And the fear that the 'wheels of justice' would not grind fine enough to suit the world's visceral reaction to the camps in Germany was probably there.

Saddam was a bad man; he probably deserves death. It's also true that Western governments that participated in his overthrow cannot afford even the chance that any kind of clemency is granted to him - and most governments have escaped justice too many times to trust in any kind of certain outcome even if the target is actually guilty. The result? Stacking the deck.

It's human/political nature to do it; it also makes me want to vomit sometimes.