Spring Break
Obama should hold former Bush administration accountable
Sarah Schneider
Issue date: 11/5/09 Section: Commentary
Never before has a president come into office with such a mess to clean up. Bloody, seemingly endless wars, recession comparable only to the Great Depression, hundreds of billions of dollars of debt and, most notably, an unprecedented onset of gloom have plagued our country following the Bush Administration. As a country, we elected President Barack Obama, placing our faith in him to repair a wounded nation. In a naive attempt to move forward, the leader of this downtrodden nation has thus far decided not to hold the former administration accountable for heinous acts of brutality. Those who have tortured and abused for years at Guantanamo Bay are not facing punishment.
We have seen what appeasement has done in the past for dictators that have chosen torture and violence as a means of intimidation. Take the 1946 Nuremberg trials, known for the prosecution of prominent members of the political, military and economic leadership of Nazi Germany after its defeat in World War II. These tribunals were created in order to hold accountable those who performed horrifying acts of torture on people in prison camps. It served as the model for the International Military Tribunal for the Far East, which tried Japanese officials for crimes against peace and humanity. It also served as the model for the Eichmann trial and for present-day courts at the Hague for trying crimes committed during the Balkan wars of the early 1990s. Similarly, a set of trials was set up at Arusha, intended to condemn those people responsible for the genocide in Rwanda. In addition, imperialist powers like Great Britain were morally powerless to protect people of their former colonies after powe vacuums in Africa saw torturous atrocities like those in Uganda with Idi Amin.
Our present administration has failed to understand the importance of righting wrongs. Someone has to take the high ground; someone has to be the leader. And while I am every bit a proponent of moving forward from such a terrible administration, we need to hold Obama accountable for making sure such progress occurs, starting with a rectification of our past. Are we leading out of fear, or out of respect? As thrilled as the world is to see a new administration in power, no one will truly feel at ease until the Obama administration takes a firm stance. They need to create an irrefutable distance between the America now and the America of the Bush administration.
We have seen what appeasement has done in the past for dictators that have chosen torture and violence as a means of intimidation. Take the 1946 Nuremberg trials, known for the prosecution of prominent members of the political, military and economic leadership of Nazi Germany after its defeat in World War II. These tribunals were created in order to hold accountable those who performed horrifying acts of torture on people in prison camps. It served as the model for the International Military Tribunal for the Far East, which tried Japanese officials for crimes against peace and humanity. It also served as the model for the Eichmann trial and for present-day courts at the Hague for trying crimes committed during the Balkan wars of the early 1990s. Similarly, a set of trials was set up at Arusha, intended to condemn those people responsible for the genocide in Rwanda. In addition, imperialist powers like Great Britain were morally powerless to protect people of their former colonies after powe vacuums in Africa saw torturous atrocities like those in Uganda with Idi Amin.
Our present administration has failed to understand the importance of righting wrongs. Someone has to take the high ground; someone has to be the leader. And while I am every bit a proponent of moving forward from such a terrible administration, we need to hold Obama accountable for making sure such progress occurs, starting with a rectification of our past. Are we leading out of fear, or out of respect? As thrilled as the world is to see a new administration in power, no one will truly feel at ease until the Obama administration takes a firm stance. They need to create an irrefutable distance between the America now and the America of the Bush administration.
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
Proud American
posted 11/05/09 @ 10:37 AM EST
I feel that I have to take you to task for your article this morning. First of all, to say that no president has ever come into office amid such a mess is to prove that you are not a student of history. (Continued…)
Intelligent American
posted 11/05/09 @ 11:19 PM EST
Proud American,
I love your pen name. But really, does going after an article written with a spin promoting inquisition make you a Proud American? I am a Proud American and I'm going to "take you to task. (Continued…)
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