So BOAZ_David do you think we should throw our rule book away if we don't like what other people are doing but we have no laws that prohibit their behavior?

If you don’t stand by your principles even when it could mean your destruction what are you fighting for mere survival? BOAZ_David you should know this but maybe your like your biblical namesake and need some assistance. What principles of your Christian belief system would you drop merely to stay alive. The issue we are facing today is not new the Christians, Jews and the Muslims have been at each others throats for 1000 years the difference now is technology has allowed a same number of people to make a big impact. As any fire fighter will tell fighting fire with fire can be effective but some times the back burn becomes more of a problem then the fire you were trying to put out.

If the Gaza pull goes as planned and the right wing Jewish extremist do what they say they’ll do will the word be as hash on them as some have been to the Muslims?

Kenny said ==>"If you don’t stand by your principles even when it could mean your destruction what are you fighting for"

Kenny.. u want to put principle above survival ? The only principle I will give that status to is the denial of Christ and many believers have died for just that reason.
Our principles.. ???? which ones ??? The principles of which you speak COME from the Bible. But one principle which is above all (except for denying Christ) is the one which looks after his own before others. (speaking of family in that case, but could be applied to the national family one is responsible for)
But when it comes to the Habib/terrorism issue, the principle being applied is clearly that where a strong case against him exists (if the media is right.. and we are all subject to that source) then they are clearly playing it by strategic decisions. I cannot justify "torture", but I can accept aggressive persuasion if it saves the nation. Remember, he was picked up in the context of a war zone, not specifically in a place of war, but his attendence at training camps is being testified to by witnesses, and that would be my starting point. (true or false) if true, then aggressive interrogation is in the interests of national survival. (I'd go for chemicals myself... or brain wave analysis)

Kenny, when it comes to "Principles and survival" I thoroughly recommend a reading of Josephus account of the fall of Jerusalem, its most enlightening.

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http://members.aol.com/FlJosephus2/warChronology6Factions.htm#Chronology

"Daily desertions from Jerusalem hampered by Zealots guarding the roads, who kill and leave the bodies unburied. "Every dictate of religion was ridiculed by these men, who scoffed at the oracles of the prophets as impostor's tales." But the preditions of destruction would prove accurate. (4.6.3 377-388)

~~~

War is hell

The implication that Habib is guilty by association with groups that "deliberately attack civilians" makes me a little uncomfortable. Civilians are the greatest casualties of any war, terrorist or conventional modern style of warfare. It is a common fact that more civilians have died during the war in Iraq than soldiers on both sides. So-called smart bombs decimated schools, hospitals, apartment buildings and essential servies in Iraq, Bosnia and Serbia, but were categorised as 'mistakes'.

We have laws because humans, by nature, need consequences to their actions. Why should those consequences be removed because a nation is "at war"? I agree that they may need to be moderated somewhat to reflect the reality of the changed environment, but that needs to be regulated, eg by the Geneva Convention.

Torture, abuse, murder, degredation, rape? As mature individuals, can we actually imagine our military representatives undertaking such acts? Can we imagine ourselves condoning it, just because "they did it first!"
I hope not

OCEAN.. he is guilty OF association with terrorists.. if the intelligence is true.

Habib plays on a Western sense of fair play and legal nicities to hide his agenda.

To anyone who wants to defend him - when it is your friend, child or parent who is killed of left arm or legless by a bomb left in a nightclub by a Muslim terrorist remember you have defended him and hang your head for shame - you did nothing to stop him.

Bali happened overseas - but it happened because some terrorist exercised his "legal right" to be proved a terrorist before being stopped.

I notice the Irish Police have arrested a member to Sinn Fein as part of the robbery gang on the Northern Bank in Ireland.

Alot of people would argue that the Sinn Fein is a political organisation - I say it is just "the politically correct" face of a terrorist organisation which has crippled social progress in Ireleand for almost a century.

Alot of people would demand fair and judicial process for terrorists - far fairer and more judicial than the street bombs the IRA planted in London.

What has this to do with Habib - simple

The IRA too are terrorists. You can fight them or be destroyed by them.

Imagine that the rolls were reversed and I was suspected of planning a jihad against the Muslims in Saudi Arabia.Would I be still be drawing breath today?Now we are going to let Mr Habib muddy the waters using our legal system.Remember our legal system deals in legalities not reality,thousands of our own criminals get off on legal techicalities.Our Govt deoesn't want criminals in gaol.It costs too much.It better for them that we pay higher insurance to cover our losses,then they can happily grow their bureauracies.