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The Forum > Article Comments > War is tough > Comments

War is tough : Comments

By David Flint, published 30/8/2006

The US administration has kept their detainees, including David Hicks, according to Geneva Convention standards.

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Flinity, Flinty,Flinty what can I say but go away.
Posted by Kenny, Wednesday, 30 August 2006 9:19:47 AM
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New American Century (Part 1)

The new American ambassador said that Hicks will not receive the death sentence - how did he know that?

One suspects that the writer would not be so sanguine if it were he who had been sold for a fistful of dollars and turned into a human red-herring - a hostage - for what? The justifications grow thin and need to be reinforced from time to time.

Mention of the first WTC bombing was a teeny mistake, since the complicity of the FBI and the sly-boys is by now well known.

In the words of Andreas Von Bulow, former State Secretary at the Ministry Of Defence from 1976-1980 and Minister for Research And Technology from 1980-1982, and member of the Bundestag's control commission for the German secret services -

Quote: "In the middle was the bombmaker, a former Egyptian officer. He had pulled together some Muslims for the attack. They were snuck into the country by the CIA, despite a State Department ban on their entry. At the same time, the leader of the band was an FBI informant. And he made a deal with the authorities: At the last minute, the dangerous explosive material would be replaced by a harmless powder. The FBI did not stick to the deal. The bomb exploded, so to speak, with the knowledge of the FBI. The Official story of the crime was quickly found: The criminals were evil Muslims."
Posted by Chris Shaw, Carisbrook 3464, Wednesday, 30 August 2006 9:35:20 AM
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New American Century (Part 2)

Likewise Mr Bin Laden is only slightly ahead of Zorro in the whodunit stakes for the final destruction of the THREE (3) WTC buildings. Thankfully Jihad Jack came to the rescue:

Ring! Ring! Ring!

Hello!

Osama?

Yo!

It's me, Jack.

Hey buddy!

No time for niceties Obiwan, liquidate some of my Al Qaeda stock and get me a nice slab of Telstra. I'll never have to work again!

- but hurry, hurry, hurry - it can't last at this price -

- little Johnny Eyebrows is arranging to knock it down for a bargain basement price to his gringo mates. It's the bargain basement firesale of the century!

Cool, little buddy. I'll be able to get that new flying carpet I always wanted.

* * *

What poor savage fools we be. What a joke we all are. Beads and mirrors is what we desire, and beads and mirrors is what we will end up with.

Unlike the Iraqis, we will just roll over without a fight. No need for the Eureka flag in the New American Century.
Posted by Chris Shaw, Carisbrook 3464, Wednesday, 30 August 2006 9:36:42 AM
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That article is what I expect from someone who ,having served on the Press Council, has learned how to manipulate information ,omit facts and support the reprehensible behaviour of the American Empire who not only defy International Laws but ignore their own.
What utter drivel.
Posted by maracas, Wednesday, 30 August 2006 9:38:36 AM
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lol, keep em coming Chris

I had a listen to the Hunter S. interview last night, I think he adds an incredible amount of legitimacy to our concerns, shame about that suicide ......
Posted by Carl, Wednesday, 30 August 2006 9:41:18 AM
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What is it with this guy? not only is he mistaken - but he seems to think he has some credibility and relavence in the public market place of ideas
- maybe he does in the perfumed drawing rooms of foold and fops but no longer in the real worl
Posted by sneekeepete, Wednesday, 30 August 2006 9:48:17 AM
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Get over David Hicks. At worst, he is a dangerous lunatic. At best, he is a complete idiot who brought all of his problems on himself.
Posted by Leigh, Wednesday, 30 August 2006 9:48:27 AM
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David Flint refers to Changi, but Japan was not a signatory of the third Geneva Convention during World War II.
Posted by David Latimer, Wednesday, 30 August 2006 10:32:06 AM
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David Flint seems to have an unhealthy obsession with authority figures. The queen is some kind of major deity, Alan Jones is an angel, and now the US administration is faultless. Snivelling toady anyone?
Posted by chainsmoker, Wednesday, 30 August 2006 10:37:43 AM
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You would think Flint's time with the press council would give him a little more healthy scepticism of the official government line.

