Guantanamo, A Fucked Up Concept

So here's what wrong with Guantanamo. The trial of one Guantanamo detainee, Salim Hamdan, a former driver for Osama Bin Laden, just concluded a few days ago. The Pentagon arranged this trial very carefully, because it was to be the first U.S. war crimes trial in over half a century. So the Bush administration brought charges of terrorism against Hamdan and painted him as a hardened terrorist operative throughout the trial.

What did he receive as his actual punishment? He received time-served plus 6 months. The precise prison span is actually 5 1/2 years, but Mr. Hamdan has already been detained for 5 years. This is the first of many reasons why detaining terrorist suspects without due process of law is wrong. Before this man's trial ended, he had already served 5 years in prison. If the trial verdict had been delayed for 6 months longer, he would have served his entire sentence before he was even proven guilty. Every day the verdict was delayed after that would be a day Mr. Hamdan was unjustly imprisoned.

The outcome of this trial is tangible proof of the failure of the Bush Administration's War on Terror. Guantanamo is a bleeding sore on the face of American foreign policy. It is poisoning international public opinion against Us, squandering our time, resources, and manpower, and for what? The trial that Bush attempted to make a test case for his War on Terror has revealed what no one wants to acknowledge- that we have been pursuing failed policies for the past 7 years.

What liberals don't understand is that this is not the Republicans problem, its the problem of every American. These are our nations actions, our leaders decisions, and the policies they pursue ultimately reflect upon us all.

The judge of the 6 person military panel even said to Mr. Hamdan at the trial's conclusion, "I hope the day comes that you return to your wife and daughters and your country, and you're able to be a provider, a father and a husband in the best sense of all those terms."

The prosecution's main pieces of evidence were the two shoulder-launched missiles that Hamdan was carrying when the U.S. apprehended him. Despite this, the 5 man, 1 woman panel found him not guilty of participating in a plot to kill U.S. soldiers.

Every development in this trial has revealed the shortcomings in the Bush Administration's prosecution of the War on Terror. The outcome shows that the Bush Administration trumped up the charges it brought against Hamdan.

Hamdan can still appeal the decision in Washington in the next part of the trial, and it can pursue the case in civilian courts.

There are around 80 prisoners left to be tried. Let's see how they turn out.