Obama abandons justice
Published on The Emporia Gazette, by Nat Hentoff and Nick Hentoff July 29, 2016.
“We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.” — Preamble, U.S. Constitution
When speaking about the war on terror, President Barack Obama frequently invokes a biblical sense of justice that flows from the execution of a judgment through brute force rather than the rule of law.
“Those who make the mistake of harming Americans will learn that we will not forget and that our reach is long and that justice will be served,” Obama said in 2014 after ISIS murdered American Steven Sotloff.
It is the sense of justice described in “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” as a “righteous sentence” meted out with a “terrible swift sword.” Which may be acceptable rhetoric when used to rally public support in wartime, but is dangerous to democracy when used to govern a civil society.
The American ethos of justice embodied in the Preamble to the U.S. Constitution can be found in the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) definitions of justice, such as “the quality of being fair and reasonable,” or “a concern for justice, peace, and genuine respect for people” … //
… (full text).
- (Nat Hentoff is a nationally renowned authority on the First Amendment and the Bill of Rights. He is a member of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, and the Cato Institute, where he is a senior fellow.
- Nick Hentoff is a criminal defense and civil liberties attorney in New York).
Links:
From Talking Birds to Ghost Cities, this Week’s Curios, on Huffington Post, by Justin Kitch, July 29, 2016;
Un salaire en fonction de ses besoins, plutôt que de son mérite, dans Le Courrier.ch, par Amhed Hadid, le 29 juillet 2016;
BOOK by Vijay Joshi: India’s Long Road to Prosperity, on BIEN, July 29, 2016;
US équity: FED Stands Pat, But BoJ May Bring Fireworks, on Real Money, by Mike Norman and follow, July 28, 2016;
Dori Monson issues a warning after state treasurer proposes income tax, 6.03 min, on My Northwest, by Kipp Robertson, July 28, 2016;
La démocratie autrement – 3|6: la votation citoyenne, cette exception suisse, dans Le Monde.fr, par Catherine Vincent, le 28 juillet 2016;
Carbon Tax means predictable economic environment, energy independence – Steve May, July 28, 2016;
Video: The Radiance of Presence, 2.42 min, uploaded by premamiyo, July 14, 2016: Gurdjieff Movements retreat in Provence/France, combining the intensity of Presence and Relaxation in the Beauty and Silence of Nature in The Gorges de Verdon;
SYRIA’S PIVOTAL ROLE IN THE DEFEAT OF DAESH, on Articles of Interest, by blog owner Michael de Villiers, July 16, 2016: the key Tactical as well as strategic Battle field for the defeat of Daesh will be played on Syrian grounds, not in Iraq …;
(see also: WHERE HAVE ALL THE FLOWERS GONE, on Articles of Interest, by blog owner Michael de Villiers, May 28, 2016: … Moslem Women dresses in all their cultural diversity – Pakistan, Afghanistan, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, India, Malaysia, Morocco, Syria, Tunisia … on one end we have colourful examples of cultural diversity, and on the other we have a misogynistic view that seeks to paint women of the entire planet in a single colour with face covered – as perpetual slaves to men … education is the antidote to backwardness and religious superstition);
So entstand der Koran, 51.59 min, von samisitto el-guirillerro;
… and this:
- Led Zeppelin Live, Southampton University 1973 (2014 Remaster), 84.22 min, uploaded by RedMusic BCUK;
- Led Zeppelin – Celebration Day 2012, 124.11 min, uploaded by Veress Ádám.