Secret Trials and Continued Rendition the Obama Way!
By J. D. Longstreet
++++++++++++++++++What the heck is going on in Obama’s Oval Office? Is there something in the White House water? Here, of late, Obama’s actions tend to resemble, more and more, those of his predecessor, George W. Bush.
Remember Obama criticizing Bush for those Military Tribunals used to try captured terrorists… many of whom were/are incarcerated at Gitmo?? If you remember the campaign, to hear Obama tell it, why, it was terrible… truly awful to subject those poor terrorists to “secret” trials!
Well, guess what? Obama, himself, has approved “secret trials” for those same prisoners. Basically, all Obama has done is change the name of the court.
Under the Obama regime, they will not be Military Tribunals. It has been reported that the Obama administration may support the establishment of something called a “National Security Court,”, which will be, as we understand it, a court, within the civilian court system, to try Guantanamo prisoners and other alleged terrorists. But… the trials will be secret! So… is this hypocrisy, or political correctness… or both? It looks to us as if all the Obama administration will have done is… change the name of the court and change the judges clothing from military uniforms to civvies!
Look, Military Tribunals are as old as the country itself. (actually older) They became especially useful to the US government during, and immediately after, the American Civil War. The point is… there is nothing new about the use of Military Tribunals by the US.
In the sort of trials necessary, when trying “enemy combatants,” certain “facts” out of necessity, must be, and will be, brought out in testimony. Included will be certain information, which if made public in a public trial would, without doubt, give aid to the enemies of the US. There is no doubt the enemy would use it against us in their covert war, and even their overt war, resulting in the deaths of more Americans. So, the US cannot allow this information to be made public. No country can allow that.
There must, of necessity, be a way to try these individuals without endangering the lives of Americans or compromising the security of the country. There is. They are called Military Tribunals.
Obama continually complained about the use of those military tribunals and vowed to get rid of them if elected. Well, he was elected.
It can be an amazing transformation to watch someone who has only a portion of the truth suddenly change his public stance on an issue… once he has all the facts, isn’t it?
Remember Obama criticizing Bush for those Military Tribunals used to try captured terrorists… many of whom were/are incarcerated at Gitmo?? If you remember the campaign, to hear Obama tell it, why, it was terrible… truly awful to subject those poor terrorists to “secret” trials!
Well, guess what? Obama, himself, has approved “secret trials” for those same prisoners. Basically, all Obama has done is change the name of the court.
Under the Obama regime, they will not be Military Tribunals. It has been reported that the Obama administration may support the establishment of something called a “National Security Court,”, which will be, as we understand it, a court, within the civilian court system, to try Guantanamo prisoners and other alleged terrorists. But… the trials will be secret! So… is this hypocrisy, or political correctness… or both? It looks to us as if all the Obama administration will have done is… change the name of the court and change the judges clothing from military uniforms to civvies!
Look, Military Tribunals are as old as the country itself. (actually older) They became especially useful to the US government during, and immediately after, the American Civil War. The point is… there is nothing new about the use of Military Tribunals by the US.
In the sort of trials necessary, when trying “enemy combatants,” certain “facts” out of necessity, must be, and will be, brought out in testimony. Included will be certain information, which if made public in a public trial would, without doubt, give aid to the enemies of the US. There is no doubt the enemy would use it against us in their covert war, and even their overt war, resulting in the deaths of more Americans. So, the US cannot allow this information to be made public. No country can allow that.
There must, of necessity, be a way to try these individuals without endangering the lives of Americans or compromising the security of the country. There is. They are called Military Tribunals.
Obama continually complained about the use of those military tribunals and vowed to get rid of them if elected. Well, he was elected.
It can be an amazing transformation to watch someone who has only a portion of the truth suddenly change his public stance on an issue… once he has all the facts, isn’t it?
As President Obama was suddenly included “in the loop.” apparently, it became clear to him that the trials of those terrorists must be kept secret. But, he had to save face as well. So, the idea of the National Security Court is being floated around, in our opinion, only as a way to avoid embarrassment for Obama. In our opinion, Obama couldn’t make himself look anymore foolish than he already did by making such a naive vow to get rid of the Military Tribunals! It was just a dumb thing to say when he only had a portion of the facts at hand. Again, the National Security Court, if it becomes reality, will be nothing more than a “CYA move” by the Obama administration… nothing more.
What about rendition? That is the practice of shipping the prisoners overseas to prisons in countries friendly to the US, but countries that do not hew as closely to the “no torture type of inquisition” of prisoners as does the US. Well, under the new Obama rules, guess what? The renditions will continue!
There is some talk that the prisoners may be shipped to prisons in their homelands, whenever possible. Sounds humane, now doesn’t it. Well, maybe. But consider the systems of justice in many of the prisoner’s homelands. I mean, some of them don’t worry a great deal about “prisoner’s rights.” Their methods haven’t change much since, oh, about the 12th century. Some of them still practice beheading! But putting them in prisons in their homelands SOUNDS nice to our liberal brethren and sisteren.
Don’t you just hate it when someone thinks you are gullible enough to buy into the empty promises of politicians, any politician, especially when they are so arrogant as to be blatantly obvious about putting the lie to those promises as soon as they are sworn into office? Oh, wait! 53 % of the American electorate did just that!
The election of Obama was a victory for ignorance in America. As we watch the Obama appointments for the various government agencies in the Obama administration forced to take their names out of consideration, for one reason or another, Americans are getting out of bed each morning, pouring that first cup of coffee, and anxiously opening their morning newspapers to acquaint themselves with the latest Obama blunder. Less than a month in office and the Obama administration has become a joke. But 47% of the American electorate isn’t laughing!
What about rendition? That is the practice of shipping the prisoners overseas to prisons in countries friendly to the US, but countries that do not hew as closely to the “no torture type of inquisition” of prisoners as does the US. Well, under the new Obama rules, guess what? The renditions will continue!
There is some talk that the prisoners may be shipped to prisons in their homelands, whenever possible. Sounds humane, now doesn’t it. Well, maybe. But consider the systems of justice in many of the prisoner’s homelands. I mean, some of them don’t worry a great deal about “prisoner’s rights.” Their methods haven’t change much since, oh, about the 12th century. Some of them still practice beheading! But putting them in prisons in their homelands SOUNDS nice to our liberal brethren and sisteren.
Don’t you just hate it when someone thinks you are gullible enough to buy into the empty promises of politicians, any politician, especially when they are so arrogant as to be blatantly obvious about putting the lie to those promises as soon as they are sworn into office? Oh, wait! 53 % of the American electorate did just that!
The election of Obama was a victory for ignorance in America. As we watch the Obama appointments for the various government agencies in the Obama administration forced to take their names out of consideration, for one reason or another, Americans are getting out of bed each morning, pouring that first cup of coffee, and anxiously opening their morning newspapers to acquaint themselves with the latest Obama blunder. Less than a month in office and the Obama administration has become a joke. But 47% of the American electorate isn’t laughing!
Note from Ed:
Here are two articles in which you may be interested..
From the LA Times entitled:"Obama preserves renditions as counter-terrorism tool"
You'll find it HERE.
From the LA Times entitled:"Obama preserves renditions as counter-terrorism tool"
You'll find it HERE.
And this one from the World Socialist Website entitled: ""Obama's orders leave framework of torture, indefinite detention intact"
J. D. Longstreet
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