The King Hearings

Mar. 15, 2011

At the midway point in March, 2011, there have already been sixteen terrorist attacks committed by either Al Qaeda or the Taliban - so far! Al Qaeda is a militant Islamist group and the Taliban is an Islamist militia group, according to the neutral informational website, Wikipedia. Islam is a religion and a Muslim is an adherent of that faith. Islamism is the politicization of Islam, or a political movement which advocates Islam and supports Islamic law, known as Sharia. There are differing definitions of Sharia, but from what I have read and seen, this law is the antithesis of the freedoms enjoyed by the people who live in what is known as Western Civilization. Listen to the extremists with care and you'll uncover a radical movement whose goal is world domination. (Where have we heard this before?)

Attacks have been perpetrated against the U.S. from within by Islamist extremists many times. The attacks on 9/11/01 were initiated by radicals who came from outside the U.S. However, we have seen many radicalized Americans who have since committed acts of terror, both here and abroad. If our citizens are being changed, then our country's national security is threatened. Why and how has it happened?

Rep. Peter King (R-NY) is holding a series of hearings to determine why and how some Americans may have been radicalized. Rep. King has said that these hearings are "about the radicalization of the Muslim-American community by Al Qaeda... The overwhelming majority of Muslim-Americans are outstanding Americans... Muslims have [already] testified at [these hearings] that their children are being radicalized." The threat is real, and yet many are denying it. They misunderstand Peter King and those who recognize the problem.

Three who deny the danger are Rep. Andre Carson (D-IN), Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX), and Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN). They believe this is some sort of attack on Muslims, but it is not. Instead of focusing on the world-wide Islamist threat, they point to the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing as evidence that others have committed acts of terror in the U.S. Yes, there were others, but they are not part of any kind of organized threat to anyone. Attacks by lone gunmen are also interesting, but studying them is not helpful in defining this issue. Driven by some kind of irrational sense of fairness, Ms. Lee thinks the King hearings are an attack on the Muslim community. She's entitled to her opinion, but she's wrong. They are being held to prevent attacks on the American community. These are not the McCarthy hearings and no one is threatened, so bring them on!

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Keywords: Conservatism, Conservative blog, Mark A. Cohen, From The Left to the Right, Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, Rep. Keith Ellison, Rep. Andre Carson, Rep. Peter King, Sharia Law, Taliban, Al Qaeda, Muslim, Islam

Keyword Phrases: " Conservatism”, “Conservative blog”, “Mark A. Cohen”, “From The Left to the Right”, “Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee", "Rep. Keith Ellison", "Rep. Andre Carson", "Rep. Peter King", "Sharia Law", "Taliban", "Al Qaeda", "Muslim", "Islam"

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Mr. Awad’s Take

Written : Jan. 19, 2010

”It’s in our best interests… We have to do all we can to assure the Muslim world that the War on Terror is not a war on Islam.” Who said it? The quote can be attributed to Nihad Awad, the Executive Director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations. While I don’t agree with everything he says, Awad carefully walks a tightrope during his public appearances. He’s an astute politician, and he’s one of the world's best modern diplomats. He avoids being a target of the extremists while stoically explaining moderate American Muslim thought. For the most part, I admire his approach. And, I admire him - while maintaining a healthy skepticism.

It’s interesting to hear Awad’s analysis of America’s reaction to the Christmas Day "underwear bomber" on the international flight bound for Detroit. He says we (and he means “we”, as in we Americans) overreacted, giving Al Qaeda what it wanted; a sort of panic. This came in the form of scrambling in the ensuing week when the Obama Administration made up ridiculous, impossible rules to follow and then rescinded them. Some of us on the right called – metaphorically, of course - for heads to roll, and Mr. Awad explained the terrorists liked that reaction, too. But, should we really care what the terrorists like or don’t like? Wouldn’t such empathy, cowering, and/or catering also appear to the terrorists as a victory they should savor?

Mr. Awad said we should profile, but not by race. Behavior is the key, I agree, but as several callers on the CSPAN show on Jan. 9, 2010 pointed out, most recent terrorists have been young Muslim men. Awad countered by saying it was mainly Caucasians who gunned down abortion doctors. I didn’t like his answer, but if you think about it, aren’t the results of such behaviors similar in nature to terrorism? Don’t they terrorize, too? Think of Columbine and church shootings and mall massacres. Still, Awad’s example was out of context, and doesn’t apply to the “War on Terror”.

Muslims are not heard condemning terrorism and terrorist groups enough in our media. I want to hear more of it, don’t you? Perhaps it would put them at some moderate risk, but speaking out against terror would also embody bravery, heroism, and express the right message. Regardless of how you feel about Islam or religion in general, it’s important to hear and consider the opinions of many.

You can read about Mr. Awad’s group at the home page of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). In addition, a link to the very CSPAN segment with Mr. Awad I watched can still be found there. Just below the video area, click a few times on the pair of right-carets (>>) at the top-middle of the page at: CAIR

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Keywords: Conservatism, Conservative, blog, politics, political, Mark Cohen, Mark A. Cohen, From The Left to the Right, conservative blog, conservative blogs, CAIR, Muslim, Islam, Terror, War on Terror

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A Beheading in NY in 2009?

Written : Feb. 17, 2009

Not many beheadings occur in the United States, but we just had one about a week ago. In this time of enlightenment, a woman was beheaded near Buffalo, NY on Feb. 12, 2009!! How barbaric! Her husband, the founder of a Muslim TV station, was accused of doing it supposedly because she filed for divorce. In addition, she had an order of protection filed so that he could not enter the family home. The accused was a man who worked hard to help portray Muslims in a positive light after 9/11. Not that it matters, but he was a Muslim. If he is found to have done this, his actions certainly wouldn’t have helped his cause very much. What was he thinking? How can a person living in a civilized society such as ours commit such an act?

Keywords: Conservatism, Conservative, blog, politics, political, social, economic, socio-economic, muslim, muslims

Keyword Phrases: “conservative blog”, “liberal and conservative”, “conservative and liberal”, “republican blog”, “From the Left to the Right”, “religious stereotypes”, “Mark Cohen”