[Serious] Tit for tat.

[BrianSoddingBoru4]

Legality isn' t really an issue - concerning the OP question - which is - is this a good idea?

Condoning such action for one side means that it' s fair game for the other side to play equally.....

And, so, Russia murdering defectors on United States soil is okay?

You really think the killing of al-Zawahiri, leader of the terrorist organization that attacked your country and started a war of aggression, is the same as killing a Russian defector?

Boru

[onlinebiker]

Not quite the same thing - but I can certainly see the Russians claiming it is......

How is it different?

The defectors never ordered mass murder.....

[BrianSoddingBoru4]

Pfft, that matters? When two sides are shooting at each other, it's a war, official declaration or not.

Boru

Of COURSE it matters. It' s a legal distinction that can literally mean life or death....

Sarcasm?

Boru

[Jehanne]

And, so, Russia murdering defectors on United States soil is okay?

You really think the killing of al-Zawahiri, leader of the terrorist organization that attacked your country and started a war of aggression, is the same as killing a Russian defector?

Boru

Yeah, they're murderers, but, they will say that the West has been the aggressor, and lacking modern weapons, it is they who are the victims.

As for Russia, they'll say that their killings are also justifiable self-defense.

[Jehanne]

How is it different?

The defectors never ordered mass murder.....

A distinction without a difference will say the Russians, who will claim that such defectors will be a cause of future Russian deaths.

[onlinebiker]

Of COURSE it matters. It' s a legal distinction that can literally mean life or death....

Sarcasm?

Boru

Not at all...

Certain offenses can be capital in times of war.

Falling asleep on sentry duty can and has gotten men shot dead - in wartime.

As has failure to follow orders and desertion.....

....

There have been spies that continued breathing only by virtue of no declared war.....

[onlinebiker]

The defectors never ordered mass murder.....

A distinction without a difference will say the Russians, who will claim that such defectors will be a cause of future Russian deaths.

I agree.

[Jehanne]

A distinction without a difference will say the Russians, who will claim that such defectors will be a cause of future Russian deaths.

I agree.

This is why due process of law is, I believe, an immutable principle that the United States of America should adhere to.

[The Grand Nudger]

It seems to me that the United States' killing of Ayman al-Zawahiri is just going to perpetuate the cycle of violence in our World, perhaps leading to a nuclear holocaust.  Why not take the high road and renounce extrajudicial executions?  In spite of being a mass murderer, as a human being, Ayman al-Zawahiri was still entitled to due process under the Law.  I find it ironic that President Joe Biden, who opposes the death penalty, would authorize the deliberate killing of another human being.

The us tried extradition for trial.  We were told to go pound sand.  That's how the war in afghanistan started.  

As for executions.  A state killing it's own citizens and states killing other states citizens aren't exactly equivalent, there are dangers to one not present in others.  A man with a state that another state is trying to kill at least has some help from his state.  A man with a state whom the state itself is trying to kill is well and truly fucked.  Just ask those militants that no state would claim once they became toxic, and whose governments cooperated with the efforts to track them down.

IDK how much irony there is in this. I would expect people who have strong reservations about capital punishment to also respond some kind of way to mass killings and those who perpetrate them. I know I'd prefer we didn't kill each other - but my preferences hardly matter in a conflict.

[onlinebiker]

I agree.

This is why due process of law is, I believe, an immutable principle that the United States of America should adhere to.

Were life fair - that would be great.......

I think the Israelis do it right.....

Whack the assholes that need whacking - then deny the shit out of it...

Terrorists play dirty. Sometimes it reduces civilized people to doing the same. 

I think the biggest mistake is setting up a terrorist as a martyr. It would have better if the maid found the asshole dead of a heart attack in bed with a goat......