The Lockerbie Bomber was freed today. What do you think about that?

A Scottish judge released him for humanitarian reasons because he has end stage prostate cancer and will soon die. This morning, he boarded a Libyan jet to return home. He was greeted by Mohamar's kid. What do you think about this?

He will probably spend what's left of his life being treated like a king. *sigh*

who are treated like kings in Florida and have never been brought to justice.

It amazes me that your brain works that way.

It's like elementary school where little Johnny says to the teacher, "Well, Billy did it TOO".

Grow up.

Justifying currrent bad judgment/performance/acts by loudly complaining that someone else did it before so we can do it now.

Here's my experience with it:

I remember once being at my Great-Grandparents house as a kid. My Great-Grandpa caught me shooting at his cows with my BB gun. One of my cousins took my BB gun and shot one of the cows with it for a few minutes, and we laughed like hell cuz the cow only acted like it was dealing with horseflies. So I took the gun, started shooting the cow, and sure enough, after a few seconds, around the corner of the house comes Great-G'pa. You KNOW what I said... So the man gladly and enthusiastically spanked me for both of us.

but somehow you're missing something in your own re-telling.

and that is we aren't you or your cousin- we are your Great-Grandpa, and he's been doing things to the cows, and to cows outside his pasture which are wrong- so that when he is whooping your rear for shooting bb's at the cow, he's showing you, and anyone else viewing this from outside your house the hypocrisy- and double standard that exists. It isn't unique to America, but we cannot divorce ourselves from the bad done by our country and only acknowledge the good. We OWN our own bad actions, and our preaching to the world about what is 'fair' or 'just' or 'right' is not very believable when we do 'evil' ourselves.

can you see it from this perspective?

for mass murder. He's done the time??????

Yeah, that seems about right.

I have no problem with it.

and it was THEIR town that the wreckage fell on, killing 11 people on the ground.

:shrug:

Them bleedin'-heart Europeans. :sarcasm:

(most were American), yet their survivors are stuck having to accept Scottish law when it comes to what to do with the guilty parties, because the plane crashed in Scotland.

Here's the media statement from Syracuse University, which lost 35 students on that flight:

"During this time our thoughts are with the Pan Am Flight 103 victims and their families and, as always, keeping the memories alive of those we lost. From the beginning, we have wanted justice to be served in this case. Given the tremendous suffering this terrorist act caused to innocent citizens, their families, and their communities, we are extremely disappointed that Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi has been released."

to remember them only based on the way they died, but to cherish all the beautiful, precious parts of who they were over the entire span of their life-

There is no way to undo the incident, or fill the hole their absence leaves in the life of their family- and nursing the anger and injustice of the way they died, helps no one.

No one's suffering and grief is any more of less sacred than another's.

It doesn't matter where the trial took place- If anyone thinks the US didn't have any influence or input into the outcome of the guilty verdict then you are incredibly naieve.

We live IN this world, as an individual nation, one of many- we don't own it or have dominion over it. Something important for us to remember even with a Decent President in charge.

Bush was big on 'exporting justice' to others, using any means necessary- he's not President any longer- are we going to continue down this foolish path???

Macalester College will have to change the name of the Scottish Festival to the "Freedom Festival". We'll have to stop wearing plaids of any kind and Sean Connery movies will be banned.

Oh - I forgot to add - we'll have to start drinking "freedom whiskey".

That will show those namby-pamby Scots :sarcasm:

I suppose I'll have to start telling people I went to Princeton. :P

Just like millions of humans before him and millions after. He will die.

And neither do I.

That's your opinion! There is a higher power in this world. Why are so many progressives such atheists?

Him the same compassion he showed when he set the bomb, he should already be dead by firing squad....

and as someone upthread put it a small reward for taking the fall.

n/t

Worthless POS.

especially in lybia

enemy.

It all depends on who you (I) define as the enemy.

The guy will be dead very soon. At least he is not being celebrated in this country (like the repukes are doing for their Air Cubana Flight 455 murderers).

What is the source of your confusion?

Not mass murderers! :eyes:

Three months to live? Either way, he will die. There is something to be said for just showing the compassion you want in the world, not demanding that the world show the lack of human compassion that this man showed the world.

A compassionate country released him to go die with his family.

Yes, he's an evil man. He's also no threat now.

Compassionate people do things because of who they are, not because of who he is.

And, while I would have a considerably different reaction if he was going to go make millions and be worshipped by young people, I agree with you Warpy - "he's a sick old man going home to die". It's time to let it go.

but thank you for that attitude.

