After 7
months of NATO blasting the infrastructure of Libya so that a mixed
bag of rival tribal groups and religious fundamentalists could take over, Libya is not
a peaceful place. Over the last 4 days or so there have been clashes in and around Tripoli with
armed groups firing all manner of weapons at each other. To the west
of Tripoli there has been fierce fighting between the city of Zawiya
and the tribal lands of Warshefana which was still continuing today
Sunday. The residents of Tripoli are complaining that armed groups
have taken over many “desirable” locations in the city, including
a gated seaside resort.
This is the bunch of self interested groups, now armed to the teeth,
that we have unleashed on the Libyan people. We spent billions of our
tax payers money destroying many of the Libyan towns and cities, then
handed the rubble to tribal warriors and religious fundamentalists,
but we did get our hands on the oil. The oil that gave the Libyan
people free health care, free education, a lump sum on the birth of
their first child, a deposit for newly weds to help to purchase their
first house, cheap fuel and free clean drinking water. Now that the
West controls the oil, and now that Libya has joined the “free democratic capitalist West” how much of the oil money will the Libyan
people see, and how much will go towards their “free”
infrastructure and social services,? Oh, and bye-bye 19p a gallon petrol. That's capitalism for you.
