"The men were busy spinning elaborate conspiracy theories to explain why the region was exploding. It was a dizzying display of convoluted logic, twisted and knotted into intertwining theories that formed, al-Mu’amara al-Kawniyyeh, The Universal Conspiracy, because in case you didn’t know, the entire universe has been plotting the destruction of Syria. "The waiters (part-time mukhabarat) swarmed around the table, filling already full glasses of water, sensing fresh news. They belittled every popular movement of Arab Spring, calling Egypt a military coup, Tunisia a joke, Bahrain a disgrace, Libya a tragedy. "Locally, Daraa was a mistake, Homs was unexpected, Hama was untouchable (since then we have learned that it is not), Jisr al-Shughur was the site where “armed gangs” had massacred 120 military personnel, and the thousands of Syrian refugees in Turkey were being paid $50 a day by the Turkish government to live in tents instead of returning to their homes." [...] "Just before dessert, the ringleader leaned in close and said slowly in a voice so low I almost missed it, “You don’t get it. We have to believe in the conspiracy, it is essential that we believe in it. If we don’t, then we are traitors to our country.” "That single sentence, the only shred of truth spoken that night, was all I needed to hear. The veiled confession, the fear of guilt, moved me. I did not have the heart (or the guts) to point out, it was too late, they already were traitors."
Posted on: Tue, 01 Oct 2013 21:16:59 +0000
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