"Close Guantanamo Prison: Mr. Obama's Promise to Shut Down the Nationwide Detention Facility Deserves High Priority," (Editorial) in The New York Times, November 26, 2012, at p. A26.
"On his second day in office in 2009, President Obama signed an executive Order that was a declaration of American renewal and decency hailed around the globe. It called for the closure, in no more than a year, of the detention camp at the United States naval facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba -- the grim emblem of President George W. Bush's lawless [emphasis added] policies of torture and detention. Accompanied by other executive orders signaling a break from the Bush era of justice delayed and denied, it was a bold beginning."
Guantanamo was not closed during the president's first term. Blaming the Congress is not convincing. The prison is a federal facility which the president should be able to close at the stroke of a pen.
This "concentration camp" -- for this is the term for the Guantanamo facility throughout the world -- has become a symbol of America's legal contradictions and hypocrisy.
Indeed, much the same is true of my situation, I believe, because I am involved in a daily struggle against cybercrime, censorship, and various slanders or psychological torture attempts.
I am involved in this struggle in a nation that lectures to the world about tolerance for dissent and free speech. There is no guarantee that I will be able to continue writing from one day to the next.
Incidentally, I am not a "bartender" nor do I drink alcohol. I cannot say what other falsehoods are disseminated about me. ("New Jersey's 'Ethical' Legal System.")
Distractions and failed attempts to change the subject are mostly irrelevant to the critique offered in these blogs of what is clearly a serious problem in New Jersey.
Most of the men still held in Guantanamo (166 inmates remain at that prison) have never been charged with any offense nor tried for any reason.
No one now seriously disputes that most of these individuals -- far from being "the worst of the worst," as Mr. Rumsfeld suggested -- are not terrorists and have committed no crimes. We are stuck with these persons. Their torture and continued incarceration seems to satisfy some visceral and primal need for scapegoats after 9/11.
It is plausible to suppose that Mr. Obama wished to avoid being depicted as "soft on terrorism" by the people who will see him in such terms no matter what he does. (Mr. Netanyahu?)
The president has continued Bush era policies that violate fundamental human rights which America is committed to defending on the world stage.
Worse, Mr. Obama has encroached on Americans' civil rights in a manner that must delight Mr. Romney and Mr. Ryan: execution of Americans without due process of law, robot bombs that have taken the lives of thousands of mostly innocent persons who are dismissed as "collateral damage," surveillance and monitoring of communications by individuals throughout the world, including within the nation's borders, and similar tactics are increasingly "routine."
Does any of this overreaching make us "safer" or more secure? I doubt it. I am sure that the robot bombs make us less secure and contribute to a more dangerous world situation.
Fundamentalist Islamic forces in Pakistan -- some allied with the Talliban -- are growing stronger and have recently engaged in a bombing campaign in reaction to U.S. actions in Pakistan.
A nation with a hundred nuclear weapons is in real danger of falling to fundamentalist forces friendly to the Talliban because of our failed policies in the region for which we can blame both American political parties.
New Jersey's dismal effort to conceal its own disintegration into the status of a failed jurisdiction by means of lies and attacks aimed at hurting and silencing me -- along with many others -- falls into the same category of heinousness and stupidity.
"The new administration decided to adopt the Bush era's extravagant claims of state secrets and executive power, blocking any accountability for the detention and brutalization of hundreds of men at Guantanamo and secret prisons, and denying torture victims their day in court."
These are great crimes still being committed by the nation that must embody the rule of international human rights laws. Ignoring such crimes has an acid-like effect on the moral character of our nation and fosters an international climate of hostility to basic principles of legality and political ethics on the global stage.
We have undone the work of generations of legal scholars and statespersons (Mrs. Roosevelt, Justice Robert Jackson, and others among them) in pursuit of torture and drone policies in order to accomplish nothing of value.
New Jersey's lies and crimes committed against me appear equally pointless and idiotic.
Do you speak to me of "ethics," Mr. Rabner?
Sources:
New York & the World:
Jodi Rudoren, "Ex-Foreign Minister Heads Party to Oppose Netanyahu," in The New York Times, November 28, 2012, at p. A8. (Gaza has cost Mr. Netanyahu even in Israeli domestic politics.)
Kareem Fahim, "Egypt Protesters Gather to Denounce Mori in Scenes Recalling Uprising," in The New York Times, November 28, 2012, at p. A12. (Developments in Egypt suggest Mr. Morsi was perceived as a "winner" in the Gaza matter, but not at home?)
"A Needless Charge for Prison Families," (Editorial) in The New York Times, November 28, 2012, at p. A33. (Exhorbitant fees for calls to families, usually collect, from inmates further exploits a vulnerable and often poor population group.)
John F. Burns & Alan Cowell, "British Lawmakers Warn Against Press Restrictions," in The New York Times, November 29, 2012, at p. A10. (Levenson report discussed during question time with the Prime Minister this week opted, essentially, for self-regulation by the UK media. It cannot be confirmed that someone hacked into Lord Levenson's phone.)
Adam Liptak, "Court Muses On Unicorns In Debating Sentencing," in The New York Times, November 29, 2012, at p. A18. (It is rare when oral arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court touch upon the metaphysics of essences, nominalism, "unicorns," and jurisprudence: "Robert Unger's Revolutionary Legal Theory" and "What is Law?")
