[LINK] bin Laden is dead

[Karl Auer]

On Wed, 2011-05-04 at 08:32 +1000, Jan Whitaker wrote:
> At 02:26 AM 4/05/2011, Karl Auer wrote:
> >Plenty of people *say* a lot of things. We don't stick them in jail just
> >for that. Civilised countries (a group that does not include the US) do
> >not kill them either. And before we stick them in jail, we make sure
> >that they actually did do the things they are accused of doing - even if
> >they accuse themselves.
> 
> Slight correction. Australian police regularly shoot and kill people 
> in the street armed with knives and some who even act weird and take 
> a step forward. So you may want to consider it's not just the US in 
> that boat. What about the UK police who killed that man in the subway 
> a few years ago? He wasn't armed. He was running for a train. Not 
> everyone gets their day in court, unfortunately. And they aren't even 
> confessed murderers to start with.

Two wrongs, as I'm sure you know, do not make a right. As I am also sure
you know, I was not referring to killing during attempts to capture, but
to the killing of prisoners.

There is a difference between a mistake made in the heat of the moment
and a coldly planned illegal act. There is a difference between an
unplanned act carried out by an individual in a tricky situation and an
act planned and executed by a large group with the whole thing observed
and directed under formal control. The actual killing of bin Laden was
just one of the array of (IMHO) illegal and unethical acts by those
involved.

Police who kill someone here generally do get investigated. They and
their victims generally do get their "day in court", one way or another.
The incident in the UK was investigated, too. The decision might not
always suit all, but the point is that the event is recognised as a
failure of the system, as a Bad Thing - even when the dead person was
wielding a weapon.

Th US stepped outside the law for petty gratification and gung-ho
patriotic symbolism. In so doing they have done nothing that will make
the world a safer place, in fact arguably they have made it less safe.
They certainly think so - in the same breath that they proclaim a blow
against terrorism, they warn of reprisals against Americans as a
result.[1]

When restraint and wisdom were called for, they went for the quick fix.

Regards, K.

[1] That may be because the US needs enemies to keep people distracted
from the difficulties at home. The enemy is dead, long live the enemy.
It's not a technique unique to the US; most governments prefer to
manufacture a cheap economy-driving external threat rather than have to
deal with real, but less tractable problems.

-- 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Karl Auer (kauer at biplane.com.au)                   +61-2-64957160 (h)
http://www.biplane.com.au/kauer/                   +61-428-957160 (mob)

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