There is no reason the United States of America HAS to bring the released detainees into the country. There is nothing to be gained in this situation. At best, only some tax money will be lost. But in this time, can we really afford to support possible terrorists on our own soil?

Larry, there is a big difference between American citizens who were born her being permitted to live in this country, and non-citizens, who were not born-here, WHO HAVE NEVER BEEN IN THIS COUNTRY BEFORE being extended the PRIVILEGE of immigrating to this country.

One is an American who has the right to live here (and who can’t be sent home because he is home. The other wants to, like the rest of the world, move to America but does NOT have the right to live here. In fact, being even accused of being a criminal is ground for him be booted out and have immigrant/citizenship revoked. The US did this to a lot of alleged Communists in the 1950s, and then there is the case of John Demjanjuk, an 89-year-old retired autoworker who was accused by the Germans of having been a Nazi war criminal.

Why let someone with (a) no skills and (b) at best a spotty personal history immigrate into this country instead of someone like a doctor or musician or someone with a skill that could benefit this town. Why just add two more people to our overburdened social service network and two more welfare mouths to feed?

But I’m going to support it–and I am the most conservative guy in Town Meeting. The entire Warrant article is only 10 sentences and the word “cleared” appears four times.

The state of Massachusetts allows level 3 sex offenders (meaning “the risk of reoffense is high”) to live in communities–and in fact Amherst has two. So why not guys who have been “cleared” of criminal wrongdoing?

“Belbacha was not “vacationing in Pakistan” when he was arrested, as was reported in the Bulletin. He originally travelled to Afghanistan and had military training on small arms while staying in Jalalabad. He fled to Pakistan and was arrested at the borders when the coalition armies invaded Afghanistan. In 1997, Africa Action Organization, the International Women’s Human Rights Law Clinic and the Center for Constitutional Rights joined 1,500 Algerian refugees and other human rights activists in the U.S. to deny political asylum for the Algerian Anwar Haddam.

Haddam was the political spokesman for the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) and the Armed Islamic Group (GIA). Both organizations were responsible of running the Jalalabad guesthouse in Afghanistan where Belbacha had been staying and trained on small arms.”