Cardinal Says U.S. Treated Saddam 'Like a Cow'

Yahoo! News / Reuters ^ | 12-16-2003 | Philip Pullella

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[LM's note: This thread is degenerating a bit into Catholic bashing and general flaming, and is in risk of being moved to the smokey backroom. Please stop. I've locked it once, and it has continued. Any more and it is gone. Thanks.]

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - A top Vatican (news - web sites) official said Tuesday he felt pity and compassion for Saddam Hussein (news - web sites) and criticized the U.S. military for showing video footage of him being treated "like a cow."

Cardinal Renato Martino, head of the Vatican's Justice and Peace department and a former papal envoy to the United Nations (news - web sites), told a news conference it would be "illusory" to think the arrest of the former Iraqi president would heal all the damage caused by a war which the Holy See opposed.

"I felt pity to see this man destroyed, (the military) looking at his teeth as if he were a cow. They could have spared us these pictures," he said.

"Seeing him like this, a man in his tragedy, despite all the heavy blame he bears, I had a sense of compassion for him," he said in answer to questions about Saddam's arrest.

Martino was referring to the videotape released by the U.S. military which showed a grubby, bearded and disheveled Saddam receiving a medical examination by a military doctor after his capture in an underground hole Saturday.

Martino was one of the Vatican officials most strongly opposed to the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq (news - web sites).

"It's true that we should be happy that this (arrest) has come about because it is the watershed that was necessary... we hope that this will not have worse and other serious consequences," Martino said.

"But it is not the total solution to the problems of the Middle East," he said.

Martino said the Vatican hoped the arrest of Saddam "can contribute to promoting peace and the democratization of Iraq."

He added: "But is seems to me to be illusory to hope that this will repair the dramas and the damage of the defeat for humanity that a war always brings about."

The Vatican did not consider the war in Iraq "a just war" because it was not backed by the United Nations and because the Vatican believed more negotiations were necessary to avoid it.

Martino said the Vatican wanted an "appropriate institution" to put Saddam on trial but he did not elaborate.

U.S. forces were keeping the ousted 66-year-old dictator at a secret location for interrogation before he is put on trial in the months ahead. He could face the death penalty.

The news conference was called for Martino to present the World Day of Peace message, in which Pope John Paul (news - web sites) took a swipe at the United States for invading Iraq without the backing of the United Nations.

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What can I say?

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Ping.

[Tijeras_Slim]

Tell the good Cardinal that the Arabs would treat him like a sheep.

[The Old Hoosier]

A cow?

A cow????

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If this was already posted, I apologize. I didn't find it.

Ping.

[Peach]

More pity than he's EVER expressed for Saddam's innocent victims.

[Elkiejg]

Tell the good Cardinal that the Arabs would treat him like a sheep.

BRAVO!! The "church" needs to keep their mouths shut.

[mewzilla]

Cardinal Renato Martino, head of the Vatican's Justice and Peace department

Yeah. Right.

[Loyalist]

A good thing this jackass wasn't around during the battle of Lepanto.

[Vermonter]

we hope that this will not have worse and other serious consequences," Martino said.

Huh?

[zook]

He ought to know. That's how a lot of his friends have treated young boys.

[Catspaw]

I'm speechless---but didn't a member of the Church hierarchy meet with Tariq Aziz shortly before the war?

[OpusatFR]

""Seeing him like this, a man in his tragedy, despite all the heavy blame he bears, I had a sense of compassion for him," he said in answer to questions about Saddam's arrest."

Misplaced compassion for all that. His victims deserve better. Begin Catholic, I understand the theology behind that statement, but Sen. John McCain said it best,

"We are coming. God may have mercy on you, but we will not."

[MarkeyD]

Moo Moo, I love you!

[Dog Gone]

"It's true that we should be happy that this (arrest) has come about because it is the watershed that was necessary

He knows he should be happy, but he's obviously rather upset by it.

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Ping.

[ontos-on]

A good reason why religious people should not get involved in politics. I would like to hear what he would have saiid in the spectacle of the Red troops going through Hitler's ashes. This guy should shut up because he is a fool.

[never4get]

You are sooooooo correct in mentioning there was little pitty by this cardinal for his innocent victims who not only had bullets shot into the back of their heads (and those were the ones who got off easy) and were killed in mass by his thugs. Saddam is fortunate he even can breath today after what he has done to so many.

[leadpenny]

I apologize to the cows of the World for what the Cardinal said.

[Moose4]

We did not EITHER treat him like a cow. Jeez.

Now a pig, on the other hand...

}:-)4