British Jury Convict. No Secret Prison or Rendition Required. Homegrown Justice Prevails?

British Jury Convict. No Secret Prison or Rendition Required. Homegrown Justice Prevails?

We really need to take back our values and stop these 'dodgy' practices we hear of in our name. We DON'T need offshore prisons and the stories that emerge from them. We DON'T need secret renditions to outsource torture. We DON'T need to occupy and invade other nations. We DON'T need for stories and images of our antics in foreign jails appearing on the Internet. We ONLY feed the recruitment of young men outraged. WE don't get outraged at photos of naked men with dog collars on but we cannot control the extent to which young Arabs orphaned by our policies and without direction who will be in their twenties and revengeful in the next decade, WILL view same photo's? The threat as exhibited by 9/11 came from within and from a nation we see as allies. They were not poor 'dustbowl' people as those dying in Iraq but were from rich families who could support student life in America. They had the brains to be pilots. These Brit born 'would be terrorists' are not affected by whether we get Osama anytime soon but are simply directionless and recruitable from our missteps. Both of the images here could be anyone already here in the States. They look somewhat like a recent Oscar winner. I spent 25 years of my life teaching similar lads to drive in Peterborough England and recognize that all such youths are easy meat for a 'cause'. It is not difficult to infiltrate such communities and Brit Intelligence have turban police and Asian agents now implanted and the freedom of speech makes it easier. Here the Muslims are richer and considered not a threat but issues go beyond money as we saw with a young man in Virginia who actually had a decent future mapped out for him. We cannot use Machismo mentality to "Win the War" as stated by Sean Hannity and friends. There is no winning over an occupied nation wanting to protest. Why we see all protests as 'Terrorism' eludes me as Brits and Americans would be THE absolute worst insurgents if 'occupied' by a foreign force? I am neither Liberal or Republican. I am not cloned as I see many here are. You can define right down every issue what many people here reason? I am concerned about that. I am used to healthy debate on current issues without being able to actually label a person but here I already, after six years know just WHAT Stepford answers I will get if in Military Pensacola or in Virginia or in small town America. I know what to expect any Baptist to believe in and I know that having "God talk to me" is NOT too bad for business. I am used to going into any church in England and noone knows or cares about your history. No one wants to get you to join. Religion is not a business in the UK so premises tend to decline. I have no problem attending a crumbling ancient building. Cathedrals are still being kept up and we can always keep our prayers in our hearts and minds. I respect that many here KNOW the problem exists but have no clue how to correct it just like the number of gun toters. Once the poison is in the blood you just have to find a way to tolerate it and still get the best of life. I know many many people in all the categories mentioned and listed that have hearts of gold. My love of people is what sustains me. I can enjoy to talk to the duke or the doorman and to any race, religion or creed and still find something I have in common with them. I remember going to New York on a shoestring last Summer and that we were on a bus going from the subway to La Guardia Airport at a saving of about $80 for a taxi. We had too much stuff and our fellow passengers had very little. We clutched our bags and studied the faces. A hooded black guy, a sullen Asian, a disabled veteran in a chair. The 30 minute trip took 2 hours due to traffic. We missed our flight but by the time we got six blocks we were all chatting. The hood came off and out came a laptop to work on. Sympathetic fellow travelers offered advice as to how to deal with our lateness and alternatives. We were soon all in siege mode. I have the faith in myself and my fellow man to undertake such things. Too many I know are trapped in their 'caves' of Stepford Lookalikes. I love it here but do miss that about Europe. I have been to almost every city in Europe and have always found diversity. Keeping minds open is very important.

Here is more about the British Story.

Fertiliser bomb plotters guilty

A BRITISH al-Qaeda terrorist was convicted today of plotting a series of deadly bomb attacks on targets in the UK. Omar Khyam, who boasted of working for the number three in al Qaeda, was found guilty of conspiracy to cause explosions made from chemical fertiliser which would endanger life. Khyam, 25, of Crawley, West Sussex, had denied the charge at the Old Bailey during a year-long trial.

After the verdicts it was revealed that Mohammed Sidique Khan, the ringleader of 7/7 London bombings was a close associate of Omar Khyam when he was one of Britain’s top terror targets and in the final stages of his plotting. Seven British men were arrested in March 2004 following the discovery of more than half a ton of chemical fertiliser in storage in west London.

Today four of them were convicted with Khyam of involvement in the plot.

The prosecution said the men were involved in a plot to bomb targets in Britain, including the Bluewater shopping centre in Kent and the Ministry of Sound nightclub in London, and to hit gas and electricity supplies. Prosecutor David Waters QC said not everyone involved in the plot was before the court.

The terror cell was said to have schemed with Canadian Mohammed Momin Khawaja and American Mohammed Junaid Babar.

Before the court with Khyam were his brother Shujah Mahmood, 20; Waheed Mahmood, 35; and Jawad Akbar, 23, all from Crawley, West Sussex; Anthony Garcia, 25, of Barkingside, east London; Nabeel Hussain, 22, of Horley, Surrey; and Salahuddin Amin, 32, of Luton, Bedfordshire. They denied conspiring to cause explosions likely to endanger life between January 1 2003 and March 31 2004. Khyam, Garcia and Hussain also denied a charge under the Terrorism Act of possessing 600kgs (1,300lbs) of ammonium nitrate fertiliser for terrorism. Khyam and Shujah Mahmood further denied possessing aluminium powder for terrorism.

The defendants denied there was a plot. Some said they did not know what the fertiliser was, that they were only interested in sending money and supplies to fighters in Kashmir and Afghanistan, or that they were duped. The jury of seven men and five women were out for a record number of days and were in the seventh week of deliberations. This afternoon, in the face of mounting calls for an independent inquiry, Home Secretary John Reid released a statement. He said: "Five dangerous terrorists are now behind bars thanks to the hard work of our police and security services.

"I want to thank the men and women in the police and security service who have worked extremely hard to ensure the perpetrators of this plot have been brought to justice and a major terrorist attack that could have killed and injured many people has been averted.

"The Government has invested heavily in Counter-terrorism over the last five years".

"The Security Service will have doubled in size by 2008 but it is important to remember that 100 per cent commitment can never guarantee 100 per cent success".

"Today's case reminds us all that the terrorist threat we face is real and severe".

"I want to take time now to reflect on the verdicts."