Of course, the friend I lost was the most gentle, caring and compassionate person I have ever known. She used to make sandwiches in her flat and take them down to the corners where the homeless hung out. Letting go is my tribute to her.

Like you, like Warpy, my thoughts are:

1) I'm still shaken and sad about the deaths

2) It's nothing in my life one way or another if he goes through his final days of terminal illness at home or in jail. I can't figure out what good it serves the world by making him die there. I can see what good it does the world that the people in a position to make the decision chose compassion over what Americans would have chosen - which likely would have been the death penalty with much gloating, perhaps with gratuitous torture beforehand. I know which culture I admire more in that regard.

And I'm sorry you were affected by this so personally.

Your second point is incredible. I wish those calling for 'vengeance!' and 'justice!' would read it. But they won't.

He gave no one on that plane a chance to say goodbye to their families. He should of been afforded the same courtesy.

but he should stay in prison. If McVeigh had prison time instead of execution, and had 3 months to live due to illness, would you advocate him being set free? What about Manson?

around the world in the same sort of situation, yet, they aren't released.

What makes this guy so special?

where they routinely do compassionate release.

Hmmm.

I've been amazed at the show of sympathy for terrorists by DUers. Just amazed.

nothing that anyone can do now will ever change that.

But the choice to treat another human being, and their innocent family callously or mercifully was put in the hands of the Govt. of Scotland, and THEY (much to our shame), chose not to take the familiar path of vengeance and anger but the one of compassion and kindness.

And don't try and make the claim like some here have done, that somehow the people of Scotland didn't have reason to be angry or desire vengeance- The plane rained down fire on THEM and killed men, women and children- simply going about their lives- like NYC?

Which decision would you desire if you were the person whose 'life' was in the balance? to be shown kindness and compassion? Or to be judged not worthy of mercy and to be wished dead?

Then ask yourself what kind of choice the person responsible for the Lockerbie deaths made- and ask yourself who YOU are making the CHOICE to be.


peace~

when he chose to mass murder people. He put his family in the position they are in. I have no compassion for him whatsoever. Call me a bad person if you want to because I feel that way. He should rot in jail forever. He deserves nothing.

would accomplish what? Would it make anything better?? would it encourage you to consider a point of view other than yours? Would it let me vent some anger on you- ..maybe... but to what real gain? and at what cost?

You can call this man names, you can desire and fantasize about all kinds of terrible things happening to him- you can blind yourself to the reality that the family of this man are victims too- but consider that your inability or refusal to care what happens to them only makes you more like what you claim to hate. The decision is yours. Don't think you are the only person who ever feels the rage- the anger and that unspeakable emotion that rises up when witnessing suffering and atrocities, when we are hurt, frightened, grieving. Our first instinct when hurt is to hurt back. We do CHOOSE to stay stuck in that cycle? or to respond differently.

Life doesn't give us what we 'deserve'- :shrug: If you live your life treating people the way you believe they "deserve" to be treated, you will have condemned yourself to a life of unhappiness and misery. You can't control ANYONE other than yourself. Even controlling ourselves can be more than we are able to do sometimes.

Forget the name calling- forget the tit-for-tat, re-acting to others and letting their actions dictate yours. Listen to YOU- "Shell Beau" and live the way you know to be right.

i will call you friend- and encourage you to think for yourself. And if we don't agree, that's ok. i still call you friend.

peace

But I feel like you do something, you pay the consequences. Most of the families are suffering even more now that he was released. I care more about them than I do his comfort in his dying days. They want whatever little justice they can get, and this isn't it.

and go out in a blaze of glory, taking a dozen with him.

And that's what's always going to make this particular situation so heartbreaking. That and the initial fact of the event itself. First, the outrageous loss, and then, the loss of a sense of any true justice.

I feel so badly for the families of the murdered victims of the flight. It doesn't feel right that he gets to go home after what ge did.

This is wrong. The man is a beast who was convicted of killing 270 people. May he have a miserable death. Flame away about having compassion yadda yadda yadda, but I have no sympathy for this cretin.

What good would that do?

They matter a whole hell of a lot more than this piece of shit.

Some do, though. It's not a straightforward case.

Speaking personally, for what it's worth, I don't think there's any way in hell this guy did this crime. We can't be sure, of course, but the whole case stinks, to me.

Regardless of that, compassionate release is normal in Scotland, and I hope it continues. I hope this media row doesn't spill over into a political re-evaluation of the practice.

