Friday, February 6, 2009

Why We Chose Not to Meet with President Obama


Yesterday we were driving back from Houston, Texas from obtaining a passport for my daughter so she could attend the arraignment of al-Nashiri who had helped in the Cole Bombing. We were expecting to leave for Gitmo no later than this Saturday. I knew that Obama would no doubt dismiss the charges against al-nashiri. Our government has repeatably found excuses so as not to take any action against the Cole bombers and or those who support them. Like the countries of Yemen and the Sudan. So it came as no surprise to me when an Obama's aide called to tell me that we had an invitation to attend a meeting where president Obama would explain his reasons for dismissing the charges against the terrorists. I told him that it was on a short notice and that we would not be attending.

Why attend a meeting when you already know the inevitable outcome. And President Obama has already signed the order to close Gitmo, and a request to stop the trials. Which they did. With only one judge who had the strength, courage and conviction to stand up for the murdered sailors and say that al-nashiri's arraignment would go forward. So anyway I asked the aide if he would please get my letter to Obama instead. He said he would if I faxed it. I had wrote Obama a letter the previous week pleading with him to change his mind. I faxed the letter later that same day. I knew that I would have to tell my wife later on when we got home that our murdered son's trail had become a victim of petty politics. And that she would be upset and hurt yet again.

I wish that our government would not play the head games that they have played with the victims families. Its extremely disrespectful of the victims and their families. The government could have stopped this charade that there was going to be a trial after Obama had requested that there would be no trials in the first place. But instead my daughter took time off from work to make a 400 mile round trip to purchase a passport that she will probably never need. And of course she had to experience another let down when Obama's aide called. And my wife as well.

The trials of our son's killers have become a heated political debate, and a political weapon that the liberals are using to get back at the past Bush administration, and the republican party. While the victims murders go unanswered, and the feelings of their families are taken on a emotional roller coaster ride.

While my family, myself and a good majority of Americans are wondering how can the Military Commissions Tribunals which were approved by congress can be overturned a by a President who does not agree with them. That's not a democracy. That's more like how President Saleh in Yemen acted after our son's killers were tried in their courts. Saleh intervened for the killers and Al-Qaeda and then reduced their sentences, and pardoned others. And had the other Cole Bombers tried on unrelated charges, and then freed. As victims we had hoped that our own government would show us a little more respect. Wrong!

Back in 2000 right after the attack on the Cole we refused to meet with President Clinton, and I also refused to speak with Vice President Gore. For that decision we were housed in a different BAQ at Norfolk than the other families. And the next day we were not allowed in to the Memorial Services for the sailors of the Cole attack. It took the Commanding Officer of the base to get us in to the services, and up front with the rest of the families. I relate that story because I was not going to tell the news at first why we did not go and meet with Obama. But my wife insisted that I tell someone, and that our son deserves a trial. Its long overdue. So I did. I am not saying that Obama would react as childish as Clinton did. I don't think he would. But I did not want to see anymore head games on the part of the government. And by the way I have plenty of witnesses for that fiasco, plus a letter of apology from the base commander. And our Escort officer was there too at the time, and did her best to try and get us in with the rest of the families.

I am sick to death of all the support that these terrorists have here in America. From Human Rights Groups to the far left loonies. I am working at obtaining a lawyer to find out if we the victim's families and the actual victims have any constitutional rights. Are if those rights are only reserved for the terrorists who murdered our son. I have grown weary and tired of watching my sons mother and sister be hurt by their own government time after time again.

I like to think that if President Obama was in my shoes, and one of his own children had been murdered by a terrorists that he as the father would go to any lengths with in the law to make sure that his murdered child received justice. And God forbid that such a thing should ever happen to him, and his family. I would never wish such a thing on any person.

We chose not to meet with Clinton because we had no respect for the man. We knew he had done nothing for the victims of the Embassy bombings, and expected that he would make only empty promises like he had after all the other bombings on his watch. We were right. My decision as not to meet President Obama was not because I disrespected the man, but that he had already made his decision quite clear to everyone. Maybe Obama will have the terrorists tried at a later date. We hope so. We also hope that he will not return anymore Yemenis from Gitmo back to Saleh of Yemen to be freed. Not until he tells Saleh to turn over the Cole terrorists for a trial here in America. But then again would they ever go to trial even if they were extradited back to America?
I just read where the White House speaker for Obama stated "the president is interested in swift justice". 8 friking long years to bring one of the terrorists to trial to only have the charges dismissed on the terrorist! And that's Obama's idea of swift justice? Oh please!


