Well, those of us who wanted to see Guantanamo closed down will probably get what we wished for. Today it was announced that the prisoners or whatever we are calling them these days will be moved from Gitmo South to Gitmo North, a small town in Illinois.
The prison in Thomson, Illinois is an under used state prison that President Obama has ordered the federal government to purchase as new housing for the remaining residents of Gitmo Bay Prison. Okay, so new jobs will be created in the rural area of Illinois. And, no, BernieHund is not among the fear mongers that are saying that we are creating a target for terrorists on American soil. That rhetoric from some Republicans is about worn out and totally reminiscent of the Bush-Cheney fear dispersal program.
All that said, moving the Gitmo prisoners to Illinois may be one way of closing the Cuban based prison. But, isn’t the real point being missed here? Those of us who wanted to see Gitmo closed were not talking so much about the barbed wire cages as the whole concept of keeping people in prison without charging them with a crime. In that sphere nothing is changing. We are still detaining, holding captive, imprisoning people without charging them with any type of crime.
Of course, it has been reported that some of these people are “too dangerous” to be let go. That may be true. But, if they are so dangerous, there must be some reason for us to label them so. If they are so dangerous and so vile, charge them with a crime and let’s get on with it.
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