Another Problem with the "War on Terror"

It never ends (because terrorism has been around for a long time and isn't going away any time soon), so the government can detain anyone it declares an "enemy combatant", even U.S. citizens, forever without charges or trial. That should frighten you. I don't care how much you trust the people in charge not to abuse that power. There should always be some kind of check in place. Even if you think the media will act as a check against abuses, the media is far too easily distracted by it's own hype and by situations that are easily conveyed with pictures and a sound byte. The Michael Jackson and Kobe Bryant trials, which don't affect the average person in any way, were covered far more extensively than the Padilla case.

I'm not saying that Padilla is innocent or that he should go free. But charge him with something: conspiracy, treason, something. Or are we starting to enter the relm of pre-crime?