Immo Alea Iacta Non Est
Department
Art
Document Type
Editorial
Publication Date
9-13-2013
Abstract
Dear Mr. Obama:
Little did you know, Mr. President, that, when you announced, several months past, that, should Syria cross a red line, these words would come to haunt you. You have, Sir, painted yourself in a corner and boxed yourself so tightly that, to use Macbeth’s words: “For mine own good/All causes shall give way/ I am … stepped in so far that, should I wade no more/ Returning were as tedious as go over.”
As you know, Mr. President, the Latin term rubico means red. If, indeed, the evidence is reliable, then Assad has crossed an international Rubicon, that red line in the sand which you drew for him. Frankly, Mr. President, the advisors with whom you have surrounded yourself have not served you well. That even before the U.N. investigative team – a team invited by the Syrian government — had arrived in Damascus for its investigation you made a hasty decision to attack undermined your credibility. Or, was this a contrived excuse and an opportune time for you to put the final nails in the Assad regime’s coffin and effect the regime change you and your predecessor have called for? In short, you exercised an alea iacta est (the die has been cast) dictum.
Publication Title
CounterPunch
Recommended Citation
Halaby, Raouf J. Professor Emeritus, "Immo Alea Iacta Non Est" (2013). Articles. 113.
https://scholarlycommons.obu.edu/articles/113