The Talking Dog

December 9, 2008, What do we burn besides witches? MORE WITCHES!

And so the Soviet show trials Guantanamo military commissions proceed, with their buttoned-down motto being "expect the unexpected"... after the Pentagon went through the trouble of lotterying off seats for families of 9-11 victims at the show trial commission hearing of KSM and a total of 5 of the alleged masterminds of the 9-11 attacks, Khalid Sheik Mohammad and the other defendants offered to plead guilty.

KSM and the others are isolated from all the other prisoners, but despite being so bad that he and some others were admittedly waterboarded (the only actual acknowledged torture committed by the United States), it appears that they alone were permitted to (1) confer with each other, and (2) fire their counsel, and (3) speak themselves in open court, in this case, to purportedly offer their plea. A guilty finding on all charges carries (mass murder in this case) carry the death penalty. As you know from our interview with Buz Eisenberg, ordinary prisoners can't meet with their lawyers more than one at a time, and must be shackled to the floor doing so.

The judge, Col. Steven Henley, who was courageous enough to have previously kicked off head prosecutor Brig. Gen. Thomas Hartmann from prosecutions because of his biased and inappropriate conduct, ordered further hearings with respect to the confessions, specifically, to ascertain just how "voluntary" these pleas are. Frankly, my answer is "it's already over, geniuses." Anything these guys say from here on in is tainted by the fact that Bush and Cheney and Tenet and Rumsfeld and the other war criminals running our country for the last eight years couldn't keep their pants on and simply question prisoners the way American law requires prisoners to be questioned: within the laws of the United States, and of civilized conduct. Oh no: we had to "take the gloves off" and "go to the dark side if you will" (with thanks to the late Tim Russert for not following that one up.)

And so, what we have is a freaking mess: it may look like we have ideologically extreme men who want to seek their final martyrdom on George W. Bush's watch. God knows, everyone would like justice done to the perps of 9-11. But... is taking confessions based on torture... justice? Not in any civilized place or context. KSM famously confessed his actions to Yosri Fouda an Al-Jazeera journalist well before his capture. He could well be tried, and found guilty, on this alone. The difference? He talked to Fouda before being tortured by the United States government. Does that make any difference? WTF do you think?

Judge Henley, newly assigned to this case, has, in other cases thus far, been deliberate, careful, and above all, fair. In the end, he may well accept that it is possible that despite years of torture, the "high value" alleged terrorists before him could still make free and voluntary confessions and/or guilty pleas, and accept their pleas. Or he might find that it is not possible. I don't envy him the task.

The problem is, and has always been, that we owed the 9-11 victims something more than a botched war in Afghanistan that allowed OBL and Zawahiri to escape, a botched war in Iraq that has taken our military to the breaking point, the dismemberment of our moral standing in the world with GTMO, extraordinary renditions, waterboarding, Abu Ghraib, etc., and now this. We owed these people our best efforts to bring their murders to justice.

Somehow... this all just doesn't seem to be that.


Comments

Well put, TD. Once more KSM gets to play THE cartoon villain while the world is watching, gets to be a "warrior" and a martyr because the Bush administration declared a "War on Terror" and tortured him rather than pursuing him for what he is: a mass-murdering criminal, who should have been interrogated by people who know what they're doing, and for whom the use of torture is abhorrent. And he gets to dominate a facsimile of justice when he should have been made to look very very small in a US courtroom, diminished by a 230-year old judicial establishment that would have shut him up, and would only have granted him an opportunity to rant at the US under very controlled circumstances. What a disaster.

Posted by Andy Worthington at December 9, 2008 9:37 AM

"and the other war criminals running our country for the last eight years couldn't keep their pants on"
Are we mixing metaphors and administrations here?
Hmmmm? Mixing administrations???
Why, I feel a change coming on.
CHANGE:
In tonight's episode, Fonzobama explains to Richie, Potsie, Ralph Malph, and Gov. Rod Blagojevich, that it is wrong to blackmail and bribe people to find a replacement to run Arnold's restaurant.
Tune in for family fun.

Posted by Crab You Can Believe In at December 9, 2008 11:15 AM

Crab,you do recall the name of Arnold's successor? Ayyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!!!

Posted by Chuck at December 9, 2008 11:42 AM

Why no Blackwater indictment mention? Thought the TD would be all over that one, or OJ.

Posted by Just Wondering at December 9, 2008 4:20 PM

Why would I be all over O.J.? You can read regular tabloids for scheisse like that. Now Blago... that is one for the ages... stay tuned. But OJ? Please.

As to the Blackwater indictment... well, for one, you just mentioned it. Franklyu, there are lots of things I'd love to comment on if I had an infinite amount of time to do it in; I pick and chose what to blog about based on what's out there at any given moment, given inter alia, the logistical limitations of having outside interests, a job, a family, etc., etc.

You are, of course, more than welcome to get your own damned blog if you're not happy with the fare offered here.

Posted by the talking dog at December 9, 2008 5:30 PM

Chuck:
That would be Al, a known infidel. I can see why they offed you after one episode.

Posted by Crab You Can Believe In at December 9, 2008 6:44 PM

TD:
Why the vitriol?
You smacked down JW like he was a Croat showing up with a suitcase containing less than Half a Mill $$ for a Senate appointment.

Posted by Crab You Can Believe In at December 9, 2008 6:48 PM

TD like JW... (NO! TD STRAIGHT!) TD just crabby!!!

Posted by the talking dog at December 9, 2008 8:58 PM

If her daddy's rich, you take her out for a meal.
If her daddy's poor, you just do what you feel.

Posted by Mongo Crabby at December 10, 2008 8:06 PM

If her daddy's rich, you take her out for a meal.
If her daddy's poor, you just do what you feel.

Posted by Mongo Crabby at December 10, 2008 8:07 PM

If her daddy's rich, you take her out for a meal.
If her daddy's poor, you just do what you feel.

Posted by Mongo Crabby at December 10, 2008 8:07 PM