Monday, July 6, 2015

Time for a Reality Check Re Omar Khadr's Victimhood Status

Squish-brained Canadians turned "boy soldier" Omar Khadr into a hero (embraced by the chattering classes for having being victimized by the U.S. "bullies" down in Gitmo). But a ruling against him in an American court puts him on the hook to the tune of $134.2 million, money that would  compensate the real victims whom the Omar-adorers conveniently chose to overlook--the children left fatherless by the hand grenade Khadr decided to lob at American Army Medic Sgt. Christopher Speers, and  Lane Morris, the U.S. soldier who lost much of his vision because of the same grenade. Of course, the ruling is largely symbolic; Khadr, who just got out of jail, doesn't have the cash (although he is in the process of trying to collect big bucks--$20 million, to be exact--from the Canadian taxpayer to compensate for his pain and suffering). However, as this editorial in the Toronto Sun correctly notes, the judgment does help put things back into the proper perspective, the one that was upended when Omar's Canadian sob sisters turned him (and only him) into the victim:
Unfortunately, some Canadians treat Khadr as a sort of symbol for the oppressed or for human rights. We don't get it. Sure, reasonable people can take issue with Guantanamo Bay and its court system. But Khadr is the wrong symbol! If you're going to pick someone to rally behind, find someone without blood on their hands. 
The U.S. court ruling is a reminder to everyone that no matter what you think about Khadr's experience in the legal system, his victims matter more.
So true, but there's no way the Khadr-lovers, including his besotted attorney who is suffering from a wicked case of Harper Derangement Syndrome, will concur with that one.

No comments: