Ah, politics...

Well, I voluntarily tortured myself today. I decided to read the "you decide" section of the Fox News website, where they pose a question and anybody can leave their response. Emphasis on anybody. I figured I'm not cynical enough where the intelligence (or lack thereof) of the American populace is concerned, so I should give myself some more reasons. The question was (I copied and pasted - there's my disclosure so this isn't plagiarism):

President Obama has signed an executive order to close the U.S. prison at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base. Pennsylvania Rep. Jack Murtha (D) has already said he would be willing to house prisoners from Guantanamo Bay in his congressional district if the president closes the prison. Would you want prisoners from Guantanamo housed in your state or town? Share your thoughts?

Now, I don't speak for anyone but myself, but the response ranged from what I consider simple, to the point, and honest:

Just to answer the question. No, I do not want these people in my backyard, my neighborhood, my city, my state, or my country. I’m not saying to abuse them. . .but I do feel that they need a certain amount of higher level imprisonment.

To just downright silly and having little or nothing to do with the actual question posed:

New Reality Show: “Sheet Heads Gone Wild!”

And, of course, the ever popular blind hatred and violence:

Innocent until proven guilty. Towel on head = guilty. Enough said.
and
There would be SO MANY American prisoners/inmates that would LOVE to get there hands on one of these terrorists. They’d be DEAD in days. Bring em’ on over to our prisons here in the states!

Reading through all of these responses took me through a gamut of emotions, so I decided to start jotting some of them down, and now I want to use this blog as an outlet. If you do not agree with something that I write, that is fine. The right to your own personal opinion is something that I, and countless thousands of others, have signed on the dotted line to protect - and I would actually be offended if you didn't invoke the right.
Some of these snippets pertain to the question posed, others are just random offshoots of thought that were inspired by the responses that were left.
First, why would anyone think that prisoners of war must be given Constitutional rights (the right to fair trial, namely) in order to be treated humanely? Constitutional rights are for American citizens, and we as a country are under no obligation to extend these rights to those who are not in that category - especially to those who have done all in their power to destroy the way of life those rights were designed to protect. Now, I don't feel that we should just be randomly torturing people or feeding them rat feces or some other such ill treatment. If we want our POW's to be treated humanely, we must do unto others as an act of faith. This won't guarantee our captured soldiers good treatment, but the alternative certainly won't guarantee it, either.
Secondly, let's not fool ourselves when it comes to the motive for the terrorist actions against the U.S. The organizations may spout religious outrage, but let's face it - these actions against our country are motivated by the same desires that have been causing war and other harmful acts of one person unto another for centuries: power and money. IF the terrorists were acting against us because we don't share their religious beliefs, then they would be acting against all countries who didn't. ALSO, the U.S. is a country based on religious freedom. Yes, there are some religions that are more prevalent than others, but anyone here is free to worship as he or she feels proper (provided, of course, that it doesn't harm others).
Thirdly, as to a "fair" trial - there is no such thing anymore. In a world of tort litigation, corrupt people, and expensive lawyers paid to find loopholes in the semantics of the written law, any semblance of fairness has long since been destroyed. There are many instances in which perfectly valid evidence was thrown out on a technicality (i.e. the investigator finding it before some judge was pulled from his bed to sign a piece of paper saying, essentially, that it was okay to go looking for it - Hello! The evidence would have been there either way! But such are the laws in a nation where we are terrified to step on anyone's toes.)
Okay, one more item before I close out this posting. Anyone who believes that politicians are strong, moral people who are going to act on the behalf of the "common man" is living on an island of blind idealism and needs to catch the next boat back to reality. The campaigns that these people use to garner our votes cost money, and this money generally comes from special interest groups and/or other wealthy individuals. The politicians know who their meal ticket is and are natually going to cater to these people. If that happens to coincide with the well-being of the rest of the citizenry, then all the better - but that isn't a prerequisite. Who ever said blackmail isn't a valid, lucrative business?

I always find writing to be a very soothing practice. It helps me get thoughts and feelings out of my head in an organized manner so that I can further explore them and alter them as I deem necessary. I do feel better knowing that I stand somewhere - even if that somewhere lies in the gray area between far right and far left. I've been called a moderate conservative. I guess that, since one of my mottos is 'everything in moderation', that would be an accurate term.