down the rabbit hole and landed in crazyland. Nothing makes sense anymore.
Left , right , repubs, dems and the MSM all trying to make excuses(sense) out of what doesn't make sense. What you see in your liberal friends is just that ,they are trying to make sense out of what really doesn't make sense and they come up with lame excuses instead of facing reality.
I think the most telling is when they repeat the excuses they hear in the media, that tells you they have stopped thinking for themselves.
And BTW this Twilight Zone is starting to become OUR reality and it has nothing to do with liberals its everybody.