Walter Cronkite: U.S. battles terror with a touch of the Spanish Inquisition

Minneapolis Star-Tribune ^ | September 19, 2003 | Walter Cronkite

[jdege]

Walter Cronkite: U.S. battles terror with a touch of the Spanish Inquisition

Walter Cronkite, King Features Syndicate
Published September 19, 2003

President Bush's televised answer to the growing concerns of many -- including some Republicans -- about the powers granted to him in the USA Patriot Act was to ask for even stronger measures, particularly the expanded use of "nonjudicial subpoenas." That means a federal agency such as the FBI can write its own subpoenas to conduct a search -- no judges needed.

Unfortunately, security and liberty form a zero-sum equation. The inevitable trade-off: To increase security is to decrease liberty and vice versa.

[...]

In his 2 1/2 years in office, Attorney General John Ashcroft has earned himself a remarkable distinction as the Torquemada of American law.

Tomas de Torquemada, you might recall, was the 15th-century Dominican friar who became the grand inquisitor of the Spanish Inquisition. He was largely responsible for its methods, including torture and the burning of heretics -- Muslims in particular.

[jdege]

The left is clearly going 'round the bend...

[arkfreepdom]

What an idiot. Go fight windmills in your backyard moron and leave defending the country to the sane people.

[Marc Poor]

The Spanish Inquisition? No one expects the Spanish Inquisition.

[sharpink]

I am not accusing the attorney general of pulling out anyone's fingernails or burning people at the stake (at least I don't know of any such cases).

At least Walter is being fair.
It never fails to amaze me how ignorant people are. His comparison of the Ashcroft Justice Department to the Spanish Inquistion is like something from a Monty Python skit.

[Loyal Buckeye]

I agree with Walter. It's terrible that we criminalized over a million people, rounded them up and detained them -- all in a time of war. Oh, he wasn't talking about FDR. Sorry. ;-)

[Lunatic Fringe]

Tomas de Torquemada, you might recall, was the 15th-century Dominican friar who became the grand inquisitor of the Spanish Inquisition. He was largely responsible for its methods, including torture and the burning of heretics -- Muslims in particular.

Ohhh, yes, NOW I see the connection!

No, Walt, you aren't biased at all... you are also not an impressive intellect. A first year college student learns how to analyze argument, and declare it sound or unsound. Your argument is unsound.

[areafiftyone]

HMMM Maybe we should give Walter the COMFY CHAIR!!!

[joesnuffy]

Crockite reports the "news" with the touch of Goebels

[Taiwan Bocks]

Is Walter the only one in the world who doesn't know he has no remaining credibility?

[Charles Henrickson]

I didn't expect the bloody Spanish Inquisition.

[SauronOfMordor]

No one expects the Spanish Inquisition.

[RightWhale]

Cronkite has more than a touch of 'Grand Inquisitor' about him.

[areafiftyone]

ROFLMAO - Great minds think alike!!! :-)

[Flying Circus]

The Spanish Inquisition was part of the Reconquista of the Iberian penninsula from the Islamic invaders. It was a political tool of King Ferdinand used to meet his goal of rooting out Muslem infiltrators and insuring the peace and stability of his kingdom. It was fantastically successful towards that goal. Given our current need to root out Muslim infiltrators who seek to harm the peace and stability of our nation, it sounds like a good model to emulate.

[Charles Henrickson]

"Now -- you will stay in the Comfy Chair until lunch time,
with only a cup of coffee at eleven."

[SpinyNorman]

Cronkite is turning into an effeminate version of Molly Ivins. Come to think of it, has anyone ever seen them in the same room together? Hmmmmm........Perhaps the sound of windmills offshore has turned him into a liberal Don Quixote, slashing at imaginary enemies.

In his 2 1/2 years in office, Attorney General John Ashcroft has earned himself a remarkable distinction as the Torquemada of American law.

Then by the same reasoning, Clinton was the Zippy the Appeasement Pimp of the White House.

Why does Cronkite blame Ashcroft for having to wipe up after Clinton's kowtowing to terrorists for eight years?

[Flying Circus]

He was largely responsible for its methods, including torture and the burning of heretics -- Muslims in particular.

Bull$#!t!!! The Inquisition only applied to baptized Christians. The Jews and the Muslims were expelled from the country. The only Muslems who would be subject to the Inquisition would be those claiming to be Christian... and they were likely to be doing so for nefarious purposes. If Muslems are persecuted, it is only because their Jihad mindset makes them try to exterminate or subjugate all non-muslems around them.

[neverdem]

I am fearful of the rats getting back in the White House with compromised civil liberties in regard to the Second and Fourth Amendments. Congratulations on excellent work on right to carry.

[TADSLOS]

Who is this Walter Cronkite guy?

[Steel Wolf]

The title of this should be

Walter Cronkite battles senility with a touch of historical fantasy.

Wally, come now. John Aschroft is as bad as Torquemada? The FBI is the Inquisition? Methinks there's a bit too much hyper in your hyperbole.

First off, you ancient vat of toxic liberal fluid, American interrogators doesn't torture anyone. If we hand people who don't want to talk to us back to their host nation, where they'll be tortured, what's the problem? Most countries routinely torture the bejezus out of their more rebellious citizens, a fact that in decades of news reporting I'm sure you stumbled across. How is that America's responsibility? More to the point, how does that make us worse than them? Or equal to the Inquisition?

At any rate, this shrill screaming about the 'unprecedented loss of freedoms' is absurd. Crack a history book, Wally, and you'll note that America has done far, far worse in the last 150 years. The whole premise of this article, and the line of reasoning behind it, is petty and uninformed.