March 10, 2009

"To us, they are not accusations. To us they are a badge of honor, which we carry with honor."

5 detainees respond to accusations that they planned the September 11 attacks in "The Islamic Response to the Government’s Nine Accusations," a document filed with the military commission in Guantanamo.
President Obama halted the military proceedings at Guantánamo in the first days after his inauguration, and the five men’s case is on hiatus until the government decides how it will proceed.

Several of the men have earlier said in military commission proceedings at Guantánamo that they planned the 2001 attacks and that they sought martyrdom....

In their filing, the men describe the planning of the Sept. 11 attacks and the killing of Americans as a model of Islamic action, and say the American government’s accusations cause them no shame....
Think, Obama, think. How to proceed?

34 comments:

The Dude said...

Obama could check to make sure that these terrorists have not paid their taxes, then appoint them to his cabinet.

Darcy said...

Althouse, I know you get this. But I don't even dare to hope, like you do, that he'll get it right.

AllenS said...

Can't you just let him finish his waffle?

Peter V. Bella said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Jason (the commenter) said...

Obama's likely choices:

Set up a commission to study the problem

Release a few prisoners to much fanfare and then ignore the problem by talking about healthcare

Send them to another country to be imprisoned without trial

Put Geithner in charge

Bob said...

My prediction: Obama decides to try them in the US using the US courts system. Judge dismisses charges on them based on "evidence" of torture. Detainees deported to Saudi Arabia. Obama blames Bush. Within a year of being released some of the released detainees attack either a US Embassy, a US Navy ship, or a US city. Obama and the media blame Bush.

Peter V. Bella said...

This is what we get when we put the cartoon characters in charge.

Since the One considers them nothing more than improper or illegaly held political prisoners, he could pardon them and reward them for their illegal detention with appointments as National Security Advisors. That would be par for the course.

That would help mend fences with the Middle East and raise The Legacy of the One.

Peter V. Bella said...

...then appoint them to his cabinet.

They probably have some nanny issues. You know how those guys are with goats.

Anonymous said...

What a tired routine you have, Ann. You pick out of context the most outrageous, poorly considered quote and then put it up on your web site to generate traffic.

Do you put up the text from the Islamic response? No. Do you (falsely and dishonestly) make it seem like the prisoners were in favor of terrorism? Yes. (/DeltaMinusLiberal)

The Drill SGT said...

Or we could sentence them, give them the option of blindfolds, line them up against the wall and shoot them.

AllenS and I will volunteer to be recalled, if they pay travel :)

yeah, I know that these scum want to be martyr'd, but given the alternative of releasing them to kill again or them being propaganda tools of the left, let's just shoot them.

Peter V. Bella said...

AllenS and I will volunteer to be recalled, if they pay travel :)

How about per diem? That would get me on board too.

Peter V. Bella said...

Do you put up the text from the Islamic response?

The title of the filing by the terrorists is "The Islamic Response..."

But since you insist:

“To us,” the official continued reading, “they are not accusations. To us they are a badge of honor, which we carry with honor.”

I changed my mind. Forget about the travel and per diem. I will re-up for the execution and pay my own travel and expenses. That will be a badge of honor which I will carry with honor.

The Drill SGT said...

I figured on the Gitmo BOQ and the mess hall. I understand the chow is good. after all, I doubt there are a bunch of Ruth Chris places on the Gitmo base :)

Darcy said...

LOL, Paul Z.

AllenS said...

Ok, I'll go, but on one condition. I get to bring my personalized waterboard.

Unknown said...

Careful Paul, you might make you know who upset. (/false caring for troll)

Peter V. Bella said...

Drill,
Maybe, but who is going to pay for the Mojitos?

Darcy said...

Well, if mojitos are involved...

The Drill SGT said...

The normal drill is for the accused to pay, thus ensuring that the firing squad is favorably disposed to shooting straight at your heart and opposed to your gut.

rhhardin said...

Ask for an apology.

Shanna said...

The per diem rate for Guantanamo Bay is 33 dollars a day. How many mojitos does that buy?

Hoosier Daddy said...

Ok, I'll go, but on one condition. I get to bring my personalized waterboard.

I think everyone of them should be forced to wear a bacon necklace.

Smilin' Jack said...

Obama should do the right thing and bring them back for a fair trial in this country. Except that on the way somehow they manage to jump out of the plane over the Atlantic, thus achieving martyrdom. Win-win.

TMink said...

"Think, Obama, think. How to proceed?"

I could not vote for a candidate whom I needed to address as if he were Pooh bear.

Trey - who is funny that way

Henry said...

My prediction is that Gitmo stays open, but no one bothers to notice.

Hoosier Daddy said...

My prediction is that Gitmo stays open, but no one bothers to notice.

Much like the BRING THE TROOPS HOME NOW!!! crowd.

Bushman of the Kohlrabi said...

I like Drill Sgt's idea. But let's spice it up a bit and tell the aspiring martyrs that their bodies will be wrapped in pig carcasses . Give the boys something to think about before beginning the journey to meet their virgins.

Joan said...

This thread has taken a disturbing turn. Even more disturbing, though, is the sure knowledge that I've watched too much Deadwood (as if such a thing were possible) -- after Bushman's last comment, my thought was along the lines of, "Did Woo's pigs eat only dead bodies?"

Skyler said...

Well, the right response is to execute as soon as possible. They are unlawful combatants, they have no rights to anything beyond certain basics, such as food, water, decent treatment, while they still live. Keeping them alive is purely optional and is an option we should not choose.

Unknown said...

Friggin' funny, Trey.

Beldar said...

Prof. Althouse wrote, "Think, Obama, think. How to proceed?"

And therein lies the rub. The problem with the Left, including its Messiah, is that they think that they are smarter than they really are, or than, in fact, anyone really is. And then they try to do too much. The notion that, for example, a market uninfected by government-sponsored distortions can do a better job, over time, of managing things than they can is ... well, unthinkable to them, because you see, they're just all so damned precious and so damned "smart."

It was someone incredibly "smart," in exactly that same sense, who came up with the "Overcharge" button for SecState Clinton to give the Russians.

The new meme that Obama is "exhausted" is, if true, the best news I've heard since his election if it means that he will do less as a result.

Peter V. Bella said...

I do beleive they deserve a fair trial. Like Judge Roy Bean, "first we're gonna try ya, then we're gonna hang ya."

Methadras said...

Oh, I think Mr. Barely is going to role out the red carpet of incompetence. Guess who Joan Rivers is going to interview?

Fen said...

Obama decides to try them in the US using the US courts system. Judge dismisses charges on them based on "evidence" of torture. Detainees deported to Saudi Arabia.... Within a year of being released some of the released detainees attack either a US Embassy, a US Navy ship, or a US city.

More likely, Justice will be thwarted by a legal technicality, like Clinton passing on Osama Bin Laden because "we feel we didn't have enough evidence to make our case".

I'm so glad we've gone back to fighting terrorists with lawyers. Because it worked SO well the first time.

So, some terrorist will be released due to some legal technicality, come back to blow up some city, like New York. And we'll be expected to unify behind this incompetent administration in the nation's moment of grief.

I won't be there.