Annie
Diamond Member
- Nov 22, 2003
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I think, YES.
Should he be tried by Iraqis? Again, I vote yes, agreeing with this:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/printedition/chi-0312150159dec15,1,3642376.story
History should guide the way in judging Hussein
John Kass
December 15, 2003
It was a great day for the United States and President Bush. The rat of Iraq has been found.
"In the history of Iraq, a dark and painful era is over," the president said Sunday. "A hopeful day has arrived."
Saddam Hussein was discovered where rats go when they're afraid--in a hole, underground.
The bearded and puffy Hussein was dragged out of his hole. His hands fluttered weakly. He submissively opened his jaws wide for an examination.
Now, how do we judge him?
Should he be tried by an American tribunal and executed by American soldiers?
Should an international court at The Hague pass judgment on him?
Before we decide, we should consider history and how Alexander the Great dealt with a similar situation in the same region about 2,300 years ago.
It involved Bessus the Satrap.
I was thinking of Bessus as Hussein's humiliated face was shown in the military video after his capture.
Hussein's head was put against a wall and he opened wide and said "ahhh" for a doctor, his mass murderer's mouth as pink as a baby's.
As his matted scalp was searched for lice, the rat's hands fluttered briefly, touching his face, a gesture of helplessness and humiliation by a cruel and bloody man.
I wonder whether Bessus the Satrap fluttered his hands to his face, too, when he was finally captured after leading a deadly insurgency against the armies of the West.
And I'm offering Bessus today as a parallel to Hussein and as one possible answer as to what should be done with him.
Darius III, the king of all Asia, was defeated in the decisive battle at Gaugamela by Alexander's armies, in what is modern-day Kurdish-dominated northern Iraq.
When Darius realized that the battle was lost, he ran like a coward and left his wife and children defenseless.
Later, Darius was captured and murdered by his Persian henchman, Bessus. The murder gave Bessus the chance to set himself up as king of Asia, and he began to lead a violent insurgency against the Hellenic Western armies.
For months and months, Alexander chased Bessus. Alexander ordered his soldiers to dig out every rat hole looking for him. Alexander even crossed the Hindu Kush, a fantastic military accomplishment even by today's high-tech standards.
Through great adversity, Alexander employed his famous tactics and strategy. But his best weapon against Bessus was his indomitable will. What Bessus didn't understand was that Alexander meant business.
Alexander simply refused to quit. His companions and generals understood this, and so did his men. Eventually, his enemies also understood it.
After relentless pressure and many battles and sieges, the Persians and others who supported Bessus realized that they couldn't take the constant pounding.
They gave Bessus up. It is unknown if he was found in a rat hole, but he was found.
And then Bessus wasn't a leader of anything anymore.
He was stripped naked and he was bound. A wooden collar was put around his neck. He was left on the side of the road for Alexander's armies to pick up like so much garbage.
But he was alive.
Historians acknowledge that it was then that Alexander proved himself not only a great general and killer, but also a wise politician.
Rather than behead Bessus himself, rather than ship him back to Greece in a cage for the amusement of the folks back home, rather than tie him to horses and leave body parts for dogs and birds, Alexander did the smart political thing.
He turned Bessus over to the Persians.
His only instructions were that Bessus was to be tried and punished in accordance with Persian law for the crime of murdering their king.
And so the Persians humiliated Bessus. They scourged him in the Persian manner. They cut off his nose and earlobes in the Persian manner. Then they executed him in the Persian manner.
In turning Bessus over to the Persians for judgment, Alexander showed he was respectful of Persian customs. And so, through ceremony and blood, they bought into Alexander's rule.
I am by no means comparing a freely elected American president to Alexander, nor am I comparing the United States to the Hellenistic world empire of the day.
For one thing, Alexander never had to worry about the consequences of the growing Halliburton profiteering scandal in Iraq.
Bush did the right thing by pursing Hussein. He should take Hussein's capture as an opportunity to do the right thing by canceling Halliburton's contracts.
And I'm not advocating mutilation for Hussein. That's up to the Iraqis.
It shouldn't be up to The Hague. And American soldiers should not be ordered to pump his body full of lead.
Out of respect for the Iraqi people and their customs, let them be the ones to judge and punish Hussein.
