Saturday, July 22, 2006

U.S. Joins Israel in Making Arabs Pay Disproportionately

Why is President Bush doing his best Yale Cheerleader act cheering on the Israeli revenge inspired war machine’s romp through Lebanon? Because he doesn’t care if innocent Arabs, Christian or Muslim pay disproportionately. A case in point involves an Algerian man detained after 9-11 as a suspect. Within 2 months investigators cleared the man of any ties to terrorism. Authorities held him on an immigration violation.

While most asylum seekers are released pending the outcome of their case, this gentleman spent time in solitary confinement. In 2003 A federal magistrate wrote the detainee had been "undeniably deprived of his liberty," and "held in custody under harsh conditions which can be said to be oppressive."

The United Nation’s Human Rights Group, long at odds with the Bush administration’s policies and treatment of detainees, said:

"The imprisonment endured has been a de facto prison sentence," the U.N. group wrote in findings made public in March. "In no way can the simple administrative offense of having stayed in the United States after his visa had expired justify such a disproportionate sentence."

That is today’s word, disproportionate. Unfortunately it is also today’s world. Are we back to the days when “an eye for an eye” came into being to limit excessive punishment? How much further from “turn the other cheek” can we be in our devoutly Christian nation? Five years in jail, with 6 months of solitary for overstaying a visa….

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