Mon Feb 13 2012
U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder's bold decision to try the five suspected of planning the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 in a New York federal court may create some security risks, but it is absolutely the right way to proceed.
The decision eschews the military tribunal system, favored by the Bush administration, that places the defendants at a disadvantage and proceeds mostly in secret.
By prosecuting the suspects in a public venue, Holder is playing to this country's strengths. We are a nation of laws, after all, where the accused are considered innocent until proven guilty. It is those values that Holder's decision brings to the fore, pitting the strengths of a secular democracy against those of a theocratic system in which religious leaders relying on sacred texts determine guilt or innocence.
The contrast could not be more illustrative of what the American people are confronting in their determination to prevail in a world in which some leaders describe us as evil. This is the system that will be showcased when Attorney General Holder and his team enter the courtroom where the guilt or innocence of those accused of plotting the 9/11 attacks will be determined by a jury.
This is not to say the United States is always right. Far from it. We are, in effect, a metaphor, for the doctrine of original sin, our ancestors having seized the land from its earliest inhabitants, some having cruelly utilized men and women forced into slavery to build our nation.
Somehow out of all this a reasonable system did emerge that gives most Americans unparalleled opportunity to pursue their dreams of happiness and fulfillment. The system's strong suit remains the concept of a nation of laws derived by representatives elected by the people by which the behavior of all is governed.
Having stated that, a bit too boastfully perhaps, we caution that a positive aspect of our secular democracy is also to give the American people the opportunity to voice their opinions regarding how this country should project itself abroad. We are one nation, among many, still the most powerful perhaps, but one among many nevertheless.
Knowledge of that and determining the wisest course that promotes the long-term good of the world should be a major part of the public discussion as the country reviews its international relationships and their ramifications with the nations of the world.
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7 Total Comments
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Posted by Uknown November 17, 2009
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Poo-Bah, to answer your other question:
http://www.recordpub.com/news/article/4711522 |
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Posted by Uknown November 17, 2009
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Which guys, the terrorists, or Ames and AMT?
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Posted by Uknown November 17, 2009
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Not my comment at #3. It's the work of conservative Republican dirty trick artist, the Record-Courier Faker. Grow up, Ames!
In reality, AMT's post ignores, for partisan reasons, the important distinction between soldiers, who serve in a military on behalf of a nation, and terrorists, for whom ideology trumps any duties or national loyalties. Somebody, a person in the military or family of military, I think, emailed CNN yesterday that to try terrorists as soldiers would be to elevate them to a status they do not deserve. That is a valid point of view and well worth considering. I thought this was a very thoughtful editorial with some interesting, original ideas. Our friends AMT and the Record-Courier Faker would do well, now and then, to stop their partisan cherrypicking and dirty tricks and look with unclouded eyes at the big picture. http://www.recordpub.com/news/article/4616202 |
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Posted by Theophilus November 17, 2009
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Great post AMT.
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Posted by The-Liberal-Exposer November 16, 2009
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I fully agree with you AMT. This is an outrage!
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Posted by AMT November 16, 2009
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The mastermind of Pearl Harbor, Yamamoto, was killed the minute we could find him. It would have been unthinkable to try him in a civilian court. The mastermind of 9/11, KSM, is a war criminal who should be tried in a military tribunal, the same place our own soldiers are tried. Obama apparently doesn't mind being a one-term President, as decisions like this will accelerate his unpopularity every day of that circus trial. |
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