On Tuesday, the Trump administration blew up a boat in international waters and killed its 11-member crew. The administration claimed it was gang members carrying drugs from Venezuela that were destined for the United States. But they have provided no proof of that. And Secretary of State Rubio said it would happen again in the future.
The Trump administration claimed the attack was justified because the people on the boat were "terrorists". But that's a pathetic excuse for the illegal action. Drug dealers (if that's what they were) may be criminals, but they are not terrorists - and calling them terrorists does not make them that.
Even if we ignore the fact that the attack happened in international waters, and assume that those on the boat were indeed trying to smuggle drugs into the United States, murdering them was still wrong - and it was murder. According to U.S. law, criminals should be arrested, detained, and given a fair trial.
How would this be any different than killing those found smuggling drugs across our southern border, or killing those found selling drugs on American streets?
I am not trying to defend criminal behavior. But our democracy has laws, and the government violating those laws is no better than the criminals doing it. In fact, it may be worse because when the government violates our laws then we no longer have a system based on the rule of law.
Trump seems to think he has the power to do whatever he wants, including labeling people as terrorists and murdering them. He doesn't. And decent people in this country must make it clear that our laws matter.
No comments:
Post a Comment
ANONYMOUS COMMENTS WILL NOT BE PUBLISHED. And neither will racist,homophobic, or misogynistic comments. I do not mind if you disagree, but make your case in a decent manner.