![]() |
|
|
May 24, 2008 at 02:02:17
The International Criminal Court's American Exception by JC Garrett Page 1 of 2 page(s) |
|
|
A late 2007 New York Times editorial urged the arrest of Ahmad Harun, Sudan's interior minister from 2003 to 2005, who funded and armed the janjaweed militias that are said to have murdered 200,000 people and driven 2.5 million from their homes. Harun has been charged with war crimes by the International Criminal Court. The editorial calls for Harun to be surrendered to The Hague for prosecution. It stresses that "holding government officials responsible for the genocide in Darfur is crucial ... not only as a weapon of this genocide but as a way to fight the next one." Every word in the editorial was true, and the Times is to be commended for calling for justice to be meted out to government officials who instigate, fund, and enable the murders of hundreds of thousands of civilians, and other crimes against humanity. What I have a problem with is the obvious exception made in the administration of justice when it comes to crimes committed by American government officials.
Estimates of deaths in Iraq as a direct result of the American invasion vary widely, and have been routinely suppressed and creatively spun by the Bush administration. The lowest estimates are in the area of 85,000 civilian dead, but those estimates only count civilians killed by military violence that are reported by at least two approved international media sources. The authors of such estimates openly acknowledge that thousands of deaths go unreported in their findings, and also that they do not use any valid scientific method to arrive at their numbers.
The highest credible estimates are over one million Iraqi dead. That Sept. 2007 study, conducted by ORB, the reputable British polling agency, found that about 1,033,000 more people have died violent deaths in Iraq since coalition forces arrived in March 2003 through August 2007, than would have died had the invasion not occurred.
The number of Iraqi refugees who have fled to neighboring countries has now reached 2.2 million. The number of displaced Iraqi citizens driven from their homes to other locations inside Iraq has risen to more than 2 million.
A side-by-side comparison of the alleged crimes of Ahmad Harun and those that can be attributed to Mr. Bush's invasion of Iraq is very telling: Harun is responsible for 200,000 deaths and 2.5 million displaced citizens. Bush is responsible for 1,000,000 deaths and 4.2 million refugees. Uncalculated and untold civilian wounded. Even if the math is off a bit - hell, even if you cut Bush's numbers in half - he still beats Harun in total lives ruined.
Joshua Holland of AlterNet points out:
"These numbers suggest that the invasion and occupation of Iraq rivals the great crimes of the last century -- the human toll exceeds the 800,000 to 900,000 believed killed in the Rwandan genocide in 1994, and is approaching the number (1.7 million) who died in Cambodia's infamous "Killing Fields" during the Khmer Rouge era of the 1970s."
On the orders of George W. Bush, hundreds of thousands of small arms and more potent weapons have been distributed to the Iraqi military, police, and even militias, and now we are arming and funding both Shia and Sunni warlords and their gangs, many of whom have until very recently been insurgents fighting and killing American soldiers and Marines.
We are actually paying them not to shoot at us. And George Bush and John McCain say Obama is the one "negotiating with terrorists."
General David Petraeus told the Senate Armed Services Committee on last Sept. 11, that Iraq has already made a $1.6 billion arms deal with the U.S., and has plans to buy $1.8 billion more. A Government Accountability Office report concluded that nearly 200,000 weapons bought by American taxpayers and intended for issue to Iraqi security forces are missing. It is feared that the infusion of arms will provide the means for a full-scale civil war and unfettered genocide, and that the U.S. may be arming their past and future enemies.
As Salon's Mark Benjamin reports, weapons proliferation expert William Hartung of the New America Foundation says, "I think this is kind of crazy ... Now we are making deals with some of these Sunni groups. Well, what if they turn around and go back to being insurgents after we have built them up? I think the danger of these arms being misused, even in the short term, is fairly high."
