Tragedy Or Jihad?
Tragedy Or Jihad?
Everybody wants to believe the lone crazed gunman theory -- and stay way-clear of Islam.
First, if you're wondering why the guy was able to gun down so many soldiers: I heard from an army spokesman (a major, I think it was) speaking to CNN that they aren't allowed to carry guns on base. That's right -- you're trained to go shoot people in wars, but you drop your Second Amendment right at the base entrance. As in so many of these shootings, like the Virginia Tech massacre, this never would've gotten to the point it did if soldiers were allowed to carry around more than their good looks.
When I heard of the shooting, and then heard the shooter was Muslim, I instantly thought of "The Verse of the Sword" from the Quran, commanding Muslims to kill the infidel:
Koran 9:5: "Then, when the sacred months have passed, slay the idolaters wherever ye find them, and take them (captive), and besiege them, and prepare for them each ambush. But if they repent and establish worship and pay the poor-due, then leave their way free. Lo! Allah is Forgiving, Merciful."
Here's Col. Terry Lee on troubling statements Hasan made about how "Muslims should stand up and fight the aggressor," and how we shouldn't be at war (in the Middle East). Now, this is one guy's word against a guy who isn't talking right now, and I, too, thought we shouldn't be in Iraq -- then again, I just blogged and blathered on about it; I didn't hurt or kill numerous people:
Most troublingly, the AP's Brent J. Blackledge writes that federal agents grew suspicious of Hasan -- and apparently took their sweet time doing anything about it:
At least six months ago, Hasan came to the attention of law enforcement officials because of Internet postings about suicide bombings and other threats, including posts that equated suicide bombers to soldiers who throw themselves on a grenade to save the lives of their comrades.They had not determined for certain whether Hasan is the author of the posting, and a formal investigation had not been opened before the shooting, said law enforcement officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to discuss the case.
One of the officials said late Thursday that federal search warrants were being drawn up to authorize the seizure of Hasan's computer.
A formal investigation hadn't been opened? Well, why the fuck not?
As for not being able to determine for certain whether Hasan authored the posting, I'm reminded of how the cops in Los Angeles don't have access to Facebook or Myspace. A cop friend used to call me when she needed access from the station, and I'd look stuff up for her.
As for what took so fucking long, I've tracked down rude anonymous commenters to their cell phone number or their number at their government job in 20 minutes. Why couldn't the government do much more than sit around with their thumbs up their ass wondering?
On point piece on Pajamas Media by Phyllis Chesler, "The Jihadist Is Always The Victim":
According to Hasan's cousin, he had been "picked on," harassed by other soldiers because he was of "Middle Eastern origin." This may be true--and if true, terrible--but so what?Let's assume it's true: I know many people, including soldiers, including female soldiers, who have been brutally harassed. They do not shoot 44 people down in cold blood.
...Jihadic literature raves about Muslims being attacked (not by other Muslims which is often the case) but by Jews, Americans, Zionists, Crusaders, infidels. Terrorist leaders talk about Muslim Holy lands being "occupied" by the invader. They therefore fly two planes into the World Trade Center and another into the Pentagon because Muslims are fed up with taking all that abuse lying down. (And that's before America invaded Afghanistan and Iraq).
The attackers are really self-defenders. The jihadist is always the victim.
Ask any of the Muslim fathers who have honor murdered their daughters in America in cold blood. They'll tell you the same thing. She attacked my honor. I had to defend myself. It was an act of pure self-defense. This is precisely what Zein Isa, another Palestinian, and a member of the Abu Nidal terrorist gang, said about killing his 16 year old daughter, Palestina ("Tina") Isa in 1989 in St Louis, Missouri.
Male Muslim jihadic rage? That is equivalent to 4000 pounds--the weight of the car that Faleh AlMaleki drove over his daughter Noor who died of her profound injuries in Arizona. Ironically, AlMaleki has just been placed on a suicide watch in Arizona--and his compatriot in crime, Muzammil Hassan in Buffalo, is trying to plead temporary insanity ("extreme emotional disturbance") to explain why he finally beheaded his wife Aasiya, whom he had continually battered.
So: The 4000 pound father in Arizona is really the victim, as is the Buffalo beheader.
Sudden Jihad Syndrome, Personal Jihad Syndrome, call it what you will--these terrible acts should not be psychiatrically diagnosed and excused. At the risk of being called a racist, allow me to suggest that we must connect the dots before it is too late. Islam now=jihad=hate propaganda=9/11=the tragedy at Ft Hood.
That means Islam now, and its followers of all colors and ethnicities, is at war with the entire world, is dreaming of a Caliphate to be achieved through violence. I doubt that Major Hasan is a Sufi Muslim.
Here's a sweet little congratulatory note for the guy from a convert to Islam.
UPDATE: From a Phillipe Naughton Times of London story about the heroic police officer, Kim Munley, who shot and brought down Hasan:
It emerged today that Major Hasan, a Muslim who had argued with his comrades against the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and had been trying to get out of the Army, shouted "Allahu akbar" - Arabic for "God is great" - as he launched the attack.Lieutenant-General Robert Cone, the base commander at Fort Hood, said that soldiers who witnessed the rampage heard him shout out the invocation as he opened fire.
Regarding "god is great," of course, there's no evidence there's a god, but if your particular imaginary Big Guy In The Sky condones (and even commands, through your particular book of holy fables) the murder of anybody who doesn't believe as you do...well, then he's a petty little shithead.
SECOND UPDATE: Three good links from Instapundit here.
THIRD UPDATE: An even more explosive link from Instapundit here (thanks, Martin!) -- on how he was supposed to be presenting a medical paper but instead went into creepy stuff from the Quran! An excerpt:
He talked about how if you're a nonbeliever the Koran says you should have your head cut off, you should have oil poured down your throat, you should be set on fire. And I said well couldn't this just be his educating you? And the psychiatrist said yes, but one of the Muslims in the audience, another psychiatrist, raised his hand and was quite disturbed and he said you know, a lot of us don't believe these things you're saying, and that there was no place where Hasan couched it as this is what the Koran teaches but you know I don't believe it. And people actually talked in the hallway afterwards about 'is he one of these people that's going to freak out and shoot people someday?
I believe it's political correctness that keeps people from reporting these things -- also, being so unacquainted with the actual barbarianism that is actual Islam, and finding it so unbelievable vis a vis western civilization and enlightenment values -- that they simply find the ultimate eventuality of actual Muslim values hard or impossible to believe.
*And remember that many Muslims in the U.S. don't practice actual Islam -- they're more like Christmas Christians. Many have never read the Quran. And a reported 80 percent of Muslims worldwide are illiterate -- not surprising, considering their religion is quite anti-science and anti-learning beyond what's in the Quran.
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