All the waiting, and it seemed like an extended version of the inquest. Saddam and his fellow defendants were escorted into the courtroom, a judge asked Saddam for his name, and Saddam replied that the judge knew him, denied the authority of the court to try him, and the judge gave up and ordered him to sit down and shut up, which amazing, Saddam did.
Several hours of tedious charge description followed. Then everyone left. Woohoo! The excitement, the tension. Where's David Kelley when we need him? Well, to heighten the tension, they adjourned till sometime in November.
I think this is the real life version of the old saw 'first we give him a fair trial, then we take him out and hang him.' There's no chance that Saddam will get off, given the insanity of his defense team, there's little chance we'll hear much of a cogent defence, and, given the questionable legality of the invasion, there's every reason to doubt the legitimacy of the court.
All that said, I can't think of anyone more deserving of being tried and executed than Saddam. While I completely disagree with the invasion, the ONE good thing that came out of it was the toppling of Saddam. While the long term geopolitical consequences of overthrowing Saddam have yet to sort themselves out (no, I dont think it will lead to pan-Arabic democracy!), having him gone is blow for justice and mercy, altho it may cost millions of Iraqis their lives and/or property in the blowback.
Stay tuned!
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