Does Saddam's execution set a precedent?

Mario Loyola of the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies (for NROnline) thinks so.

There’s plenty to be miserable about where Iraq is concerned these days. Few still think the sacrifices the U.S. and its partners have made during the war worthwhile; and the world watches in horror at the convulsed specter of Baghdad in flames. Of course, the good news does not get reported. But just as important is the fact that the American-led Coalition and its Iraqi partners have established a historic precedent: Dictators had better watch how they treat their people today. They may have to answer for it tomorrow. (Read more)

______________________

Loyola goes on to quote Bush from his "Mission Accomplished" speech:

In defeating Nazi Germany and imperial Japan, Allied Forces destroyed entire cities, while enemy leaders who started the conflict were safe until the final days. Military power was used to end a regime by breaking a nation. Today, we have the greater power to free a nation by breaking a dangerous and aggressive regime. With new tactics and precision weapons, we can achieve military objectives without directing violence against civilians. No device of man can remove the tragedy from war. Yet it is a great advance when the guilty have far more to fear from war than the innocent.

It's a shame that the profound gets lost in the liberal hyperbole about that speech.