58 comments:

  1. "would they ever go to trial even if they were extradited back to America"

    Sadly, that's a very good question.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sir,
    Your courage and character are admirable, fair winds, following seas and Gods blessing to your son.

    Regards,
    bf
    USN 89-94

    ReplyDelete
  3. Reading this made me very sad, angry, and frustrated. As a DAV myself, I'm sad for both your family and the lack of closure/justice for you, and also sad for what's happening to our once great nation. Angry at Obama and the left wing loon's that have somehow managed to gain a strong foothold on our traditional values and justice, and frustrated as to how to battle this insanity and start the pendulum swinging back in the correct direction.

    I'll say a prayer(actually several) for all concerned. May God Bless all of you.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I am so sorry for you and your family.

    Words cannot express the anger I feel now that al-Nashiri trial will not go forward as planned.

    Gibbs, Obama's press secretary, was asked to explain why he stopped this trial. His answer only reflected on others in detention in GITMO.

    You and your family have always been in my prayers as well as others affected by this terrible tragedy.

    Keep up the fight....we are with you.

    ReplyDelete
  5. May God bless you, your family and your brave son. Please keep up the fight and stay strong.

    ReplyDelete
  6. G_d bless you and your family.I hope that you continue to pursue a just conclusion to this heinous crime!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I happened to work with your son's CMC on the Cole (James Parlier) at Great Lakes...Jim is a fine man and was still moved years after the attack. Jim still was hurting years after the attack, and I know that all he wanted was to see the people who attacked his ship brought to justice, not just to put his mind at east, but for your son and the others lost on that day.

    God Bless you and your family, and the others that suffered on that day, and on 9/11. President Obama is clueless on how to handle this - the attackers need to be brought to justice NOW...in a military tribunal, not is some state-side courtroom, defended by the ACLU or others of the same cloth. Please continue to fight this...my thoughts and prayers are with you and the others that lost family and loved ones on both days.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Well stated, sir. I feel the same anger. My thoughts are with you and your family.

    Carry on !!

    ReplyDelete
  9. President Obama's decision to stop this trial is unforgivable; he wants to give human rights to barbarians who treat the female worse than dogs, hangs homosexuals in the public square, uses the disabled as homicide bombers, uses children as defense shields, proselytizes violence, hatred and world domination among many uncivilized tactics while denying justice to those who protect and defend rights afford to the civilized world.

    Unforgivable.

    My prayers to you and your family; may your son's indomitable spirit keep our souls strong in this war against barbarians.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Please have Commander Lippold contact Dr. Orly Taitz who has important legal information to pass on to him regarding this situation. phone 949-683-5411
    DefendOurFreedoms.us
    posted:
    "Obama ordered terrorist Nassiri, that attacked USS Cole to be dismissed from criminal tribunal to be tried in Federal Court, that will bar most evidence acquired by the military. Commander Kurt Lippold, please contact me 949-683-5411"

    ReplyDelete
  11. We are with you. I won't forget your son and the other sailors murdered by this isslamic scum.

    President Government is already the worst President evah; and after only 2 weeks. He makes Dhimmy Carter look like George Washington.

    Let's roll.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Sadly, what we see here is a fairly typical situation. As often happens, the family of a murder victim just wants to see those accused of his death found guilty and punished. Strangely enough, the family doesn't seem at all interested in a fair legal process, they don't seem to care about finding out the truth, they don't even consider for a minute that those who are accused of their family member's death could actually be innocent. All they are out for is revenge, they just want to see someone pay, and so the defendant is simply presumed guilty, just like that. They need no proof, they just know. And everyone who points out that there needs to be a fair legal process and that a suspect must be given the right to defend himself is instantly considered an enemy and labeled a traitor who's "in bed with the terrorists". I don't know why this happens, I have always wondered about this strange psychological mechanism, but I never found a good explanation for it. I guess the suffering they have been and still are going through impacts their logic and clouds their judgement. This is understandable, and of course they have all my sympathy. But obviously, no matter what the victim's family thinks, in the end someone must apply the rule of law and uphold the fundamental principles of justice, such as the idea that a defendant is to be considered innocent until he is proven guilty. Bottom line is this: if this supposed terrorist will be found guilty after a fair trial, then he will pay and justice will be served, if he can not be found guilty after a fair trial, then he won't, and justice will equally be served. You can't fool me into thinking that it would be moral to lock someone up without a fair trial in a proper court.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Oh...real classy Paolo. You anonymously use this grieving persons blog as a platform for your soapbox. Real style jerk....

