[taken from private exchange back to the list with mutual agreement]
Why?
If there is no one with legitimate authority to try Saddam, then they cannot rightly hold him, and he must be released.
What was different about Saddam's regime from the current US-installed regime, that made Saddam's regime legitimate authority and this one not a legitimate authority?
Care to take this back to the list? I'm answering a parallel thread there.
Clearly Saddam has more authority than the US to rule Iraq, because he was a sitting head of state, and the US aggressed in an illegal invasion.
But Saddam's regime itself stemmed from illegal takeover of a previous regime -- doesn't that make all of his regime illegitimate and his authority void?
Thus, Saddam has a plausible claim to authority, but the US does not.
The only reason Saddam has a plausible claim to authority is because he has taken gotten it by force. By the same reasoning, US or US-installed regime, which is being put into power by the use of force, has a plausible claim to authority as well.
By extension, the US puppet government in Iraq also has no plausible claim to authority.
Why not? -- avva
On 19 Dec, Anatoly Vorobey wrote:
But Saddam's regime itself stemmed from illegal takeover of a previous regime -- doesn't that make all of his regime illegitimate and his authority void?
No, by this argument nearly all the regimes of the world would be illegitimate. Saddam ruled a terrible regime, but he also overthrew a terrible regime. Anyway, Saddam enjoyed the authority of democratic acquiescence, which is the accepted standard. Even if Saddam's regime were illegitimate, which it was not, the aggresive acts of the US were still illegal. No authority can be derived from an aggressive and illegal invasion.
By extension, the US puppet government in Iraq also has no plausible claim to authority.
Why not?
By definition, a puppet government rules by the leave of the military power, the US, which has no claim in this case to any legitimacy in Iraq. Thus, the puppet government can have no claim to legitimacy either. Regards, proclus http://www.gnu-darwin.org/ -- Visit proclus realm! http://proclus.tripod.com/ -----BEGIN GEEK CODE BLOCK----- Version: 3.1 GMU/S d+@ s: a+ C++++ UBULI++++$ P+ L+++(++++) E--- W++ N- !o K- w--- !O M++@ V-- PS+++ PE Y+ PGP-- t+++(+) 5+++ X+ R tv-(--)@ b !DI D- G e++++ h--- r+++ y++++ ------END GEEK CODE BLOCK------ [demime 0.97c removed an attachment of type APPLICATION/pgp-signature]
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