Quick trial, firing squad for three men provoke fury

The Miami Herald ^ | 4/12/2003 | ALFONSO CHARDY

[old3030]

The arrests came after a French woman hostage jumped into the water to confuse her captors.

Well, obviously, not everyone wanted to come to America. What a surprise that some frog female cost these guys their lives.

[TC Rider]

I hope the 'unpleasantness' didn't interfere with Yoko Ono's Mystical Havana Tour for her lefty friends. I'm sure if they had heard the shots they would have encouraged Fidel to sue the gun manufacturers.

But hey, Cuba has universal health care.

< /sarcasm >

[Grut]

Those guys weren't terrorists.

They were accused of being terrorists and convicted in an official, if irregular, court. I agree that doesn't make them terrorists but I don't see how we can say so and then treat 'our' terrorists in broadly the same way.

Well, I do but I don't have to admire it.

[FITZ]

So in answer to your question, if I wanted to leave to Canada

What a useless UN we have. International law is a joke. Any country that has people dying trying to escape is committing serious human rights abuses ----and the UN sits there doing nothing.

[EternalVigilance]

I hear where you're coming from, and understand your frustration with the glacial speed of American executions of murderers. I agree with you on that.

[EternalVigilance]

Your argument is rather confusing. I don't see much connection at all between the actions of the US and the actions of Cuba.

I think Castro has successfully used words to create that impression.

[republicofdavis]

Thank you. I have learned my lesson and will not quickly post off the cuff remarks in the future (unless it's something funny about Tom Daschle)

[EternalVigilance]

LOL...It's always open season on Tom Daschle on FR.

[Zack Nguyen]

The left will issue apologies for any old iron-fisted left-wing dictator, as long as they are leftist. Very few of them have the consistency to protest dictators in Communist countries such as China.

[headsonpikes]

LOL!

[Kevin Curry]

The most notorious, arbitrary, and efficient mass executioners in all of human history were or are all leftist/socialist, e.g., Lenin, Stalin, Hitler, Mao, Castro, Pol Pot etc.

Leftists tend to be be opposed to capital punishment only when they themselves do not control the machinery of government. Once they seize or assume authoritarian control of government, mass arbitrary and often secret executions become the rule--not the exception.

[toolbreaker]

Quoting a Roger Hernandez column..

One has to marvel at the silence from the Robert Redfords, Danny Glovers, Ed Asners, Naomi Campbells, Oliver Stones, Steven Speilbergs, and other Hollywood luminaries who have made the mandatory Havana pilgrimage to speak wonders of the Cuban dictator. Do they think it's OK for Cubans to go to jail for writing and reading, as long as they keep making cool music and great cigars?

Sorry, no link to the column, read it in my local paper. It pretty much says it all right there.

[Luis Gonzalez]

"If an American of Palestinian descent hijacked an airliner to return to Palestine I would suggest he suffer the ultimate punishment."

An American of Palestinian descent could just simply buy an airline ticket and leave the US. Cubans are not allowed to do that.

[republicofdavis]

You are correct. So just to make sure I understand, in your opinion, a Cuban, because he is not free to leave, can commit any crime to escape, including kidnapping (murder?) and should not suffer consequences should his escape attempt fail?

[Luis Gonzalez]

There was no kidnapping, some people where merely inconvenienced, but would have been immediately allowed to return upon arrival in the US.

Murder?

Yes, I can justify killing anyone who decides that they have the right to remove my right as a free man to leave this or any country, because I call THAT kidnapping, with me being the victim.

Now, under what circumstance would you grant the US government the power to take from you your ability to freely leave the country?

[RyeWhiskeyJoe]

Great job--hang in there. You got your post up ahead of me, but I agree with you totally. These thugs hijacked a ferry and put lives in danger. I'm not a Castro fan by any stretch of the imagination, but swift justice--yes this is absolutely JUSTICE--is the only way to deal with this kind of activity. There was no doubt who the perps were and they were dealt with properly. Their right to a speedy trial was upheld and the right (even if unpopular in some arenas) decisions were made.

I can't believe I'm sitting here reading from Freepers crying over not doing something "politically correct". My G-d, Freepers sounding like liberals--"it's Cuban society thats to blame, not the fault of these poor hijackers"--what can you people be thinking of???? The first rule of freedom is you MUST accept the consequences of your actions. If you feel you must break international law (hijacking is a crime in case some of you have forgotten--and not a victimless crime either) in order to escape some social injustice, that's your right--but don't blame anyone but yourself if YOU get caught and have to pay the Piper. Florida is proof that you can get from Cuba to the USA without hijacking a ferry. Using your Freedom of choice to make really bad decisions can--and should--result in really bad consequences. This was obviously NOT a kangaroo court because if it were they would have shot them all (and been fully justified in the decision IMHO). Apparently someone in charge decided there were degrees of culpability involved, and some form of justice in this case was metered out. That's a much better sytem than we have seen at work in this country in a long time. Grow up--if you are going to shout freedom from the rooftops, you better be ready to acknowledge that screwing up in the use of that freedom can be dangerous to your health. The evil that exists in our world must be dealt with and dealt with swiftly and completely. You do bad, you pay for it--you do real bad, you pay for it big time!

[republicofdavis]

I guess we'll have to disagree on mere inconvenience. I assume that there was at least a threat of some hostilities and in such situations there is always the possibility of harm. You discount that as being inconsequential because the hijackers had the absolute, unfettered right to escape.

I would never grant my government the right to limit my ability to travel. Apparently the Cuban people have acquiesced through their inaction to limits on their freedom.

[Luis Gonzalez]

"Apparently the Cuban people Iraqis have acquiesced through their inaction to limits on their freedom."

"Apparently the Cuban people Jews in Nazi Germany have acquiesced through their inaction to limits on their freedom."

"Apparently the Cuban people Cambodian people have acquiesced through their inaction to limits on their freedom (imposed by Pol Pot)."

Do these work for you as well?

[stop_fascism]

Would you say that the Jews in the Warsaw ghetto deserved to be killed for rebelling against "legitimate" authority?

BTW - what is the purpose of all the white space in your post?

[safeasthebanks]

Why are you even wasting your time with these two....people?