Friday, March 18, 2011

A quick response from me to Senator Toomey's statement on Guantanamo trials

Senator Toomey recently wrote “I am pleased President Obama has decided to resume trying detainees in military commissions at Guantanamo. I now look forward to hearing the president announce that murderous enemy combatants, such as Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, will go before military commissions instead of American civilian courts. Pennsylvanians do not want terrorists such as Mohammed being tried in their communities, and our citizens must be kept safe from the security threats that would arise from such high-profile trials,” (http://toomey.senate.gov/record.cfm?id=331724).

Here is my response, which I thought I would share:

Dear Sir,

I am not one of those you speak for when you say "Pennsylvanians do not want terrorists such as Mohammed being tried in their communities".

I believe in the rule of law, and have perfect faith that the authorities of the United States could both execute the rule of law and keep me and my family safe from an unarmed accused terrorist and any who would seek to help him.

The fear expressed by our leaders in this matter confuses "how wicked someone is" with "how much harm they can do". This is not fitting for the land of the free and the home of the brave.

Please be aware that at least some Pennsylvanians believe that our government should be competent to protect us from unarmed well-known bad guys in custody.

Yours faithfully,
Dominic Widdows

No comments: