Your sarcasm is duly noted. ;-) My post was intended to suggest that the Geneva Convention should be enforced by U.S. Courts, in any case where it is objectively reasonable that a person is engaged in making war on the U.S. And, where it is not objectively reasonable, then the person should be treated to the same Due Process as any other person in the U.S. There are some corner cases that need to be dealt with, and the courts have simply sidesteped dealing with the cases, because of the fear that they will be responsible for a second terrorist attack. I don't have a perfect solution for the situation, but I agree, that the present solution is not really a solution at all. It's more of a shell game and it defeats the U.S.'s credibility as a nation of laws. This actually means nothing to the general population of the Mideast, because those people do not believe in the rule of law, anyway. They prefer the rule of Allah and despotic emperors. So, in that respect, it's actually irrelevant how we treat those whom our Executive branch deems to be terrorists. But, for those nations who do recognize the rule of law, such as Canada, our government's currently incoherent treatment of the enemy combatants is a serious blow to U.S. credibility in the civilized world community, and that is a bad thing. The good thing is that someone else will be in charge in 2008, and maybe then some of these issues will be resolved. Meanwhile, everyone in the three branches of government who can avoid being directly involved in the nonsense of the current administration is sort of sitting on their hands and trying to do as little damage to the nation as possible.
I'll work with the two points that I can factually dispute. First, war, while it is hell, is also not pretty. While there is battle damage all over the place, and some unwarranted and unintended, it is a war. I would have no trouble seeing it. And I'd probably quickly comment, "Damn that's what war is like huh?" Secondly, the solider comment is blatantly incorrect. Having read several of my cousins letters (he's serving there), I can assure you he and several of his buddies don't look to abuse and destroy for destruction/domination sake. And their blood is red! Then there's the church which I attend. We have a few members whose kids and relatives are serving there. I would easily vouch for them and their interest in not "kicking the shit out of any dark skinned Iraqi." They serve this country proudly. I can easily say that my relatives are not trained to blindly hate. As African Americans, they do have a special understanding of that particular atrocity and I know they would not stand for it. As intelligent African Americans (with Internet access) they would have quickly informed others of that situation. And with the blogasphere, we wouldn't need the media to get the word out. And the only sad piece that I can come up with is that you, without personal connection, knowledge, proof and actual references, would descend to the level of being primal in your mental understanding. It is you that I am more worried about than any terrorist in Iraq right now. The reason, you have freedoms to espouse this hatred and color the opinions about something for which you have no truths to support. You read it somewhere from somebody who said that they heard that something like that might have happened ~ somewhere there. That ain't good enough to color everyone with the racist brush that you are using. Remember, it was you who spouted the terms of this confrontation. Do not condemn "US" with your "WE" reference to couch "YOUR" frustration feelings! THANK YOU!!!
No need to read it, pictures are worth a thousands words. http://www.antiwar.com/news/?articleid=2444
Hmm, I don't Know if Jeb's ascendancy is INEVITABLE. Right now, the name Bush is synonymous with "everybody hates him." MACHRON
Jeb could run tomorrow and win. The Evangelical vote is guranteed since they are like middle easterners, they prefer to be ruled by royalty or dictators. Jebbie with his wife is bound to win. Plastering his wifes picture all over the place will get him enough Hispanic voters. Quote from Machron: Hmm, I don't Know if Jeb's ascendancy is INEVITABLE. Right now, the name Bush is synonymous with "everybody hates him." MACHRON
And how many thousand troops were responsible for this again? I have no issues with punishing those responsible for this behavior. Opps, wait a minute, we've done that already. Unlike others who think we are not fair, the American people said deal with it, and it was. You have to do better than that to condemn the whole military effort! Please tell me that you haven't waged your whole case on this isolated incident? Please tell me that you haven't dragged me all the way here to show me five soldiers in the group of 150,000 plus and claimed that they are all this way? Please tell me that's not your whole case? Please!!!
While your story about your cousins letters was really touching, it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter that it might or might not have been only five soldiers. It is the pictures of those five soldiers that are going to inspire more hatred and terrorist attacks than would have ever been prevented by our 'War on Terror'. Your story about your cousin is not going to be remembered by all the fractions of people around the planet that hate Americans and will sacrifice everything including their lives to kill a few of them, those pictures will be. You look at is and see a few bad apples in our military. I look it at it and see an incompetent administration. They put improperly trained soldiers unchecked in an environment where they can abuse their power. Come on, I learned in high school psychology that guards who are put in the situation they were in will abuse their power. Either the administration doesn't care or they are so incompetent that they don't have a understanding of basic high school psychology. I'll leave you something to think about. "You provide the pictures, and I'll provide the war."--William Randolph Hearst
From what I gathered, the dominant feeling in the Iraqi population about all that is that American soldiers are extremely frustrated to be over there and that they take it on prisoners and sometimes the population.
"Jebbie with his wetback wife is bound to win. Plastering his wifes picture all over the place will get him enough Hispanic voters." Absolutely. First of all, his use of the word "wetback" reminds me of your numerous comments opposing illegal immigrants. Second, the cynical argument that using his wife's pic will garner him votes recalls opinions you've expressed about "lib" appeals to emotion, though you never used such an "edumacated" phrase as "appeal to emotion". Finally, his use of the word "Hispanic" as a term useful to reasoning, which it really isn't, is the same fuzzy thinking you typically employ.