In Salon today a civil rights activist talks about his fights to get Guantanamo prisoners the most basic civil rights. The concept of habeas corpus is so deep in our consciousness it's almost hard to explain, like telling a fish what water is. It's so basic to the simple rule of law that it's hard to imagine what it's like without it.
Simply put, it means you have to acknowledge whether you are detaining someone, and what the charges are. If there isn't a reason to hold them, you have to let them go.
But if you're a lawyer trying to defend some of the biggest scapegoats since the Red Guard put dunce hats on victims of the Cultural Revolution and marched them through the streets of Shanghai (Speaking of which -- how I wish I'd found this site when I was pissing my pants over the Electoral College two years ago. Unfortunately, the t-shirts are no longer for sale) you start to understand what it's like without this basic right to rely on.
Coming soon: someone has to strenuously explain the concept of "separation of powers" to Antonin Scalia.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment