6/22/08

Lesbian politics: Skip impeachment and proceed directly to war-crimes prosecution, please

I have approximately 1,000 lawyers in my family, so lawyers have always been heroes of mine--but never more so than at this given moment in history. I have watched a variety of attempts to impeach the so-called President and his cronies go down in flames, and I've always been struck by the thought, Why bother with impeachment? These guys are criminals who have repeatedly sh*t upon the Constitution! Let's prosecute them! Well, some lawyers have decided to germinate an answer to my civic prayers--as usual!

Outing CIA agents in wartime and overthrowing sovereign leaders while lying to your constituents and the world to do it and then refusing to testify about it? What's up with that? As a blogger on Morning Seditionists once wrote,

"You know, if I could ask these assholes questions, I’d ask how come good, god-fearin’ Christians are terrified of swearing an oath - in public - to their God, that they will tell the truth. I mean, lying is a sin (a big one, too - bearing false witness and all that; I don’t claim to be an expert, but I believe that’s one of those commandment thingies they’re always whining about), and they’re all a bunch of fucking holier-than-thou, party of God types, so you’d think they’d be chompin’ at the bit to get out there and rub their greasy palms all over the good book (among other things)."

So yeah, what's up with that? Well, some lawyers have decided to, um, yeah, like, kind of, maybe talk about how criminal prosecution over the accumulation of messed-up things the Bush administration has done might--just might--wind up in, um, you know, like, a hangin' or two.

The Dean of the Massachusetts School of Law at Andover is planning a September conference to establish a case for the prosecution of George W. Bush and friends for war crimes. The Dean's name is Lawrence Velvel, and back in the late 1960s, he and several other law professors gained notoriety for trying to declare the Vietnam war unconstitutional, so you have to love the guy. I will let Professor Velvel speak for himself:

"This is not intended to be a mere discussion of violations of law that have occurred; it is, rather, intended to be a planning conference at which plans will be laid and necessary organizational structures set up to pursue the guilty as long as necessary and, if need be, to the ends of the Earth. [. . .] We must try to hold Bush administration leaders accountable in courts of justice, and we must insist on appropriate punishments, including, if guilt is found, the hangings visited upon top German and Japanese war-criminals in the 1940s."

This guy added, "For Bush, Richard Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, and John Yoo to spend years in jail or go to the gallows for their crimes would be a powerful lesson to future American leaders."

Reportedly, the conference intends to explore:

* the natures of the crimes committed;

* who (including federal judges and members of Congress) might be involved;

* which foreign or domestic venues could be used to bring about prosecution; and

* the coordination of an umbrella group of partnering legal organizations to make everything possible.

Sooooo . . . yeah! Thank you, Dean Velvel, and thank you participating lawyers--took you all long enough, but thank you. View the original announcement here.

From Dean Velvel's website:

"Both experts and the public are invited to the Conference. It will be held at 500 Federal Street in Andover, Massachusetts, from 10 in the morning until 4:30 in the afternoon on Saturday and Sunday, September 13 and 14. Breakfasts, lunches and dinners will be provided, and will be covered by a conference charge of $125. Hotel rooms will be available a mile away, at the Wyndham Hotel, for 99 dollars per night, with buses available to take attendees to and return them from the conference.

"Anyone who wants to attend the conference should contact my special assistant, Jeff Demers, at demers@mslaw.edu or at (978) 681-0800."

7 comments:

Trop said...

Ya know, there is a lot to not like about Bob Barr. He's not a friend of lesbians. BUT, I am likely to vote for him for president, primarily because he's long been shouting about the Bush Administration's Constitutional abuses.

Unknown said...

LOL, I could not agree more. Ship the dictator Bush to Iraq and make him answer for his Crimes against Humanity. Sooner the better.

JT
http://www.Ultimate-Anonymity.com

Becky C. said...

Ten to one if this ever looked serious our Congress would give them immunity--just like they are doing for the telecoms that hooked up with the Bush, Cheney, Ashcroft, Gonzo, et al in trampling the constitution.

~Becky

Anonymous said...

You dumb bastard, he's immune from litigation until he leaves office.

Anonymous said...

If Bush is tried, then the next Democrat President will be accused and tried. Count on that.

Read the history of the Roman republic to find out how that ends up.

J said...

To Anonymous #1:
Litigation and criminal prosecution are two different things. You might not be able to try Bush for civil damages, but criminal offenses are different; e.g. Bush couldn't steal a car with impunity (though he'd certainly try). Also, if I'm not mistaken, Bush is only in office until January (assuming he doesn't declare Martial Law in between now and then). Also also, an international court can try someone for war crimes whenever.

To Anonymous #2:
From a different more recent era in history than the Romans':

That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.

If a Democratic President were to engage in the kind of misconduct for which the Bush administration is guilty, I'd want to prosecute him/her, too; it's not a partisan concern for me.

Anonymous said...

We did, already -- we did! We put them on trial for war crimes -- stop on by and git yer vengence...
http://www.funwithwarcrimes.com