When Nidal Hasan Reached Out to Al-Qaeda, Why Was Nothing Done About It?
All the warning signs were there. This was no random act of violence.
The details surrounding Nidal Hasan’s murderous rampage keep getting more disturbing. ABC reports that Hasan reached out to al-Qaeda:
U.S. intelligence agencies were aware months ago that Army Major Nidal Hasan was attempting to make contact with people associated with al-Qaeda, two American officials briefed on classified material in the case told ABC News. …
It is not known whether the intelligence agencies informed the Army that one of its officers was seeking to connect with suspected al-Qaeda figures, the officials said.
So did the Army know and do nothing? Or did the CIA just never pass along the intelligence? Does it even matter?
It is not like Hasan’s radicalism was a big secret. His calling card had SoA or “Soldiers of Allah” on it. His fellow soldiers were given the Koran. He complained to commanders about being sent to an unjust war.
Hasan wasn’t the “quiet loner” who shocked everyone. Everyone knew about his radical bent and no one did anything. Roger L. Simon already eloquently expressed the answer for why no one spoke. Political correctness kills and this is how:
As a reminder, political correctness is derived from the more intellectually respectable doctrine of cultural relativism (it’s sort of CR’s public “happy face”). In essence, cultural relativism holds that an individual’s beliefs and activities should only be understood in terms of his or her own culture. It’s the ultimate version of “who are we to the judge?” If Ayatollah Khomeini wishes to oppress all the women and homosexuals in Iran, it’s their way. If Mao seeks to knock off seventy million of his countrymen, so be it. Let the Chinese decide. We shouldn’t impose our values.
On our increasingly tiny globe, this theory — when spelled out — is nothing short of preposterous. It fairly invites a return to the mass murdering ideologies of the Twentieth Century — Nazism, communism, etc. — and opens the door wide for Islamism.
Still not convinced it’s the ideology? Still want to believe that this is just some random act of violence caused by an American man who happened to be Muslim and not a designed act of violence fueled by a murderous ideology? Well, these are the words of Anwar al-Aulaqi, Hasan’s one-time spiritual leader, after the mass murder:
Nidal Hassan is a hero. He is a man of conscience who could not bear living the contradiction of being a Muslim and serving in an army that is fighting against his own people. This is a contradiction that many Muslims brush aside and just pretend that it doesn’t exist. Any decent Muslim cannot live, understanding properly his duties towards his Creator and his fellow Muslims, and yet serve as a U.S. soldier. The U.S. is leading the war against terrorism which in reality is a war against Islam. Its army is directly invading two Muslim countries and indirectly occupying the rest through its stooges.
Nidal opened fire on soldiers who were on their way to be deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan. How can there be any dispute about the virtue of what he has done? In fact the only way a Muslim could Islamically justify serving as a soldier in the U.S. army is if his intention is to follow the footsteps of men like Nidal.
The heroic act of brother Nidal also shows the dilemma of the Muslim American community. Increasingly they are being cornered into taking stances that would either make them betray Islam or betray their nation. Many amongst them are choosing the former. The Muslim organizations in America came out in a pitiful chorus condemning Nidal’s operation.
The fact that fighting against the U.S. army is an Islamic duty today cannot be disputed. No scholar with a grain of Islamic knowledge can defy the clear cut proofs that Muslims today have the right — rather the duty — to fight against American tyranny. Nidal has killed soldiers who were about to be deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan in order to kill Muslims. The American Muslims who condemned his actions have committed treason against the Muslim Ummah and have fallen into hypocrisy.
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Dr. Melissa Clouthier is a chiropractor who blogs at MelissaClouthier.com and Right Wing News.
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34 Comments
1. kochevnik:Al-Qaeda is the name of a database. Hasan can’t really communicate with it unless he learns SQL. And then the CIA and FBI would need to learn SQL, putting them at risk of being offshored by Ankur Sharma in India. Hence the impasse.
Nov 10, 2009 - 2:02 am 2. Seraphim:The U.S. is leading the war against terrorism which in reality is a war against Islam.
Anwar al-Aulaqi’s words are a chilling and reality-based reminder of what the United States of America is up against regarding the violent intent of Islam.
