Slate: The 10 Most Outrageous Civil Liberties Violations of 2006

From Slate:

10. Attempt to Get Death Penalty for Zacarias Moussaoui
Long after it was clear the hapless Frenchman was neither the “20^th hijacker” nor a key plotter in the attacks of 9/11, the government pressed to execute him as a “conspirator” in those attacks. Moussaoui’s alleged participation? By failing to confess to what he may have known about the plot, which may have led the government to disrupt it, Moussaoui directly caused the deaths of thousands of people. This massive overreading of the federal conspiracy laws would be laughable were the stakes not so high. Thankfully, a jury rejected the notion that Moussaoui could be executed for the crime of merely wishing there had been a real connection between himself and 9/11.

The other nine are:

9. Guantanamo Bay
8. Slagging the Media
7. Slagging the Courts
6. The State-Secrets Doctrine
5. Government Snooping
4. Extraordinary Rendition
3. Abuse of Jose Padilla
2. The Military Commissions Act of 2006
1. Hubris

Read them all at:

• Slate: The 10 Most Outrageous Civil Liberties Violations of 2006

Good Riddance, Saddam

Very few people will miss Saddam Hussein’s presence in this world.

His reign of terror included, among many other things:

• An unprovoked invasion of neighboring Iran that led to a brutal war from 1980 to 1988, in which nearly 1 million people were killed.
• Attacks on the Kurdish population in northern Iraq in 1988 in which 50,000 to 100,000 civilians were killed.
• An unprovoked invasion of neighboring Kuwait in 1991.
• A brutal suppression of Kurdish and Shi‘ah uprisings in 1991 in which 20,000 to 100,000 Kurds were killed, and 60,000 to 130,000 Shi‘ah were killed.
• Multiple uses of chemical weapons in the war with Iran and in suppressing uprisings.
• Systematic torture of opponents, including amputation, branding and rape, among other brutal methods.
• Frequent murder of political opponents, including members of his own family.
  
• And the list goes on and on...
  

So good riddance to Saddam.

One now wonders whether or not trials will be ever be conducted to examine the crimes committed against the Iraqi people by George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, Colin Powell, Donald Rumsfeld, Condoleezza Rice (as former National Security Adviser), Paul Wolfowitz, and other members of the Bush Administration.

It is estimated that over 100,000 civilians have been killed in a war predicated on a lie. That same lie sent more American soldiers to their graves than the total number of people killed on 9/11.

Where are the plans to try members of the Bush Administration for their crimes against humanity? Where is the public outcry and disgust for their actions, which are no different than those of Saddam?

There are three fundamental types of people in this world: those who actively seek to implement justice, those who actively impose injustice upon others, and those who will follow whichever trend is prevalent in their society.

Among those who impose injustice upon others, there is often in-fighting. This has been exhibited clearly in the war between the U.S. regime led by Bush and the former Iraqi regime led by Saddam.

Their fate, however, will be one. They will all stand before their Creator one Day. Powerless. Humbled. Unable to enlist the help of others.

And they will all have to answer for their actions that have led to the deaths of millions of people.

May Allāh protect us from a similar fate.

‘Īd Mubārak!

!عيد مبارك

May Allāh accept the Hajj of all those who performed it this year, and may Allāh instill in us the lesson of sacrifice, as taught to us through the story of the Prophet Ibrāhīm (Abraham) and his son the Prophet Ismā‘īl (Ishmael), peace be upon them both.

May Allāh accept the fasting of those who fasted the first few days of Dhū ’l-Hijjah, and may Allāh forgive us all of our sins, and grant us all entry into Jannat al-Firdaws (the highest level of Paradise)! May Allāh alleviate the suffering of the needy around the world! May Allāh grant victory to His dīn (religion, complete way of life) and those to seek to adhere by it and elevate its status in every aspect of life! Āmīn!