-first it was hijacking (i.e Entebbe in '76; Athens in '85)-and many more

-then it was targeting the plane itself (Lockerbie)

-then hijacking for the purpose of flying into a landmark (Air France flight 8969 in 1994 was intended to be flown into the Eiffel Tower)

We were pathetically slow to connect the dots before Sept 11th; airport security in the US was a joke, and cockpits were extremely vulnerable to intrusion. One guy was in prison for this, and now he's getting out.. big deal. It was rather well known that we had enemies hell-bent on creating mayhem, and, the usual scenario played out: We made drastic changes only *after* the shit hit the fan.

and the lack of people flying since 9/11 seems to support that idea.

I've just read a lot of comments to the effect that showing mercy like this is for the giver's sake, not the perpetrators'.

I can see that in the case of family & friends; if they can bring themselves to forgive and/or to show mercy it's heroic, and likely to keep them from becoming permanently embittered.

But the judge--and/or whatever officials participated in this decision--probably had no personal relationship at all to any victims. It doesn't cost them much to be "humane". Especially if a big part of their constituency is going to admire them for it.

I've just read a lot of comments to the effect that showing mercy like this is for the giver's sake, not the perpetrators'.

I can see that in the case of family & friends; if they can bring themselves to forgive and/or to show mercy it's heroic, and likely to keep them from becoming permanently embittered.

But the judge--and/or whatever officials participated in this decision--probably had no personal relationship at all to any victims. It doesn't cost them much to be "humane". Especially if a big part of their constituency is going to admire them for it.

Its a smart idea to not be outraged.

They should have let him die in jail, but the Scottish legal system has every right to make its own decisions.

This http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pan_Am_Flight_103 happened several months after this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran_Air_Flight_655

It has never been established that they were related. Reagan's air raid on Libya would have provided motivation of the Libyans by itself.

I don't know if he was guilty or not but he was convicted.

If there were any terminal cancer patients on the Pan Am flight he certainly did not show them or anybody else the mercy to live out their remaining days with their families.

Is prison time not viewed as punishment in Scotland?

1 If someone's in prison they can't bomb or steal or murder or whatever.

2. It might keep them away from whatever drove them to it in the first place.

3. It calms them down.

4. It clarifies the necessity for an individual to stay connected with society.


If they think they're being punished, you've lost them.

The Scottish understanding of morality is founded in deep Christian spirituality, and although few are Christian now, that spirituality remains.

Who are we to judge a man's soul? And what would happen to our souls if, when faced with the opportunity to show forgiveness, we cling to vengeance?

If I believed in the Devil, I would say that vengeance is the Devil's game. That's how I feel about it.

A system of justice designed to simply prevent an individual from committing further crimes for a period during which he may or may not be rehabilitated, apparently ignoring the old maxim that the punishment should fit the crime. That may work with petty criminals, which may be as serious as the Scottish system of justice ever has to deal with, but terrorists and hardened criminals everywhere are laughing.

I"m sure you realize, as do many from the UK whose posts I have read around the web today, that there are UK soldiers risking and in some cases losing their lives and limbs on this very day in the fight against terrorists of far less notoriety than the released Pan Am bomber. How does this square with them?

Assuming the guy is actually guilty since he was convicted and his appeals failed, how much relevant information about successfully bombing a commercial airliner and killing 270 people can a terrorist pass on to others in 3 months or possibly longer?

only works with people who respond to punishment - who relate to society as a member of it, criminals don't, as a rule, or they wouldn't have committed the crime in the first place. Many criminals view their fellow humans as resources to be exploited or barriers to be overcome or sometimes simply fodder to be fucked with - people like his don't care about punishment. There's a phrase in the UK used by criminals - "Can't do the time, don't do the crime." They view the system as a *punishment*, and just take it on board, make like they've got "remorse" and when they're released they reoffend. The people enforcing the punishment feel like they've had some power over the criminal for a while, that's all. Why would the criminal re-evaluate his actions? All he has to do is see what the system's trying to change about him and decide not to buy into it.

My cousin's in the British army and was in Iraq for a while. Would you like me to phone him and ask him what he thinks? Unless he brings new information or an analysis that I haven't considered it's unlikely to change my opinion. I suspect he feels as I do, in any case - that the guy who did it should be found and put away.

The answer to the last paragraph is certainly "none".

Fact-free freepers!

The Scottish judge wussed out.