Maria Eugenia Diaz & William Neuman, "Venezuelan Judge Who Angered Chavez Says She Was Raped While in Prison," in The New York Times, November 27, 2012, at p. A5. (The number of rapes in U.S. prisons exceeds the proportional rate in Venezuela.)
James Risen, "Suit Planned Over Death of Man C.I.A. Drugged," in The New York Times, November 27, 2012, at p. A21. (Man killed by CIA "mind control" experiments -- which have gone underground since the eighties -- whose family members are now suing the government.)
Sharon Otterman, "Sex Abuse Trial of Brooklyn Man Begins," in The New York Times, November 27, 2012, at p. A25. (Orthodox community in Brooklyn is divided over painful child abuse revelations and scandals.)
John Markoff, "Learning Curve: No Longer Just a Human Trait," in The New York Times, November 24, 2012, at p. A1. (Learning and self-inventing programs aimed at creating A.I. systems take the next step: "Mind and Machine" and "John Searle and David Chambers On Consciousness.")
"Their Problem With Elizabeth Warren," (Editorial) in The New York Times, November 24, 2012, at p. A20. (Republican opposition to the most qualified Democrat in the Senate to serve on the banking committee, Elizabeth Warren, must not prevent the junior senator from Mass. from serving on that committee.)
New Jersey's Continuing Farce:
"Christie Seeks $37 BILLION for Sandy Relief," (Editorial) in The Record, November 30, 2012, at p. A-20. (How much of this money -- if received -- will be stolen? Conservative estimates suggest 40-50% will disappear in New Jersey. Perhaps Mayor Jones of Paterson will be entrusted with distribution of the funds.)
Allison Pries & Michael Copley, "Surgeon Arrested On Drug Charges: Accused of Improperly Filling Prescriptions," in The Record, November 30, 2012, at p. L-1. (Physicians in New Jersey routinely assist with illegal drug distribution and the "questioning-torture" of victims in the legal system as well as with frauds aimed against the insurance industry. This includes, allegedly, MARY ANN BENIGNO, 52, of Saddle River, New Jersey where a recent "private network" of child porn enthusiasts has been uncovered.)
Monsy Alvarado & Allison Pries, "Pal Park Still Mum On Cops in Shooting: Chief Says Setbacks Stall Release of IDs," in The Record, November 30, 2012, at p. L-1. (Inquiry beginning into fatal shooting of a man in Leonia, Bergen County, again.)
Hannan Adeley, "Zisa's Ex- May Join Pension Litigation: Possibly Entitled to Payments," in The Record, November 30, 2012, at p. L-1. (Disgraced former Hackensack Police Chief, KEN ZISA, now awaiting the outcome of an appeal that will determine the length of his prison stay, may have an ex-wife -- as distinct from a former mistress with whom he conspired to defraud insurance companies -- entitled to half of one, or all, of his pensions even if Mr. Zisa is a convicted fellon. N.J. taxpayers don't mind, right?)
Peter J. Sampson, "Man Guilty in Mortgage Scam: Father, Son Bilked $4.4 MILLION From Lenders," in The Record, November 30, 2012, at p. L-2. (Frederick "Freddie" Grippo, 32, of Old Bridge, admitted to bilking distressed homeowners of $4.4 MILLION with the assistance of several well-respected New Jersey law firms as well as his dad. "New Jersey's Politically-Connected Lawyers On the Tit" and "Corrupt Law Firms, Senator Bob, and New Jersey Ethics.")
Richard Cowen, "Town Begins New Inquiry On Generators: North Hudson to Investigate Officials' Use of Borough Gear," in The Record, November 30, 2012, at p. L-3. (Mayor Randy George decided to "take care" of his own needs for power before worrying about town residents. This "shabbyness" and/or "shabbiness" is normal in New Jersey.)
Kibret Marcos, "Fair Lawn Man Convicted of Molesting Toddler: Jurors Had Deadlocked Last Year," in The Record, November 20, 2012, at p. L-3. (Latest in the epidemic of child abuse conspiracies, private networks, scandals in New Jersey. This one involving John Katsiagiannis, 30, from Fair Lawn, N.J., another Bergen County offender. Ms. Riccioli, friend of yours?)
Peter J. Sampson, "Wife of Union Leader Pleads Guilty of Theft: Husband Faces Charges of Embezzling $350,000," in The Record, November 30, 2012, at p. L-3. (Richard "Buzzy" Dressel charged with scam to funnel $350,000 to his wife Kathleen Dressel, 54, of Montvale. Mafia connections to this labor union are denied, allegedly. Garcia & Kriko?)
Ed Beeson, "Trio Faces Insider Trading Charges High School Buddies Used Spy-Like Charges," in The Star Ledger, November 20, 2012, at p. 1. (Lawyers assist high school buddies in insider trading scam that -- even Stuart Rabner pal, Paul Fishman -- was forced to prosecute. Will Mr. Fishman protect Stuart Rabner, Debbie Poritz and other influential New Jersey legal figures from liability? Terry Tuchin?)
