Monday, November 16, 2009
And here's where we juxtapose ...
There are people who believe in justice, a fair trial, the presumption of innocence, the value of citizenship and even respecting the international treaties to which Canada is a signatory.
And then there's Justin.
I think my work here is done. Stephen Taylor must be so proud.
GACK: OK, I finally clued in that Chris was mocking me gently for my misspelling "trial" as "trail." Got it. Duh.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
11 comments:
Erm, a fair trial?
Yes, Chris, a fair trial. You know, one during which you would hear things like, oh, this:
"Pentagon officials later backtracked slightly after it was revealed nobody witnessed Khadr throw the grenade. Pentagon officials said an eyewitness wasn't needed, because Khadr was the only al-Qaeda fighter left alive and the only person who could have thrown the grenade.
However, a classified document, inadvertently released to reporters at the military prison by a Pentagon official Monday, provides a different eyewitness account of the events.
A U.S. soldier at the battle said in sworn testimony that two al-Qaeda fighters were alive after the fatal grenade attack.
The unidentified soldier says he killed the first al-Qaeda fighter before spotting Khadr, whom he said was wounded, on his knees and facing away from him. For reasons he does not go into, he says he shot him in the back twice."
Stuff like that. Stuff people like the Blogging Tories have absolutely no interest in.
I can't believe that someone as well adjusted as Justin might want to deny someone (a Canadian citizen, no less) due legal process? Say it aint so!
You'll be telling me he's from the 'two-wrongs-make-a-right' school of myopia next!
Hofferstan is merely a Canadian of convenience. He'll apply to any military that allows unhinged angry fruitbats to handle a gun.
In other good news, I heard an ad from "Friends of Science" denying climate change.
It is as if the floodgates of idiocy are open...
What's the standard penalty for other soldiers throwing grenades in war time?
Regardless of the evidence that exonerates Khadr from that specific accusation, isn't it the case that throwing a grenade in a battle isn't a war crime at all?
He's been tortured for years now. Bring him to Canada, try him on some charges and bring this sordid affair to a close.
What Thwap says has merit; and this is where Justin's 'argument' (such as it is) turns to rat-shit, in that Khadr may not have even committed a crime in the eyes of Canadian jurisprudence at all.
As with any other nationality, any Canadian is free to join the French Foreign Legion - or indeed the ranks of any other foreign army which might allow such an application to join - unless expressly forbidden to do so by the laws of Canada.
From what I've understood of it, Khadr, instead, chose to join Afghan irregulars fighting, as they see it, the invasion of infidels into Afghanistan. The fact that they were Americans is besides the point - to Khadr, it wouldn't have mattered who the 'enemy' were - NATO/ISAF, the US, The British Empire (and remember we had 3 Anglo-Afghan Wars prior to the current unpleasantness) or the Soviet Union - they're all just seen as the same embuggerance to be ejected by all and any means.
The US (or, more specifically, GW Gump) acted ultra vires in thinking they/he could simply and arbitrarily round up and imprison, with out charge or due process, anyone they came across on the battlefield. Where would any of us be if we'd adhered to that working practise in either of the World Wars? Even spies were given a fair trial prior to being shot or imprisoned; but at least there was a due process observed.
And there is a certain naivety in American/Republican thinking that says any US enemy will necessarily, by default, be found to be wearing any recognisable uniform in combat - the days of the big battalions facing each other over the plains are long gone. War is now where and how you find and fight it. But that still doesn't give you carte blanche to round up all PoWs and never charge or try them - a la Gitmo.
OK then, a fair trail works too.
Soldiers are disciplined for being "out of uniform" if they don't have their shirt done up or anything out of place. So it would seem that in the comics, Sgt. Fury and every one of his howling commandos were in fact not covered by Geneva Conventions, since they would be out of uniform (Fury would invariably lose or rip his shirt by page 2) and therefore illegal combatants.
I knew exactly what you meant and I didn't mean to mock.I was just pointing out a typo which stuck out because they are so rare here.
Now I'll copt ediy this comment and post it.
Omigawd, chris, how can you imply he had a fair trail either?!
Post a Comment