Posted on 11/22/2006 7:11:10 AM PST by goldstategop
I'm stunned by this. Suthers' trip was covered by the local press and nowhere did he apologize for anything. There is a huge flap in Saudi over this case because some Saudis claim this slimeball wasn't guilty but was the victim of prejudice. The State Department paid for Suthers to go over there and explain the facts.
For example, Suthers explained that the perp did not take the stand to deny the charges. Under the medieval Sharia system, that is taken as almost a confession, so that impressed the Saudis.
The local press has been pretty straightforward in the reporting - saying straight out that the rapist almost certainly would not have been convicted in Saudi because of the four witness rule and the fact that sexual abuse of female servants by male employers is commonplace over there. I think the whole affair has opened some eyes here.
Debbie is sliming a good AG on the basis of something she just made up.
Yup. What's even more distressing is that there are FReepers who are willing to accept this sort of sensationalism without bothering to check the facts of the case, and in so doing act like a bunch of DUmmies.
"If anything that system has bent over backwards in favor of muslims."Why should anyone be surprised?Suthers has simply taken the next step-bending over-and grabbing his ankles/sarc
"Suthers didn't apologize. Schlussel is lying."
According to my dictionary:
apologize - vi: to make an apology
apology - n 1a: a formal justification :DEFENSE b: EXCUSE
2: an admission of error or discourtesy accompanied by an expression of regret
Schlussel is correct in characterizing Suthers explanation of Turki's conviction as an apology under the the first definition of "apology". She's wrong, however, in asserting that it is completely unnecessary to make such an apology. In some cases, perhaps this one, it is good to make a formal case to justify one's actions.
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." -Manuel II Paleologus
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." -Manuel II Paleologus
In an utter display of American weakness and shame, Colorado Attorney General John Suthers traveled to Saudi Arabia to apologize. Apologize for the American justice system and virtually everything else that America stands for.
Suthers did exactly the opposite. Ms. Schlussel is lying.
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." -Manuel II Paleologus
They didn't receive "special treatment". The guy is in jail. The King (leader) of a foreign country and an ally of ours wanted to know why this happened, and the State Department asked the attorney general of the state to explain it to them.
He got a good, all-expenses paid trip, and told them exactly why their man deserved to be in jail for 28 years.
I can understand arguing that the state department probably shouldn't spend our tax dollars on this, although that's true of MUCH of what the state department does (mollifying our allies around the world, along with most of our enemies), but I see NO REASON to attack the Colorado Attorney General for this, he stood his ground and explained how our justice system works.
I think Debbie simply misunderstood the entire event, or else she's really trying to mislead us.
This is why we can take Suthers' name out of contention for the Senate seat in '08 or any other office for that matter.
Do you have ANY proof that this doesn't happen all the time? You don't think Condi Rice has had discussions with Tony Blair about British detainees at Guantanamo?
I bet we do this all the time, it's not that big a deal to fly over to another country to have a talk, it's not like we live in the roaring 20s and he had to take a cruise ship.
And if Saudi Arabia paid for most of the trip, and put him up, what's the big deal? We grant "courtesies" to leaders of our allies all the time, that's what the State Department mostly does, kiss up to other countries.
But he didn't apologize. He did go to EXPLAIN, but it isn't likely a rare occurance to explain things to foreigners.
If there was an American who was imprisoned in a foreign country, and we had doubts over whether they received a fair trial, I would expect that we could pay for someone from that country to fly over here and explain it to us so we could be sure justice was being served. And I doubt anybody here would complain.
It seems they might not have spent anything:
"No taxpayer dollars were spent on the trip. Suthers said his initial understanding was that the State Department was paying for the trip, but found out en route that the king was picking up the tab."
Rocky Mtn News
Schlussel's a hack. Don't discredit Suthers based on her manufactured controversy, the Colorado GOP is weak enough as it is.
You have a bizarre dictionary, most have the common usage as the first definition, and the uncommon usage as the 2nd.
But in either case, you would be very disingenous to suggest Debbie was using the "formal justification" definition when she said we "apologized" (which I'm not sure is a valid form of "apology" for that definition -- "apology" as defined by your "justification" definition is a NOUN, and doesn't have an "apologized" form).
When you have to appeal to improper forms of non-standard definitions in order to justify what has been written, you have ceded the point that Debbie was being deliberately misleading.
My note to the shameful CO AG:
http://www.ago.state.co.us/contact_us.cfm
I was horribly shocked to learn that the Colorado Attorney General traveled to Saudi Arabia to apologize for a slavery, torture and rape conviction. Sharia law has no standing in this state, just as I'm very certain that our protections of civil rights, women's rights, children's rights, political freedoms and religious freedoms have no standing whatsoever in the repressive Saudi kingdom. The despicable Homaidan Al-Turki should be punished to the fullest extent of Colorado law without remorse or apology. If he wanted to keep a concubine of women in bondage and pain, he was free to do so in any of a dozen countries on this planet.
The state of Colorado has absolutely no business apologizing to anyone for enforcing the laws that its citizens and legislators have enacted. If the Attorney General cannot do that in good conscience, he should resign immediately, and leave the post to someone who can.
From what I gather the conviction was just and the AG's trip was diplomatically necessary. Did you expect the Co. AG to tell the prince in S.A. that sharia law is utter garbage and that he should shove it?
So that's why the hack attack eh? it's a cheap shot.
Here's the perp's defense:
"The state has criminalized these basic Muslim behaviors"
And Muslims are not outraged that one of their own is characterizing their faith and culture as one of rape and slavery?
It's what they do.
Does a bear defecate in the woods?
Does a Muslim [fill in the blanks from Al-Turki's conviction.]
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