Shibboleth

The Geneva Convention is now a shibboleth for the Left. Its terms and requirements are not examined; its application and exemptions are irrelevant. All that matters to Al Gore, Ramsey Clarke, International ANSWER, the Euro-left is that there is a Geneva Convention that mandates humane treatment. But the Geneva Convention (actually, there are two that may apply right now) does not apply to terrorists, who can be shot on sight, or any other unlawful combatants. Instead, the Bush Administration has gone above and beyond the Convention requirements by granting humane treatment to the Gitmo Bay detainees and by granting the same to Iraqi terrorists. Once such treatment is established, however, humane treatment must be continual, not episodic or terminated -- thus, the Abu Ghraib scandal.

The Wall Street Journal discussed the Conventions earlier this month (the Monk linked to it earlier but saves you the effort of digging through Monk Archives; Monk lives to serve).

Today, Rich Lowry explains and expands on Al Gore and Geneva's requirements, in this piece.