Category Archives: Gitmo
Prison Press Pass
President Obama is good at getting prisoners released from GITMO but not so much from Iran. While he polishes his nuclear deal, a Washington Post reporter rots in Iran’s notorious Evin Prison. Jason Rezaian has been the Supreme Leader’s guest there since last July.
Rezaian’s trial was yesterday. Secret – like the nuke deal. So far no word on the outcome.
Still Bush’s Fault
Diane Feinstein issued a Senate Intelligence Committee report on CIA terrorist interrogation tactics it called torture. Members of the committee approved those same tactics after the 9/11 attacks.
The report was written the style of the health care bill – 100% by Democrats. And researched Rolling Stone style – none of the accused were interviewed.
Bottom line – it’s almost 2015 and it’s still Bush’s fault.
James Foley
The New York Times reported that ISIS wanted $130,000,000 ransom for James Foley. European countries have paid ransom in the past. It’s a major source of income for ISIS. The US policy is not to pay ransom for hostages, on the theory it encourages more hostage taking.
The same theory doesn’t seem to apply when it comes to swapping terrorists for American hostages. We gave up five of GITMO’s worst bad asses to bring home alleged deserter Private Bergdahl.
Bergdahl’s parents were flown in from Idaho to celebrate the joyous occasion with President Obama in the White House Rose Garden.
James Foley
James Foley met his grim fate with courage. His parents showed the source of that fortitude in their meeting with the media to discuss their son on the day of his death.
Obama played golf.
High Tech Execution
There was another botched high tech execution last week in Arizona. It took two hours to kill Joseph Rudolph Wood III by lethal injection. Here’s Reason editor Nick Gillespie writing for Daily Beast.
Saving Private Ryan
Mad Magazine did a great satire on the Saving Private Ryan movie poster. It was titled Trading Private Bergdahl “they got five taliban leaders, we got one deserting weasel”.
In the actual movie, a Lincoln channeling General George Marshall gives orders to find Private Ryan. The hapless job falls to platoon leader Captain Miller.
During the search, Miller has to decide whether to keep a German prisoner or press on to find Ryan. He releases the Jihadi, er German, only to have come back later in the flick and kill one of his men.
When they finally find Ryan, Miller tells him all his brothers have been killed in battle and he has orders to bring him home. Ryan refuses saying the men he is with are his brothers now and he won’t leave them behind. Not exactly a Private Bergdahl moment, but hey, it’s a movie.
Even though they’re way outnumbered by the Germans, Captain Miller and his men stay, and they all get killed. Not really, but Captain Miller does. Miller’s dying words to Private Ryan are, “earn this”.
Saving Private Ryan
To further prove life is unfair, Private Ryan lost out to Shakespeare in Love for Best Picture in 1998.
Anyway, I thought this might be a good way to mark the 70th anniversary of D-Day.
