According to Jerome Socolovsky's AP report, "Spain will not extradite a group of al-Qaida suspects it has in custody unless it receives guarantees from the United States that they won't face the death penalty or trial in a military court."
The business of the "military court" is new. It had previously been reported that Spain only cared about the death penalty.
This proves a point: Extremists - on the left or the right - are perfectly happy to sacrifice justice and reason on the altar of ideology. The press corps is quick to point out examples of this activity when the responsible parties are on the right. It is silent when the extremists are on the left.
In fact, I think there might well be a style book entry which says the phrase "liberal extremist" does not really exist in the English language. Like the word "irregardless."
If we are serious about wanting these eight guys and if the Spanish government decides to hang on to them (all right, "hang" was probably the wrong word there) ... if the Spanish government refuses to turn them over then we should immediately forbid ANYONE from Spain to enter the United States for ANY reason as long as Spain refuses extradition.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau's Foreign Trade Division (don't ask me why the Census Bureau tracks this stuff, ask Google), in 2000 we imported about $6 Billion worth of goods and services from Spain.
Let's raise the ante. Literally. Let's forbid the importation of anything from Spain to the US until they give up the terrorists. Let's see if $500 Million per month worth of stuff piling up on the docks helps the Spanish government take a more realistic look at the situation.
If we are in a war, and if we are telling other nations they have to choose up sides - our side or the al-Quaida side - then there should be consequences for choosing the other guys. Serious consequences.
One wonders how long Spanish authorities will be willing to sacrifice COMMERCE on the altar of ideology.
While U.S. President George W. Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin have established a great personal rapport, the same cannot be said for Pravda. This time I mean the real Pravda not one of the major US daily newspapers.
Here is the concluding graf from an unsigned column regarding the introduction of U.S. Marines to Afghanistan:
"It should be noted that the US propaganda machine is now working at its full capacity. One can suppose that the world will be repeatedly informed in the nearest future of US troops' unbelievable exploits, of neutralized Taliban militants, and of handsome victories. The main thing here is not to neutralize more enemies than they are in their actual number."
This is pretty interesting. On its web site, Pravda, which is still the newspaper of the Russian Communist Party, recounts its history including the following: "In 1994, most of Pravda's journalists left the newspaper, which was then controlled by Greek swindlers."
They have, when you analyze it, a rather engaging style.
Some of the stories dealing with suspects rounded up since September 11, are amusing. As in this Associated press report about a federal judge in New York City who has decided to allow bail for a man accused of perjury in the investigation into the 9/11 attacks:
"Osama Awadallah, 21, a student at Grossmont College in La Mesa, Calif., can be freed until his trial if family members or friends post $500,000 bail and the title to his brother's ice cream truck."
We should check with the Spanish Ambassador to the US and see if the Mister Softee bond violates any Iberian principles.
Mullings hits the road today. It moves operations for the next five days from the warmth and safety of
Alexandria, Virginia to the culturally shark infested waters of Paris, France. The prologue to what promises to be a dandy Travelogue, Dreyfus Returns, My Trip to Paris begins this morning.
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