After WWII, we tried and convicted many Japanese as war criminals for waterboarding Allied prisoners. Some of them were executed for their crimes. Waterboarding was considered by many to be one of the worst forms of torture imaginable. In the war crimes trial of one Japanese officer, Judge Advocate General, Lt. Col. Allan Browne said the charge "...includes the savage and barbarian water treatment and far exceeds in beastiality the 'run of the mine' brutality established in this case." The Japanese officer was sentenced to 22 years at hard labor. Another Japanese soldier who waterboarded a Filipino Lawyer got life.
One Japanese civilian employee at a POW camp was sentenced to 5 years at hard labor for nothing more than delivering an open-handed slap for a rules violation, which was common practice in the Japanese army and viewed as an acceptable form of discipline in the training of recruits and as a rebuke for minor infractions. The slap was so common that it was one of the charges in a large number of cases, and the only charge in several. Now, our own President has personally authorized not only water torture, but such things as belly slaps, "stress positions" (like hanging by the wrists with hands cuffed behind your back; or "short-shackling" in a position where the prisoner is unable to fully stand, nor fully sit), and the use of trained combat dogs in interrogations.
1 | 2
The views expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author
and do not necessarily reflect those of this website or its editors.
Contact Author |
Contact Editor |
View Authors' Articles |
|
|
|
|
| 14 comments |
|
DO NOT ARGUE WITH REALITY!
Why does God allow these crimes to go unpunished now? It must be for a divine reason. We do not know why. We are not enlightened enough or maybe there is another reason we are unaware of at this time. Since time is happening all at once, we will have a divination by a seer who shall divine the reason for this conundrum. God is driving this rig called Earth. We seem to be careening out of control. It is a Relevation to be divulged, but not as yet. Perhaps we ought to pray that we turn from prey to quester. Wolfie feels more like Uncle Fester who suppurates sanies. I ask if God is purifying us , or is he just curing his meat for dinner? by Wolfie (9 articles, 0 quicklinks, 33 diaries, 1208 comments) on Saturday, May 24, 2008 at 11:23:51 AM
|
|
Reply: Secret
I might get in trouble for this. Here is the truth. We were invaded by aliens 6000 years ago when 600 aliens descended to Earth in ancient Sumeria, what we call Eden. These 600 broke up into 12 tribes. Man at that time was a dumb and simple beast. The aliens genetically altered us, as the daughters of man were pleasing to the sons of god, and gave birth to their children. They are a warrior race, and they sought to instill some of this in us, so that we would populate the planet and globalize it by force for them. They maintained control, hidden in the shadows as a rich and powerful psychopathic elite due to their superior intellect. They have taken care not to pollute their genetic stock by breeding only with their kind, or as little as possible with others of inferior genetic stock. They trace their ancestorial tree back 6000 years. The most powerful today are the top 12 families, the top one may be Rothschild, but I can not say for sure. They created religions as a tool to divide and conquer. In fact, they use the same master plan with every planet in the Empire that they colonize. The revelations are the outline for the plan for their final takeover. The End Times will not be resisted by the religous masses, since they have been conditioned to accept it as something good and inevitable. G-d returning to take care of them and rapture the truly good (these will get tickets to the G-d Ships, and will be told to report to trains and buses which will instead take them to crematoriums which have been built). Technology has developed to allow this to be staged. Earthquakes, storms, etc can be created on demand with HAARP, famine induced by GM terminator seeds, disease by genetically engineered viruses, holographic images in the sky, etc. Once we reach a population of 6.66 billion people, which has just been reached BTW, their planet will be sent a message and more of their race will come to exploit our resources with human slave labour, all of whom will receive the mark of the beast, 666. This is a 7 year trip for them. Since we have surplus labour, the rest of us will be used for genetic and nutritional purposes. The 7 years of tribulation may have started with the Burma cyclone and the Chinese quake. This was likely approved by the Pope in his meeting with Bush in April. The details of the plan are being finalized starting with Israels 60th birthday and in DC (in roman numerals this is 600) on June 6th in the Bilderbergers meeting. DNA testing is being done today to determine who will be eligible for the slave population. Those