Aaaand, as is inevitable whenever a thread gets “Godwinised”, we’re now off-topic…
…because nobody will decline to get the last word on who THEY think is/was worse.
I’m with Bibliovore – not the man, but the country, deserved at least the formality of a trial to make account for his crimes.
No, because I don’t believe in revenge killing. For anyone.
Payback is hell.
Why don’t we conduct a survey by asking this question to families of victims by actions supported by Qaddafi…Highjackings, abductions, etc…
Sure, the man had his style & legacy, no objection-he had his female guards excorting him, stayed in tents and stuff, he surely look cool, in a way!
But, let’s not forget the fact that he offered sanctuary to plane jackers and all sorts of criminals, who did some pretty ugly stuff…
I’ll make one last post on this subject, then I won’t hijack the thread any further.
It is clear you don’t know the meaning of the word cowardice or what happened on that day. Just because Osama didn’t have a weapon in his hand, doesn’t mean he wasn’t prepared to resist. He had armed bodyguards who engaged in a firefight with the SEALs and had an AK-47 and a pistol in arm’s reach. The SEALs were prepared to capture him alive if they could have done so without resistance. Osama had the capability and the incentive to shoot one or more SEALs. He was no innocent civilian, he was a declared war criminal, and gave the SEALs no choice but to kill him. It is hardly an act of cowardice to take out a target while anticipating armed resistance. Also, they lost one of their helicopters and still continued with their mission. Every man involved knew there was the possibility he wouldn’t come back alive, but still went through with his assigned task.
Fuck Gadhaffi.
Saw this only now and I think I should reply to it. Yes, I was saddened by more than just seeing him die on Youtube. I got sad and angry because I remember back in the late 70s and early 80s when he was practically a darling of the west, attacking Iran. He got a lot of weapons from the west then. When he became too strong and was showing his true color, the west’s notion of him changed. Then there was Desert Storm. Then there was 9-11. He hardly had anything to do with 9-11. Colin Powell never proved satisfactorily the charges of building WMD’s. The US invaded Iraq with no UN sanction. He was arrested, turned over to people who long wanted him dead, and he was executed with less than sufficient due process (at least according to the US.) Sure, he’s a dirtbag and his end was all down to his actions. It still make me sad and angry.
Well, Desert Storm was a reaction to Iraq invading Kuwait (although I have not forgotten that the Kuwaitis lied their asses off to Congress to provoke the US into retaliation).
And by “hardly anything”, you mean “absolutely nothing”.
Because he and his employers were lying.
Once again, I agree. Saddam Hussein was a Bad Man who did Bad Things. He and his family killed and raped and tortured at will, and his death via the legal system was well-deserved. But none of that remotely justified the invasion in the first place; he was just as bad and doing just as bad things back when the US was chummy with him. Furthermore, at the exact same time we were saving the Iraqi people from the Bad Man, Donald Rumsfeld (who had personally been chummy with Saddam) was off being chummy with Turkmenbashi who was far worse. Still, perhaps when Jeb Bush becomes president we can invade Turkmenistan.
In conclusion: fuck Gadhaffi.
Forgiveness does not replace justice. It accompanies it.
Deserve has nothing to do with it. People don’t get what they deserve, good or bad. Kaddafi was a very bad man. It would have been better for the world if he had been given a fair trial for his crimes.
I definitely agree with this. What incentive does any despot have to get better if they’re not going to get anything out of it.
I felt similar about Charles Taylor’s arrest in Nigeria after he was promised safe exile as part of the peace agreement. In fact, I think that probably played a role in Ghaddaffi hanging on to the bitter end: he might have considered exile if he actually thought it might be respected, and the transition could have been a lot cleaner. I think Assad might be a little more willing to allow a peaceful change in government if he thought he could retire without having to worry about going to prison or being killed. Instead, what we’ve been teaching our dictators is that it’s better to fight, and I don’t think that’s good for anyone.