I consider Eugene Robinson of The Washington Post and contributor on MSNBC to be a liberal and progressive. So, imagine my indignation at his careless statement on Chris Matthews' Hardball: "We'll give him a fair trial and then we'll hang him."

The Kangaroo Court, the lynch mob has been accepted by the left, the right, and the center with hardly a concern for the Constitution. The presumption of innocence before a trial is often subsumed by the publicity surrounding the accused, but it is a mainstay of our system of justice.

It is based on the assumption that government must be restrained to protect the individual. This is a truly conservative position, one that places serious restrictions on government. But we are schizophrenic today.

We fear government takeover of health care; we demand government protect us from the terrorist, the stranger. So, forget the law. Don't allow these men imprisoned, some for nearly a decade, some seized illegally, most tortured, and some merely unlucky to be in the wrong place at the wrong time to be given the full measure of justice under our Constitution.

What is fair?

Fair is bringing all to trial in the same courts., having those accused face their accusers, letting the accused see the evidence against them, reading them their Miranda rights, an open and public trial, the real opportunity to be released if they are acquitted. Fair would be equal justice for all.

American justice should be one-tiered equal for all.

There should not be justice dispensed on a sliding scale according to one's race, color, creed, wealth, sex, sexual preference, or any yardstick that discriminates.

If we can't prove guilt, then we should let them go no matter what fear or suspicion resides in our cowardly hearts. This is America. We should be proud of it and its system of justice.

Herb Best

Streamwood