🚀 go-pugleaf

 b> What proportion of the people in Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo (not to
 b> mention the secret torture prisons in Eastern Europe, Egypt and
 b> elsewhere) were *properly* convicted of anything?

as I understand, it's zero. Properly or not. The only attempt - *attempt* - 
I heard about was Jose Padilla, with ridicolus charges first about dirty 
bomb, then planning to blow up buildings using gas stoves or something like 
that nonsense. They eventually tried, but the judge declared mistrial 
because Padilla went nuts after all torture he was subject to. Other than 
that, as I understand, not a single person ever was actually tried for 
anything. That also includes London bombings, liquids, etc.

Of course there were plenty of people who were tried for things like arguing 
with flight attendants on a plane, reacting to TSA abuse during search, 
trespassing out of "free speech zone", etc., etc. Or those who relatively 
recently caused bomb scare panic in Boston by planting some advertising 
toys. I think those are the only terrorists found so far in this "war".

It's mind-boggling that this hysteria is going on and in fact spreads wider 
and wider without a single piece of evidence that the danger actually 
exists. I think any brainwashing that ever took place in Communist USSR or 
China pales in comparison with this.

 b>  How many convictions compared to the number held without charge whom we
 b> will eventually have to release to nurse their resentment against our
 b> nation?

I suspect there are many we will not released ever. Enemy combatants can be 
held indefinitely. Those few who will, will be completely broken, like 
Padilla. No danger here. I'm much more concerned about the resentment from 
God for all my taxes that kill people - even though I'm 99.9% not religious, 
still, even that 0.1% must be enough for me to burn in hell. With all the 
rest of us, of course.

 b>  What was the cost to those who were imprisoned but never convicted of
 b> anything? What has been the cost to the United States in terms of
 b> individual liberty, global prestige and world leadership?

Today's United States are effectively owned by corporate interests and 
certain foreign interests. If you look from that standpoint, you will see 
that things are just dandy, and Bush is actually the greatest president in 
the history. I seriously believe he indeed has made a really huge 
contribution to the history of this country. Of course this contribution is 
not in the favor of American people, but it's not American people who own 
America today. For those entities who do own it, he is really great leader, 
possibly the greatest in history.

regards