Daily View 2×2: 23 August 2009

The rest of The Voice’s Daily View team may have decided to have a lie in each morning during August, but we’re made of sterner stuff here on the Sunday slot. And as it’s a Sunday, it’s also time for the now traditional bonus musical extra.

Big Stories

The release of Abdelbaset al-Megrahi

The director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation has blasted Scotland for releasing Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset Ali Mohmet al-Megrahi saying the decision “gives comfort to terrorists.”

In a letter to Scottish Minster Kenny MacAskill dated August 21, FBI Director Robert Mueller said he was “outraged” at the decision to release Megrahi, who is dying of cancer, on compassionate grounds.

“Your action in releasing Megrahi is as inexplicable as it is detrimental to the cause of justice,” Mueller wrote. “Indeed, your action makes a mockery of the rule of law.

“Your action gives comfort to terrorists around the world who now believe that regardless of the quality of the investigation, the conviction by jury after the defendant is given all due process, and sentence appropriate to the crime, the terrorist will be freed by one man’s exercise of ‘compassion.'” (AFP)

Fraud allegations over Afghan elections

Reports of widespread and systematic fraud and intimidation continued to emerge amid delays in the counting of votes in the Afghan elections, raising the spectre of turbulence when the results are announced.

Allegations of ballot-rigging were particularly prevalent in the southern Pashtun belt. The region, which holds the key to the contest, also suffered from drastically low turnout due to Taliban violence and threats. There were accounts of the insurgents’ retribution against voters, including fingers being chopped off. (The Independent)

2 Must-Read Blog Posts

  • Paul Walter explains how his views of the party’s Real Women policy proposals are changing.
  • Simon Goldie’s post is probably the shortest that’s been highlighted in these round-ups, being basically just a link through to a provocative and thought-provoking article in the Financial Times.

(Both of these posts have been selected from those which appeared on Lib Dem Blogs on Saturday. To read more from other Liberal Democrat blogs, take a look at the Lib Dem Blogs website and to see what Lib Dems have been saying on Twitter, take a look at Liberal Tweets.)

Sunday Bonus

It’s Sunday. Ready your vocal chords. Hit play and sing along. You know you want to.

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6 Comments

  • Whatever one’s views of the rights and wrongs of releasing al Megrahi, it’s absolutely outrageous for the head of another country’s internal police force to publicly criticize the actions of the justice minister in the Scottish government.
    I hope that the Scottish Government has the strength to tell Mr Mueller where to get off, and remind him he’s not the head of Interpol!

  • Now that a precedent has been set, prehaps the head of the Met should publicly condem Texas for its use of the death penalty (including on the mentaly retarded as I understand it).

  • Roger Shade 23rd Aug '09 - 8:14pm

    How extraordinary, it is ‘encouraging’ terrorism to release a man who has only a short time to live. Certainly Mr Megrahi showed no compassion for his victims but should the Scottish Government follow his example? This effort to bully a small country whose law allows for compassion by a big country, whose judges shut up shop at 5pm and can’t be contacted when asked for a stay of execution, is a disgrace.

  • Noisy Tappet 23rd Aug '09 - 8:33pm

    The Americans know all about provoking terrorism. Despite their massive wealth and technology they are probably the stupidest people in the world. By associating with them we too qualify for reprisals from those the Americans torment. Of course, we’re quite capable of being just as stupid given the calibre of our leaders. Yes, the stupid flock together… the EU for example.

  • Roger Shade 24th Aug '09 - 9:33am

    And torturing prisoners isn’t ‘detrimental to the cause of Justice’ I take it?

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