There's nothing natural about dying in prison.

One act of spite that makes you feel comfortable restores the balance following the affect of another that doesn't make you feel comfortable?

I'd be okay with a lot more people with end-stage disease being released to their families.

I think a lot of criminals have forfeited any right to be with their families.

They themselves are unsure:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/terrorism-in-the-uk/6060191/Lockerbie-relatives-of-victims-divided-on-subject-of-convicted-bombers-guilt.html

He should have died in prison, alone. Then he should should be dumped in an unmarked grave.

what's to stop him from being a suicide bomber now?

He should die in prison.

And given his condition, it would be a long, slow, horriblky painful death while liocked in a 6' X10' box. That's perfect justice for the bastard.

People dying in prison doesn't really make anything any better.

What the fuck.

That's ironic.

He should have stayed in prison and let his family go to him. The decision is a disgusting blight and makes Scottish law look like a fucking joke.

Plenty of opinions around here, I see.

Sorry he could have died in jail for all I care.

He has shown no remorse, and still denies involvement.
He still had an appeal pending which needed to be canceled before they could release him.

Surely, that's the end of every true sentence of "life in prison". I'm not sure what this illness changes in that regard. :shrug:

What part about "Life in prison" is so difficult to understand. It isn't "Life until you get close to dying."

We had a similar case in CA. One of the Manson Family members was dying and was trying to secure an end of life release. Ironically, she was probably getting better health care in prison than she would have on the outside.

Mz Pip

reason he was let free was to save the NHS money in caring for him.

If so, and they were the target, then the bomber is no different than a pilot or UAV operator who puts a bomb into a cafe or wedding party to kill a senior terrorist.

How come the US & NATO are the only ones allowed to create "collateral damage"?

WTF Scotland?

re-established relations with Khadafi for oil.

I'm finding that this thread is making me quite angry.

??

say i'm grateful for the actions your country took, and i admire the courage it took to make such a decision.

My ancestors left Scotland long ago- i'll likely never have the joy of seeing it in person, but it will forever be a part of who i am.


I'm sorry for some of the foolish comments being thrown around- For the most part i know DU to be an incredible community of good people, but sometimes we're annoyingly human.

:hi:

I appreciate your taking the time to respond.

:)

See my post above - one of the victims was a friend of mine.

I respect the judge for his compassion. But I was really upset with Bush re-establishing ties with Khadafi. It has to do with the motivation of the action.

:eyes:

I'm alright with it.

23 of 27 cases have resulted in release this year so far in Scotland, I believe.

The US truly sucks in many ways and one of the ways is the justice system, which is bent mostly on vengeance.

Look up Troy Anthony Davis, who has been discussed a lot here. And also that judge here it Texas who would not take an appeal just because it was 20 minutes late. And the guy was executed. He might have been innocent for all we know. We have executed innocent people before.

I am with the Scots on this one. Plus there is some doubt he even did or may have just been taking the fall.

I understand the principle of it, and it sets a good moral example as long as it is applied across the board.

nft

I wonder if they'd benefit from a look at some of the literature on this case.

There has always been something rather fishy about his conviction in my opinion, and im not the one to buy into far flung conspiracy theories.

Even Jim Swire, whos daughter was killed in the bombing, along with many of the other (UK) famlies of the Lockerbie victims do not believe al Megrahi was guilty. From what it seems, only the US families are so adament that he is guilty.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/8211596.stm


Only one man could identify him, even then his statements were inconsistant and he ended being (supposidly) paid millions for his evidence. al Megrahis defence team said they have evidence of this, as well as US Defense Intelligence Agency documents that stated Iran was to blame. As well as secret documents from the appeal court that have now, as its not going to appeal been witheld by the UK government under national security grounds - so nobody will now know what was in them. All this would have been presented if it had come to a full appeal.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/scotland/article6797831.ece


Not a simple clear cut case.

Well, I'm going to leave it at that.

On edit, I see Post #8 expresses my thoughts, since you insist on knowing.

I didn't think so.

kind of difficult to apologize for involvement you say you didn't have.

:shrug:


His words to the grieving are here:
....

As for the Lockerbie guy, I don't really care if he dies in prison or out.

Seems like it very well could be. Since end-of-life costs are when the big money is rung up. So in other words, release terminal inmates and magnanimously call yourselves "compassionate" while in fact all you wanna do is save a few coins for the taxpayer, justice be damned.

which says "23 of 27 cases have resulted in release this year so far in Scotland, I believe."

