Thinking Out Loud

By Gerard Meister

I am not so sure that the traditional American system of criminal justice can cope with the new, and most dangerous type of criminal yet, the Islamic terrorist. This is something that the ideologues of the Political Left can't seem to fathom. This point is brought home vividly in the scathing (New York Post) editorial cartoon reprinted below.

It's one thing for one jury to find O J Simpson "not guilty" of a double murder and another jury to find Mr. Simpson guilty of "causing the willful and wrongful death" of the same two people and then be fined for the heinous act. It is quite another thing to set free a terrorist on some sort of arcane technicality. Does anyone really believe that if Jose Padilla or Zacarias Moussaoui walks even for a day that the pair would occupy their time playing golf (which is what keeps Simpson busy all week).

Yes, yes I know this is America and that people are innocent until proven guilty. Hip! Hip hooray and tell it to the Marines. We are not talking about ordinary bank robbers or rapists or murderers; terrorists are not criminals as that word is understood and defined by our criminal justice system. Suicide bombers are a different breed playing by a different set of rules, which, it seems to me, President Bush and Attorney General Ashcroft understand full well and is the reason the administration pushed for the passage of the Patriot Act. The Patriot Act is an adjunct to the traditional American system of justice, and is specifically designed to cope with the problems of the 21st century, the terror-struck century. It is a piece of legislation that all law-abiding Americans and even our common career criminals can live with. In point of fact, it may very well be something we can't live without. Think about it.