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People and Politics by Patrick Roberts

Ten reasons why Osama Bin Laden should have been captured alive and tried

Posted on Friday, May 06, 2011 at 03:19 PM

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Jimsales74 | May 08, 2011, 07:57 AM EDT

Here's the ONE reason why bin Laden could NOT be taken alive. He had been dead since December of 2001. The funny thing is this: when Bush denied that claim,liberals around the world said that Bush wouldn't admit Osama was dead because it would weaken his justification for war. Additionally, according to the FBI, there is no evidence that bin Laden was involved in 9/11; all we had was the Bush administration's accusation which the liberals called propaganda. Bush's word has now been transformed into immutable fact by Obama. So, it would seem that Bush was right all along! But now, since it's Obama telling the 'bin Laden did 9/11 story,' everyone yells hell yea! And the facts, such as he was probably dead years--according to numerous sources like the NY Times and Israeli Intelligence--before he was "buried at sea," are called crazy conspiracy theories. And to top it all off, the media touts the White House story of an anonymous al Qaeda source as proof positive that Obama is telling telling the truth. Hey, would al Qaeda tell a lie? Kool-Aide anyone? PS. RE, #7. The CIA created al Qaeda while George the First was its director in order to fight the Soviets. They laundered our portion of the funding through the Saudis. As to exactly when our tax dollars stopped funding bin Laden, al Qaeda, and our ex-buddies, the Tali ban, is very fuzzy.

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antoman | May 08, 2011, 07:26 AM EDT

Revenge is a dish best served cold.Why take him alive and risk numerous hostage situations by radical groups requesting his release or else?Live by the gun, die by the gun.

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maireadinmelb | May 08, 2011, 03:49 AM EDT

Whilst I agree with you Patrick, I note that the propoganda caused by such a trial would be on going and horrific, and what if there was not enough evidence to prove a murder charge??? Apply laws and punishments made after the date of teh crime would make him an ever bigger martyr to those who share his views!

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seanomelbourne | May 07, 2011, 09:31 PM EDT

It is better to pursue justice than revenge.

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Ajreaper | May 07, 2011, 09:30 PM EDT

LOL, the founding fathers? What kind of idiotic horse crap is that? The founding fathers could not even imagine a world with men like Osama so how in the hell can you say what they'd think or believe? You are a silly, silly man sirpeter- the founding fathers led a country to war against the prevailing world power over taxes and a lack of representation I don't think they'd think twice about killing a man who had a hand in the murder of thousands. It's best you not say anything has you are showing yourself to be a complete loon.

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clonmel21 | May 07, 2011, 08:35 PM EDT

On your 10 Points: 1. Did he give the victims a fair chance? 2. That dose not make any sense. 3. We wanted the Russians to kill him. 4. Do you really think he cares about what the families have to say; if he did then he would not have killed 3000 of them. 5. By your way of thinking he would have been given his Miranda Rights, Lawyered up, and shut up; ergo no info from him you dupe. 6. What happened to your statement about Hitler and Nuremberg? No Military Tribunal? 7. Again Miranda. 8. Who cares about the anti-American hysteria, do we have to bow down to every other country in the world so we "look good". They could care less. 9. And if people like you were on the Jury he would be found NOT GUILTY! Great system. 10. Again you make no sense, what the heck does that have to do with anything.

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dublinguy | May 07, 2011, 08:16 PM EDT

okay lets reverse the situation, lets just say the seals that raided bin ladens compound were caught by surprise & most of the seal team were killed & bin laden got away, what would the 10 reasons be then, oh' i know 10 reasons why the seals should have killed him via snipers bullet, because anyone that thinks he should have been captured are a bunch of hypocritical donkeys, the (SOB) got just what he deserved bullet in the head, and i fully agree with ( jerrylynch ) everyone loves to hate the usa until their sorry asses need help & then they come crying for the usa to bail them out.

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DennisQ | May 07, 2011, 07:51 PM EDT

Government leaders often substitute their own personal sense of righteousness for what the law requires. But eventually their sense of what is righteous yields to what is simply convenient. In the end, they're not following the law at all; they're just doing what they feel like doing.

Nixon bombed Cambodia because the North Vietnamese were retreating over the border. It was illegal and he knew it, but justice was served. Then Nixon set up a unit of secret operatives to find out who was leaking government secrets; they called themselves "the plumbers." Ultimately Nixon dispatched the plumbers to break into Daniel Ellsberg's psychiatrist's office and find something they could use to punish Ellsberg for leaking classified documents to the New York Times. Nixon lader claimed that whatever the president does is legal because the president doesn't have to obey the law.