with the highest traces of alien blood will be chosen, unless they have proven themsleves unworthy by calling the elite psychopaths, being a patriot or anti-globalist. Alas, I am lunch meat to be. Also to be saved are good looking men and women, the younger the better, that despite being made of inferior genetic stuff can be as sex toys for the elite, I do not qualify anyways, too old. Since we are located near an intergalactic highway, once we are approved as an approved stop-over, they might place a McDonalds in orbit and serve delicacies like Human Burgers, with French Fingers. by pft (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 601 comments [7 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Saturday, May 24, 2008 at 8:38:20 PM
|
|
Reply: No Trouble
You don't have to worry about trouble from me. Not when you post something as hilariously goofy as this! I laughed so loud my wife gave me a dirty look, worried that I was going to wake my 2-yr-old daughter. What made it even better is that it was such a mixture of fact, fiction, and lunacy. Comment on my articles anytime. by JC Garrett (40 articles, 65 quicklinks, 7 diaries, 604 comments [10 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Saturday, May 24, 2008 at 9:00:40 PM
|
|
Reply: YOU ARE A DISCIPLE OF ICKE.
I like Icke! You like Icke! For love of Mike, why do we believe this shite? it makes one think. It makes one wonder. It is as good a reason as this dumb mutt has received. Reptilian, humanoid, or canine, what's the difference if we are so easily manipulated by these dumb fox (sic). People sheeple will tell you that we are nuts! Join the institutionalized with gusto! Let us just keep their identity a bit stifled. Let us call them the people of Cecil Bill. He was incomprehensible, as our hosts are to us. Be of the way to accept the "tag" of looney, it is just a type of retaining their ego mind. pft is on the mark, but off the table, as is Pelosi's "I" word. by Wolfie (9 articles, 0 quicklinks, 33 diaries, 1208 comments) on Saturday, May 24, 2008 at 9:31:25 PM
|
|
thanks for pointing out the hypocrisy
the legacy Bush is leaving is leaving is horrible, but is a blessing in that it is waking people up in huge numbers to how inept, corrupt and destructive the Establishment is. This worthless, subhuman "elite" class we have in the US, which all "electable", "top tier" nominees are part of, whether they be fake-lib Dem or fake-con Rep, can't even give Americans as good a quality of life as so many other industrialized nations, yet they're all over the world meddling in other countries affairs to make them safe for exploitation by corporate interests- who are hiding their profits in every tax shelter and loophole their lobbyists can bribe Congress into allowing, socializing costs and risks whenever possible while sucking on the taxpayer teat, and privatizing all the benefits and gain, to spend on their selfish worthless asses and sociopathic offspring- like GW by Better World Order (4 articles, 568 quicklinks, 39 diaries, 1112 comments [56 recommended, 1 rejected]) on Saturday, May 24, 2008 at 5:09:46 PM
|
|
Good article from an American constitution scholar
If only we heard MORE from you guys. You bio says you are not ashamed to be American just ashamed that Bush is American. That can't cut it forever though you know. Bush can't be the national scapegoat for the refusal of citizens to accept the responsibility of citizenship. It is not Bush's responsibility to prosecute himself. The world is entitled to ask why aren't Americans ashamed to be Americans, what will it take? When does blaming Bush but doing nothing practical about repudiating the precedents he has established, like making Obama take a position and give a commitment NOT to impede justice, just become self serving cant? It may seem unfair to pick on the best Americans for being Americans but you guys have opportunities and advantages that the rest of the people in the world don't. And you have about as much real power as citizens under your system as citizens are likely to ever get under a national government. In a way you Americans are the best chance of going from a national government with power in the hands of the citizens to a world government with power in the hands of citizens without having to do the whole thing with a bloodbath. You could have been a seed crystal. You could have been a light on the hill not just another smell in the valley. The corruption of a policeman or a judge is worse than the corruption of an ordinary citizen. The corruption of America is worse than the corruption that occurs in places where the people have really never had a chance. Thanks for the article. by Brett Paatsch (0 articles, 3 quicklinks, 23 diaries, 1308 comments) on Sunday, May 25, 2008 at 2:13:09 AM
|
|
The Evil Empire