Nov 10, 2009 - 4:08 am 3. Delia:1. kochevnik:
“Al-Qaeda is the name of a database. Hasan can’t really communicate with it unless he learns SQL.”
Yeah, but.. What about Anwar?
Cripes. Reading the rants of that Islamic whacko is enough to give me daymares. Our country has really gotten stuck on stupid. The overwhelmingly worrisome situations our country is going through both politically, militarily and economically is enough to make anyone feel vulnerable and not just a little afraid.
These are such uncertain times right now. I’m trying to keep the faith. Really. :\
Nov 10, 2009 - 5:42 am 4. Vaughn:Somehow, I believe this rabid Government of ours would show more interest, if I attempted to join a ‘white supremest’ organization, than a muslim contacting al Qaeda.
Another year of the ‘big O’, and that possibility increases.
Nov 10, 2009 - 6:23 am 5. narciso:AQ is not a database, it’s a multinational corporate system of interlocking organizations, not unlike the mythical SPECTRE. They have fundraising, recruiting, training branches, that work with local and regional organizations (Al Queda in the Maghreb,) they work on jihad 24/7
Nov 10, 2009 - 6:30 am 6. Paul -Indiana:“Hasan lectured his supervisors and two dozen mental health staff members on Islam, homicide bombings and threats the military could encounter from Muslims conflicted about fighting against other Muslims in Iraq and Afghanistan.” =========
Nov 10, 2009 - 6:46 am 7. bubblehead:It’s obvious that the loyalties of Muslim soldiers are with Islam and not with America.
If you read between the lines, this guy is exhorting all muslims serving in the US military to commit mass murder against American servicemen & -women! I wonder just how many people he is talking to? That is, how many muslims are serving in the US military in all branches?
Will the military interview these people to determine if they are a threat? Will they perform background checks to see if they have ever learned jihad at mosque? Will they check to see if they visit islamic websites or post on islamic blogs; and what they say?
In other words, is the US military going to take ANY steps AT ALL to protect the men and women who are serving our country from being stabbed in the back by some fanatic follower of a violent and murderous creed???
If I were serving in a unit with one or more muslims in it, I would be constantly looking over my shoulder! I would not trust any muslim I encountered, even supposed “brothers in arms” because you never know which ones are the ones ready to blow!
The US military needs to purge itself of muslims. I know it is unfair to those who do not follow their religous teachings, but you have to start from some safe condition first, then move forward. If we stick with the status quo, there will be another incident like Ft Hood.
How many times to we have to see the same movie before we learn to anticipate the ending???
Nov 10, 2009 - 7:30 am 8. BrianH:Apparently, we’re never going to get serious.
Nov 10, 2009 - 7:37 am 9. Peter the Bubblehead:6. Paul -Indiana wrote:
It’s obvious that the loyalties of Muslim soldiers are with Islam and not with America.
Peter writes: Not 100% true, which is where the problem remains. I served with several Muslim sailors on my boat, and with the exception of one, none created any problems or concerns, not even when OIF started in March ‘03. (That one that created the problem decided to turn contientious objector the morning after Bush’s final ultimatum speech when everyone aboard knew where we were heading and what we were going to do well before leaving our home port six weeks earlier. The command dealt with him in private. I think he was told if he objected to our mission he was perfectly free to use the escape trunk hatch. Needless to say, he did not miss any watches.)
The problem I mention above is how do you separate the Hasans from those who practice their Muslim faith but, like most of this country’s armed forces, are Americans first and (insert sub-group here) second? Discrimination is not the answer, but SOMETHING has to be done.
There were too many red flags in the Hasan case. The military (and our government in general) need to be willing to take a stand in the face of accusations of discrimination when there is ample evidence that something is not right.
Nov 10, 2009 - 7:52 am 10. son of pelto:I trust the feds were monitoring Hasan to see who else popped up. Good for them. They probably didn’t think he’d go postal. No its not a good idea to push all the muslims out of the military. Just the ones that mutter about infidels. The rest seem to be doing fine. I hope.
