>Tracy (and Srdjan),
>
>I don't know if Maher Arar is innocent or not. Maybe he is, in which case (assuming he's telling the entire truth), I'd agree that the United States owes him an apology and arguably more. But I'm going to ask if you're familiar with the following, and if you have any comments...
>
>1) Did you know that NO medical evidence of torture was provided during the Arar commission? A psychiatrist testified at the commission, but not a medical doctor. Some have criticized Arar for vacillating between claims of physical and psychological torture.
>
>2) Arar was never cross-examined on his allegations - that's right, he did not testify at the commission bearing his name.
>
>3) Did you know that Canadian police were suspicious of Arar in 2001 when Arar did some frequent cross-border travelling?
>
>4) Were you aware that during Arar's entire 10 months in prison, he received nine Canadian consular visits - and not one Canadian official saw signs of physical violence.....no signs of whipping, no scars, no blue skin....nothing. (Obviously, it wasn't paradise....it's been confirmed he wasn't allowed to shower for months...yuck)
>
>5) Did you know there are still lingering questions about whether Arar traveled to Afghanistan? According to critics of the commission, Arar's whereabouts in 1993 were never established.
>
>6) Why has he not taken any action or said anything regarding Syria? Perhaps because they know too much?



Extraordinary rendition is not only one case. It is hundreds if not thousands by now. Particulars of this case are irrelevant.
Practice in itself is illegal.

>
>So I don't know for certain, and I'm not sure anyone from the periphery can claim to as well. But I am curious if either of you have any thoughts. And if you don't, that's fine.

>
>But Srdjan, to offer this as a rebuttal to my attacking the govt of Iran for sentencing a woman to death by stoning for adultery - well, that's pretty weak.


What is weak, is your own level of understanding matters. What connect these two cases is the fact that in both cases some groups of people take law in their own hands. Stoning for adultery in most cases takes place in remote/rural areas where authorities have very little or no say at all. (Locals still live under more or or less self imposed sharia law/customs. )

Extraordinary rendition is kind of simillar in nature. It is happening far away from public eye, and again group of people (CIA) takes law in their own hands and become both judge and executioner. Besides this, down south of US, people were still lynched up to 60-70ies.
Nonetheless, you still feel righteous enough to throw stones (not to mention nukes {g}) on Iran.