Today on Congames I heard the Conman say, “Saddam Hussian deserved to be hanged, but not treated the way he was as he was facing death.” Are you friggin kidding me? I for one think he got off easy with a quick snap of the neck and a few remarks from those there. This is a guy who would tie peoples hands behind their back and would push them off a third floor roof into a courtyard…a guy who would strip a man naked, and with his family watching, release four to six large dogs who had purposefully been starved to maul the man to death and then begin to eat him…this is a man that according to the UN Special Rapporteur’s September 2001 report criticized the regime for “the sheer number of executions,” the number of “extrajudicial executions on political grounds,” and “the absence of a due process of the law.” And that Saddam Hussein’s regime has carried out frequent summary executions, including:
• 4,000 prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison in 1984;
• 3,000 prisoners at the Mahjar prison from 1993-1998;
• 2,500 prisoners were executed between 1997-1999 in a “prison cleansing campaign;”
• 122 political prisoners were executed at Abu Ghraib prison in February/March 2000;
• 23 political prisoners were executed at Abu Ghraib prison in October 2001; and
• At least 130 Iraqi women were beheaded between June 2000 and April 2001.
Saddam got what he deserved, and the sooner those also found guilty with him are strung up the sooner the country will return to normal, as normal as Iraq can be after decades of what they have had to endure. The US State Department, who is whining about the hanging, has been wrong on just about every aspect of what they are doing in Iraq. They are wrong about this too. Iraqis will forget about Saddam, and as he died, so did any chance that he will return to power, and that is a good thing. This is a time to heal for them, let them do it their way. It is time for people in this country to stop trying to justify what goes on in other countries based on their limited, sheltered, TV fed lives. It’s time to face reality. It’s an ugly world out there…grow up.
In this morning’s radio broadcast, Michael mentioned he was going to write a comment to this post. I’d hoped to see his comment tonight…
I didn’t get to listen to Michael’s entire show today–rarely do. So maybe he felt like he got his point across during the broadcast…
Cheers,
In this morning’s radio broadcast, Michael mentioned he was going to write a comment to this post. I’d hoped to see his comment tonight…
I didn’t get to listen to Michael’s entire show today–rarely do. So maybe he felt like he got his point across during the broadcast…
Cheers,
Only those of us considered fortunate enough to have traveled the world extensively can appreciate how true and understated alpha6 is when he says “It’s an ugly world out there.” It is indeed. Despite the vast beauty of the land and sea in many places around the world, and the widespread generosity of individuals towards their fellow man, there are far too many evil and careless people out there doing more to ruin it than all of the wealth and good intentions of any nation or nations could prevent, let alone cure.
I think it is largely the nature of man to feel a bit ashamed and to some degree sympathetic when anyone is put to death. Moreover, when one begins to understand the violent division within Islam whose front line has always been Iraq, one might even empathize with Sadam and the difficult job he had in managing his country and people.
However, alpha6 only scratches the surface as he jolts us back to the reality that this man ruled ruthlessly and inhumanely; and he received his inevitable punishment at the hands of the people he ruled.
The really sad point is that as the US leaves (and the US should leave!!), this new democratically elected government of Iraq will almost certainly adopt similar harsh measures as it manages/oppresses the minority Sunni thereby perpetuating this huge internal dilemma for Islam.
Democracy is not a right of man, it is a privilege; and most countries/nations have yet to earn it.
Only those of us considered fortunate enough to have traveled the world extensively can appreciate how true and understated alpha6 is when he says “It’s an ugly world out there.” It is indeed. Despite the vast beauty of the land and sea in many places around the world, and the widespread generosity of individuals towards their fellow man, there are far too many evil and careless people out there doing more to ruin it than all of the wealth and good intentions of any nation or nations could prevent, let alone cure.
I think it is largely the nature of man to feel a bit ashamed and to some degree sympathetic when anyone is put to death. Moreover, when one begins to understand the violent division within Islam whose front line has always been Iraq, one might even empathize with Sadam and the difficult job he had in managing his country and people.
However, alpha6 only scratches the surface as he jolts us back to the reality that this man ruled ruthlessly and inhumanely; and he received his inevitable punishment at the hands of the people he ruled.
The really sad point is that as the US leaves (and the US should leave!!), this new democratically elected government of Iraq will almost certainly adopt similar harsh measures as it manages/oppresses the minority Sunni thereby perpetuating this huge internal dilemma for Islam.
Democracy is not a right of man, it is a privilege; and most countries/nations have yet to earn it.