Yesterday, the Justice Secretary of the Scottish Executive decided that the only perosn convicted of the Lockerbie bombing was to go free on compassionate grounds. His reasoning was stupid, that compassion had to be shown to a dying man - even if the man was a part in killing 270 people and had shown no compassion for them. The real reason Mackaskill released al-Megrahi was because he believed the conviction was unsafe, but that al-Megrahi would die still in prison before the appeal concluded. But for legal reasons, he could not say so for the Executive meddling in the law would have gravely undermined the Scottish judiciary. At least Scottish nationalsim won't be so favourably viewed in the USA from now on.
The anger of British and Americans alike is reasonable and London can't escape censure since it kept quiet, washing its hands of the case, to get contracts with oil- and gas-rich Great Libyan People's Socialist Arab Jamariyah (Libya) and let the Scottish Executive carry the can, with the SNP Justic Secretary. However, Americans also say their own governemnt isn't off the hook, not 'proesting' enough. Huh? Obama and Democrats have always said al-Megrahi should die in prison. What we hear are right-wing Republican-leaning people who want to dmaage Obama, such as the man who has an interesting way of differentiating between US presidents. When he referred to Bush 41, I was thinking what does that mean as neither were 41 during their presidencies and then it occurred to me that he was referring sequentially, such as Clinton would be 42. This man said that previously when America said something "things happened." Well, I'm glad that Obama has chosen to honour the sovereignty of other countries, instead of throwing its weight around like an arrogant shit. If the release of al-Megrahi is the price of at least judicial independence, so be it. We do not like being treated as an oupost of the USA, like an East Atlantic Puerto Rico. The USA wins respect by treating its friends with respect and that means not interfering in the domestic affairs of others, even if Americans died in the respective case. Strongly worded diplomatic criticism is the mark of a civilised nation. If the Scottish Justice Secretary makes a bizarre decision, that is the Secretary's decision to make.