'We are not afraid,' U.S. judge tells shoe bomber

Toronto Star - ASSOCIATED PRESS, REUTERS ^ | 01-31-03

[veronica]

FYI.

[wideawake]

"the religion of Islam justifies the killing of innocent civilians"

Precisely.

[Puppage]

"You will be judged by Allah!"

I'm gunna be judged by the 7-11 night manager?

[laconic]

A judge with common sense; how odd. If I were the prison warden, Mr. Reid would be given a job stacking, then unstacking the same rocks all day, six days a week, for the rest of his miserable life. If he refused, he simply would not eat.

[veronica]

Bump.

[anobjectivist]

Why life sentence? why not just fry the guy

[DoctorMichael]

Why is this clown going to be housed at public expense for the rest of his life?

He should have gotten the death sentence!

[denydenydeny]

Defence lawyers said Reid credits his religion with saving him from a life of drug use and despair.

Saved from "despair" to commit a life-affirming suicide bombing.

They described a troubled childhood and young adulthood, when Reid was plagued by poverty, racism and crime.

And when in doubt, play the race card.

[Intimidator]

I'll bet he doesn't last long in prison. He needs to be put in with the general population.

[Bahbah]

I don't think he will last very long.

[IYAS9YAS]

Even with the intent, the act was not carried out to completion. I'm not sure what, if any, legal grounds for the death sentence there were. Not to say I don't want to see him fry, I'm thinking a vat of pig fat at the boiling point.

[Hillary's Folly]

Actually, if it's punishment your after it's better to have the life sentence for these terrorists. It is a humiliation to them among their peers and almost assures they won't get their 70 virgins. Plus, it will be excruciating. Living in prison is hard. Dying is the easy part.

[Sacajaweau]

I like WHAT the judge said and HOW he said it.

Reid is the typical "I Hate America and Americans". It's his cry, the cry of Moussaoui and I think we will find it to be the cry of another Muslim convert, Mohammed Williams (the Sniper) before long.

All these folks are sympathetic to Usama and support terrorism as an end.

[anobjectivist]

Well, let's see...

If he had succeeded in his act, he would have the blood of over a hundred people strewn over the countryside. Next time, the doctors on board should just inject some oxygen into his blood stream, or maybe something that would cause a quicker death.

[Grampa Dave]

Great news! I didn't know that we still had judges like this man. Does anyone know anything about Judge William Young?

U.S. District Judge William Young pointed to the American flag behind him and said: "You see that flag, Mr. Reid? That's the flag of the United States of America. That flag will fly there long after this is long forgotten."

"We are not afraid of any of your terrorist co-conspirators, Mr. Reid," the judge said. "We are Americans. We have been through the fire before.

"You are not an enemy combatant — you are a terrorist. You are not a soldier in any war — you are a terrorist. To call you a soldier gives you far too much stature. You are a terrorist and we do not negotiate with terrorists. "We hunt them down one by one and bring them to justice." ===========================================================

Way to go Judge William Young!

[hchutch]

Loved that statement!

[DannyTN]

"if it's punishment your after it's better to have the life sentence "

I dissagree, the death penalty is the harsher punishment. No body with any sense believes that there are 70 virgins who deserve eternity with a terrorist anyway.

Life sentence is a merciful sentence, because it gives him many years to repent.

[Grampa Dave]

Isn't it refreshing to hear a real judge instead of some drugged out old lunatic lib hiding in a black robe and doing what his ACLU rat pack wants?

[oyez]

I got a better idea. Just let Mr Reid walk out of the court house after the an anouncement is made that goes someting like, " Hear yee! Mr Shoe Bomber Reid is leaving the court house at four PM, tomorrow. There is no kind of police escort arranged. He's just walking out the door in an orange jump suit. The public is invited to extend the utmost courtsey to Mr Reid."