“Indefinite Detention” is no day at the beach. Well, at least it didn’t used to be. Seems like one of the many “changes we can believe in” no includes life in prison – subject to the unfettered discretion and good graces of the executive branch – at the United States military prison in Cuba.
Of late the U.S. base at Guantanamo has been used to detain hold house mostly musloid terrorists and others who have sworn a blood oath against all things American. Well if Mohammed (may pig excrement be upon him) can’t come to the mountain, doggone it, the United States government is going to bring a mountain of Americans to him.
Surprising as it is, Barack Hussein Obama – the beloved Commander-in-Chief of the United States military – has broken his word. Shocking, I know. Specifically, Obama has abandoned a commitment to veto a new security law that allows the military to indefinitely detain without trial American terrorism suspects arrested on US soil who could then be shipped to Guantánamo Bay.
Let me give it to you in English: The United States Government – by an exercise of it executive powers and without the constitutional safeguards of judicial review, warrants, or even a trial – did you get that: NO TRIAL – indefinitely. That means as long as they want. This applies to all U.S. citizens, whether you are in another country or right here. All that must happen is that same government decides that you – yeah, you – are an enemy of the state.
While I’ve warned of this time and time again, this governmental action has forged some surprising political coalitions. Former conservative Lindsey Graham hails the action as necessary because terrorism suspects are not like regular criminals. Conversely, Congressman Rand Paul has observed:
“detaining citizens without a court trial is not American” and that if the law passes “the terrorists have won”. “We’re talking about American citizens who can be taken from the United States and sent to a camp at Guantánamo Bay and held indefinitely. It puts every single citizen American at risk,” he said. “Really, what security does this indefinite detention of Americans give us? The first and flawed premise, both here and in the badly named Patriot Act, is that our pre-9/11 police powers were insufficient to stop terrorism. This is simply not borne out by the facts.”
These concerns are coming not just from some perceived nutjobs on the right. Consider a nutjob on the left (but then I repeat myself) Dianne Feinstein:
“Congress is essentially authorising the indefinite imprisonment of American citizens, without charge,” she said. “We are not a nation that locks up its citizens without charge.”
And if that’s not enough for you, consider the nutjobs from the mainstream media, like The Guardian, CBS News, their overseas counterpart, Al Jazeera. Even the New York Times:
-
Military given go-ahead to detain US terrorist suspects without trial – Civil rights groups dismayed as Barack Obama abandons commitment to veto new security law contained in defence bill.
-
WH OKs military detention of terrorism suspects
-
Detaining US citizens: How did we get here?
-
The Sound of One President Caving
If you want to find out more, you can take a look at about 1500 articles on the National Defense Authorization Act. Or you could just do the old ostrich routine and put your head in the sand, but that leaves a certain anatomical region in the air.
In any event, you might want to stock up on some sunscreen.