Nov 10, 2009 - 8:03 am 11. Thomas_L......:Well, who are we going to believe? The likes of our idiotic, bottom feeding trolls … koretchnik etc. or our own lying eyes?
Nov 10, 2009 - 9:40 am 12. kochevnik:5@narciso: You DO know that you’re not supposed to take movies literally, right? Obviously there are terrorist networks. The CIA built many of them.
7@bubblehead: But who will protect US Military Muslums from the fanatic follower of violent and murderous christofascists? After all, Muslums are a minority and they need protection from domestic terrorists. Homeland security has warned of this. The election of the first African American President is spawning domestic terrorism. “Many rightwing extremists are antagonistic toward the new presidential administration….” Returning veterans possess combat skills and experience that are attractive to rightwing extremists, and may resort to domestic terrorism. Right wingers extremists will attempt to recruit and radicalize returning veterans in order to boost their violent capabilities. A recent example of rightwing extremism is the shooting deaths of the three police officers in Pittsburgh, PA on April 4, 2009. “Rightwing extremist chatter on the Internet continues to focus on the economy…” “Anti-Semitic extremists attribute these losses to a deliberate conspiracy conducted by a cabal of Jewish “financial elites.”
Nov 10, 2009 - 11:41 am 13. myth buster:Of course the CIA helped establish Al Queda to help fight the Russians in Afghanistan. But, once they beat the Russians, they turn their sights toward us. One more thing, Komrade K, you accuse everyone in the Bush administration of a massive conspiracy to enrich international banking interests, but you trust every word that comes out of the Obama administration as truth?
Nov 10, 2009 - 1:53 pm 14. Paul from Hamburg:“The problem I mention above is how do you separate the Hasans from those who practice their Muslim faith but, like most of this country’s armed forces, are Americans first and (insert sub-group here) second?”
The worst part of all this is that the Army didn’t have to be certain that Hasan was a terrorist. All they really had to determine was that he was unfit to be an officer in the Army. His statements clearly demonstrate that he could not be trusted to carry out the orders that were issued to him.
Nov 10, 2009 - 2:03 pm 15. narciso:The CIA did not create AQ, they supported some people and organizations, mostly on the recommendations of Saudi General Intelligence, and the Pakistani ISI (Hekmatyar, Raisul Sayaf,
Nov 10, 2009 - 2:33 pm 16. wrg:Haqquani,) This was in response to the fact that you supposedly can’t contact AQ, well Abdullah Muhajir “Jose Padilla” knew, Zazi knew,
and apparently so did Hasan. Now it begs a question, how many other attended Al Hijirah during Awlaki’s tenure there, and have continued
to correspond with him.
Why after the truth about Hasan became undeniable following his mass slaughter, does the government, as well as its mouthpiece the establishment press, agonize in their usual pathetic manner over what could possibly have motivated the Army psychiatrist to coldly, methodically murder 13 and wound 38 others?
* Shortly after the attack, right on schedule, the FBI announced it wasn’t terror-related.
* Time magazine moronically blamed posttraumatic stress disorder – even though Hasan has never been deployed in a war zone.
* The shooter’s relatives insisted he had been the victim of religious harassment because of his faith, which must have made him snap.
* According to the Washington Post, the problem was that Hasan was lonely. That’s right, the newspaper’s report, titled “The lonely life of alleged Fort Hood shooter,” was subtitled: “‘He was mistreated. He didn’t have nobody. He was all alone,’ says neighbor.”
* Meanwhile, President Obama warned Americans against “jumping to conclusions” about what might have motivated the shooter.
Why, after a Muslim commits a terrorist act, do authorities always announce almost instantaneously – before they could possibly know – that the attack was not terror-related?
Nov 10, 2009 - 2:48 pm 17. Anonymous:Paul from Hamburg wrote: “The worst part of all this is that the Army didn’t have to be certain that Hasan was a terrorist. All they really had to determine was that he was unfit to be an officer in the Army. His statements clearly demonstrate that he could not be trusted to carry out the orders that were issued to him.”
Ah, specifics. Does anyone know how this should have worked? What is the level of “dissenting” opinion which commonly, or even uncommonly gets allowed? And would it be different for a shrink than a for a combat officer?
