Thursday, December 18, 2008

I vote "no"


The parents of John Walker Lindh, the American who converted to Islam as a teenager and ended up fighting for the Taliban, are asking President Bush to show mercy during the holiday season and, before leaving office, order their son released from prison. Lindh is serving a 20-year term after pleading guilty in 2002 to serving in the Taliban army, thus violating the U.S. sanctions that were in place then against Afghanistan. Lindh was captured by Northern Alliance troops in Afghanistan in December 2001, was later shot during a prison uprising and was then turned over to U.S. authorities. He's doing his time in a minimum-security prison in Indiana, and I think he should spend a bit more time there to consider the errors of his ways. There are thousands of common and uncommon criminals asking Bush to pardon them or commute their sentences. They include junk bond king Michael Milken, media mogul Conrad Black and disgraced ex-Congressman Duke Cunningham. They may or may not be worthy of the president's mercy, but none of them admitted serving with a military force trying to kill Americans. Lindh's mother, Marilyn, said "John made a mistake in joining the Taliban." A mistake? No, a mistake is locking your keys in your car. It's all well and good to criticize one's government. I've done plenty of that. But to take up arms against your own people? There's no pardoning that.

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4 Comments:

Blogger miss bess said...

I think Lindh should be forced to take some lessons from Olin Mills - just look at that photo. It needs a book case or some lasers behind him...

December 18, 2008 at 9:07 PM  
Blogger PRIguy said...

Lindh infuriated me from the second I found out what he was doing. I wanted to scream every time I heard the term "American Taliban." In my book, you can't be both. They should have killed that piece of s**t years ago.

December 19, 2008 at 7:34 AM  
Blogger Ellipses said...

I remember the story... but from what I recall, Lindh had gone off on his adventure prior to 9/11, right? Kinda like a super-rebellion against the parents... turn muslim, go to the most god-forsaken place in the world, and get down with allah...

Of course, when it came time for war betwixt the twain, he SHOULD have made a better choice, and for not doing so, he's a jackass. He definitely should be made to feel the consequence of his actions... but how many 18-22 year old kids set off to some far-off country to live an alternative life and are never caught up in an international incident and find themselves embroiled in a war with their mother country?

I agree with Priguy... at some point, he became simply "Taliban"--- I am sure he would have agreed at some point with that...

December 19, 2008 at 9:27 AM  
Blogger PRIguy said...

That's what infuriated me...he should have just been referred to as a member of the Taliban. He hadn't been an American from the time he joined up with that scum.

December 19, 2008 at 11:36 AM  

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