I'd imagine most of the 23 who were released were Scots and will still be on the NHS after they go home.

Did you just have a thought and type it into a comment box?

I wonder if Jeffrey Dahmer (if he had lived) got terminal cancer, or Charles Manson, or any other nasty ass person like them, would we be for them dying in peace. Fuck that. They didn't give their victims that same consideration, and this is a slap in the face to the family members of the deceased.

It is not dying in peace. What's the problem? Does it really matter that much where he dies? Dead is dead. Many of you need to be careful-- your racism is showing. And for all of you Christians out there--What would Jesus do?

etc., etc., etc. Everyone knows someone who died from cancer. Fuck, I lost my 24 year old brother in a car accident. I know what a slow suffering death looks like. I wonder how much those suffered on that plane. The realization that you are about to die in any second. Hmmmm.

FUCK anyone that chooses to murder anyone, much less in a terroristic fashion. Those people on that plane died in FEAR! My compassion for that man ran out when he made that choice to do that. Do you feel that murderers, rapist, child molesters currently serving life sentences here should be released when they are dying from a terminal illness? I mean, really? I am guessing as you did about me n?ever having a loved one die from cancer, that you have never had a loved one be murdered in a terror! But hey WWJD? You are right, I can only try to live like Jesus. I fall short everyday. And pulling the race card? Please, I give NO shit about what color, race, age this person is. Fuckin don't care. He murdered a lot of people. My compassion left out on him and went with those and their family HE CHOSE to murder.

Free Republic? The bastard is dying from cancer. That's not good enough for you? Would you like to mutilate the corpse? If you believe in that sort of thing, tell yourself that God is administering capital punishment. So the Scots put him on a plane and sent him to Libya. Big fucking deal. Sometimes Americans just need to get over themselves.

Reductio ad absurdum. And a little touch of ad hominem thrown in. Says a lot about your position, that this is the best you can defend it.

I noticed you didn't say what was wrong with what I said. None of it matters- he's a walking dead man. If it makes you feel better book a flight to Libya and shit on his grave. His dying in prison would not have returned to life anyone killed on that plane. Prisons all over the world grant compassionate parole- even the United States. Bravo to Scotland.

People die from cancer everyday. EVERY day. What if it were the flu he was dying from? Hmmm, what about a blood clot? He is dying. It happens to everyone. BUT he CHOSE to murder people. And a lot of them. Why don't you just drive over to everyone of the families that he help tear apart and just slap them in the face right now. That is what that is. A slap in their face.

is somehow more valuable than the life on any other person on earth. Because we are Americans we are entitled to some unique brand of vengeance and hatred. Why don't you just go on over to Iraq and Afghanistan and piss on all the graves of the poor dead fuckers we've 'liberated'? It's ok to slaughter hundreds of thousands of brown people in the middle east, but when sacred Americans are killed, don't the long knives come out? Please, I know and admit that I am a hypocrite, but it seems like some others have got a problem admitting that.Take the log out of your own eyes before your start bitching about the splinter in another's eye.

my eyes. You are the one bringing up Americans. WTF? This asshole killed more than just Americans.

anyone saying that? Seems to me the objecters were looking at the content of his character.

Now if it's likely he was an innocent scapegoat--that's another matter. But just because he's "brown" doesn't mean he's exempt from moral standards against murder.. Nor does the fact that some of our so-called leaders have committed multiple murders too.

"‘You have to move on,’ says Lockerbie victim’s brother"

http://www.projo.com/news/content/LOCKERBIE_BOMBER_08-21-09_NPFFBHG_v22.2ca56b6.html

this was the second worst day in her life. The first worst day was obviously the day her daughter was murdered.

it would really suck if a CIA assassin or Delta operator whacked the shit-stain, or better yet... snatched the bastard and brought him back to this country to die in a concrete cubicle while he awaited trial.

moderator?

If I were Dick Chaney I would have suggested whacking the "shit-stains" immediate family as well, but that seems rather harsh and I'm more "compassionate" and forgiving than that.

you are responding to. Yup. You surely are an authority here.

that just because I can't lay an egg I can't smell one that is rotten? If you want to talk about someone who is an 'authority' then they are in very short supply on this site. Get over yourself-- liberals my happy ass.

Kinda sticky, that stuff, isn't it?

I understand and respect Scottish law and tradition in these matters. That's OK.