    ReplyDelete
  14. First, let me offer my condolences on the grievous loss of your son. The docking of the USS Cole in Aden was very bad judgment on the part of the Navy and the administration, especially in a time of unrest and war. And unfortunately your son was caught in the middle of this situation.

    I see several things in this whole tragic affair that really bothers me.
    1. President Clinton treated the whole Cole incident as a criminal matter and not as an act of war. He had played footsie with Yemen and did not want to rock the boat, so to speak. A policy of de-facto appeasement.
    2. President Bush started dealing with the terrorists as terrorists. Unfortunately, through his own problems, foibles, etc., he could not push military tribunals through, so the problem with dealing with these terrorists and murderers was put on hold, or tied up in administrative details, the courts or politics.
    3. President Obama seems to be following the same path as President Clinton, for political and image reasons. IMHO, he is playing to his leftist support, Euro leaders and noisy lefties by closing Gitmo and dismissing charges against the terrorists. Now we can be loved again by appeasement.

    The bombing of the USS Cole was not a criminal matter. It was an act of war. Unfortunately, your late son became a political football.

    I am outraged by this action. It plays into the hands of our enemies and weakens us. Well, that is the hand that is dealt us and we go forward. Just remember, you are not alone in this. Millions of Americans are outraged by this action of our President, and he has not heard the last of it.

    ReplyDelete
  15. I am so sorry for your loss. You have waited too long for justice. You are in my thoughts and prayers, and I will never forget the brave men and women of the USS Cole.

    ReplyDelete
  16. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Wish I could have done more for you, Gary. God bless you and your family.

    - Vinnie.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Since Obama’s earnest drive to convince the nation to weaken its economic strength through redistribution as well as weaken its national defense, has confirmed the very threats to our Republic’s survival that the Constitution was designed to avert, it no longer is sustainable for the United States Supreme Court and Military Joint Chiefs to refrain from exercising WHAT IS THEIR ABSOLUTE CONSTITUTIONAL DUTY TO DEFEND THE NATION FROM UNLAWFUL USURPATION. The questions of Obama’s Kenyan birth and his father’s Kenyan/British citizenship (admitted on his own website) have been conflated by his sustained unwillingnes to supply his long form birth certificate now under seal, and compounded by his internet posting of a discredited “after-the-fact” short form ‘certificate’. In the absence of these issues being acknowledged and addessed, IT IS MANIFEST THAT OBAMA REMAINS INELIGIBLE TO BE PRESIDENT UNDER ARTICLE 2 OF THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION. Being a 14th Amendment “citizen” is not sufficient. A “President” MUST BE an Article 2 “natural born citizen” AS DEFINED BY THE FRAMERS’ INTENT.

    ReplyDelete
  19. I am a Vietnam combat vet sir. My prayers are with you and your family.

    I posted your story on my site.
    http://xtnyoda.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete
  20. My heart goes out to you and your family. Obama's decision is another in a long line of injustices towards your family and others.

    We are trying very hard to fight for causes like yours.

    I respect your decision not to attend the meeting.

    Keep your head up, keep fighting for justice and know that there are millions of Americans who are on you side.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Usurper Obama must be ousted ASAP. He is destroying our country. He is on the enemy's side. He is anti-American. What would you expect from a Kenyan-born/Indonesian citizen with a father of British colony citizenship rather than an American natural born citizen. We need to defend our constitution. He is undermining the codes of the military and undermining the military.

    ReplyDelete
  22. I am sorry your family is being denied justice. You are justified in your outrage. I am linking to this post and adding you to my blog roll. It's important that people hear your voice - Lord knows we have no choice but to hear the yapping justifications of those responsible for denying justice to your family.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Paolo,

    You're so full of crap, I bet your eyes are brown. You cannot be this dense. For one thing, there was no mistake as to which Islamic terrorists were responsible for the atack on the Cole. Secondly, Islamic nation-states tend to favor the accused rather than mete out the right kind of justice. This is due to the fact that Islamic nation-states across the Middle East fund, train, indoctrinate, and support terrorism. At the very least, they will not convict those whom they support or could do them harm in retaliation.

