I highly doubt belgium police are going to be dragging away Tommy in chains, the local millitary force might have greivances against that. If Tom somehow ended up in Belgium being tried after some nighttime daring arrest then i weep for the belgium civilians as to what would happen next. The world is changing, real fucking fast too. Shit keeps going the way its going then Pax Americana may not start to sound so bad.

Ronin: Save your tears. General Tommy doesn't like waffles.

I regard this move as absolute genius, and I applaud the Bush administration for having inserted moles in the highest levels of the ICC in order to engineer its discrediting in the quickest possible manner.

There is, of course, no danger that Gen. Franks will ever appear in court or suffer any punishment. But can you think of a better way to demonstrate the dangers and fecklessness of the ICC than this? No chance in hell that any American administration will sign onto that treaty now.

Bravo, I say.

I believe the Belgians are considering using their own national laws not the ICC.

I doubt we'll ever have a clear brightline example of the ICC being used for partizan gain against us. We've worked hard to insulate ourselves from it. But the UK may have a problem. Wait for a case against them then we'll have our proof.

Good to see such ambition among Belgium lawyers. Time for those of us of the American bar to raise the stakes. Let's pass a law opening American courts to suits by all those with claims against the Belgian government, Belgian banks, anything Belgian. Spead the word in the Congo that it's payday. Lift all statutes of limitations. Provide all legal means to satisfy the resulting judgments.

I seriously doubt that the chickenshit Belgiums will attempt anything stronger than words, but.......if they try we should tell them that they are "toast"!

what are they going to do...throw waffles at him? Yes...King Leopold I. A fine example for the world.

Gawdamman: Would that be French Toast?

Douglas Adams was right. 'Belgium' is the most obscene word in any language in the universe. I feel it should be confined to an artistic setting.

Putting Sharon on trial and not Arafat. Putting Tommy Franks on trial and not Saddam. I guess Belgium, like the rest of Europe, is getting ready for the Islamic demographic wave that will drown them in a generation or two.

The suit is going to be "presented", the Belgian court has not accepted it. Give them a chance to throw it out. They won't, but give them the chance.

1) Belgium's reign of terror in the Congo was more like eighty years, not centuries.
2) It has been pointed out recently that the Netherlands produced more SS recruits per capita than the rest of non-German Europe, and I'm sure the French and Norwegians produced more than the Belgians in *absolute* numbers.

Belgium's judicial pretensions are by any measure odious and unearned. They deserve well-phrased and well-researched condemnation. Wild and incoherent denunciations only damage better-argued commentary by association.

Wasn't there a "scare article" a few months back that said that the U.S. would used military force in Belgium if they tried to try or detain any U.S. citizens for war crimes???

Shit Giv'em Tommy for a week or so!!! Hell, I'LL confess to a war crime if that'll help. surely I committed a war crime in the 1st Gulf War, or Somalia, or Rwanda, or.....any of the other shit holes American forces went into because the rest of the world (read "Europe") couldn't be bothered.

Jim,

I think you're referring to the use of force against the ICC if it tried to grab US soldiers. We passed the American Servicemembers Protection Act, or what's commonly known as the "Invade the Hague" act in Europe.

Belgium passed laws in the early 90's claiming "universal jurisdiction" with regard to crimes against humanity and a suit was recently filed in Belgian court naming the first President Bush and Colin Powell as defendents for "atrocities" during Gulf War 1.

This is all bullshit and that goes for the ICC too. If the Belgians EVER tried to nab an official from the U.S. government, retired or not, we would likely consider it an act of war. A few JDAMs would drive the point home quite nicely I suspect.

The term you're looking for is "Idiots who are rapidly running out of usefulness."