Thoughts for Libya in its Agony to Become a Free People

And so, yet another time, the West in the guise of France, Britain and the United States, has been called upon to save fellow human beings who are being terrorized by a dictatorial regime.

The assault on Qadhaffi forces and military installations in Libya has begun, and after some hours, it can be said that the results are reassuring.

However, the outcome is anything but certain for several reasons : Qadhaffi is a madman whose reaction to reason and force will not be normal, and the freedom fighters of Free Libya are ill-prepared to act as an army and so their advance toward Tripoli is sure to be difficult. Finally, if everything goes well and the freedom fighters gain their cause, it will be necessary to find the leaders and the political will to govern Libya as it moves toward its version of democracy.

The 19^th century English liberal philosopher, John Stuart Mills, said of war :

“War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse. The person who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself.”

For now, let us pray for the Free Libya freedom fighters who have heeded Mills words and are willing to sacrifice themselves for their country. Let us keep in our thoughts and prayers the soldiers who are willing to give Free Libya a chance to survive. Let us pray for those civilians caught up in the fighting. Let us show our respect for the courage of the reporters on the ground, especially those in Tripoli, as they try to bring us an unbiased view of events, and for the humanitarian groups who are with the displaced and suffering Libyans.

Above all, let us remember that what we are witnessing is not meant to be a war, but a means to save people from a deranged despot who can no longer be trusted with power or with the lives of his people.