Agghhhrrgggh... chattering head cites trial of Dr. Mudd in defense of military tribunals

On ABC's This Week there was a discussion of Mirandizing the Times Square bomb guy, trial venues for terror suspects, etc..

One of the panelists said (close paraphrase), "I don't know why this stuff is such a big deal. Dr. Samuel Mudd was tried by a military tribunal. It's not like this is something new."

Agggghhhhhh! The stupid continues to burn.

The trial of Doctor Samuel Mudd is one of the most controversial trials in US history. He was convicted of conspiring to kill Lincoln. I have no fixed opinion on Mudd's guilt or innocence but he was pardoned in 1869 and his guilt is famously debatable. (For instance, there was a 1980 Dennis Weaver network made-for-TV movie about him that presented him as falsely accused.)

The point is not Mudd's actual innocence (I think he was guiltier than some histories suggest), but the stupidity of his trial being an example of the uncontroversial nature of trying citizens by military tribunal.

It's like citing the trial of Sacco and Vanzetti in defense of racial profiling.

Deep, deep, deep stupidity.