Nov 10, 2009 - 3:26 pm 18. Dwight:Paul from Hamburg wrote: “The worst part of all this is that the Army didn’t have to be certain that Hasan was a terrorist. All they really had to determine was that he was unfit to be an officer in the Army. His statements clearly demonstrate that he could not be trusted to carry out the orders that were issued to him.”
Ah, specifics. Does anyone know how this should have worked? What is the level of “dissenting” opinion which commonly, or even uncommonly gets allowed? And would it be different for a shrink than a for a combat officer? How often do such things happen?
Nov 10, 2009 - 3:28 pm 19. Mike Blackadder:“It simply is not popular to name a radical Muslim as a threat. Thus, these threats roam freely among innocent citizens.”
No, these threats roam freely because they haven’t been convicted of a crime. What exactly are you proposing, that when popular opinion deems that a person is a ‘radical Muslim’ that they ought to be imprisoned? We could at least toss these folks into the river first, and if they don’t sink like a stone then we know they must be a ‘radical Muslim’.
Nov 10, 2009 - 4:56 pm 20. kochevnik:15. narciso:
>The CIA did not create AQ, they supported some people
>and organizations, mostly on the recommendations of
>Saudi General Intelligence
Oh ok, so you’re saying the CIA didn’t set up a new terrorist cell themselves, but collaborated with homegrown assassins to form some kind of autonomous collective. I feel much better now!
13. myth buster:
>Of course the CIA helped establish Al Queda to help
>fight the Russians in Afghanistan. But, once they beat
>the Russians, they turn their sights toward us.
Yes, in fact they did “turn their sights toward us” while still being employed by the CIA, like Bin Laden up to and including and likely beyond 9/11.
Nov 10, 2009 - 5:59 pm 21. David W. Lincoln:It is very easy not to see what refutes convictions held by people. As long as people do not want to accept the depths of man’s inhumanity to man, because frankly no one has been able to define how far those depths go (as well as other details), anything that goes beyond what people decide are the parameters – it is viewed as out of bounds.
Sort of like exceeding one’s quota is not allowed. For the surplus is not allowed to exist, therefore it does not exist.
Which is a very totalitarian perspective, regardless of the denials of those who see life
that way.
Put another way, it is easier to treat September
Nov 10, 2009 - 6:05 pm 22. Dwight:10, 2001 as the “Groundhog day” movie.
To poster #19 Mike Blackadder
Exactly.
But I think most people here know deep down that such behavior would not pass muster, but thay will settle for folks saying bad things about Muslims and they will feel better, unless it is Obama who says the bad things.
They will continue to hate him anyway.
Nov 10, 2009 - 7:19 pm 23. Anonymous:Poor, poor Melissa. People who enjoy the pleasures of literacy know this, while you don’t. It would make one wonder, if tens of thousands of people have become aware of the information below, how you could claim to have anything relevant to recount in your empty-headed blog:
Counterterrorism and military officials said Monday night that the communications, first intercepted last December as part of an unrelated investigation, were consistent with a research project the psychiatrist was then conducting at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington on post-traumatic stress disorder.
“There was no indication that Major Hasan was planning an imminent attack at all, or that he was directed to do anything,” one senior investigator said. He and the other officials spoke on the condition of anonymity, saying the case was under investigation.
Nov 11, 2009 - 8:39 am 24. BitterCatIsBitter:In a statement, the Federal Bureau of Investigation said, “At this point, there is no information to indicate Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan had any co-conspirators or was part of a broader terrorist plot.” The statement concluded that “because the content of the communications was explainable by his research and nasan had any co-conspirators or was part of a broader terrorist plot.” The statement concluded that “because the content of the communications was explainable by his research and nothing else was found,” investigators decided “that Major Hasan was not involved in terrorist activities or terrorist planning.”
Forget the investigation, we now know who to blame: the NRA!
http://scienceblogs.com/gregladen/2009/11/is_the_nra_partly_responsible.php
Seriously, people should petition Seed Media to drop this insane loser. Here’ the contact info.
http://scienceblogs.com/channel/about.php#contact
Nov 11, 2009 - 9:25 am 25. M. Report:The Truth is out there;
Nov 11, 2009 - 10:25 am 26. Rightwinghippychick:Ask the Muslims in the US military
for advice and assistance, if you
want to solve the problem.
