Eternal War and the American Right

Carver:  You can't even call this "war" on drugs a war.
Kima: Why not?
Carver: Wars end.
                     --The Wire

Tonight, on the News Hour some twit from the American Enterprise Institute made the case for continuing drone attacks and continuing Gitmo by saying that we (the United States) did not seek this war; it was thrust upon us, and we cannot evade or end it simply by wishing an end to come or by saying it's over. We have to respond to all those enemies who continue to plan for attacks on us and to wage war on us, like the Boston bombers and that freaky Nigerian Muslim convert with the bloody hands in London.

A very patient, but weary liberal, who had read President Obama's speech at the Arm Forces University, rejoined that while it was true we once had a war thrust upon us on 9/11/01, we had an enemy who was at least semi visible--Al Qaeda and its ally the Taliban. Once we had routed the Taliban in Afghanistan and killed the leadership of Al Qaeda, we had reduced our enemies from an identifiable organization to a scattering of terrorists, thugs and lunatics, who tell themselves they are important, and who make plans more or less like bank robbers and drug dealers--for personal satisfaction--not as a war strategy. President Obama is saying now  we cannot and should not try to engage these criminals with armies but with police, FBI, possibly CIA. 

We ought not send in the Army or Marines to deal with some white supremacist group living off the grid in Idaho or Wyoming or North Dakota which holds meetings in which they denounce the mongrelization of America and vow to keep America white, Christian and pure. These whackos are better left to the police.

We do not need Gitmo and in fact, we ought to try to close it down as fast as the Republicans in Congress will allow, and that may not be very fast.  For some reason, the Republicans like Gitmo. Maybe Republicans just like punishing people without the bother of a trial. Maybe they like Gitmo because they know Mr. Obama hates it. Maybe they like it because it is the ultimate in authoritarianism--no trials, just lock 'em up and throw away the key. A sort of eternal Ox Box Incident, where prisoners are not even called prisoners and nobody is hanged; everyone just winds up on Devil's Island without so much as an arraignment. 

And, later in the broadcast,  there was Kelly Ayotte up their with her mentors, Lindsey Graham and John McCain, squawking about sending IRS employees to jail, while smiling approvingly about keeping men who have never even heard the charges against them kept in jail for ten years without so much as a habeas hearing.

Oh, the glory of the Right Wing.