    The justice I'd have delivered, would have eliminated at least 6 or 7 countries in the Middle East. That's how you fight a jihad.

    Get a grip, son. Your liberal ignorance is showing.

    SFC Cheryl McElroy
    US ARMY (RET)
    Iraq War veteran

    ReplyDelete
  24. I am so sorry to see your son (one of our true Heroes) used as a political tool.
    I'm linking to you also and will be adding your site to my sidebar.
    God bless you and your family ~

    A Proud Army Mom

    ReplyDelete
  25. Thanks for the comment Blackflag. I think that I am doing what any father would do for his children if they had been wronged by their government.

    ReplyDelete
  26. Cookie I think their are many of us that feel as you do. The far left loonies are a minority making laws for the majority. Its going to take all of us who still retain common sense and some traditional values to take back our counrty. We can do it too. But all of us have to get more deeply involved. I now write and call my senator on issues that I disagree with. But good Cookie.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Super, Thanks for the comment. Its my hope that one day more Americans will join us in the fight to reclaim our country from the insanity.

    ReplyDelete
  28. Ced. Thanks for the comment. Good Luck!

    ReplyDelete
  29. Please know that even some non Americans will always honour and remember your son, and all the American heroes of these terrorist acts. I write on these matters, and will post your piece of today, linking to you. Will also add you to MY blog roll, as I stand with you.

    Prayers for your family.

    ReplyDelete
  30. I am so sorry for what you and your famiy are going through, it is WRONG, WRONG, WRONG. I can only offer my prayers of support and let you know that many of us have not forgotten your son and his shipmates! Merry in KC

    ReplyDelete
  31. When these same sentiments are felt and displayed for the 1+ million of dead innocent cilvilians of Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan et al then will be the time for all this sympathy. Do you people ever fathom that there are people with total family income of <$1,000 a year and here comes America with bricks of $100 bills offered for "terrorists?" Just look at your disputes with the neighbor you don't get along with! Presto! Problem solved!
    Off to Gitmo!

    When are you going to demand the prosecution of the willful murderers of the USS Liberty? This all underscores Malcolm's "Chickens coming home to roost" comment. Want some REAL solutions? First. Tell Israel all the land and settlements between Gaza and the W. Bank is to be immediately vacated and the '67 borders reinstated and no more $4 billion until this happens. Give the occupying settlers the "right to return" back to Europe and repatriate the Palistinians back to their land. An Alternative? Give the Palistinians full Israeli citizenship and scrap the 2 state solution and let the "natural outcome" take its course. Just as sure as America couldn't say squat to South Africa's open apartheid (since it was doing the same) nor is America going to return an inch of this land they stole from it inhabitants, we know America will never be the honest broker it has the capacity and potential to be.

    The double standard and arrogance is what will probably be the path to this empire's demise. One asks what would you do if Mexico or Canada was firing bottle rockets into the U.S. Problem is that the US hasn't turned its bordering countries into open air prisons, humiliating, oppressing and slaughtering their citizens. Don't even mention if another country invades; the freedom fighting would be retold for ever with emphasis on the resistance! But what are they labeled: insurgents - terrorists - extremists. Haven't heard the such attributed Paul Revere or Patrick Henry or the Minutemen.

    We can do better. We can mind our own business and stop trying to force our way on others. We celebrate battisons of democracy as long as our puppet wins. Just think of what those hundreds of billiuons of dollars could have did for this country! Solar, wind, geothermal, alternative vehicles and eco-friendly buildings - but we can't see under a Muslim woman's veil so we choose to bomb them until they want to run around naked on the beach getting tanned.

    ReplyDelete
  32. I am so sorry for your loss and impressed that you've taken a stand. You are right. Obama is exploiting families figuring he can make them feel good with words even though he's betraying them with actions. It's like a guy gathering up farmers and saying he cares so much about their chickens while he's letting wolves into the chicken coop! You feel sorry for the victims? Give them justice, not words. Your family is in my prayers.

    ReplyDelete
  33. Thanks for the comment. Non-Americans are welcomed as well. I know plenty of Yemenis who are sorry about the Cole attack too.

