Last moments
Photo: Reuters
Muammar Gaddafi’s premature death carries with it at least one positive message: Yet again it was proven that every dog has its day. However, anyone who thinks that the world will be a better place without the Libyan tyrant apparently missed the latest news – many dogs are still out there.
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Despite the joy over Gaddafi’s capture and even over his killing, the way he was executed is not particularly encouraging. We can assume that a local court would have sent the demented tyrant to the gallows, yet in enlightened states that are mentally and morally healthy, Gaddafi’s barbaric lynching in front of the cameras would have concluded with a commission of inquiry and a massive indictment.
It is doubtful whether a state whose citizens boast such executions would be able to contribute anything to the democratic Mideast vision espoused by the United States and its hypocritical European friends. Moreover, if these are the people who shall soon take power in Tripoli, the whole world (which currently celebrates Gaddafi’s expiration, and more so the declining oil prices) may end up longing for the entertaining man with the dresses and odd speeches.
A new terror haven?
And if that’s not enough, Gaddafi left his people a fine legacy of murder, looting, and especially incomprehensible amounts of weaponry. Paraphrasing the theater-world phrase, a Scud missile that appeared in the first set will be launched at some point, somewhere, in one of the next sets.
As Libya is made up of too many tribes, some of which are apparently not peace fans, the country may turn within a very short period of time (assuming it hasn’t happened already in the past two months) into a favored place of residence for fans of terrorism and explosions from across Africa.
You may say, and rightfully so, that Gaddafi himself was a major terrorist, and I too believe that his demise is a good thing. However, time will tell whether in this case a psychopath with steady hands on the wheel would have been better than hundreds of thousands of madmen with fire in their eyes and explosives in their hands.
The only way to prevent it, and regrettably so, is essentially colonialist – keeping a respectable military presence in Libya, until it learns to walk on its own two feet.