_____
‘Īd al-Adhā (commonly spelled Eid al-Adhā) is an Islāmic religious holiday commemorating the end of the Hajj, a pilgrimage to Makkah that is required at least once for every able-bodied Muslim if he/she is capable of performing it. ‘Īd al-Adhā falls on the 10th day of Dhū ’l-Hijjah, the 12th month of the Islāmic calendar.

‘Īd Mubārak (commonly spelled Eid Mubārak) - literally translated means "Blessed Feast" - is the traditional Muslim greeting on the occassion of ‘Īd al-Adhā.

NPR Audio: Latinas Choosing Islam over Catholicism

Here is a blurb describing NPR audio about Latinas accepting Islam:

“The Catholic Church has been grappling with an exodus of Latin Americans over the past few decades. A small yet growing segment of the Hispanic population is leaving Christianity altogether and converting to Islam -- and most of them are women.”

Listen:

• NPR: Latinas Choosing Islam over Catholicism
  

Groups Demand that Wal-Mart Stop Selling Christian “Convert or Die” Game

An excerpt from a San Francisco Chronicle article:

Liberal and progressive Christian groups say a new computer game in which players must either convert or kill non-Christians is the wrong gift to give this holiday season and that Wal-Mart, a major video game retailer, should yank it off its shelves.

The Campaign to Defend the Constitution and the Christian Alliance for Progress, two online political groups, plan to demand today that Wal-Mart dump Left Behind: Eternal Forces, a PC game inspired by a series of fictional Christian novels that are hugely popular, especially with teens.

The series by Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins is based on their interpretation of the Bible's Book of Revelation and takes place after the Rapture, when Jesus has taken his people to heaven and left nonbelievers behind to face the Antichrist.

...

A Wal-Mart spokeswoman said the retailer has no plans to pull Left Behind: Eternal Forces from any of the 200 of Wal-Mart's 3,800 stores that offer the game.

Read more:

• San Francisco Chronicle: ‘Convert or die’ game divides Christians: Some ask Wal-Mart to drop Left Behind
  

Israeli Government Blocks Nobel Laureate Bishop Desmond Tutu from Fact-Finding Mission

From Al Jazeera English:

Desmond Tutu, a Nobel laureate, says that Israel has refused him permission to lead a fact-finding mission to investigate Israeli-Palestinian violence.

Tutu was to begin leading a six-member team over the past weekend in the northern Gaza town of Beit Hanoun to investigate the killings of 19 civilians in an Israeli artillery barrage last month.

But Israel failed to grant them the necessary travel clearance.

“We find the lack of co-operation by the Israeli government very distressing, as well as its failure to allow the mission timely passage to Israel,” Tutu said. “We have, in our view, been turned down.”

Read more:

• Al Jazeera English: Israel ‘turns down’ Tutu mission
• BBC: Israel ‘blocks Tutu Gaza mission’

World’s Oldest Woman, Daughter of Freed Slaves, Dies at 116

Elizabeth Jones Bolden was born on August 15, 1890 to freed slaves. She died yesterday at the age of 116. She was documented as the world’s oldest woman at the time. Her family reports that she had

• 4 children
• 40 grandchildren
• 75 great-grandchildren
• 150 great-great-grandchildren
• 220 great-great-great grandchildren
• 75 great-great-great-great grandchildren

for a grand total of 564 descendants in her lifetime.

Poisoned Russian Spy Litvinenko Accepts Islam on Deathbead, To Be Buried as a Muslim

An excerpt from Britain’s Times Online:

Litvinenko’s father, Walter, said in an interview published today that his son - who was born an Orthodox Christian but had close links to Islamist rebels in Chechnya - had requested to be buried according to Muslim tradition after converting to Islam on his deathbed.

“He said ‘I want to be buried according to Muslim tradition’,” Mr Litvinenko told Moscow's Kommersant daily.

“I said, ‘Well son, as you wish. We already have one Muslim in our family - my daughter is married to a Muslim. The important thing is to believe in the Almighty. God is one.’”

Read more:

• Times Online: Dead Russian spy to be buried as a Muslim