We are now hearing the same kind of end-justifies-the-means arguments from Obama's defenders. After all, sending in a team of assassins served a righteous purpose. "Justice was served," said Obama.

Beware of government leaders who claim they have the right to break the law for the sake of the greater good. They will soon be up to mischief, if they aren't already. Nixon's plumbers unit didn't start out as common burglars, but they ended up that way. Eventually Obama's assassination squad may end up as ordinary hit men; what's to stop them? Everybody's cheering for them today, and there's no formal accountabiility for what politicians may order them to do tomorrow.

To the very end, Nixon denied being a crook. That's because he never broke the law except in the interest of some higher purpose.

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sirpeter | May 07, 2011, 07:23 PM EDT

@rpmschevy..That's crap.Every human being deserves respect.It's a fundamental human right no matter who or what they have done. So because he wasn't American it doesn't matter about applying justice.You would make a fine Judge in Nazi Germany.

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sirpeter | May 07, 2011, 07:05 PM EDT

@MarthaAnne..It's nice to see you are seeing the bigger picture.The American Constitution was written up for the people by very clever men.The American Constitution and laws are there to,first and foremost protect us from ourselves. That is why we have laws. If he was killed when he could have been captured and we don't know that for sure. Then I think liberties were taken and the founders of the American Constitution would not be pleased.

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RthrBHistCorr | May 07, 2011, 06:05 PM EDT

It all looks easy Pat when you are writing from the safety of your easy chair in your nice safe office doesn't it? Have you ever been in a combat situation Pat? This was a real life situation Pat, where life and death decisions that effect you and your teammates have to be made in a split second, it's not SOCOM4 on a Playstation where it you get killed you get to try again Osama got a funeral, his body was prepared as per his faith. That's a lot more than most of the victims, including two close friends who were never recovered, on 9/11 received.

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Ajreaper | May 07, 2011, 04:14 PM EDT

To many silly assumptions are made- why would Osama care what victims families thought of him? He would not. Why would he volunteer any information about funding or anything else? He would not. A trial of Osama would not change what people thought of the U.S. our friends and those who dislike us would be unswayed by placing Osama on trial- the masses who are swayed by radical Islam are by and large far from educated free thinkers they believe what they are told to believe. Truth is he got better then he deserved which was a quick death- you don't get to declare war on the U.S. then expect to be afforded rights you yourself have never believed in or advocated for others.

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JerryLynch | May 07, 2011, 03:42 PM EDT

I think the US should have captured bin Laden, tried him in Scotland and let them hold him. Wait...they did that with Abdel Basset al-Megrahi, the Libyan who was convicted in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. But didn't Scotland release him from jail last year because he was "dying" from cancer? Libya took him for "humanitarian reasons" to live out his last tragic days in Libya. Through the miracle of Allah, he's evidently been cured and has been living many happy "last days" in freedom. I'm sure that the same humanitarian actions would have taken for bin Laden after his conviction due to his need for kidney dialysis. During that arrest, conviction, imprisonment and humanitarian release time-frame, how many innocent hostages would have been taken and beheaded to trade for bin Laden's release? It's not the US that should be having to show the world that they're "better than everyone else," it's we in the rest of the world that should be thanking them every time they respond to disasters and terrorists attacks. Someday the US is going to say, "You take care of it" and then we'll see how much they're missed...

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traveler51 | May 07, 2011, 03:18 PM EDT

Yesterday, people complained about the risks and cost of Pres. Obama's visit to Ireland for one day. Can you imagine the risk and cost of keeping Osama during a trial? Just the decision of what kind and where the trial would be, would take who knows how long. You can't have it both ways.

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seagreen | May 07, 2011, 03:15 PM EDT

Ten reasons to have killed Bin Ladin 1.... Saddam's grave in Tikrit is now a shrine and rallying point for his followers 2.... A trial in the US would go on for years, and spawn cult groups to support him. 3.....Potential for violence, and the propagation of his will as long as he is alive 4.....The rest of the world has long since lost any respect for the US, they are just afrid of us. 5.....Capture and a trial would send a message to others that we have a problem meaning what we say 6 3000 dead people (mostly Americans)who never had their day in court 7 As long as the predator drones keep wiping out innocent people in villages, we are lying through our teeth about justice 8 Dead men do not talk, or refute information that has been put out as fact. 9.....Justification of expenditures in the billions over ten years 10....The fear that what he might have said in a trial, is something that the US government and its appendages would not want the American public to hear !

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