Syria - What Now?

A recent story in the news about a young 18 year-old Syrian women who was taken then tortured and dismembered by her own government brought world attention to the problems there.  But what should be done?  Today a European-backed U.N. Security Council resolution wanted to impose sanctions if the Syrian government did stop the military attacks on their own citizens. But as two of the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, Russia and China vetoed it. So to date there are no sanctions, because no action can taken without the approval of all five permanent members.  So the world is basically just sitting and watching in horror.

In the US, we consider it a duty to go to the aid of another.  If a neighbor is literally beating their child, it is the duty of the adult who see it to report it.  If a robbery is taking place, we believe it is the duty of passerby's to stop and help and victim.  Helping innocent victims is part of what we try to instill in our population.

But countries are sovereign.  When is it right to stay out of their affairs and when is it wrong to just stand by watching atrocities?  Given how little hope there is for the international community to unite against the Syrian government due to the structure of the U.N. Security Council, is unilateral action the best and most ethical course?

A Simple Seamstress

    In the news today is the a story about a Zainab Alhusni who was only 18 years old and just a simple seamstress in Syria.  Last month she went to buy groceries and was picked up by Syrian security forces who then beheaded and dismembered her body.  This was in an effort to get her brother to surrender.  According to CNN.com in an article titled "Mutilated woman, slain brother become symbols of Syria's pain" by Salma Abdelaziz, Tuesday September 27, 2011 it says:
    "Her older brother, Mohammed, became a well-known activist in the family's hometown of Homs in western Syria, often leading the demonstrations against embattled Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and treating the wounded."
    On Sept. 10th Mohammed was wounded during a demonstration and later the body returned to his family after being tortured to death.  The descriptions of the bodies of these two siblings and what was done to them was horrific. These are just 2 of an estimated 3000 victims of the Syrians in the last 6 months. 
    The question is, what should the rest of world do?  While most countries don't want to get involved in the business of other countries, it is right for the world to standby and watch?  According to the CNN.com article, even stepping outside of their homes is a great risk for many women.

Money Talk

This last week the Dow had its worst week since October 2008 as it fell 738 points. However, unlike October of 2008, this downturn is also the result of worries about the world economy and Europe's debt crisis. CNN's Fareed Zakaria published an article on Sept. 25, 2011, titled "Fareed's Take: Governments doing almost nothing to fix debt crisis." In this article he said:

Some European countries now have problems with their debt burdens that appear unmanageable and that problem is spreading to major European countries like Italy.

Europe's banks have too little capital and too much bad debt on their books; they are poised for a Lehman-like event. And here's the worst part, in light of these problems, key governments are doing - almost nothing.

While I am certainly not an economic wizard to know what other governments "should" be doing, it does seem that there is something the key governments could do. Then again, our own "Stimulus" plan didn't really help much either. Does our government have an obligation to reach out and help, what about other EU countries? It seems that our different economies affect each other now more than ever.