Why was nothing done about it?
That’s why:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhHYiWCm8Gs&feature=player_embedded#
No-one can be bovvered.
Nov 11, 2009 - 10:50 am 27. Moho:BitterCat:
What exactly do you disagree with in that article. Are you saying that the FBI should be allowed to view our emails, but no know about the deadly weapons we purchase? That’s a pretty idiotic formulation.
Nov 11, 2009 - 12:07 pm 28. Now and Then:And when did this “reachng out to al Qaida” occur? And who was commander in chief at the time?
Nov 11, 2009 - 12:24 pm 29. Rashputin:“Of course the CIA helped establish Al Queda to help fight the Russians in Afghanistan”
Actually, this has gained the status of urban legend but isn’t true. Sorry, the CIA didn’t establish or deal with Al Queda, they were an invention of bin laden, not the CIA, and they purchased, fought with, and supplied others with, Eastern European blackmarket arms and Soviet arms, as well as quite a few Chinese arms.
I realize this is like the fairy tail about the US arming Sadaam and so many will disagree, but that doesn’t make it true. Were the CIA any where near as effective as the conspiracy and bullshit artists say, we wouldn’t have had 9/11 and no one would care about bin laden because the CIA would have taken out all the Islamic radicals and half the Pak intelligence service in Afghanistan as soon as the Russians began to pull out.
Enjoy the myths and BS, but they are not true.
have a nice day
Nov 11, 2009 - 1:45 pm 30. Tex Expatriate:Dear Melissa,
It wasn’t handled because on U.S. Army bases such discoveries are turned over to the FBI. Out of country, they are turned over to the CIA. Those two agencies trump the military intelligence by regulaltion if not by law. So when a radical socialist s.o.b. half-breed (Muslim-born) faux President is elected, you have your answer. Duh.
Nov 11, 2009 - 3:00 pm 31. kochevnik:29@Rashputin:
>Sorry, the CIA didn’t establish or deal with Al Queda,
>they were an invention of bin laden.
Are you old enough to post here? Do you know a Ronad Regan and the Mujahideen? Obviously not, but I bet you still give him credit for ending the CCCP, right?
Bin laden didn’t invent Al Queda. He used a computer database called Al Queda while he was working for the CIA up to and including 9/11:
Shortly before his untimely death, former British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook told the House of Commons that “Al Qaeda” is not really a terrorist group but a database of international mujaheddin and arms smugglers used by the CIA and Saudis to funnel guerrillas, arms, and money into Soviet-occupied Afghanistan.
Nov 12, 2009 - 4:09 am 32. narciso:Al Queda drew from the more militant Salafi half of the Peshawar Seven Mujahadeen council,
Nov 12, 2009 - 6:41 am 33. Oakley:notably Hekmatyar’s Hezb i Islami, Raisul Sayyaf
(who brought the lion’s share of the Afghan Arabs and Maulvani Younis Khalis, the founder of the Taliban (Bearden, 228-231) Seeing as Robin Cook was not in power up until 1997, running Labor’s ‘ethical’ foreign policy, I wonder why you find his point of view dispositive
Arm the military men and women to the teeth so the next “jihadist” can be cut down appropriately and justifiably.
If the US military does not abandon this politically correct idiocy we will see more of the same, or worse. Count on it.
Hear that US Military Leaders????
Are you listening??? Do you care????
Nov 12, 2009 - 7:07 pm 34. kochevnik:It seems christians are deadlier to the USA military than any Muslim:
http://www.pnhp.org — A research team at Harvard Medical School estimates 2,266 U.S. military veterans under the age of 65 died last year because they lacked health insurance and thus had reduced access to care. That figure is more than 14 times the number of deaths (155) suffered by U.S. troops in Afghanistan in 2008, and more than twice as many as have died (911 as of Oct. 31) since the war began in 2001.
Nov 12, 2009 - 9:55 pm