the outcome of the election

[Occhidiangela]

Well, lets skip the what "to assume" means...

According to Amnesty International at some time earlier this year, there had been 43.000 people in Iraq arrested and detained, often for months.

Only 600 of those have been handed over to Iraqi officials and charges pressed.

Why? most of them were collected during raids done by regular soldiers, with NO police training at all, that don't speak a word arabic and certainly don't read it. Who have no idea of Iraqi mentality, culture or everyday life and rely on pretty dubious sources.

Evidence? Probable cause? Common Sense? And then a ratio of one hard case per 72 arrests?

Pardon me if I doubt your faith in humanity here  :blink:
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Pardon me, Armin, but you have mixed apples and oranges, for one, and AI of course fails to follow up, that is their reputation. And you have detailed figures on those released? Right.

The Gitmo situation is tied to the Afghanistan operation, and subsequent efforts by law enforcement and security agents in re AL Qaeda and the Taliban. The Iraq issue is not germane to that discussion, and is a war in progress, a civil war as of about May of 2003.

It should surprise no one that any number of Iraqi's, and other parties, are trying to fill in the power vacuum left when Saddam's gang went south, nor is it any surprise to me that the "provisional government," the one abandoned by the UN, is not embraced by any number of the factions fighting for control.

Lack of confidence in government leads to anarchy, and the soldiers were directed to "maintain stability." With the police system severely disrupted by the war, soldiers were forced, due to political pressure and a noted lack of involvement by any number of high falutin' international organs, to act in a role somewhat at odd with their training.

As for the rest, Amnesty International can kiss my ass. Where were they when Saddam was in charge? Nowhere. It took men to go in and "lay bare the pits of Angaband."

I don't think our conversation will go much further. What is the likelihood of you changing my point of view? About zero.

It seems that you and I are now talking at each other, more than to each other.

Or is there any more to add?

Occhi