Posted on 02/10/2004 4:25:04 PM PST by Andy from Beaverton
'Proud to be a U.S. citizen' A repentant Maher Hawash blames only himself -- not Islam or the U.S. government -- for his legal troubles 02/10/04
T he U.S. government treated Maher "Mike" Hawash fairly and with dignity.
Those aren't our words. Nor are they the prosecutors' words. They're the words of Hawash himself, uttered Monday in U.S. District Judge Robert E. Jones' courtroom. They're important words, given the heated claims that his friends and backers made about Hawash's unfair arrest and detention last year, but maybe not the most important words spoken Monday. Those came from Jones and Hawash himself.
Jones reminded everyone that the Portland Seven case was not about abstractions. If Hawash had been able to enter Afghanistan and fight against U.S. military forces, he might have killed our soldiers -- like the young man in Jones' court Monday who had served in Afghanistan. It was a sobering reminder of the stakes in the case.
The judge also reminded the courtroom that the government had conducted itself according to the law and Constitution from the start of the Hawash case. Hot rhetoric to the contrary, Hawash had access to a lawyer even before his arrest. The government came before the court with a long list of allegations and evidence of probable cause for its actions. The court "carefully supervised" all the warrants, and Hawash made use of his right to remain silent under the Fifth Amendment. In short, Jones said, "not one constitutional violation took place." Yet Hawash allowed his friends to claim in public that an innocent man's rights were being violated.
On Monday, Hawash took full responsibility for his troubles. He didn't blame Islam ("Islam does not teach aggression"). He didn't blame the government. In fact, he maintained he was "proud to be a U.S. citizen." Hawash blamed himself for what he said was a temporary diversion in a life of peace and caring.
Then what explained his decision to head off to Afghanistan? He was unable to believe that anyone associated with Islam could have been responsible for the horror of 9/11, and he felt an obligation to defend Islamic brothers who were being unfairly blamed for the attacks.
Hawash says he came to have misgivings about what he was doing as soon as he arrived overseas. He says he wanted to tell the truth about what he had done as soon as he was arrested. He might have saved himself, his family and his friends a lot of trouble if he'd come clean upon his return home.
Given all this, it's easier now to understand how his friends were fooled, though it's impossible to defend all of their outlandish rhetoric. In a sense, Hawash was a victim of 9/11, part of its collateral damage. At a tumultuous moment in time, a smart and sensitive man slipped temporarily into an abyss.
We don't think there's anything inconsistent in congratulating the government for putting Hawash behind bars. Or wishing a repentant Hawash a productive return home in seven years.
In other words, he was so distressed that anyone could think that a Muslim, from the "religion of peace", could attack the World Trade Center that he ... tried to go to Afghanistan to kill American soldiers.
He may be easier to deal with than the writers/editors of the Oregonian.
Ex-Intel veep, 'Mike' Hawash gets seven years in gaol - conspiring to wage war on US
Aug 6: Mike pled guilty today to one count of his three-count indictment. He admitted attempting to enter Afghanistan with members of the "Portland 6". We hope that justice has been served, and our focus now shifts to support for Mike's family in this difficult time.LOL
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.