    ReplyDelete
  34. Gladys,

    You're a complete twit, and pig-ignorant where it comes to history. Henry, Revere, Washington et al massacred civilians? Called for the destruction of England? Get a grip. Terrorists are terrorists because they commit terrorist acts; they're not 'freedom fighters.' That label is especially obscene when applied, as you do, to those who wish to impose theocratic tyranny, the exact opposite of freedom.

    Yet you happily call for Israel, the only civilized country in the Middle East, to be subsumed by the barbarians. Why don't you whip out your Mastercard and buy yourself a clue?

    (BTW, your "one million +" figure has been thoroughly and completely discredited as the left-wing propaganda it is.)

    ReplyDelete
  35. Thanks for the comment Bill. I don't think that your going to change a liberals mind with facts. But its a good attempt!

    ReplyDelete
  36. Sir, My sincerest condolences to you, your wife and your family on the loss of your son. Had I been you, I would have gone to the Obama "meet up" and played along as compliant right up to the time the photo op started -- and then would have used the opportunity to completely embarrass the twit in front of the media and the world (if the media would have aired it).

    The American people need to see and accept that President O doesn't give a whit about justice for Americans or compassion for Americans or protecting Americans; justice, compassion, protection -- just like "hope" and "change" these are words. Just words.

    Obama is making these decisions solely to prove he can "change" things -- not because the decisions (by the previous Administration) were wrong or because they will make America safer or that Obama's decisions will actually serve justice. They serve "change".

    Obama only cares about appeasing... appeasing terrorists, appeasing rogue governments, appeasing the radical left because he wants to be liked. He wants to be liked -- in America and abroad -- and appeasing and bowing to their wishes and demands is how he intends to do it. He owes a lot of people and groups for his election and the closing of Gitmo without an alternative, the suspension of military tribunals, and his ignoring the other two branches of government (that would be the Judicial & the Legislative) by suspending trials and having charges dismissed to get his own way shows you all what these next 4 years will be like.

    Someone needs to remind Obama of 2 things: he was not anointed king and he works for US -- not THEM. This act of disrespecting a system of justice used in times of war for centuries, and of keeping prisoners in a time of war, and the prosecution of trials of the accused for crimes against Americans are just the first of many payments on Obama's promises to sellout Democracy in America.

    -- Some Soldier's Mom

    ReplyDelete
  37. Wow! Deja Vu! I once knew a "Gladys" way back in college, and she was one of the most ignorant people one could ever have the misfortune to meet. Notice I didn't say "stupid". Although both a stupid person and an ignorant person can be one in the same, ignorant means "lacking in knowledge", whereas stupid means incapable of learning. Hmmm....maybe this is the same "Gladys" after all. Did you go to Rutgers Gladys?

    At any rate, the Gladys I knew thought Bill Ayers and the Weather Underground (along with other Left wing radical loon types of that generation and era) were patriotic freedom fighters. The Gladys I knew back then would read, promote and participate in anything that was "anti-American" (there was no such thing as the internet and blogs back then).

    Gladys, although this next suggestion is probably a waste of both our time, why don't you get the real facts regarding the situations you referred to/about. I know, I know, it would mean taking your head out of your ass and out of the Daily Kos and other such sites, but you might be really amazed at what the truth is. GO FOR IT GLADYS! What'dya have to lose...only a complete collapse of your misguided ideology and belief system that says America is a bad country. The truth shall set you free Gladys.

    ReplyDelete
  38. THIS IS THE QUICKEST A PRESIDENT HAS SET THE COURSE FOR SURE DISASTER, BOTH ECONOMICALLY AND FOR NATIONAL SECURITY.

    ReplyDelete
  39. First, I want to pay respect to all of the victim's and families affected by this tragedy. My heart goes out to you. I also want to give a little history on my experience with the government before I say what I have to say. My stepfather was a Forward observer in the Army, served in the 1st Iraq war and came home with a small knot in his chest. Long story short, he developed lung cancer and died. BUT before he died he was diagnosed with the gulf war syndrome...the doctor that diagnosed him, decided to retract and we could not reach him for days! For some reason he finally contacted my mother and decided to go forward and stick by his diagnosis. Was this an anti-american move for him to deny my father"A SOLDIER" his pain and suffering caused by the US government????? Please be honest. It still took the government years to ADMIT fault, Vietnam war vets are still fighting for a voice...how many of us are fighting for them? Vets still get crappy health care, so who is really anti-american for not taking care of our own???

