Comments on: Is Maj. Nidal Hasan a ‘Terrorist’?

By: Chiara

Chiara — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 02:49:52 +0000

How about a case of employee on employer rage? Criminal in this case unless he is found to have been not responsible by reason of insanity at the time of the shooting. Excellent case for a forensic, not a military, psychiatrist, or a forensic psychiatrist with a military background.

DDC PCS–unfortunately “crazy people” and people having a brief psychotic episode can be quite different. The former are usually more dangerous than the latter, although there are exceptions of course. Indeed this seems rather more like the stories of someone going to the local MacDonald’s and “going postal” rather than a fragging, or a blue on blue/friendly fire, or even taking the law into one’s own hands.

Not all military stresses are equal as I am sure you know. Rather like the false analogy of the twin soldiers who served in Iraq and one came home with PTSD and the other didn’t. Much was made of genetics and studying what made one vulnerable and the other not, when they were genetically identical. Obvious research design flaw: they had quite different duties while in Iraq. The one without PTSD had rather standard duties; while the other was assigned to clean out vehicles, ie pick little bits of flesh of his comrades out of the inside creases and crevices of military vehicles. Rather different stressors.

Now for true military insanity: Omar Khadr, 15 when captured too wounded to throw the grenade the doctored combat report said he did (and with evidence to prove it),will be tried in a military kangaroo court at Guantanamo, while Khalid Sheik Mohamed benefits from the full benefits of a standard US criminal trial, New York State version (ie death penalty, but at least a semblance of a fair trial):
http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/725779–walkom-omar-khadr-heading-for-a-kangaroo-court

Must give the Canadian Prime Minister, Stephen Harper, who is defying the Supreme Court of Canada by not repatriating Khadr, the only Western citizen still in Guantanamo, at least part marks for this one, if not full credit, now that Obama is so eager to send all the Guantanamo prisoners back to their safe home countries. We don’t torture people, at least not on home soil, so I’m sure Obama would be happy to send Omar back to us, if only Harper would let him.

By: Discount Desktop Computers PCS

Discount Desktop Computers PCS — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 19:57:26 +0000

Its a sad day when one of your own turns their gun on there own. I do not understand how someone could do that to so many of his own people and not have it be labeled as terrorism. He should be but in solitary confinement for the rest of his life for what he did and pray they do not give him death as that is an easy way out.

I spent 8 years in the army and 2 years in combat and never had one of my own turn a gun on me. Sure there were crazy people in the army but you don’t hear of people going out and killing that many people.

By: John Burgess

John Burgess — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 14:11:17 +0000

Because many legal systems believe there are degrees of purpose or intent. If you kill someone in anger, it’s generally charged as a lesser crime than if you killed one with premeditation, for instance. Also, you can intend to kill someone in self-defense, which is a very different category and holds no legal punishment.

Another category is killing someone to frighten society, or change a government’s practices/policy: Terrorism.

By: Me

Me — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 08:46:39 +0000

why is there a distinction in the first place?! when you kill someone on purpose in a civilian setting..it’s called murder. why is the motive a factor?!