Bush presses Damascus to release all political prisoners

[sabra]

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=2&article_id=77654

Bush presses Damascus to release all political prisoners
Assad calls on west to stop interfering in Lebanon

President George W. Bush, who is facing calls to try to engage Syria over Iraq, on Wednesday criticized Damascus for its handling of human rights and its interference in Lebanon. "The United States supports the Syrian people's desire for democracy, human rights and freedom of expression," Bush said in a statement.

"The Syrian regime should immediately free all political prisoners," he added.

Bush said Syria should "cease its efforts to undermine Lebanese sovereignty" and disclose the whereabouts of Lebanese arrested during Syria's military occupation of Lebanon.

...

This came as Syria's president called on world powers Wednesday not to intervene in Lebanon, where pro- and anti-Damascus forces are locked in a political standoff, saying that the Lebanese can resolve their own problems.

[Monkeyman]

1. Link didn't work for me

[sabra]

3. weird, what happens?

[brooklynite]

2. A convenient way...

...to then say we couldn't possibly talk to such an oppressive dictatorship. After all, its not like we ever talked to the Soviet Union or Maoist China...

[no_hypocrisy]

4. That's *'s modus operandi: Ask for something that you are

positive you won't receive, and then start a war.

[Tempest]

5. Syria to Bush: File charges against or release Gitmo political prisoners

Apparently Bush doesn't know the meaning of the word hypocrisy.

[gordianot]

8. Right up there with complaining about rigged elections.

A total lack of irony, but actually an old propaganda technique called "controlling the message". Problem is for Bush; the ignorance level in the United States for Bush statements is catching up with what the rest of the world already knows about Bush.

[Tempest]

9. Or what Bush calls "catapulting the propaganda"

I just hope he keeps it up until November 2008.

He hurts the GOP every time he opens his mouth.

[silverweb]

6. Oh, that's rich.

Hey, _george, you self-righteous prick! You sure love to preach to everyone else, but you can't follow simple instructions from your own "favority philosopher." I strongly suggest a recheck of Matt 7:2-5.

[Roland99]

7. How about the US starts with its own? The hundreds in Gitmo.

If they're anything like the Tipton Three, there are MANY in the gov't and the military that need to be in jail.

[Miss Chybil]

He has no moral authority to say such things, unfortunately. nt

[Tempest]

10. United States imprisons more people than China, Russia or any other nation

Criminal justice experts from the U.S. Justice Department report that the United States has the largest prison population and highest incarceration rate in the world due to factors such as tough sentencing laws, record drug offender arrests and high crime rates.

A report released by the justice department on Nov. 30 reported 1 in every 32 American adults -- or a record 7 million people -- were incarcerated, on probation or on parole at the end of 2005, with 2.2 million of them in prison or jail. The International Center for Prison Studies at King's College, London reported that this number was the highest of any country, with China ranking second with 1.5 million prisoners, and Russia sitting in third with 870,000. The United States also has the highest incarceration rate at 737 per 100,000 people, compared to nearest country Russia's 611 per 100,000 and St. Kitts and Nevis' 547.

Groups calling for U.S. sentencing law reform are pointing to these numbers and others that show inmate populations are rising faster than prisoners are released.

"The United States has 5 percent of the world's population and 25 percent of the world's incarcerated population. We rank first in the world in locking up our fellow citizens," said Ethan Nadelmann of the Drug Policy Alliance, which supports alternatives in the war on drugs. "We now imprison more people for drug law violations than all of Western Europe, with a much larger population, incarcerates for all offenses."

http://www.newstarget.com/021290.html

[mitchtv]

11. and watch your borders, too

said the pot to the kettle

[HuffleClaw]

12. BWAHAHAHHAHAHAHAAAAA

sure, right after BUSH releases the poor folks who were prosecuted for bullshit 'terrorism conspiracies' and releases the POWs at gitmo and elsewhere.

[billyoc]

13. The Syrians torture people for Bush!

They should really stick it to him by agreeing to his "demand" and releasing all *his* prisoners that they're holding.

[MasonJar]

14. Bush has zero credibility asking anyone to do anything.

[aquart]

15. Does he promise to do the same?