According to John McCain, Sarah Palin, Joe Liebermann, the Neocons and Joe the Plumber, the election of Barack Obama was supposed to "embolden our enemies", epsecially Iran. Well, according to the Jerusalem Post, it ain't really working out that way.Despite this message, the conservative hard-line camp in Iran is worried about the overwhelming enthusiasm and support for the US that Obama's election has created around the world. A popular American president who talks about peace and wants to negotiate with Iran would take away their justification for leading the anti-American front in the Middle East. Furthermore, increased international support and credibility for the United States represents a more serious challenge to Iran, especially if the international community initiates new sanctions against Teheran. All this while oil prices are falling.
This is why efforts are already efforts under way in the Iranian press to tarnish Obama's image.
Apparently, despite our dearly deluded rabid right fucktards' certainty that Obama is the antichrist, he doesn't make a convincing poster boy for the Great Satan.
So. Our standing in the world turned 180 degrees from abysmal to awesome literally overnight. What other miracles would President-Elect Obama care to perform today?
Oh, you know. Nothing big. Just making absolutely clear that the evil that is Guantanamo Bay is as good as gone:
Kinks I can deal with. Kinks can be worked out. After all, I've got this Smack-o-Matic lying nearly idle, and this fire sadly lacking feet. I'd much rather be bawling Obama out for a harebrained idea to create some Frankenstein court system than for ignoring solemn campaign pledges to close Guantanamo Bay. Not to mention that nagging sense I have that the "hybrid" bullshit is merely a squeak toy to distract the rabid right.Members of Barack Obama's team have already indicated policies the new White House plans to tackle early on in 2009, but let's not overlook Obama's efforts to reverse the Guantanamo nightmare.
President-elect Obama's advisers are quietly crafting a proposal to ship dozens, if not hundreds, of imprisoned terrorism suspects to the United States to face criminal trials, a plan that would make good on his promise to close the Guantanamo Bay prison but could require creation of a controversial new system of justice.
During his campaign, Obama described Guantanamo as a "sad chapter in American history" and has said generally that the U.S. legal system is equipped to handle the detainees. But he has offered few details on what he planned to do once the facility is closed.
Under plans being put together in Obama's camp, some detainees would be released and many others would be prosecuted in U.S. criminal courts.
A third group of detainees -- the ones whose cases are most entangled in highly classified information -- might have to go before a new court designed especially to handle sensitive national security cases, according to advisers and Democrats involved in the talks. Advisers participating directly in the planning spoke on condition of anonymity because the plans aren't final.
The initiative is not, of course, without controversy. Most notably, the approach under consideration would include a new "hybrid" system for suspected terrorists that is short of Americans' due process rights but more expansive than Bush's military commissions. It's a proposal burdened by, shall we say, kinks.
That said, the AP report noted that Laurence Tribe, a Harvard law professor and Obama legal adviser, believes that the closing of the detention facility would be a top priority of the new administration and the plan being crafted by Obama's team "has been championed by legal scholars from both political parties."
Spencer Ackerman added, "[C]onsider not only that this is one of the first initiatives that Obama is pursuing -- it's one of the first that he's leaking, as well. This is as clear a signal as can be sent that the Bush era isn't just over, it will be actively rolled back."
(This is the problem with having a President-Elect who's demonstrated a penchant for careful, reasoned, and intelligent thought: I can't discard the possibility of a smart political manuever and instantly start screaming "YOU FUCKING FUCKTARD!!" instead, as I could with Bush's outrageous ideas.)
Nothing is going to be easy. But signs are pointing in the right direction for America. At fucking last.
My reaction to this news wasn't so positive. That "special court" isn't just a kink - it's an acceptance of the status quo. They'll close down Guantanamo, but they'll keep the shackles handy.
ReplyDelete