I won. You lost.

Squeal loudly while I put my stiffie up your asses!

If you look at the charges of crimes against humanity from organizations across the globe I think you will find substantiation. Don't know if you trust Wikipedia, but here's a link.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_rights_in_Saddam's_Iraq

Of course, I said nothing about supporting Condi or Bush, but it's a perfect example of the lame political debate in this country that you could only see someone disagreeing with a position by bringing out the lame Fox News red state-blue state type allegations.

Saddam's crimes go so far beyond the issue of the war in Iraq it's not even funny. He should have been taken out long ago, WMD being utterly unneccessary to the need to wipe this evil destructive person off the globe.

I feel certain that if the columnist and letter writers here had been around when WWII ended, and somehow Hitler had been captured, they would be writing in about how "sad" it was that he should be put to death and that the US was really responsible for his death and, somehow, his crimes against humanity.

Excuse me, but wouldn't the best thing in the world be if Hitler HADN'T existed and DIDN'T commit those crimes?

You see -- that's the state of existence that I would call "happy".

Happiness is when crimes don't happen and people are not victimized.

Punishment only happens BECAUSE crimes are committed.

So that means it's sad.

Once the victims have suffered -- it's sad, and you can't ever change it back to happy again.

If Saddam hadn't hurt all those people, then you wouldn't have the joy of seeing him die.

So your current joy depends on their past pain.

Without their suffering, you wouldn't be so happy right now.

Which is why I think you're creepy.

Vengeance is like a drug for people like you. It makes you high. It has nothing to do with any empathy for the victims.

The high you get from punishing the perpetrator is disrespectful to the memories of the victims.

How can you respect the victims of oppression by feeling happy?

That means your happiness was derived from their pain.

Maybe that's okay with you.

It's not okay with me.

We should be careful about appearing to decry Saddam's execution. He deserved what he got. Yes, the circumstances were dodgy. Yes, the trial appeared to be shady. Yes, his execution appeared rushed (at least the appeal seemed amputated). However, if this is what the Iraqi people want (the trial was after all conducted by Iraqis - even if under heavy American watch), then hopefully it will lessen the bloodshed and chaos they are suffering now.

Saddam will not be missed. If only the same could be done to other dictators. Perhaps they will consider that what happened to Saddam could happen to them one day. Unfortunately, America's foreign policy tolerates certain dictators (China has most favored nation status despite its atrocious human rights record) so other dictators can probably breathe easy as long as they don't somehow tick off a war hungry president.

So I've heard people talk about how Saddam committed genocide, etc. Ok, I'll give you that - he was a bad man, and that he is no longer in power is a good thing in the long term.

So, for those who are happy that a genocidal jerk has been "taken out" - I ask, why hasn't the US acted in Darfur? Because some pretty bad things are happening there.

If taking a stand against one specific genocide is important, then so is taking a stand against all genocides and "genocide-like activities".

So, where is the marine air lift into Africa? Lets have it.

Just a question -- do you believe in the "lone gunman" theory of dictatorship? Do you believe it's just that one person, and nobody else, who creates all of the oppression?

I believe a dictator is the manifestation of a society where people fail each other and themselves miserably.

Dictators only have power because people are willing to sacrifice their neighbors and their family members for their own safety.

A lot of small decisions went into building Saddam's power and supporting his ability to commit those crimes.

Small decisions like --

"Should I turn in my neighbor to protect myself from suspicion?"

-- "Sure, why not?"

"Should I turn in my cousin to get a better job?"

-- "Yes, the extra income would be helpful around the house."

It's little decisions like those that make a dictatorship possible.

So who are we going to kill to avenge those crimes?

I did not say Saddam did not commit crimes against humanity. I said the extent of those crimes has been mischaracterized and exaggerated for political purposes. I said that the United State's own involvement facilitated some of those crimes. And I said the United State's "solution" has created a situation that is at least as bad as the problem we aimed to solve.

Of course you can disagree with me about any of these things. But at least try to disagree with what I'm actually saying. Or maybe try to give specific answers to my questions.

Your Wikipedia article states that Saddam's crimes include "Secret police, torture, murders, targeted assassinations, chemical weapons, and the destruction of wetlands". Should'a sicked the conservation committee on him. But really, nothing there strikes me as qualitatively different than anything we do ourselves. Hell, we assisted his chemical weapons efforts ourselves. Torture? I don't know if you've read the news lately, but there's been a very vocal and public debate about our own administration's use of torture against political prisoners.

Is there a difference in degree between Saddam's behaviour and our own? Only if you accept the argument of a four-year-old: "He started it!". Except he didn't. Ethnic, sectarian, and religious conflict have plagued the middle east for ages. And now the Middle East is plagued by a United States President who doesn't read or like travelling who fancies himself a mideast power broker. Just trying to be like Dad, I s'pose.

The great irony is that the people who have cost the US its moral standing in the world are by and large the very people who put themselves on a moral pedestal: the bible thumpers. Best bumper sticker: "Who would Jesus bomb?"

You know, pointing fingers is fun and all, but it's cheap and easy to talk about the past. The better discussion to have would really be about the future: about how to extricate ourselves from this mess and about how to regain our center.