World Power or Cod Fish?
Via MSNBC
By Joel Seidman
Producer
NBC News
Updated: 4:23 a.m. PT Dec 8, 2006
On Friday, the U.S. District Court in Washington will be the scene of a parting shot at outgoing Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld.
Former detainees represented by human rights groups accuse him — along with a top general of the Iraq war, a former commander of the infamous Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq and a commander of U.S. military intelligence and police forces — with "derelictions of duty and command" and promoting the practice of inflicting "physical and psychological injuries" on civilians held by the U.S. military in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The case of Ali v. Rumsfeld, to be heard before Chief Judge Thomas Hogan, pits lawyers from two human rights organizations representing nine former detainees at Abu Ghraib and the Bagram military base in Afghanistan, with attorneys representing Rumsfeld, Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, former Brig. Gen. Janis Karpinski and Col. Thomas Pappas.
The case is an attempt to have U.S. officials held accountable for alleged abuse of Iraqi and Afghan civilians who were never held as enemy combatants or charged with any crime.
The former detainees accuse Rumsfeld and others of being personally responsible for approving torture techniques and violating the U.S. Constitution. Rumsfeld argues that they are all immune from liability.
So now all you card carrying members of the ACLU can stand up and cheer that one of the men who is responsible for the measured safety you enjoy is now being sued and may be prosecuted for fighting to win. You liberal minded can shout for joy that he is getting his 'just desserts'. All the while we place hope in another man who will likely fall on his sword within the first year of service.
The war on terror can NEVER be 'won'. We can only hope to contain the enemy, and discourage them from growing. Further, the only negotiations this violence minded enemy responds to is force... a lot of force. 22 years of past negotiations should be long enough to learn that 'talk is cheap', and lies are common place. Give and take ALWAYS ends with a loss.
Iran is the biggest threat we now face. If we allow our leaders to be sued by people that don't even live in the United States, we will send a message to our current enemies that the United States is a weak and vulnerable cod fish that can be defeated. I am not interested in waiting for another 9/11 to occur. I do not want to be recognized as a 'cod fish'. During the 'Cold War', the USA enjoyed the reputation of being a World Power. That thought kept us relatively safe. We need to rekindle that reputation.
By Joel Seidman
Producer
NBC News
Updated: 4:23 a.m. PT Dec 8, 2006
On Friday, the U.S. District Court in Washington will be the scene of a parting shot at outgoing Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld.
Former detainees represented by human rights groups accuse him — along with a top general of the Iraq war, a former commander of the infamous Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq and a commander of U.S. military intelligence and police forces — with "derelictions of duty and command" and promoting the practice of inflicting "physical and psychological injuries" on civilians held by the U.S. military in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The case of Ali v. Rumsfeld, to be heard before Chief Judge Thomas Hogan, pits lawyers from two human rights organizations representing nine former detainees at Abu Ghraib and the Bagram military base in Afghanistan, with attorneys representing Rumsfeld, Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, former Brig. Gen. Janis Karpinski and Col. Thomas Pappas.
The case is an attempt to have U.S. officials held accountable for alleged abuse of Iraqi and Afghan civilians who were never held as enemy combatants or charged with any crime.
The former detainees accuse Rumsfeld and others of being personally responsible for approving torture techniques and violating the U.S. Constitution. Rumsfeld argues that they are all immune from liability.
So now all you card carrying members of the ACLU can stand up and cheer that one of the men who is responsible for the measured safety you enjoy is now being sued and may be prosecuted for fighting to win. You liberal minded can shout for joy that he is getting his 'just desserts'. All the while we place hope in another man who will likely fall on his sword within the first year of service.
The war on terror can NEVER be 'won'. We can only hope to contain the enemy, and discourage them from growing. Further, the only negotiations this violence minded enemy responds to is force... a lot of force. 22 years of past negotiations should be long enough to learn that 'talk is cheap', and lies are common place. Give and take ALWAYS ends with a loss.
Iran is the biggest threat we now face. If we allow our leaders to be sued by people that don't even live in the United States, we will send a message to our current enemies that the United States is a weak and vulnerable cod fish that can be defeated. I am not interested in waiting for another 9/11 to occur. I do not want to be recognized as a 'cod fish'. During the 'Cold War', the USA enjoyed the reputation of being a World Power. That thought kept us relatively safe. We need to rekindle that reputation.
posted by Gary | 8:20 AM
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