The Paris Attacks: how will the Empire strike back?

According to RT, ISIS, or someone calling themselves ISIS, are now claiming responsibility for the Paris attacks. Since it’s pretty much established by now that ISIS is both a NATO proxy army and corporate media-created bad guy, we’d be naive to think ISIS’ alleged change of strategy, from conventional war on the ground to old style terrorism is unconnected with Russia’s new presence in Syria. We’d be even more naive to think the terror attacks in Paris are unconnected with the Vienna talks currently underway, or with the Obama administration’s increasingly bellicose, if slightly incoherent, policy toward Assad.

No doubt there are factions in Washington, and probably fairly deep policy divisions between the lunatic war-crazies, such as Ashton Carter, and the less crazy realists, such as John Kerry, but current events suggest the war-crazies are re-seizing the initiative after the initial shock of Russian intervention. Ashton Carter is talking about more ground troops in Syria. He repeatedly accuses Russia of “aggression.” Some of this is just bluster no doubt, and intended only to give good copy and impress a domestic audience. But the Turkish president, Erdogan has made it plain the creation of “safe zones”, the partition of Syria and the removal of Assad are still on the table, with probable US support.

Any attempt to create “safe zones” would be an indirect declaration of war on Russia. So the people flirting with such ideas are either very stupid, completely out of touch, batshit crazy or some mix of all three. This needs to be pointed out firmly, but opposition to the lunatics in Washington and Europe is always halfhearted. Kerry is a flimsy and vacillating individual (witness his lamentable behaviour in Ukraine), and little can be hoped from him if the neocons get into full Strangelove mode. Merkel, despite much propaganda to the contrary, is a fool. Hollande is weak and fawns on Washington. Cameron is an Eton mess, with no morality and less brains.

So, we need to be very concerned about what the latest atrocities will be used to justify in terms of further illegal intervention. What is the next move going to be? It’s too soon to tell but if the US wants French troops in Syria to help enforce those “safe zones”, then it will likely get what it wants. And where France goes, the UK will surely follow (even if London doesn’t get its own ISIS-sponsored terrorist event in the next days or weeks).

In these circumstances it’s more important than ever that the alternative media rigorously interrogates the ISIS story, and refuses to be driven by the agenda of fear that lies behind it. If we are all stampeded at this point, it may well mean there is no effective voice of reason to oppose an insane drive toward WW3.

POST SCRIPT: In another of those inexplicable coincidences that seem to dog the Empire, France’s only aircraft carrier, the Charles de Gaulle was scheduled to go to the Middle East days before the Paris attacks. It’s due to leave Toulon on November 18.

Does this bode well for world peace? You decide. But I think it’s worth reminding your under-informed friends that it’s just possible NATO could be about to risk direct confrontation with Russia – for the saving of American foreign policy.

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