My issue isn't with how the US government is treating people in Guantanamo, my issue is the fact that we don't know what they're getting up to, and they have been holding people for years without trial.

You can't do that. The 'just trust us' line is growing really old. I don't trust them, and they haven't given me any good reason to.

What I really don't like is when people such as flint say that a secretive government is justified.
Posted by TurnRightThenLeft, Wednesday, 30 August 2006 11:13:27 AM
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Oh Please,

Where did Flint come from!?

As mentioned above, Japan was not signatory to the Geneva Convention in WWII. Still, war crimes were committed and legal prosecutions and execution of offenders did occur.

Hicks is not being held in accordance with the Geneva Convention and Never has been. That is why he was categorised as a "Non-Lawful Combatant". Isolation, torture - include food and water deprivation are certainly not acceptable under the Convention.

You do not put on trial POW's! You can hold them on your own soil - unlike Hicks that would be freed the moment he touched real American soil - ironically by the FBI.

Bush, and his lackeys like Flint have got to do better than "We were never at war with Eurasia" (Orwell - "1984").

Fair Dinkum
Posted by Narcissist, Wednesday, 30 August 2006 12:24:59 PM
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At least Ted Lapkin was willing to address this issue honestly (wrongly but honestly in my opinion).

David Flint is muddying the waters, Ruddock's got a consulting job going maybe.
Posted by Steve Madden, Wednesday, 30 August 2006 2:05:50 PM
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The film "Sofie Scholl", now showing, gives an illustration of military show trials.

Two wrongs don't make a right. Just because the japs mistreated their pows doesn't make it right for us to do it too. That is called the lowest common denominator.

War is tough indeed, the longer it drags on without visible progress the more elected leaders suffer.

Bush, Howard and Blair would not find themselves in their current predicament if they had tried the Guantanamo Bay prisoners immedeately and had gone on to capture bin Laden instead of embarking on regime change in Iraq.

However we are in a confused mess. Instead of trying Osama bin Laden over 9/11 we are trying Sadam Hussein over atrocities committed during his rule. While the 20th hijacker has had a civilian trial over his "act of war" the GB prisoners are stuck in legal limbo.

The "war on terror" is not like a traditional war between countries. Our leaders have not used the right tools for the job and have too many mistakes. They only have themselves to blame for their unpopularity. Mr Flint does not enhance his reputation by acting as an apologist for folly.
Posted by gusi, Wednesday, 30 August 2006 3:16:40 PM
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This article is a wind-up.
Posted by bennie, Wednesday, 30 August 2006 3:44:37 PM
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Gusi, you don't actually believe that the US is concerned about catching Bin laden do you? Bin laden isn't going to do anything to help them secure an oil pipeline, and what about the mysterious videos that pop up when the Republican polls are low? If Bin laden is captured there won't be any more, then what are going to do for the mid-term election in November?
Posted by Carl, Wednesday, 30 August 2006 4:20:54 PM
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Free David Hicks, lock up David Flint! This article just confirms who is the greater danger to society.
Posted by rossco, Wednesday, 30 August 2006 4:36:28 PM
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What can one say, after a multitude of perceptive comments. Other than, its refreshingly nice there's common ground in seeing the reality of the apologist garbage this elitist is spewing up. Still it's common for straw men to grasp at straws as their credibility descends into the mire.
Posted by The alchemist, Wednesday, 30 August 2006 4:56:23 PM
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Carl, I think the US citizens care a lot about bin Ladens capture. I am not so sure about the government. While his freedom gives them an excuse to pursue other targets, his continuous taunts leave the US administration with egg on their face.

