No offense to all of you flag waving fans of Sousa’s marches out there, but having seen military justice in action on several occasions I’d say that the assessment is dead on.

The military is a funny animal. When you join, you forfeit the rights and freedoms accorded to all American citizens so that you might be better able to protect them. It is no small sacrifice.

Today, hundreds of thousands of our fellow citizens are serving in various capacities abroad at the order of the Commander-in-Chief. They are there because of their oath to serve and protect the Constitution. This document has been the blue print for every democracy since its creation. It is the global standard. However, on this Fourth of July, that renowned and respected status which our nation has so briefly enjoyed is in peril.

The Founders – ever fearful of tyranny of any kind – ensured several rights were embedded in foundation of our government. Chief amongst these rights was the freedom to dissent. This blog exists as my personal celebration of that right.

The assumption of innocence, the right to face ones accusers, and the right to a speedy and just trial by a jury of ones peers are built into the framework of our government not to protect individual citizens from the abuses of an unsympathetic regime, but to protect the right of all citizens to dissent without fear of persecution.

But these rights do not apply to those facing trial in military courts.

Today, over 600 individuals remain imprisoned by our govenrment without charge, legal representation, or the ability to communicate with their families. Following an investigation, some of these individuals may be found guilty of crimes for which they have yet to charged, but only some. The innocent among them will suffer no less, and will be treated no better in the meantime. It is an injustice which we should all concern ourselves with on this day of freedom.

These individuals – some only in their teens – will face a military tribunal with the authority to impose the death penalty. This is unacceptable. As Americans we should be incensed that our government has stripped these people of their most basic legal rights when they are fighting for their lives.

The Administration has attempted to justify this treatment by referring to the prisoners of camp X-Ray as enemy combatants. This designation has been summarily imposed without investigation or trial. The Administration’s assumption is that special steps need to be taken – that a few eggs need to be broken – to ensure the continued security of our nation. We’ve heard that line before, and it can only lead to one disastrous end.

If the United States is to continue to be the land of the free and the home of the brave, we need to start playing by our own rules again. Truth and justice for all must not be a goal or an ideal; it must be a reality. The integrity of our nation depends on it.

Half the country doesn’t trust the word our government. The world views our leaders as suspect, and our populace as either ignorant or complicit. This cannot, and will not continue for very much longer. There will be consequences for all of us should we continue to allow the dilution of our rights, the curtailment of our freedoms, and the sullying our identity as a freedom loving nation.

I want my country back.

Labels: camp X-Ray, founders, guantanamo, military tribunal, patriot act