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The idea of housing suspected terrorists who hate the United States on mainland USA is anathema - to them and the citizens of America. Who wants them defiling the Land of the Free? And they hate the democratic ways there that I am sure they would not be happy lingering in a jail there.
That is not to say I approve of the torture that apparently takes place in Guantanamo Bay. It's a sickly place and the regime the prisoners are subjected to does nothing for the reputation of America across the world. America can't have it both ways. It claims the captured people are enemies who were taken in a war situation. If that is the case, the States must stick to the Geneva Convention, which it most certainly has not done. The impression it gives by flouting internationally accepted rules is one of a bully who will do anything to inflict its own rules.

On the other hand, if the captives are legitimately under arrest in sovereign American territory, then surely they must be sent to trial. What ever happened to innocent until proven guilty? President Bush has described these people as bad - such a description goes against everything in the American legal system. How can they be judged bad if they have never been tried in a court of law?
On the balance of probabilities, many of the prisoners would fall into the category of terrorist - or at least, supporters of terrorism. But that is not a high enough judgment for criminal lawyers in the States - why make an exception? We cannot win hearts and souls by having one law for us and another for the people who hate us.
Having criticized what is going on there, Guantanamo Bay is not the problem - it is the people running the place who are acting like tin pot dictators. So much for getting rid of Saddam Hussein - the reasons we all hated him were because of his wicked tyranny. Let's not close Guantanamo - it serves a purpose as a holding prison until trial or hand over of prisoners. But, please, let's clean up the act.

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