Guantanamo May Remain Open Indefinitely… Take Action

Under the Bush Administration, the government threw out the Constitution and the Geneva Conventions in declaring an unconventional “War on Terrorism.” The struggle against terrorism is unconventional because we are not fighting against another nation; rather we are fighting against an extremist ideology that supports the use of violence and guerrilla warfare to attack their perception of infidel “Western” powers. Since this is a war of ideology, I don’t believe that it makes sense to further undermine our ideology of democracy and the protection of human rights by using unjust detention and torture of people suspected of committing acts of terrorism. This approach makes us appear hypocritical and weak. To succeed in a war of ideology we have to stand behind what we believe otherwise we have already let them win.
I hoped that the Obama administration would change our course in the struggle against terrorism. One of his first promises was to close Guantanamo. However, Guantanamo is still open and there is now a bill that has passed the House of Representatives and is being voted on by the Senate that would keep Guantanamo open indefinitely. Please join me in writing to your Senator to ask them to vote against this bill and demand changes that ensure that innocent civilians suspected of terrorism are not being treated inhumanely as this will only provide more incentive for people to perceive the U.S. as an enemy. You can find the full text of the bill at here . The sections of the bill pertaining to the status of prisoners at Guantanamo include Sections 1036-1039. You can express your opposition to the bill and write to your representative using the following link.

I recently watched a Danish documentary called Armadillo about the war in Afghanistan that gives a first-hand view of the brutality and ineffectiveness of the war. You can find it on Netflix. Also I suggest reading “Taliban” and “Descent into Chaos” by Pakistani journalist Ahmed Rashid for an in-depth overview of the situation in Afghanistan and Pakistan.