No major conflict anywhere across the planet can ever take place without US's direct or indirect intervention or authorization. The CIA sees to it that nothing will ever happen through accident or surprise anywhere in the world. Blood thirsty dictators -Saddam Mossein, Shah of Iran, Ponochet, Pol Pot, etc -were all fabrications of the CIA, and more of them are being fabricated right now for furure conflicts. Ahmad Haroun of Sudan is no exception to this rule. The government of the USA is the mother of all genocides and atrocities and human sufferings all over the world. Saddam's raping rooms and torture chambers had been financed by the CIA, same thing with the Shah's abominable SAVAK in Iran where CIA agents raped young women and men in front of horrified parents and then killed them in cold blood in front of the parents again. The nation that massacred tens of millions of indigenous American Indians has been perpetrating the genocides ever since, accusing others fo them. Remember that the Fed was created to fund wars and conflicts; and that the two world wars of the twentieth century were fomented by the US government. So, the label Evil Empire, can aptly be applied to the lawless government of the USA. Think about it that the International Criminal Court is nothing but a travesty of justice fabricated to cover up the crimes of the Empire. by ramsheyi (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 793 comments [1 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Sunday, May 25, 2008 at 8:02:59 AM
|
|
Reply: This statement is just plain ridiculous
by Brett Paatsch (0 articles, 3 quicklinks, 23 diaries, 1308 comments) on Sunday, May 25, 2008 at 11:31:41 AM
|
|
Reply: No such thing as an "evil" nation
Ramsheyi, The United States government did not "foment" both world wars, although some corporations with ties to the United States most definitely looked forward to, and cheered on the war. The CIA is into a lot of things they shouldn't be, but they aren't omnipotent and they aren't the cause of every conflict on the planet. I wish to God JFK had gone ahead and disbanded the CIA like he said he wanted to do after the Bay of Pigs. The US is not "evil." Just like there is no such thing as Bush's "Axis of Evil." Anyone who could call an entire nation or race of people "evil" is himself evil. Evil is not a trait belonging to nations or races. It is an individual trait which each of us share in to a certain extent - some individuals more than others. A man who tells you that Jews are evil, or Muslims are evil, or Christians are evil, or Israelis, Palestinians, Iranians, or Americans - beware the evil in that man. If the US is to heal itself, the men who have committed these crimes will have to be brought to justice. The same goes for Britain and even Australia, Mr. Paatsch. The problem, as you well know, is that when the criminals happen to be the folks who hold the most powerful positions in your government, the people are extremely limited in their options. They either must wait until the next election, or violently overthrow the government. It's the same thing with the international community. The world has well-established laws and treaties. But if the most powerful country decides not to follow the law, what can the other countries do about it? They must wait for the government to change because they don't have as much money, influence, or weaponry. Just like the citizens of that country. And if that country is a democracy, the world weighs the cost of waiting to the cost of violently deposing the government - and usually decides waiting is best. Watch what happens this next election. I have a feeling that Americans will do the right thing. by JC Garrett (40 articles, 65 quicklinks, 7 diaries, 604 comments [10 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Sunday, May 25, 2008 at 3:37:20 PM
|
|
Reply: Confusion
I certainly apologize for having employed Bush's language in reference to the crminal activities of a government. The government IS EVIL but not the nation. My love for the USA is so intense that I feel outraged to see unelected gangsters commiting crimes in the name of a people. Americans are the loveliest and the most pacific of the planet and there is no doubt in my mind about this. by ramsheyi (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 793 comments [1 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Sunday, May 25, 2008 at 6:24:17 PM
|
|
Reply: Hey, I very well know it
