I'm out of order?! You're out of order! I put the system on trial!

So I loosely adapted a line from 30 Rock for the title of this post. The real thing is something like "This is a sham, your DIS-honor...Nay, a mockery! I put the system on trial! You can't handle the truth! I'm out of order?! YOU'RE out of order! Victor Sifuentes! HOOAH!"

I thought I should start this post with something funny, because what follows is far from it. In light of the recent media coverage of high-profile legal cases, I would like to dedicate my post this week to discussion of the internationalization of the legal system.

I know coverage of court cases is nothing new, especially in the age of sensationalization, but it's an especially hot-button issue lately thanks to the controversial execution of Troy Davis in Georgia. I don't spend too much time on Facebook, but the day of his execution, I couldn't help but track my news feed as my friends and peers posted notices, action alerts, and their feelings on the matter. In the aftermath of the execution, the momentum from the case is being used to propel the movement against the death penalty (see sites like Amnesty International for confirmation of this). As I'm sure you all know, this case garnered international attention and had folks from all over the world weighing in.

As one country failed to reconsider, another showed mercy. The same day as Troy Davis was executed, Iran released the two remaining captured US hikers, Josh Fattal and Shane Bauer, from confinement. The Omani government is said to have brokered the arrangement and paid the US $1 million bail. This being a case of international proportions, of course the world was watching. Here's an article on CNN.com about their release. This case is significant since the hikers were freed with help from a government that was not their own. Does this mean the erosion of the nation-state? Of course not, since it was an interaction between states, but it does show an interest across nations, instead of simply within the nation of note. In other (less-globalized?) points in history, I don't think this arrangement would have been probable.

I know it would take far more than a blog post to really delve into any of the issues, but I have been thinking increasingly about the impact international (and not necessarily diasporic) actors can have on national issues and laws. Does international coverage of legal proceedings keep us all honest or does it erode the ability of the prosecuting nation-state to effectively try suspects? I think more transparency can't be too much of a bad thing, but it's also easy to say that given that it's somewhat of an inevitability at this point. Now if we could only get some more focus on Guantánamo...