Ex-NATO boss says bombing Syria is wrong, but should still be supported

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This video from London, England says about itself:

London Street Protest Against Syria Intervention At Downing Street

Aug 28, 2013

Civil disobedience followed the anti-war rally outside Downing Street. People remained seated in the street resisting police calls to disperse.

You don’t have to be a pacifist to oppose a NATO attack on Syria; or such an attack, not by NATO, but by one or a few NATO countries. Many non-pacifist people oppose that. Even a former boss of NATO does. Though he draws a very strange conclusion from his opposition …

While even Donald Rumsfeld, George W Bush’s Iraq warmonger, now has doubts about attacking Syria … While even Jack Straw, sidekick of Tony Blair during the Iraq war, now has doubts about attacking Syria …

Translated from Dutch (Protestant Christian) daily Nederlands Dagblad:

De Hoop Scheffer: attacking Syria won’t achieve anything

An attack on Syria won’t achieve anything. This says former Secretary General of NATO Jaap de Hoop Scheffer this Thursday in an interview with the newspaper De Volkskrant. The former Minister of Foreign Affairs believes that the Netherlands will nevertheless have to support such an attack politically, provided that the U.S. evidence is credible.

In 2003, the United States government convinced De Hoop Scheffer of the presence of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. On the basis of evidence produced by intelligence services the Dutch government promised political support. Afterwards it turned out there were no weapons of mass destruction.

The US Americans say now they have conclusive evidence of a poison gas attack. “Seeing is believing. It is very clear that we, with Iraq in mind, should examine that evidence extremely carefully”, De Hoop Scheffer says in the newspaper.

According to the former Secretary General of NATO there is really no legal basis for an attack. Also, the ‘tap on the nose with cruise missiles’ which now is expected to happen, according to him will not contribute to ending the Syrian civil war. “It will complicate things rather than solving them.”

De Hoop Scheffer says the Netherlands should nevertheless support an attack, because “you can not remain neutral.” Germany, Britain, France and Germany [sic] have already indicated they support the USA. “With so much international consensus a Dutch minister can hardly dissent.” …

Posted: 29-08-2013 – 9:00

The strange logic of Mr De Hoop Scheffer is: something may be very wrong. However, if rich and powerful people support that very wrong course of action, you should still support it. Though a lawyer by education, De Hoop Scheffer seems not to know that during the post 1945 Nuremberg trials of nazi Germany officials, it was established that people should refuse to follow “superior orders” (“Befehl ist Befehl” in German) which are wrong. Even powerful people’s orders. “Might is right” should never ever be a guiding principle.

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