Australia is also a UN member nation and if it could be done I would have, John Howard the Prime Minister of the time (19 March 2003), Alexander Downer, the Foreign Minister, Daryl Williams, Attorney General, and that gormless twit whos name I can't remember who was the Defence Minister all up before the Hague to answer for their part in acquiesing to the breach of international law that was the invasion of Iraq. If any of these men had spoken out Australia may not have joined the coalition of the willing and if Howard had been less of a brown-nosing opportunistic favour currier he might have taken a principled stand and advised Bush like a true friend that you don't fight attrocity by becoming an attrocity. The thing is though, Australia, although a member of the UN is not a veto holding permanent security council member. And Australia does not have a bill of rights - our citizens are less empowered, he can't be impeached. To give Howard a fair trial it would be first necessary to determine what he actually said to Bush. It could have been that he was actually trying to slow Bush down and to be a voice of caution against launching an illegal invasion. If Bush was impeached the information that came out might allow us to find out Howards part. But Bush is crucial because Bush really was the guy that broke the terms of UN Resolution 1441. Bush and Bush alone had the power of the US commander in cheif and Bush and Bush alone gave the order to invade Iraq against international law and against the United States promise to give Iraq a "final opportunity" to disarm. The United States and Bush in particular were bound by the terms of the UN Charter and the US Presidential Oath to not usurp the Security Councils authority and to not unilaterally terminate that "final opportunity". The weapons inspections were proceeding. Bush terminated them with his invasion. And Howard followed along like an unprincipled spineless lapdog. You say they must wait until the next election or violently overthrow the government. But your system, the US system founded on the Constitution by what looks to me to have been better generations of Americans, offers impeachment as a peaceful third solution. The problem with impeachment is not that it doesn't exist as an option but rather that citizens with the wit and the sense of respobsibility to use it don't exist in sufficient numbers. by Brett Paatsch (0 articles, 3 quicklinks, 23 diaries, 1308 comments) on Sunday, May 25, 2008 at 6:32:15 PM
|
|
Reply: Part of my outrage comes in truth from disappointment with
myself as well. There was another way, a lawful way to deal with the problem of Iraq and the threat possed by rogue national leaders with weapons of mass distruction but when the time came to have people who could think clearly to propose solutions I couldn't be effective enough to get my solutions heard in time. Bush had the power in the Presidency to remove Saddam, reform the United Nations and avoid the Iraq War, he just didn't have the wit to know how to handle the diplomacy and he didn't have advisors that could tell him the moves to make. It is possible, though I think unlikely, that Bush is actually a pretty decent but tragically limited guy, promoted beyond his ability, but genuinely trying to do the right thing. Its more likely he a self centred self absorded prick though. I wouldn't call him evil. I wouldn't call Hitler evil. But the effect of these mens actions are as bad whatever we call them personally. by Brett Paatsch (0 articles, 3 quicklinks, 23 diaries, 1308 comments) on Sunday, May 25, 2008 at 6:44:05 PM
|
|
Reply: A Terrible Choice
Whether Bush is evil or not, I am not qualified to answer. All I can judge are his actions, and not his soul. And many of George W. Bush's actions and decisions have been evil. Many words that have issued from his mouth have been immoral. And even if one is not willing to go so far as to label his actions to be evil, there is no denying that they were and are illegal. Impeachment is a tool that we Americans have used rarely, and this current situation is exactly the type when we should use it. Unfortunately, the criminals in Washington do not only reside in the White House. The Congress and Senate are also full of them. Even after the people showed overwhelmingly by their votes that they wanted the war to end and the president impeached, it has not been allowed to come to a vote. Pelosi betrayed us. I don't know what kind of back-room deal she made, or with whom, but she obviously sold us out. The people are in the same position as before. We have the choice of storming the Capitol with arms and throwing the government out forcibly, or waiting for the next election and doing it by ballot. In the meantime, there are millions of us who have made our opinions known by protesting, petitioning, writing Congress, letters to the editor, op-eds such as the one above, and every other peaceful option available to us. Short of violence, there is no other option. I do not rule out that option, as no patriot could or should. But it is a terrible decision to have to make when you know what it will lead to - which will be another civil war. Just as you, without any other option to foment change, would have to resort to violence to force your government to do the right things. Yes, we are frustrated. We are angry. But we are also hopeful that our democratic system will remedy this. If it doesn't, God help us. by JC Garrett (40 articles, 65 quicklinks, 7 diaries, 604 comments [10 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Sunday, May 25, 2008 at 9:38:55 PM
|
|
Reply: You aren't there yet.
