Via Frank J. comes this story about Saddam's asshole French lawyer (sorry for the triple redundancy) whining about his client's rights:

Rashdan said he has sent several letters to various U.S. officials, including Attorney General John Ashcroft, requesting for his client "the basic rights anyone on the face of this Earth has: the right to a representation and fair trial."

I'm just thinking about all the rights Saddam's victims enjoyed, and I'm trying not to put my fist through my monitor.

So, to cheer myself up, I'm having two visions:

The stadium scene in Dirty Harry:

Harry fires his gun and fells Scorpio with a second wound to his bloody leg. [...] the utterly despicable and cowardly Scorpio piteously pleads and bleats like a cry-baby to be spared, to have his civil rights honored, and to be taken to a doctor when Harry aims his gun at the killer and single-mindedly wants to know where the girl is buried and hidden. [...] :

Scorpio: No, no, no, no. Don't do anything more. You tried to kill me...Please no more, I'm hurt, can't you see I'm hurt? You shot me, please don't, don't! Let me have a doctor...Please give me the doctor, don't kill me.
Callahan: The girl, where is she?
Scorpio: You tried to kill me!
Callahan: If I tried that, your head'd be splattered all over this field. Now where's the girl?
Scorpio: I want a lawyer!
Callahan: I said, where's the girl?
Scorpio: I have the right for a lawyer.
Callahan: Where's the girl?
Scorpio: I have the right for a lawyer, don't shoot me, I have rights, want a lawyer.

There is a terrific cinematographic, helicopter shot - a spiraling, aerial view pulling up and away from Harry, as he uses strong-arm tactics to torture and crush Scorpio's wounded, bleeding leg under his grinding foot and heel - alone in the flood-lit stadium.

And a scene from Frank Miller's Batman comic book, "The Dark Knight Returns". In this scene, Batman is chatting with a wounded criminal who doesn't want to tell Batman where Two Face is:

Criminal: NO!... Stay back!... I got RIGHTS!

Batman: You've got rights. Lots of rights. Sometimes I count them just to make myself feel crazy. But right now you've got a piece of glass shoved into a major artery in your arm. Right now you're bleeding to death. Right now I'm the only one in the world who can get you to a hospital in time.

I think about these two things.

And I smile.

Posted by: Harvey at 12:21 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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