Innocent of committing inhuman, barbaric acts? No. Innocent of crimes against the US? Yes.
Empathize with them? No, I empathize with me and the rest of America, paying for an endless war that has nothing to do with national security - in fact, a war that's making us less safe and less secure.
This is why I worry about Rand Paul's candidacy. He tries to present a respectable front, but is he really a loony tune, and if so when will it come out?
I think he's a good bit left (in the direction of the neocons) of where I'd want him to be, and well to the right of where you seem to want him.
You say he tries to present a respectable front, implying he's being dishonest as to who he is? I think what he's doing is moderating his tone and slightly adjusting his policy positions in response to feedback he's getting on the campaign trail - i.e. learning how to better represent the people of Kentucky while still holding true to his core beliefs.
Lastly, a little friendly advice, to you and all the other critics of libertarianism here at FR... if you think everybody that disagrees with you is looney toon, you are incapable of learning and are wasting your time on this forum.
I think 9/11 Truthers are nuts, for example. Maybe harmless, maybe not - but certainly nuts in that regard. (What do you suggest I could learn from them??) Debra Medina's candidacy was brought to a halt when she expressed sympathy to Trutherism, and Ron Paul has long had ties with anti-Semitic and other nutty organization of various objectionable stripes. Does Rand Paul have similar poisonous connections in his present or past?
I think he's a good bit left (in the direction of the neocons) of where I'd want him to be, and well to the right of where you seem to want him.
Regarding anti-war beliefs, I don't think they are necessarily loony (though they can be), but I certainly disagree that being anti-war makes a candidate further 'right'. Obviously the left-right spectrum is simplistic. I think that conservatism embraces the best aspects of libertariansim, but that Libertarians - and people are, I think, rightly suspicious that Rand P. is a big 'L' Libertarian - embrace a great deal of what is not conservative.