By now I'm sure everyone has heard about Sen. Durbin's comments comparing Gitmo to Pol Pot's regime.
I have a friend who, while a member of the Vietnamese army fighting in Cambodia post Vietnam war, deserted and was captured by the Khmer Rouge. At the time of his capture, he and another man were walking along a jungle path trying to get out of Cambodia when they were stopped. The other man went into the typical surrender position, on his knees with his hands behind his head. This move indicated he was a soldier and he was executed. My friend didn't move, said he didn't know the other guy, and was spared. My friend was taken to a Khmer Rouge camp where he was put in a small cage open to the elements. There was no bathroom, no sinks, he was given no food and little water. He was beaten, and then ignored. The only thing that kept him from being killed himself, he says was that he always smiled....Imagine that. He managed to get released when he lied to the Khmer Rouge that he had info about U.S. prisoners being held in Vietnam. The Khmer Rouge needed money and the U.S. was paying for information. The United States government relocated him to the U.S.. He now runs a very successful business. My friend watched Pol Pot's people murder prisoners, execute them , simply for not looking right. I would've liked to have asked these prisoners, these executed prisoners if they would have prefered Gitmo to death or, in my friend's case, starvation and wondering if he would live the night. I might just have to ask him the next time I see him. I think I know what the answer would be. I'm not sure Dick Durbin would, for he thinks there is no difference.
That's why Dick Durbin is an idiot.
What is amazing to me is that while Dick comes under fire, Rangle said exactly the same thing 3 days before him and gets off scott-free?
I guess Durbin can't get away with being stupid because he's white? Not that I'm racist but logically that's the only difference between Rangle and Durbin that would be a reason to ignore him. Scary, isn't it?
Posted by: Dave | July 01, 2005 at 09:15 AM
We live in the golden age of hyperbole. This type of irresponsible rhetoric not only cheapens the experiences of those who survived the real Soviet gulags or Cambodia under the Khmer Rouge - it also leaves us wide open to more atrocities. As evidence I present Bill Clinton's two terms as President. The world was no less a dangerous place back then, but he had so many ways of glossing over the evils taking place or being planned than his successors.
Posted by: Bloodthirsty Warmonger | June 17, 2005 at 10:14 PM
One of many reasons he's an idiot, but a powerful one.
Posted by: Kevin | June 16, 2005 at 06:47 PM