Unfortunately, the criminals in Washington do not only reside in the White House. The Congress and Senate are also full of them. Even after the people showed overwhelmingly by their votes that they wanted the war to end and the president impeached, it has not been allowed to come to a vote. Pelosi betrayed us. Yes she did. But you also betrayed yourselves. As a procedural matter the ball was passed to John Conyers Judicary Committee and then he joined you in your betrayed of yourselves. At each stage the issues could have been fought harder. They still could be. Moral agency still resides in individuals and individuals still have the power of speech. I don't know what kind of back-room deal she made, or with whom, but she obviously sold us out. Yes she did. But you have let her. The people are in the same position as before. We have the choice of storming the Capitol with arms and throwing the government out forcibly, or waiting for the next election and doing it by ballot. Or you could do a lot of other things that are civil disobedience. You (citizens) could clog the system. You could fill the jails and the terrorist watch lists. In the meantime, there are millions of us who have made our opinions known by protesting, petitioning, writing Congress, letters to the editor, op-eds such as the one above, and every other peaceful option available to us. Short of violence, there is no other option. I'm not calling you personally to violence. But as a constitutional lawyer you could write more about the breach of the law. You could inform and educate more others. You can do better service then on the end of a pitch fork or a bayonet. But constitutional lawyers should be more up front like clinicians and less coming from behind like coroners. I do not rule out that option, as no patriot could or should. But it is a terrible decision to have to make when you know what it will lead to - which will be another civil war. There are violent actions that are illegal but that fall short of civil war. If you are trying to move political opinion you can't do it by charging the White House with pitch forks and a few desperados (or not by that alone) you have to appeal to the mind of the voter, you have to let the citizen feel cognitive dissonance and you have to simplify complex choices down so that those who don't ever want to have to take a position can't duck out on their responsibility to take one. Just as you, without any other option to foment change, would have to resort to violence to force your government to do the right things. The Australian government doesn't have the power to do the right thing with respect to ensuring that international law is upheld. To foment change at the international level, to get an internation law that can be relied upon, when I have to resort to violence, it would be violence against America. It would be violence against the American citizen. I am willing to accept the loss of the United States of America, probably the best national democracy the world has ever seen, in order to have a chance at a United States of the World. 300 million mortals is less than 6 billion mortals. Yes, we are frustrated. We are angry. But we are also hopeful that our democratic system will remedy this. Will you ask Obama for a commitment not to use the pardon powers of the Presidency to pardon Bush? If it doesn't, God help us. I think it was Jefferson who said that he feared for his country when he considered that God was just. It may have been Franklin. But in any case I am an atheist and I expect neither help nor hindrance from fairy tales. Patriotism may be the last refuge of scoundrels but religion is the penultimate. If God is on the side of torturers and aggressive invaders then God is not good. You are the father of a daughter that will inherit the world you leave behind. While you live work and while you are an American work for a world in which American isn't rightfully considered a swear word. You haven't done all that you can do until you challenge Obama to take a real stand. by Brett Paatsch (0 articles, 3 quicklinks, 23 diaries, 1308 comments) on Monday, May 26, 2008 at 11:39:17 PM
|
Want to post your own comment on this Article?
|
||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Tell a Friend:
|
Copyright © 2002-2009, OpEdNews |