THOUGHTS ABOUT WHEN IS LITIGATION'S RESULT 'JUSTICE'

As I listened to Cheney salivating as he talked about torture he would instigate again if he felt it was warranted, I thought that I began to understand why Obama did not wish to bring him to trial in the US.  Obama's whole Presidency would have been consumed with tht trial and all the information that would have to be brought out about all the things heretofore not mentioned in the press about his cruelty and illegal moves that would rekindle hatred towards the US..

Dahlia Lithwick wrote an article, Getting Away With Torture  In the article is written "Implicit in Greenwald's commentary is that the Obama administration is responsible for Cheney's continued legitimacy in the debate about torture, as well as the legitimacy of the debate itself. By deciding to repudiate torture while doing everything in its power to protect the torturers, the Obama administration has succeeded in elevating not only Cheney but the idea that, in America, some torturers are too important to be punished. "  While this may be true, it does not take into consideration that there may be excellent logic why this Presidency has chosen not to pursue legal action against him.  In many ways, Cheney has been foolish to publish his actions in his memoirs as they will be used against him in history if not before.

 Most people want instant gratification.  I applaud Obama for his patience, at times, though I, among many, do not understand it.  I do believe that Obama has succeeded in making the world see that Cheney alone does not represent the entire United States or the present government.  Given Cheney's heart health,  it is not even certain that he would survive the kind of trial that would take place.  No one is considering Bush, his puppet, in this.  After all, as Truman said, "The buck stops at the top."

What would it make us look like to the rest of the world.  Is it best forgotten in favor of getting America solvent again?  Cheney and his cohorts, Haliburton, Blackwater, et al, have devastated our economy, pleasing bin Laden no end.  Osama did not have to continue terrorist attacks,  Cheney was doing his job for him.

People are far too quick to condemn Obama.  Cheney knows the world can prosecute him for his crimes and so he will not ever go to Europe again.  Meanwhile, no one thinks about the current Republican House of Representatives and what it is doing to the image and economy of the US.  That damage is happening right now and should take a top priority to Cheney, who is not in a position to force our country to continue the illegal practice of torture and waterboarding.  

MISGUIDED GOALS

The world would be a better place if people could see the whole picture. It is unfortunate that too many see only a single action. For example, P.E.T.A. (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) is hardly ethical in their treatment of mice when they freed them from laboratories where they were being used in research. These mice were raised to be used in experiments; they never had to find food in the wild for themselves and wouldn't know how to do it. They would simply be preyed upon as delicacies for predators. Many are unable to withstand the harshness of nature and weather out of the lab. When P.E.T.A. volunteers let the animals loose in the world, they are, in fact, sentencing them to a quick death and not necessarily a painless one as they would have been more likely in the lab. Yet those who spout concern about animals are the cruelest in some of their ignorant behaviors.

The Pro-Lifers talk about how sacred life is, forcing unwanted children to be born into poverty and rejection, yet murder abortion doctors who have a life, family and children left to survive without them on their death. Do they not see the hypocrisy of their actions?

When Bush/Cheney went to war in Iraq believing the war would be paid for by Iraqi oil (not American taxpayers), that the American troops would be welcomed as heroes with flowers being flung at them, that there would be few troop casualties, that the war would quickly be over, and many other unfulfilled promises, we find it clear that their actions might have been different if they were honest with themselves and the public. If only they had bothered to listen to those scholars who knew about the culture of the Middle East we would have fewer dead in the service and their extended families not having to struggle with the loss and the burden that has placed on all of them.

When people see only what they want to see and do not act in haste but, rather. review major decisions carefully before finalizing them, there are fewer 'mistakes', disasters, and lives lost. Obama is being criticized for not making things right immediately. If the people who think they know what he should be doing that he is not, really knew all the facts which he is having to juggle, they may find that he is best left alone to do his job. He has welcomed input but that doesn't seem to be enough for the loudest ones. Limbaugh would have him fail, missing the price all Limbaugh's fellow Americans would pay if that happens (as would the fringe Right and others who dislike him).

We have erred in our haste to let people speak by putting them on an equal standing on the world podium. As the Blue Collar comedians say, "There is no cure for stupid." Having an impressive CV and a graduation from an Ivy League school does not always equal across-the-board knowledge. To be really brilliant, there have to be so many more elements to your decision making process than just saying 'yes' or 'no'.