    There are alot of people wrong, Bush was wrong for sending our troops to Iraq for WMD's that have yet to be found. Would you call BUSH Anti-American? How many sons,daughters have died trying to fix IRAQ???? AND WHY is it taking so long to prosecute these guys?? 16 years prior to OBAMA...these guys could of been brought to JUSTICE...so does that make BUSH and CLINTON ANTI-AMERICAN too? Does anyone not see that it didn't just start with Obama? How many presidents does it take to screw in a light bulb? I am going to pray that there is a method to this madness. I am going to pray that the truth comes out soon.

    We all have failed because before this incident, the only people still fighting are the families that have been affected! Alot of people forgot..I know I did. Be a true american and ADMIT you ALSO have failed these families also, and make a move!

    ReplyDelete
  40. I'm sorry for your loss and very sorry for the betrayal you have been dealt. May your son Rest in Peace, he is a true hero and that can never be taken away.

    ReplyDelete
  41. I have disliked the decision the close Gitmo for strictly political and safety reasons... but this brings up far more personal and REAL reasons then I even could have imagined. I am so sorry for the pain you are being subject to again and again...

    I think your decision to not meet with Obama was HUGE and a testimony and more poerful then he will ever realize, as I am sure he was never even told.

    You are brave. You are Right! Stand strong.

    God bless-
    Amanda

    ReplyDelete
  42. I am so very sorry for your loss. I can not imagine the pain you have. While it is so sad that you lost your son and others lost their loved ones in these attacks, it is horrible the treatment you have all had from our own government and other treasonous groups. God Bless you and thank you not only for your son and your sacrifices, but for having the courage still to stand strong and graciously so to those at home who refuse to do anything about those who hate us all. God Bless you.

    ReplyDelete
  43. I would like to add an email I received awhile ago from Sen. Carl Levin - D, Michigan. I had expressed my concern to Mr. Levin about then president-elect Obama's plan to close Gitmo. Mr. Levin is the ranking member of the Senate Armed Forces Committee, and being my luck that he is my senator, I thought he was the perfect person to relay my fears and concerns. In a nutshell, I told Mr. Levin that if Mr. Obama closed Gitmo, that they would in effect be deficating on the heads of American service men and women, past, present and future. Here is his reply:
    From: senator_levin@levin.senate.gov
    Subject: Re: Your Concerns
    To: danfordsons@yahoo.com
    Date: Wednesday, December 3, 2008, 3:58 PM

    Dear Mr. Davidson:

    Thank you for contacting me concerning the treatment of detainees that are being held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. I appreciate hearing your views on this matter.

    I am deeply concerned about any allegations of prisoner abuse by our military. Abuses such as those committed against prisoners at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq dishonor our military and our nation. Among our greatest assets as a nation are the moral values for which we stand. Any instances of prisoner abuse tarnish these values and undermine our efforts to defeat those who seek to do us harm.

    Restoring U.S. moral leadership requires that we identify and address the underlying factors that contributed to creating an environment in which the abusive treatment of detainees is tolerated or condoned. I helped lead the fight to enact legislation reaffirming the prohibition against subjecting any person in the custody or under the physical control of the United States to “torture or cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment that is prohibited by the Constitution, laws, or treaties of the United States.” This law sent an important message to the world that the United States will not permit, condone, tolerate, or encourage the kind of behavior so graphically depicted in the photographs taken at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. I have also worked hard to ensure continued congressional review of abusive treatment of prisoners at Abu Ghraib and other U.S. detention facilities in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Guantanamo Bay.

    I am deeply concerned by recent reports indicating that confidential International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) documents detail incidences of physical and mental abuse of detainees by military personnel at Guantanamo Bay. The ICRC reportedly found the system for producing intelligence established at that detention facility to be “tantamount to torture.” The ICRC has been monitoring activities at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base since January 2002, and the recent allegations stem from a July 2004 inspection of the base. Following the visit, the ICRC reportedly distributed confidential documents alleging detainee abuse to the White House, State Department, and Defense Department. In response to these reports, a Pentagon spokesman has categorically denied that such abuse occurred.

    In the coming months, the Senate Armed Services Committee, of which I am the Ranking Member, will continue its oversight of the treatment of detainees at military detention facilities, including at Guantanamo Bay. I will vigorously question our military and civilian leaders during Committee hearings regarding the alleged abuse of detainees.

    Thank you again for contacting me about this very serious matter.

