Will any Dems have the courage to speak out against Saddam's hanging?

[jgraz]

How shameful is it that we've invaded a country, staged a show trial for its leader and are now planning to hang him? I know Saddam was a bad guy, but it seems to me that the United States should be better than this.

I truly hope that some of our Democratic leaders will have the courage to publicly oppose this disgusting action, but I'm not holding my breath.

[leftchick]

1. no and

for sure do not hold your breath.

[Redstone]

2. Why should they? I'd pull the lever on him myself.

He deserves to die.

Redstone

[wryter2000]

3. I wouldn't go that far

But I see no reason to speak up against executing him unless it's in a blanket condemnation of capital punishment.

[jgraz]

4. Not according to any criteria we might call "American"

By our own constitution, we have no more right to execute Saddam than Bush had to incarcerate Jose Padilla. This execution is extra-legal, unconstitutional and downright un-American. No amount of "badness" of the victim can change that.

[Redstone]

5. He was tried in an Iraqi court (kangaroo or not, still Iraqi), and will be executed

by Iraqis.

None of it matters. He's a fucking monster, and deserves to die.

Redstone

[jgraz]

9. In other words, we should only apply principles of justice to those who "deserve" it?

If so, why bother having these principles at all?

[Redstone]

15. Iraqi murderous dictator. Iraqi court. Iraqi verdict. Iraqi execution. Works for me.

Redstone

[jgraz]

17. See post 16

If you really think this was an Iraqi-controlled trial, I have a bridge in Baghdad to sell you.

[Totallybushed]

6. I'm with you

on this one. It doesn't really matter to me who kills him, or how, or even why. The world will be a better place when he's not in it. I can think of a few more people like that, too.

[gratuitous]

12. Lots of people "deserve" to die

But until dead people can be made alive as easily as live people can be made dead, it's something I'm a little chary of invoking for anyone.

In any event, we're only just now learning that there might have been more people involved in the Oklahoma City bombing (to cite just one example from the recent past). Unfortunately, Tim McVeigh is past all questioning on the matter, and there may be folks walking among us today who had a hand in the horrible events of that April morning. Wouldn't it be preferable to have Mr. McVeigh alive now to be interrogated about specific people who might have been involved?

Similarly, the many crimes of Saddam Hussein might be better accounted for in the months and years to come, along with his aiders and abettors if he was still alive to answer questions. Included in that number might very well be some folks who are in power in Iraq (and the United States).

[ikojo]

21. So do those who supplied the pharmaceuticals used

to "gas his own people." So do those who supplied the weapons he used to oppress the Iraqis. Those people are becoming multi millionaires several times over as a result of this war and show trial.

This trial was barely at a level for a first year law student.

It's definitely not on par with the Nuremburg Trials. Only when Bushco is put on trial will a trial rise to that level.

[theophilus]

29. Killing a defenseless person is murder. I believe we should make sure

that Saddam will not kill anyone personally. Killing him will result in deaths. He should be studied and his brain should be "picked" until he dies. We can learn some things from the man. If we kill powerless and defenseless people we are Saddam on a small scale. Americans have supported leaders who have made bad decisions. And each of us had done things we shouldn't have done and we probably all deserve to die because of out unbelievably wasteful lifestyle. My opinion. We're never going to change the world for the better if we are murderers. My opinion again.

[WHEN CRABS ROAR]

7. I will. He is being killed to show that

KILLING IS WRONG !

[whathappened]

8. why have we zero'ed in on sadam's hanging

are we going to go from country to country hanging all dictators one by one untell we clean the world of evil , what about china how many people have been killed there by there gov , yet we still do buisness as if they were a free nation , , how about our own country and the indians ,

[Disturbed]

14. Killing Saddam and his Cohorts could be stopped.

Under Iraqi law, the appeals court decision must be ratified by President Jalal Talabani and Iraq’s two vice-presidents. Mr Talabani has said he is opposed to the death penalty but has signalled that he will step aside and allow his deputies to authorise the verdict.

The bloodlust of some here at DU is disgusting.

[doc03]

10. No, of course not. I wonder who has killed more Iraqis Bush

or Saddam?

[LWolf]

11. I will. No problem.

I don't support the death penalty, period.

In addition, I find the hanging of our hand-selected and installed goon to be hypocritical. The mildest thing I can think of to say.

I also find it to be rank stupidity, from an international diplomatic perspective.

[LibraLiz1973]

13. I'll speak out: They should hang him twice.

What he did to the people of his country... horrible.

Keep in mind- we didn't try him... and WE aren't hanging him.

Oh.. and I'm ok with the death penalty.

Child molesters? Throw the switch

Child murderer? Wife Murderer? Serial killer? Throw the switch

Rapists? Throw the switch

[jgraz]

16. To say "we didn't try him" is to purposefully ignore reality

The statute under which Saddam was tried was issued by the U.S. Coalition Provisional Authority and continued under the U.S.-backed Iraqi Interim Government. None of the particulars of the trial were outside of U.S. control, including the verdict.

Does anyone really think that the U.S. would have stood for an "not guilty" verdict? Does anyone seriously question that the timing of the "verdict" (Nov 5th) was set to give the GOP a boost in the midterm elections? Hell, they hadn't even finished writing the verdict when it was announced.

I have no opposition to the death penalty for people accused of horrible crimes, tried in a fair court and found guilty by a jury of their peers. But this was a staged event from beginning to end and Saddam's execution will just be one more way for the BFEE to use violent death to further their own ambitions.

[Redstone]

23. Sorry, but none of that matters to me, as long as he's sent to the special corner

of Hell that's waiting for him.

Redstone

[jgraz]

25. Fine -- just hope Bush doesn't decide that you're next

If it were just Saddam, I might be less bothered by it. But this is part of a pattern that includes illegal domestic wiretaps, torture of detainees and abolition of habeus corpus.

I'm not an absolutist on many things but observing the Constitution and the Bill or Rights is one that we should never compromise on, no matter how much our blood lust needs satisfaction.

[enough already]

18. This country has it's own mass murderer

The Dem leaders need to speak up about that too.

[democrank]

19. Yes.

I`m against the death penalty. Period.

[pitohui]

20. "courage"? i call that "crazy"

the democrats have bigger fish to fry

let him swing alone, i say, some quixotic soul don't need to throw himself away in a futile attempt to save saddam

[brook]

22. I wish they would speak out

but I doubt it. Yes, Saddam was an evil dictator. But the United States of America had no legitimate cause to attack a sovereign nation with which we were not at war, depose it's leader, try him (and the trial was designed by us, not the Iraqis), and then hang him.

If Bush wasn't afraid of the truth, Saddam would have gone to the Hague and been tried under International Law. The longer Saddam is alive, the more danger that Bush, his father and many others would be exposed for crimes of their own.

[B Calm]

24. Would we be outraged if another country executed Bush?

[jgraz]

26. I think we'd welcome them as liberators

[karynnj]

31. You then are falling into the same trap Cheney did

when he thought we would be welcomed as liberators. Being attacked and conquered by another country, would actually move many people back to Bush.

[creeksneakers2]

27. I can't feel sorry for him

And if opponents to the death penalty want to make a case they should do it with a more appealing victim.

[jgraz]

28. I don't feel sorry for him either

I feel sorry for our democracy. Saddam's "appeal" is not the issue. The issue is whether we want to give the Moran in Chief the power to create show trials and execute whomever he wishes.

[DocSavage]

30. Pop his

head off like a pez dispenser. Unfortunatly, he will not hang on a lamp post like Mousollini did. Some people just deserve killin.