Khadr: We Don't Have To Like Them To Do The Right Thing

Alright. I'll take a stab at the Khadr situation.

For me it all boils down to the rule of law.

Yes, the kid and is family are dinks; heck, annoying and loathesome for their public outburts. Makes one wonder why the stay here. Is it because of Tim Horton's?

Well, the pull of the Rrroll-up-win contest couldn't have been that strong since they willingly took this child into a highly volatile situation and turned him into a child-soldier in Afghanistan. Thanks to these stellar and sound parental decisions, they alone ruined this kid. Guantanamo, of course, probably isn't helping.

Nonetheless, his psychological state (I'm guessing here) was already coded and conditioned to think a certain way and he probably was on a path to martyrdom for all we know.

It's hard to feel any sympathy for the Khadr clan. In fact, a very strong and responsible argument can be made for the government to deport them.

While many are upset at Prime Minister Stephen Harper for his inaction (even indifference) towards Lil' Omar, I find humour in listening to the Liberal party also. These guys don't kow the meaning of "quitting while your ahead." To me the Liberals attacking the Conservatives is rich given they have yet to overcome the stench of their own corruprive powers. Watching them talk with moral rhetoric makes me want to go to Guantanamo myself. It's a bad episode of Laugh-in with the Libs.

In times of war, however, we're always confronted with dicey ethical questions. Lest we forget the lessons and example of interning Ukranian, Japanese, German and Italian- Canadians during WW II. I know the tendency is to refer to fight on terrorism as a "so-called war" but this is the wrong way to argue rationalize it in my opinion. It implies the war is fake thus reducing the real dangers that modern terrorism offers. I understand Americans for their position on this global reality. Security is a number one issue for them since 9/11. We can spin this however we choose but this is a reality and it should be respected. It makes little sense to chastise them for their concerns.

The rule of law is the spinal chord of our existence. We mustn't deviate from this lest we crack it and die. This is the choice we've made as a civil society. It unfortunately entails applying it to people like the Khadr's. They're Canadians and as such they're entitled to be treated with dignity under the protection of our laws.

This is where it gets messy. People like the Khadr's essentially refute our civilization and use it when it serves them. This will rub some Canadians the wrong way. The whole notion of applying the Geneva Convention to terrorsists who don't even recognize it strikes me as a tad naive. Still...these are our laws. We can't ignore them at will. Can we?

Only Bat-Man is allowed to be a vigilante. Where is he anyway?

Omar Khadr stands accused of murdering a U.S. soldier and attacking Canadian soldiers in the process. The evidence of all this has yet to be firmly established. Only strong suspicions exist. In the process, he has not been given a fair trial.

The trick for the West to defeating terrorism is to not degrade itself into a "guerilla" type fight. This is what they want - For us to stoop to their level. We should resist that temptation. Once we do this, we elminate any moral advantage we may have had. It takes a lot to build moral credibility and much less to destroy it.

Have we considered this? Have we already fallen past the point of no return?

This is not condone the Khadr family. They've made clear where they stand. Personally, I'd send them packing.

But first, I'd much rather preserve the rule of law.