    Sincerely,
    Carl Levin

    My next question to Mr. Levin was where was this moral clarity during the Clinton years? I have not heard a response.....

    ReplyDelete
  44. My condolences and prayers go out to all of the victims and you all who have suffered the loss of loved ones, family, friends, neighbors, countrymen, and fellow human beings, as we all have at one time or another and will again to the evils of hatred, prejudices, greed, political and religious fanaticism, injustice, terrorism, intolerance, bigotry, partisanship, sexism, racism, nationalism, war mongering, anti-social behavior, tyranny, despotism, fascism, blind faith, ingnorance, narrow mindedness, aparthied, segregation, mass hysteria, psychotic extremes of both conservatives and liberals,
    violence prone behavior of emotionally distraught minds, the "Kill them all and let God sort them out!" stupidity of reactionists, as well as the brutality of those who seek power, profit, and control over others and the destruction of those who oppose them.
    As long as these evils plague humanity, and we fail to see each other as HUMAN BEINGS first and uphold and defend each other's rights as HUMAN BEINGS, regardless of each other's height, weight, IQ, sex, age, creed, skin color, language, education, economic standing, nation, religion, political party, cultural differences, tastes in food, music and fashion, and other reasons people use as an excuse to commit such evil acts against others, there will be atrocities like the attack on the USS Cole and the Limburg, attacks on military and non-military targets, lynchings, genocide, mass murder, false imprisonment, torture, violations of human rights, blatant injustices, miscarriages of justice, wrongful deaths, war, slavery, political corruption, abuse of power, violations of the Constitution, Bill of Rights, and disregard for the Declaration of Independence, and the laws on God, Man, and Nature.
    I respect and defend your right to not meet with President Obama, even though I do not agree entirely with your supporters, some not all. You had, and may still have an oppourtunity to speak with and share your concerns and veiws on this matter which has effected you so obviously. You had and may still have the oppourtunity to offer your assistance and support to Our President and part of the Solution to Our Nations, Our World's problems by allying yourself on the side of a President with a positive vision and who has asked us all for support in making the changes that will overcome and solve the difficulties, remove the afflictions, and restore justice, peace, prosperity, and humanity to our ailing world. Do it, in the name of your son, in the name of God, in the name of what is right and just. Your son's death is reason enough for you to turn your grief and sorrow into a powerful purpose driven dedication to being part of the solution and assist Our Nation in making a Positive Change under the leadership of Our new President. Those who oppose, want President Obama to fail, they want to throw a monkey wrench in and jam the wheels of progress, they want to complain and make it not work, they are part of the problem, because they think negatively, prejudiced, ignorant, bigoted,spiteful, ungrateful, cynical, pessimistic,defeatist and hateful. They are the DOUBTERS, NAYSAYERS, DOOMSAYERS, RACISTS, BIGOTS, TRAITORS, ANTI-AMERICAN, ANTI-HUMAN, PESSIMISTS, SPOILED SPORTS, SORE LOSERS, SPITEFUL, AND THE PROBLEM.
    Do not be of those who doubt, even if you are over taken by grief and affliction, be not troubled there by, rely upon God, Thy God, and the Lord of Thy Fathers, for there are people wandering in the paths of delusion, bereft of discernment to see the truth with their own eyes or hear the truth with their own hearts. Thus have we found them as you also have witnessed, that they have let their superstitions, dogmas, prejudices, and fears become like veils between them and their own hearts, keeping them from the path of God, and the Truth.
    Be assured that who ever turns away from this truth has also turned away from the truth of the past and shows pride against God and the Truth from all eternity to all eternity.
    I do not believe you are among the doubters and prideful who seek to make problems for President Obama and Our Country. Remember, if they make problems for him, they make problems for us all, and that is Un-American.
    May God guide You and protect You always.
    Make it a great day!
    Patrick

    ReplyDelete
  45. Dear Mr. Swenchonis, I just wanted to tell you that our support and prayers are with you. That so-called President isn't fit to shine your beloved son's shoes. It is looking more and more like the men who love this country are going to have to exercise the second paragraph of the Declaration of Independence. Our fore fathers knew that there may come a time when the people in this country will need to rise up against this government and take it back to it's righteous glory with convictions, morals, ethics and patriotism. The time is now!

    God bless your son, you, and your family.