But I just can't stop thinking about all the people with cancer and other horrible illnesses right here in the US, WHO HAVE NEVER HARMED ANYONE, who will die in the prison of poverty with none of the healthcare this guy got, or the red-carpet treatment he's getting in Libya. And I'm no saint, I'll admit straight up I hate and resent that.

Don't count on it.

No? So yeah, they probably won't be shown the same mercy because the situations are not the same.

should she be let out to die at home?

Huh? Sunshine?

Personally, if she three weeks away from death and committed her crimes 40 years ago, then yeah, maybe she should be allowed to go die at home.

There was no reason for "Are they dying of cancer in a prison in Scotland?" As if locale makes a difference.

who have been convicted of the offense of killing people either. (silly people)

They have a history of compassionate releases.

Should the US have the right to dictate to the world how it will live? Should we be allowed to threaten and twist arms to achieve our aims?

Sounds a little bit too much like the MO of Deutchland to me, or what we claim the USSR desired/s all our years of fighting the "cold war".

It isn't OUR decision to be made.

Can you understand that difference?

Scotland has their laws, the US has theirs. You tried to make a point by comparing two situations but the situations aren't the same.

I believe is the only living relative left). She said so in an interview when the topic was brought up. She wants her to spend the rest of her natural life in prison. And I would be behind her 100%.

Sharon Tate's sister is welcome to hers as I am mine. I lost a friend in Lockerbie. I see things differently than you do.

How do you feel about a bunch of mass murderers not facing justice?

Utter fail.

still grieve.
And who complained when the Vergennes returned to receive medals for their service? Do a little research on the captain of the Vergennes- look at some of the comments by people who should only mouth praise and the official cover your ass lines, and then perhaps you'll see that some of the 'outrage' being tossed around by people on here and through out the US is pretty over-blown and self serving.

You can choose to be ignorant of the deeds of our country, and play the angry patriot and 'good' american when it's convenient, but don't neglect the flip side of that - to own our arrogant, ugly and too often preventable tendency to do great harm to unknown and uncounted (by us) innocent civilians, and label our complicity as something forgive-able, unintended, a "mistake" or beyond our ability "to know".

What was the Vergennes doing there anyway? Do we have the right to do whatever we please, to blow up a commercial plane and then have the AUDACITY to not admit "wrongdoing" or to apologize????

That isn't the America I want to be part of, or the country my ancestors lived and died to create- It isn't the America we like to parade around pretending we are.

Let's lead by example for a change eh?

I know a mistake was made by an overly-aggressive US naval captain. Just like I know Iran was interfering with shipping through Hormuz Strait.

I think equating the Vincennes incident with the Lockerbie bombing is bullshit moral relativism.

and served 4-1/2 months even though he had be sentenced to life.

This thread reminded me of that:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x4025689#4025784

But, seeing as he's an American convicted of crimes against Vietnamese, it's probably "different". :sarcasm:

"But, seeing as he's an American convicted of crimes against Vietnamese, it's probably "different"

Do you always make such stupid assumptions?

implying that if an American "over reacts" it's not murder. One could argue that Calley "over reacted" (instead of trying the "following orders" defense) I wouldn't - but there were a lot of people who defended him at the time he was tried.

Naval captians are supposed to be trained not to over react. At the very least he should have been tried for manslaughter.

How humanitarian is it to be shot out of the sky?

The "world" is so used to extending courtesy or consideration to those who never once thought of all the lives intentionally destroyed or ruined.

to do this. and that they did it.

return of Laura Ling, and Eula Lee Lieu's return to the US a "hero's welcome"-

The media is playing this meme up- but listen to BBCnews, and look around at other outlets- read his statement to the public released upon his return. He isn't playing "hero"- that's the media's spin.

none of the tv news.

heard it yesterday morning on news. a couple three times taking kids around.

and yes.... that is what i felt when i heard the report. and no... i didnt like it.

:puke:

The RAF should have released him over Libya, 5,000 feet above Libya.

it's "not until you get sick"

The fact that he was traded for oil, makes it even sleazier.

All those people on the plane probably wanted to say one last goodbye to their families too,

Maybe I should phone Alec Salmond.

He was greeted as a hero there and it was a truly disgusting sight and a slap in the face to the families of the victims. I'm all for compassion but that was way overboard.

I can also get behind letting his family come and visit him in his last days, but letting him go back home only to be welcomed as a hero is gross.

in some cases returned home to be heralded as heroes. Not sure I see all that much difference.

1.) It shouldn't have happened.
2.) WHY THE HELL have you been unrecommended????