The National Post has put together a piece detailing the reaction of the blogosphere to the release of new video of CSIS agents interrogating Omar Khadr. National Post Link here.
While the 'consensus' is a general condemnation (one notable comment was to 'waterboard' Khadr until he stops crying), -- NB there's an interesting Vanity Fair article by Christopher Hitchens where he goes through waterboarding -- there does appear to be some sympathy for his plight. See Jonathan Kay's blog - Kay is a self-described "noisiest Canadian cheerleader" for the War on Terror, but still argues for the return of Khadr to Canada. A thoughtful argument - Kay focuses on two essential issues - one, that Khadr was a child at the time of the alleged crime, and two, that Khadr probably didn't kill anyone.
Remember --Khadr's guilt is far from proven:
Lately, it has dawned on Canadians that the United States may well have lied about its evidence against Mr. Khadr. Far from having proof that only he could have thrown the grenade that killed their soldier, the U.S. appears to have hidden the truth: that the teenage Canadian was in the company of an adult al-Qaeda fighter and was himself unarmed, on his knees and facing away from battle when a U.S. soldier shot him twice — in the back.
Is Omar the author of his own misfortune? It's a difficult question to answer given his age at the relevant time in question. Certainly, being born in his outspoken family hasn't helped.
A CBC News In Depth article has an interesting quote from Dennis Edney, Khadr's Canadian lawyer:
Calling U.S. anti-terrorism provisions "draconian," Makin quotes a frustrated Edney as saying: "You have a gutless country called Canada where the government has not been able to extract even the most meager of concessions from the U.S. My client is a boy who was shot twice and is blind in one eye, but they won't even let an independent medical person in to visit him. Out of all the cases I have done, Khadr is the one that gives me nightmares. He has been completely abandoned — and we in Canada have done this. I feel sometimes as if I'm representing Charlie Manson, instead of some youth being held in Guantanamo Bay who has not been proven to have done anything wrong."
Hypocrisy of the "Repatriate Omar Khadr to Canada" Movement
As soon as the Gitmo interrogation tape of Omar Khadr hit the Internet, the blogosphere was flooded with demands to repatriate him to Canada. This wave is reminiscent of a Soviet campaign to free Luis Corvalán from the "fascist regime" of Augusto Pinochet thirty five years ago. The scenario is strikingly similar. A "victim" held by "fascist regimes" this time run by Bush and Harper, and a public outcry for justice. Except for the fact that Luis Corvalán didn't kill anyone and didn't fight for a terrorist group that wants to impose Sharia.
The "repatriate Khadr" crowd describes him as "a child", "a kid", "a boy", and even "a torture victim", with no facts to substantiate the torture claims notwithstanding. They complain about Khadr being mistreated, again, without anything to back up their claims. Some of them are outraged about "child abuse." And they all scream for justice.
They want justice? OK, let's talk about JUSTICE. What about justice for Sgt. First Class Christopher J. Speer, who was (according to an eyewitness) murdered by this "child"? What about justice for Tabitha Speer, who is a widow because of this "kid"? What about justice for Taryn and Tanner Speer, who are left without a father by this "a boy"? And what about all those Afghani civilians and NATO troops who are a little bit safer because this "torture victim" is behind bars? How many of these "repatriate Khadr" hypocrites concern themselves with justice for real victims? In literally hundreds of posts, we couldn't find a single one.
One would ask, what is the reason for this idiocy? The answer is simple. Ignorance. Complete and utter ignorance. Let's forget for a second that Omar Khadr killed Christopher Speer. Let's forget that Khadr's father was an al Qaeda financier. Let's forget that Khadr's family is known for it being al Qaeda sympathizers. Let's just remember what this "child" was fighting for in Afghanistan.
This is what Taliban-imposed Sharia looks like in real life: http://muslimsagainstsharia.blogspot.com/2000/07/hypocrisy-of-repatriate-omar-khadr-to.html
Why don't all of you, bleeding heart demagogues go to Afghanistan and spend a day in a Taliban-controlled territory? And let's talk about Khadr when you get back. If you get back.
Posted by: Muslims Against Sharia | July 19, 2008 at 10:44 AM