    ReplyDelete
  46. I too feel you pain. I am so sorry that you are having to go thru this. But I am going thru it with you. My son may not have been on the USS Cole, but was killed by an IED outside of Baghdad.

    I not only feel the BHO is letting us down but that the ones who voted for him have lets us down too. God help our county. We sure need now more that ever.

    One reason he wanted to meet with the families of some of our GREAT HERO's is for a photo opt. How sad is that!

    Thank you for your fight and May God Bless you.

    ReplyDelete
  47. God bless you and there are many of us that know the sacrifices our troops make and they live in our hearts and prayers along with their families. Thank you for what you said and what you are doing. Your son will never be forgotten, NEVER!
    What Obama has done is unforgivable!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  48. I am so sorry for you and your family at this injustice. I am just in shock at how things are going and while I hoped and prayed Obama wouldn't cancel the trials I wasn't surprised to see it. Keep up the fight. My prayers for you all.

    ReplyDelete
  49. Sir, I am a Vietnam Combat Vet who agrees with you 159%. I also see President O'Vomit leading us down a trail of destruction that we may or may not be able to recover from. Now we hear that they are building camps to house Americans (use your imagination)if there are labor or food wars. Sounds like concentartion camps to me for people who disagree with the new Nazi Party. Well, all I can say is "WOLVERINES" cause I'm not going down easily.

    ReplyDelete
  50. I can't believe President Obama in his actions. Justice delayed is Justice Denied. He is bringing anguish to the families and to the nation.

    Let the trial go forth and let the evidence speak. President Obama has options -- pardoning or commuting the sentence (which I think would be a bad thing), at least the truth would get out about the evidence and the weakness of President Obama.

    I guess that President Obama has the authority to cease the military tribunals, as he is Commander in Chief. Does he has the same authority to stop a federal trial?

    Finally, To Gladys,

    While you have a right to your opinion, you don't have a right to be unchallenged. Just because there MAY have been a failure of justice with the U.S.S. Liberty does not excuse other injustices to occur.

    The "1 million+" dead is first, is probably an exaggeration. In any case, the U.S. did not kill the bulk of the people who may have died.

    As for firing ..."bottle rockets" into Israel or, for that matter, the U.S. Give me you address and we'll see how you like it. 23 citizens in Israel have been killed during the past 7 years, during which more than 5,000 rockets and/or mortar rounds were fired into Israel. Them's not bottle rockets, my dear.

    And if Hamas and other fighters wouldn't hide in apartments, schools, and hospitals, shooting their rockets and mortars, there wouldn't be the casualties in the main populace.

    But, you see, that is what Hamas and others really want. They want high civilian casualties and encourage it. That is why they often raise their child to wear faux bomb vests and carry assault weapons in parades or during school plays.

    "Seeing under a "Muslim woman's veil" we bomb them. That is a good one. I suppose you see no problem that in some Islamic countries, women and girls cannot go to schools? Or that in some countries, women "belong" to the men. Or that a woman can be executed for being raped.

    Ahh, you reveal your true agenda -- you worship at the Green trough. Anything Green is good and all else is bad. Other than being brain-washed and not realizing that the bulk of the modern Green movement is simply another way for Gore and others to get rich while fooling the brethren into thinking that they are making a difference.

    Gladys, I feel sorry for you.

    ReplyDelete
  51. I was on USS George Washington at that time, USS Cole was in our battle group.

    Never forget.

    ReplyDelete
  52. Thanks for your reply sir. And thanks for your service.
    Gary

    ReplyDelete
  53. I am so sorry for your loss and the injustice done to your family by Pornstar President Clinton and Celebrity President Obama. Both are useless and simply a disgrace to your country.
    It looks like you americans will have to vote in a republican president after Obama's term to get justice. Don't worry, it will easier than you think, the way Obama is screwing up every move he makes now.
    I cannot say anything to you except that you will be in my thoughts and I wish you the grace and strength to continue with your lives everyday.
    By the way, I am an ex-chinese soldier turned finance manager writing from SEAsia.

    ReplyDelete
  54. My prayers go out to you.

    ReplyDelete
  55. First off we would like to congratulate you on your fine public speaking skills. It looks like those who said the Obama Administration would strike while the iron is hot may have been correct, and the Administration may be doing it in a way that does not require them to even get a vote in Congress.

    ReplyDelete
  56. In principle, a good happen, support the views of the author

    ReplyDelete