Protective Force in Libya

PROTECTIVE FORCE IN LIBYA, NOT PUNITIVE!

President Obama wanted to protect the civilians of Benghazi and other towns from a blood bath. He could have said "we’re not taking sides. Yes we will use our weapons if necessary to prevent a bloodbath. But we want a cease fire.”

He could have offered to pay for and broker a peace conference in Tunisia or Cairo between Moammar Gaddafi and the various opposition groups in Libya.

It’s OK to use force to stop a massacre, but it should be protective force, not punitive force.

What we need in the world now is peace, not more war.

[Published in the Letters to the Editor section of the April 6, 2011 edition of the Chicago Tribune]