----------
[email protected]
Copyright © 2003, Chicago Tribune
Should he be tried by Iraqis? Again, I vote yes, agreeing with this:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/printedition/chi-0312150159dec15,1,3642376.story
History should guide the way in judging Hussein
John Kass
December 15, 2003
It was a great day for the United States and President Bush. The rat of Iraq has been found.
"In the history of Iraq, a dark and painful era is over," the president said Sunday. "A hopeful day has arrived."
Saddam Hussein was discovered where rats go when they're afraid--in a hole, underground.
The bearded and puffy Hussein was dragged out of his hole. His hands fluttered weakly. He submissively opened his jaws wide for an examination.
Now, how do we judge him?
Should he be tried by an American tribunal and executed by American soldiers?
Should an international court at The Hague pass judgment on him?
Before we decide, we should consider history and how Alexander the Great dealt with a similar situation in the same region about 2,300 years ago.
It involved Bessus the Satrap.
I was thinking of Bessus as Hussein's humiliated face was shown in the military video after his capture.
Hussein's head was put against a wall and he opened wide and said "ahhh" for a doctor, his mass murderer's mouth as pink as a baby's.
As his matted scalp was searched for lice, the rat's hands fluttered briefly, touching his face, a gesture of helplessness and humiliation by a cruel and bloody man.
I wonder whether Bessus the Satrap fluttered his hands to his face, too, when he was finally captured after leading a deadly insurgency against the armies of the West.
And I'm offering Bessus today as a parallel to Hussein and as one possible answer as to what should be done with him.
Darius III, the king of all Asia, was defeated in the decisive battle at Gaugamela by Alexander's armies, in what is modern-day Kurdish-dominated northern Iraq.
When Darius realized that the battle was lost, he ran like a coward and left his wife and children defenseless.
Later, Darius was captured and murdered by his Persian henchman, Bessus. The murder gave Bessus the chance to set himself up as king of Asia, and he began to lead a violent insurgency against the Hellenic Western armies.
For months and months, Alexander chased Bessus. Alexander ordered his soldiers to dig out every rat hole looking for him. Alexander even crossed the Hindu Kush, a fantastic military accomplishment even by today's high-tech standards.
Through great adversity, Alexander employed his famous tactics and strategy. But his best weapon against Bessus was his indomitable will. What Bessus didn't understand was that Alexander meant business.
Alexander simply refused to quit. His companions and generals understood this, and so did his men. Eventually, his enemies also understood it.
After relentless pressure and many battles and sieges, the Persians and others who supported Bessus realized that they couldn't take the constant pounding.
They gave Bessus up. It is unknown if he was found in a rat hole, but he was found.
And then Bessus wasn't a leader of anything anymore.
He was stripped naked and he was bound. A wooden collar was put around his neck. He was left on the side of the road for Alexander's armies to pick up like so much garbage.
But he was alive.
Historians acknowledge that it was then that Alexander proved himself not only a great general and killer, but also a wise politician.
Rather than behead Bessus himself, rather than ship him back to Greece in a cage for the amusement of the folks back home, rather than tie him to horses and leave body parts for dogs and birds, Alexander did the smart political thing.
He turned Bessus over to the Persians.
His only instructions were that Bessus was to be tried and punished in accordance with Persian law for the crime of murdering their king.
And so the Persians humiliated Bessus. They scourged him in the Persian manner. They cut off his nose and earlobes in the Persian manner. Then they executed him in the Persian manner.
In turning Bessus over to the Persians for judgment, Alexander showed he was respectful of Persian customs. And so, through ceremony and blood, they bought into Alexander's rule.
I am by no means comparing a freely elected American president to Alexander, nor am I comparing the United States to the Hellenistic world empire of the day.
For one thing, Alexander never had to worry about the consequences of the growing Halliburton profiteering scandal in Iraq.
Bush did the right thing by pursing Hussein. He should take Hussein's capture as an opportunity to do the right thing by canceling Halliburton's contracts.
And I'm not advocating mutilation for Hussein. That's up to the Iraqis.
It shouldn't be up to The Hague. And American soldiers should not be ordered to pump his body full of lead.
Out of respect for the Iraqi people and their customs, let them be the ones to judge and punish Hussein.
----------
[email protected]
Copyright © 2003, Chicago Tribune
I vote Iraqi /islamic punishment...the frenchys..:finger: em
