Why We Have to Try the 9/11 Terrorists

Earlier tonight I posted a reply to a friend of mine on Facebook, in which he stated that giving the 9/11 terrorists a trial was naive, as they wanted to destroy our system anyway. I think the idea was that they don't respect it anyway, plus they aren't human, so why bother. He also made the comment that if Holder was so sure they would get the death penalty, why not push them out the plane taking them to New York. As an interesting aside, this same friend often criticizes the Obama Administration's health care plan (and pretty much all his other policies), as destroying our Constitution and running contrary to the will of the founders. 

The argument I made to him is pretty much the same one I will make here. Not giving the terrorists their day in court would be a betrayal of everything this country has ever stood for. One of the pillars of our society rests on the fact that everyone, no matter how horrible the crime they are accused of, will get their day in court. We know that no matter what, no one in the United States will be summarily executed on a whim. Instead, twelve men and women will sit down, look at the evidence, and decide guilt or innocence. This, more than anything else, differentiates America from those that hate us. If we execute them with no trial, or hold their trial in a secret military tribunal, we will never have the right to demand anything from anyone when it comes to human rights. We will have lost.

Why is it that some people will cling to the Constitution for all its worth, and then discard it as soon as it is inconvenient? And why are these people the first ones to accuse someone of being communist, or socialist, or just plain un-American? At least the majority just differ in their interpretation of the Constitution. This group though, my friend included, have decided that there is some sort of collective consciousness that gets to decide who gets the protection of our founding document, and who does not. Think about that for a second. They have taken it upon themselves to decide the fate of another person, disregarding due process and 233 years of American history, for two seconds of revenge that will not change anything anyway.

I personally think the men in question did it. I'm certain they will be found guilty, and I am just as certain they will be executed. I'm fine with that. What I'm not fine with is for our country to throw away what makes us special, what makes us unique. We can be better than that. We are better than that. These men will have their day in court. And we, as a nation, will be able to look ourselves in the mirror,  knowing that we proved our way works.