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Thursday, August 7. 2008
We’re Next
For years we considered the McCarthy era to be the worst of our self-inflicted assaults on our once cherished way of life. Accusing people of being Communists and having that accusation be the only “evidence” used to send people to jail and destroy lives. Blacklists were created and men and women lost their livelihoods — their lives — because of the so-called Red Scare.Hollywood, as usual, was singled out as the hotbed of Communism so it was the most visible victim of the abuse of power first wielded by Joe McCarthy and then a slew of two-bit politicians looking for easy headlines and quick re-elections.
The favorite tactic for the Congressional committees: get someone to name people he or she saw at any Communist or alleged Communist gatherings in return for leniency. Then, the F.B.I. would go to those named and do the same.
The citizens who took a principled stand against this abuse of the Bill of Rights were then singled out and forced to appear before Congressional committees where the Congressmen and Senators yelled and screamed at them, calling them names and accusing the victims of perpetrating the downfall of the United States.
The studios played along of course. They had to deal with Congress on a business level so the studios wanted to avoid trouble, in the form of regulations that would put them out of business or worse.
It took decades for many of the victims of the blacklists to recover from the assault on their lives. For some it ended in death.
Now we have Gitmo.
The sham that is the Guantanamo Bay Military Tribunal claimed its first “victory” Wednesday: the military court convicted Usama bin Laden’s driver, Salim Ahmed Hamdan, of “providing material support” for terrorists.
There is little doubt Hamdan is guilty of being bin Laden’s chauffeur, which aided bin Laden in his terrorist activities, but is being a driver really a serious offense, worthy of a life sentence? Maybe it is, but one of the hypocrisies of this sham is that the prosecution compared this trial — of a chauffeur — to the Nuremburg trials of 60 years ago. If you recall, Hitler’s chauffer spend 20 years in Spandau. Oh wait, that’s not right, Hitler’s chauffeur, Erich Kempka, wasn’t put on trial during Nuremburg, and yet, that was the main theme of the prosecution’s case.
Had to be. Hamdan played no role in any of the planning or execution of the plans to attack the United States or any U.S. property. Hamdan’s complicity was that he drove bin Laden to and from meetings to plan the attacks on the U.S. Embassies in Tanzania and Kenya.
But let’s say being a chauffeur makes one guilty of a criminal offense. Get away drivers in robberies get charged and convicted of the robbery and any assault that results during the robbery. Never mind that Hamdan didn’t drive anyone away from the scene of the crime, but let’s ignore that fact for a moment.Number one: Hamdan wasn’t charged in a civilian court, he was charged in a military tribunal, as if he were a military adversary. Bush’s militarization of the fight against terrorism is the first assault on the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth Amendments in the Bill of Rights. And, we can argue, the First Amendment too because the cornerstone of the prosecution’s case is that Hamdan said, in an “interrogation,” he was committed to destroying Americans and Jews and driving them from the Arabian Peninsula. In other words, he was being convicted for what he thought!
The Fourth Amendment says we are safe from unreasonable search and seizure, that authorities cannot search or seize us or our property without probable cause or the appropriate warrant. Clearly, Hamdam was seized and his belongings taken and searched. One can argue that since he was in a foreign country and was “active” in efforts to commit crimes against the U.S. and its citizens, search and seizure could be executed without warrants.
The Fifth Amendment protects us from abusive legal and courtroom behavior. Specifically, in Hamdan’s case, the Fifth says: “… nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.”
Through the series of long and torturous interrogations, Hamdan was forced to be a witness against himself. He wasn’t allowed legal representation during the interrogations and the fact that he has been in custody for over six years has deprived him of liberty, and one can argue his life, without due process. Apparently the Supreme Court, that is mostly Republican-appointed, agrees. They forced the prosecutors to proceed with the trial. The Supreme Court’s ruling said Hamdan’s confinement violated the Uniform Code of Military Justice and the Geneva Conventions.
The Sixth Amendment states: “In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district where in the crime shall have been committed …” Nearly seven years? The public certainly wasn’t allowed and jury cannot be argued to be impartial; it is made up of six members of the military. Maybe they are impartial …
The Eighth Amendment states: “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.” Just the torture itself is cruel, which is why it has been banned by our own constitution, The Uniform Code of Military Justice and the Geneva Conventions.
For the past six years the Bush Administration has been arguing that torture was either A) allowed because the detainees are “enemy combatants” and therefore not protected by any laws, domestic or international, or B) the torture isn’t torture. Even John McCain denounced the treatment — until he started running for president. Now he agrees with Bush: torture is ok!
Regardless of Hamdan’s complicity in the crimes committed by Al Qa’ida, and that really isn’t clear, other than he drove vehicles with Usama bin Laden in them, trashing the Bill of Rights to prosecute him is fundamentally wrong and spits on the very “values” the Republicans so arrogantly toot as the foundation of their principles.
On the other hand, the Republicans haven’t been claiming the Bill of Rights as part of their “values,” their values as of today consist of discrimination against homosexuals and a return to a Christian theocracy, which was in place shortly after the Pilgrims arrived at Plymouth Rock. And that pretty much abrogates the Bill of Rights.
And if the Bush Administration can justify breaking every law protecting us from tyranny to prosecute a Yemeni citizen guilty of being a chauffeur, then you can bet they will use the tactic against U.S. citizens. Oh, come to think of it, they already have ... Jose Ibrahim Padilla was declared, by Bush, to be an “enemy combatant” and therefore not protected by the Bill of Rights. Padilla was born in Brooklyn, New York and lived in Chicago. Thankfully the courts ruled against Bush, and Padilla was eventually tried in a civilian court. He was convicted and sentenced to 17 years in prison. He is currently serving his sentence in ADX Florence, a super maximum security prison in Florence, Colorado.And for what crime was Padilla convicted? It wasn’t for any of the crimes that got him arrested originally. He was convicted of agreeing with others a terrorist act should be done some time in the future. Nothing was actually planned, let alone carried out. In other words, he was convicted for his beliefs.
Noted Republican Paul Craig Roberts, once a member of the Reagan Administration, said Padilla’s charges and conviction had “over thrown” the Constitution and did more to damage American principles than any act a terrorist could commit.
If Bush did it to him, he can do it to you — for what you think.
Today Hamdan will be sentenced by the jury that convicted him. Wanna bet he gets life?
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