Is this seat taken?

Got an unexpected thrill today.

I was visiting a friend at a different camp today. It is a camp that is situated on what would have become the new Bathe Party Headquarters right before the war. He is the commander of this particular camp and he is getting ready to redeploy back home. I went over, had lunch with him and he took me around to show me all the different old Bathe Party Buildings that are located at his camp. Finally he turned and he told me "there's one last place I want to show you."

I followed him through a guarded gate and found myself standing before the courthouse that Saddam is being tried at. I hadn't realized that this was the location of the trial.

He escorted me through a guarded gate and into the courthouse itself. It was the most clean and immaculate building I have seen in Baghdad!

We went upstairs and then my bud found a US Marshall that unlocked the door that led to the court room and then there I was gazing at the very seat that Saddam seats in while he waits for his fate and justice to catch up to him.

I asked the Marshall if it was OK to take pictures and he said it was fine but under no circumstances was I allowed to actually sit in the chair. Apparently, only Saddam is allowed to seat there.

I also got a good look at the Judges' chairs and the witness box. You can see the curtain that can be pulled shut so Saddam can't see who is testifying against him.

It very appropriate that the trial is going on at this particular camp. My friend took me down to a basement that had a huge armored door that led to rows of holding cells. The cells weren't much bigger than a telephone booth and we were told that several people at a time were kept there. It was obvious to us that once the armored door was shut, no one on the outside would have heard the people in the cells screaming.

Just down the way from those cells is where Saddam has finally answered for his crimes. And all the world was able to watch him scream but I don't think anyone was listening.

Like I said: very appropriate

PS...I have a very cool photo of me standing right next to Saddam's chair, but I'm having a terrible time trying to upload it to the Blog. I'll update this post when I can