Federal German court rules shooting a jet captured by terrorists UNLAWFUL

[Bluebear]

The Bundesverfassungsgericht (Federal German Constitutional Court) today ruled that one paragraph of the new Luftsicherheitsgesetz ("Air safety law"), which allowed the shooting down of planes captured by terrorists, was unconstitutional, because it infringed upon the constitutional rights of every individual.

With this ruling, the government may not contemplate shooting down jetliners in the future if they are captured.

The court's explanation: the innocent people in the plane who have been captured by terrorists would be reduced to simple objects and the state would negate their humanity by killing them. In other words, the constitution says that every human being has the exact same value, even if they only have minutes to live because terrorists intend to kill them shortly. And because every human has the same value, it is therefore illegal to, for example, weight the life of 100 innocent people onboard versus the lives of 1000 innocent people in a building the plane might hit.

http://www.bundesverfassungsgericht.de/entscheidungen/frames/2006/2/15

[neweurope]

1. I agree with our Constitutional Court... but now the Conservatives

will try to change the constitution. They've already announced it. *sigh* Interesting times,indeed.

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Remember Fallujah

Bush to The Hague!

[Kellanved]

2. Burkhardt Hirsch - the last good man left in the Liberal Party

A shame really; the FDP's departure from social-liberal ideals left the German political spectrum lacking. The FDP as a no-issues, conservative-but-we-allow-gays party - I wonder how he can stand it.

[Dogmudgeon]

3. Simple solution:

Manufacture or retrofit every large aircraft with a system that allows the tower to safely take remote control of it.

Why hasn't this been suggested before?

--p!

[flobee1]

4. Cant do that!

That would violate the airlines rights

Companies are people too!
:sarcasm:

[HysteryDiagnosis]

5. It makes too much sense. Can't have people thinking now.... go

back to sleep.... :)