Greg, I believe that line is from the Declaration of Independence -- a very different document, written for a very different purpose. Moreover, the generally articulated rights to "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" do not necessarily speak directly to what form of trial a defendant may be entitled to under specific circumstances.

I agree that we have to watch this carefully, but I also feel that we ARE in a war, and ought to act like it. There are reasons why a military tribunal may make sense in the context of a military conflict, where lengthy public trials (and appeals) involving the discussion of sensitive information may in fact be contrary to the overall war aims. We need to balance a number of cometing considerations on this issue, but I don't think the option of using military tribunals to try non-US citizens for war crimes should be taken off the table.