Charles Pierce on Guantanamo, the Republicans and the state of our democracy

[MBS]

http://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/news/a42378/guantanamo-bay-close-obama/

. . .It is futile to point out (again) that this is something that should have been done seven years ago. Gitmo was a stain on the national honor and a canker on our founding principles almost from the moment it was opened. While its symbolic identity was bad enough, what actually went on there—or at least what we were permitted to know about what actually went on there—was even worse. It wasn't Bagram, and it wasn't a C.I.A. black site in Poland or Thailand, but it was damned bad enough.

The president has never wavered in his desire to close down the prison, but it is pure Green Lanternism to imagine that he could have done it alone. The Republicans in Congress, adorning the politics of fear with a glistening coat of chickenshit, passed a law that forbade the use of taxpayer money to fund the transfer of Gitmo detainees to the United States, where they might use their Muslim heat vision to melt the walls of a SuperMax somewhere in the heartland. . . .

. . . .In Congress, there will be a raucous murder of screeching crows greeting the announcement. From out on the campaign trail, the doomsday chorale will be in full voice; I can close my eyes and see Young Marco Rubio swelling up until he almost fills out his big-boy suit. But this is a test nonetheless of how far we as a country have moved from the political utility of unreasoning fear, and of how convincing the shadows have to be in order to make us jump. I don't think the plan has a snowball's chance in Sparks of ever being acted upon by this Congress, especially not in an election year. But as an object lesson in how we have let panic deform our democracy, it's going to be hard to beat the debate that's coming.

[Turbineguy]

1. The republicans want to keep it open.

It helps Al Qeada run up the costs to the U.S. It helps other terrorist groups recruit.

[bemildred]

2. And it keeps those guys out of the way where they cannot testify or see a lawyer unsupervised. nt

[Turbineguy]

3. That too.

Indeed!

[Volaris]

4. Which is bullshit even by their own arguments

I love how the 'intellectuals' over there scream that Rights come from Gawd, unless. Because Reasons. See if you can follow along.

If all Rights come from Gawd, and the constitooshun merley protects those rights, then ALL people carry those rights (cause theyre universal, cause they come from Gawd).

While it's unfeasible for our Government to enforce those Gawd-given rights in say, North Korea (cause its North Korea and were not there), any citizen of North Korea that finds themselves under our Governmental Jurisdiction should, by virtue of Rights coming from GAWD, be afforded the very same governmental constitooshunal protections (and with the same damn vigor) as any actual American Citizen--because Gawd doesnt seem like the type of guy who would care where you born--only that you WERE ACTUALLY born, right?
To their credit, this would seem to be the correct and proper conclusion, and one that I would be at least willing to entertain as a matter of Governmental Policy, should it come to it. So far, so good.

Unless, of course, you're a Scary Person--or, we can convince the Gawd-loving idjits that you're Scary for the purposes of being political cocksuckers to the first Afircan-American President with the middle name of a Scary Person. Then all bets are off, Fuck You AND your Gawd-Granted Rights (which OBVIOUSLY are bullshit because we just destroyed our own argument--cause We're SMART like that, derpy derp--)and have fun rotting in a hole in the ground for the rest of your days.