from the NYT

They’ll know that in 2006, Congress passed a tyrannical law that will be ranked with the low points in American democracy, our generation’s version of the Alien and Sedition Acts

From me:

The problem is that once this law is on the books, it's not going to go away and "who has purposefully and materially supported hostilities against the United States" is sufficiently vague that a few years down the line it can be used to mean just about anything. Like perhaps giving money to PETA or Greenpeace.

This has to go down as the worst legislation ever passed in my lifetime and certainly an indicator that morality and human decency has fallen victim to political expediency.

It is a sad day in America.

The tragic case of Maher Arar.

Read about it .here

My comment follows......

Where were the media..??

What gets me is simply this....The rendition took place in September 2002. He was released in October 2003. I distinctly remember reading about his case at the time (probably at antiwar.com) Why is it taking until September 2006 for this to be getting prominent coverage. He's now been exonerated by the Canadian government. But he's been an innocent man unlawfully detained all along. Shouldn't more Americans have been informed of this back in 2003 when it could have made a difference

Six Questions for Dr. Emile A. Nakhleh on the CIA and the Iraq War

There are 1.4 billion people in the Islamic world and only a tiny minority, maybe 2 or 3 percent, are politically active. Just like Jews and Christians, most have kids to raise and bills to pay. Most view Islam as a personal and societal force, not a political one, and only a tiny minority becomes terrorists.Link

From Kevin Drum

It's not because liberals don't understand the threat, it's because liberals seem to be the only ones who do understand the threat these days — namely that public opinion in the Muslim world is our biggest problem, and conventional military action only makes this problem worse

Link

Standin’ at the Crossroads by Tom Chartier

Five years ago America suddenly and brutally found itself at a major intersection of its history. September 11, 2001 was America’s crossroads. At that emotionally charged moment, Americans chose the path of revenge. They chose hastily, ignoring warnings from those still possessed of rational thought. Since that moment, America has been charging unchecked and blind toward self-destruction

Link Here

I can't believe I used that phrase in a sentence!

Lefties and righties should be in agreement about the evils of our current administration. Because after all, using the military to provide perquisites for particular industries at the expense of the economy as a whole certainly runs counter to any free-market idealism one could care to entertain.

The degree that so-called conservatives come to the defense of the current administration is the degree to which they have abandoned any principles and are now engaged in masturbatory xenophobia (it feels good to hate people!)