Libyavention!

Götterdammerüng!

Despotry twilight like unto Libya's Colonel Leader for Life, headed straight towards an orgy of blood and flame and a civil war that will last as long as the Colonel can feed and fund foreign regime holder uppers - kinda like 3rd Reich's collapse - or even S'Ddam's Ba'Athist regime's near death flirtation back in the day - narrowly averted with a heavy dose of chemical WMD on Iraq's own citizenry at places like Halabcheh.

Any Libyavention like the infamous No Fly Zones could certainly unleash a flurry of funintended consequences - after all, Libya provided several thousand metric tonnes of dead hajies for the Haj in Iraq requiring Surge to rid Iraq of kindred foreign Arab inflicted violence.

As Great Britain backs down, Def Sec Gates and Sec o' State HRC - caution LOL about No Fly Zones - even as Great Satan sortees her USS Kearsarge with 2K Teufel Hunden Xpeditionaries along with USS Barry (DDG52) and USS Ponce Marine Amphib cats into the Med. And Great Satan's Big E is floating about Red Sea - within easy access of Libya. Not to mention all that phat hot NATO air power scattered throughout NATO.

Other Naval Power wanna bes are checking out the Med

Any risible rationale pleading for inactivity, bystander in chief modes and intervention phobia -
"...is that intervention by Western powers, especially Great Satan, might portray the opposition as pro-American -- as if that were a heinous crime."

So what?

"...Those who use this argument think that Libyans would rather die under the colonel's boots than be described as pro-American.

"...Yet, as everyone can see, there is a thirst for freedom in Libya to the point that thousands are prepared to die for it.

Libya's freedom retardant is the Colonel:

"...The "wait-and-watch" party pretends that the choice is limited to invasion or diplomatic gesticulations; this is not the case.

"...Assuming that Khadafy's regime hasn't collapsed by the time you read this, here are some of the things that the "international community" should do, with the United States taking the lead:

* Western powers should tell Libyan freedom fighters that they are not alone. This should be done with a clear declaration, not one of those studies in ambiguity.

* The United Nations should immediately open an inquiry into crimes against humanity committed by Khadaffy and his cohorts, and make it clear that regime grandees will be held personally responsible.

* The US and the European Union should establish contact with the National Salvation Committee in Libya's second biggest city, Benghazi, and acknowledge it as a de facto interim government.

At this stage, there is no need for formal recognition. Contact at a respectable level would be enough.

* With the consent of Libya's interim authority, the United States and NATO allies could set up a no-fly zone, preventing the colonel from using what is left of his air force to massacre civilians or ferry troops around.

"...There is no need to go through the UN, an operation that could take months. In Iraq, US and Britain set up the no-fly zone that protected the Kurds without going to the UN. In Libya, too, a coalition of the willing could do the job. The idea has strong support in Britain, France and Italy. NATO has enough air power close to Libya to enforce the measure.

* The United States and the EU should help ferry food and medical aid to freedom fighters. Some aid is already being shipped through Tunisia and Egypt, albeit on a small scale.

* Often passive, the Arab League has become uncharacteristically active over Libya. In Cairo, where the league is headquartered, there is even talk of military intervention by Egypt and Tunisia. The least that the league could do is to seal the Tunisian and Egyptian borders with Libya to prevent the passage of mercenaries from sub-Saharan Africa recruited to rescue Khadafy.

* Some members of Khadafy's clan are sending signals that they'd throw in the towel, provided they secure safe passage to another country.

Pic - "Intervention of the Sabian Women"