Gus
Posted by gusi, Wednesday, 30 August 2006 8:39:44 PM
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By Flint's standards, this stuff is Shakespearean. If you want to check him out at his awful worst, check out his recent article in the Australian

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20876,20192985-7583,00.html

Which I wrote about on my blog if anyone is interested.

http://blistersandweeds.blogspot.com/
Posted by pickledherring, Wednesday, 30 August 2006 10:12:06 PM
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somebody who writes about legal issues should at least make an attempt to embrace concepts of justice accepted for hundred of years in the Western culture
'presumption of innocence' is one of them.

With background in mathematics I can not fully accept this notion: a a 'not-yet-established' status would be logical to me.

But the phrase used by the author referring to Hicks
> A trial of an accused terrorist,

flies both in face of logic and the justice culture of our society

1. you assume he IS a terrorist
2. who is accused of - whell - what?

I do not know if Hicks is a terroist or not; did he want to co-opearate with Al-Quida of was just doing everything to escape.

I just would like to see a fair trial.

Is it too much to ask?

Don't you undestand, that by prostituting the very culture of justice, you are strneghtenning terrorist position who can say: 'the Westerners pay only lip service to justice and fairness. When they see anyone who sympatises with us, they revert to torture and lies ...
Posted by Paul_of_Melb, Thursday, 31 August 2006 4:17:31 AM
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I go a bit further ....

Free Hicks he is innocent of everthing except licking the lapdog and the shrubs fudamental individual orifices.....

Lock up Flint and Leigh together in a small room - they really deserve each others company - and they are both evenly matched intelligence wise (if you will pardon the missuse of the words of intelligence and wise in the same sentence....)
Posted by Kekenidika, Thursday, 31 August 2006 4:58:05 PM
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Kekenidika

While I have no idea of Leigh's appearance (and don't really want to know) the image of him locked in a (padded?) cell with Flinty has brought me the biggest laugh today.

Some marriages are made in heaven, some deserve their patch of hell, am having happy subversive thoughts...........thank you for making my day.

PS On topic

War is no excuse to justify inhumanity - and flinty should know better.

Free Hicks - he has served his time.
Posted by Scout, Saturday, 2 September 2006 10:35:08 AM
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I can't believe the naivety of almost every post here.

It sounds as if many are so removed from having truly thought about our values that they don't know that in order to protect those values (shared by about 5% of the world's cultures, by the way) one must break those values.

Sounds hypocritical? Well, yes.

But then, one doesn't fight the Taliban on equal terms. I'd guess that many here probably have no problem with Iran having nukes either.

If so, such people are devoid of logic.

How can one have sympathy for a bigot like Hicks who was caught in the McJihad (yes, this Muslim terrorism thing is the same as Colombine High, they want to be on the cover of the newspapers....for some Muslims, Jews (Hollywood) truly do run their lives!)

Hicks was caught with the immoral filth that, according to Dr.Mahatir, were the purest Islamic people on earth, scum that had one export - heroin.

Real religious, huh?

You know what though? If Hicks had repented and realised that he was hanging around with animals and denounced their ideology, the forgiving nature of Australians would have seen him through.

Instead, he has written to his father, whilst in Guantanamo Bay (which should be expanded if anything, to all western lands for scumbags like Mamdouh Habib - who walks around town drawing your taxes while he brings his kid up to kidnap women and shave their heads as Allah don't allow hair on a woman in his eyes) saying that Muslims will EXTERMINATE Jews & Christians.

Nice bloke.

Real repentent.

My only concern is that extremist leftists which truly do create division, and are the role models for these bigots, the Pilger's, the Chomsky's, who write books without thinking of context (the west armed Saddam because his neighbours are utterly devoid of humanity, those Iranian monkeys hang 16 yr old girls from cranes for God's sake) aren't in Guantanamo with them.

I believe the CIA needs to do a lot more assassinations if you ask me.

Mr Flint, an excellent article.
Posted by Benjamin, Wednesday, 6 September 2006 4:03:56 PM
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