Brief Thought (or, We Hope You Enjoyed Your Stay)

Of the approximately 770 individuals detained at Guantánamo, 23 have been charged with crimes. Out of the remainder, somewhere over 500 have been released and were handed letters that read quite like this one:

Dated Oct. 7, 2006, it reads as follows:
“An Administrative Review Board has reviewed the information about you that was talked about at the meeting on 02 December 2005 and the deciding official in the United States has made a decision about what will happen to you. You will be sent to the country of Afghanistan. Your departure will occur as soon as possible.”

That's what we give them. No apologies, no explanations... just a plane ticket and a kick out the door. Sort of a "Sorry, you didn't have any pertinent information and, as such, are of no use to us and are not worth the expense of taxpayer dollars. Good luck and we hope you enjoyed your stay."

At the very least, we could've said, "Oops, our bad... you're not a terrorist. Sorry, dude." It would've been better than what they were given.