PrintMay 9, 2007
The Danger From Within
This week we found out that six Muslim men were arrested and charged with plotting to attack Fort Dix in New Jersey, with the intent of killing as many soldiers as they possibly could in the name of Islamic jihad. They were undone when they brought a video they had made to a retail store to be burned onto a DVD. A store employee's suspicions were aroused by the content - the men shooting assault weapons while shouting "Allah Akbar" (God is great) - and he alerted authorities.
Will CAIR get involved in this "violation" of the men's civil rights as they did the six imams who were booted from a US Airways flight last year? Should photo store employees worry about being sued for reporting suspicious content as the unidentified employee in New Jersey did?
The media was slow to include the suspects' religious affiliation, preferring instead to identify some of the men as being ethnic Albanians. Once the White House announced they were "Islamic militants," however, the cat was out of the bag and the media could not longer avoid the connection. But anyone who knows anything about world history would realize that Albania was once part of the Ottoman Empire, and 70% of its population is Muslim. (Ethnic Albanians were also among those being "purged" by Serbians in Kosovo.)
These days, any report of terrorist plots or actual attacks should be investigated for the possibility that those involved might be Muslim - for while not all Muslims are terrorists, most terrorist acts throughout the world are perpetrated by Muslims. How many Timothy McVeighs have there been in comparison with Muslim attackers? Also, much is being made of the fact that the suspects in the Fort Dix incident are not officially connected to any international terrorist organization. Is it supposed to make us feel better that small groups are taking it upon themselves to informally link to or simply emulate the likes of al-Qaeda in the name of Islamic jihad? We should be even more alarmed, as it is more difficult for federal agents to track independent groups than those taking direction from organizations they are already familiar with.
Ironically, Fort Dix was a haven for ethnic Albanian refugees during the Kosovo conflict of the late 1990s.
For those meeting planes and buses bearing Kosovo's ethnic Albanians, welcoming war-weary refugees to the United States was like stepping into America's past."We want to welcome these people to America the way we might wish our grandparents and great-grandparents had been welcomed to Ellis Island," U.S. Army Gen. Mitchell M. Azis, said he had told troops assigned to Operation Provide Refuge. [...]Shortly after the first Albanians arrived, Zais said, a foreign reporter asked if it was appropriate to bring these refugees to a military installation after they had been traumatized by Serb soldiers in Kosovo. The general replied that only the Yugoslav army uniform would strike terror in their hearts."It's been my experience in Vietnam, in Korea, in the Middle East, and everywhere else I've traveled through Central and South America, that the American soldier is loved around the world for his compassion and generosity," he said. "The only people who fear American soldiers are those who have a good reason to."
What a difference a decade can make. It just goes to show that the generosity and welcoming nature of the American people does not hold water for those who would see us destroyed. Nothing we do can appease radical Islamists. Why else would they call us the Great Satan? Our very existence anathema to them, and they will do anything they can to conquer or destroy us. If they cannot do it from the outside, they will do it from within. This includes the push for provisions for Shari'a law adherence in public places, such as permanent prayer rooms for Muslims in public schools, foot washing basins in public restrooms, and allowing Muslim cab drivers to turn away passengers who might either be carrying alcohol or have a seeing-eye dog. While any vestige of the Christian faith, that of our founding fathers, is being eradicated from the public arena, Muslims are demanding and receiving accommodations for their faith. Why is that?
There is another aspect of this story that should garner your attention. Three of the men involved were in the United States illegally: brothers Dritan, Eliver and Shain Duka. How they arrived hasn't been made public, but the fact that they were here illegally should set alarm bells off in your head. Open borders and "immigration" activists keep insisting that illegal aliens are peaceful, law-abiding folk who are simply "doing the jobs Americans won't do." The last time I checked the classifieds, I didn't see any listings for those interested in "storming a military base and killing as many soldiers as possible." Perhaps I forgot to buy the paper that Sunday. And those of you who live in "sanctuary cities" like San Francisco and Seattle might want to question the policies of your local government that prevent law enforcement officers from questioning the legality of anyone involved in suspicious or criminal activities.
Leftists believe that the threat of global warming is greater than the threat of Islamic terrorism. They close their eyes to the reality that radical Islam's goal is not to live peacefully side by side with us, but to either convert the world to Islam or subject those who won't convert to a state of dhimmitude. Dhimmitude means that in return for paying tribute and acknowledging Islamic supremacy, non-Muslims can continue to practice their own religion and enjoy limited rights and protections under their Muslim conquerors. (I suppose it's some comfort knowing that the rising temperatures won't make much of a difference if I have to wear a stiflingly hot burqa while running errands with my husband or other male escort.)
Many on the left are also skeptical of this reported foiling of an attempted terrorist plot. Some of the comments on HuffingtonPost.com simply must be seen to be believed:
Sorry. This administration has conditioned me to deem this to be wholly manufactured b******t. Next!!This plot was uncovered only by the grace of God. I am sure there must be hundreds of terrorist in this Country waiting for a chance to harm the people and especially the military. George Bush is creating more hate in the World every day that he remains in office. God is protecting us not Bush. The republicans claim that only the republicans can protect us from the terrorists, I dissagree [sic] only God can protect us because we still have some honorable and Christian people in this country.So Pres. Bush's approval rating drops to an all time low of 28% and within a few days some alleged terroists [sic] are arrested for plotting to attack Fort Dix...just a coincidence of course.
This is just a sampling of how far some citizens take their hatred of George W. Bush: that they will not only blame him for the hateful actions of a handful of jihadists living and working here, but that they also believe the Bush administration would stoop so low as to lie about it in order to get us to believe there is indeed a terrorist threat. Such is the state of so-called political discourse today.
We are constantly being told that many Muslims are moderate and don't wish to conquer the world, but want to live quietly amongst their neighbors. But where are they? Why don't we hear more from them? Part of the problem is that even when moderate Muslims dare to speak up against the radical followers of Islam, their message is squashed. PBS recently put the kibosh on Islam vs. Islamists, a publicly-funded documentary detailing the struggles of moderate Muslims and their quest to expose the radicals for who they are. The Muslims featured in this documentary risk intimidation and even death. But complaints by prominent Muslim activist groups proved to be more persuasive, and the film has been shelved. Liberals who wish to show Americans that peaceful Muslims do exist should encourage PBS to broadcast this film.
This is not the first time Islamic radicals have been discovered plotting violence and destruction within our borders. When are Americans going to wake up to the fact that there are some people who will just not be reasoned with? We can install all the foot washing basins we want to, but in the end, those who want to see us dead because they believe us to be infidels who defile the true faith will do whatever it takes to get the deed done. Our soldiers are fending off Islamofascists in Iraq so that we don't have to face them here. Unfortunately, they are already here.
The sooner we come to that realization, the sooner we can begin to deal with it.
Pamela Meister writes about politics and world events at her blog, http://blogmeisterusa.mu.nu/. She also welcomes feedback.
