I read the shorter version of this story in today's Lowell Sun and it seemed straight forward.
Now, with this longer version it still seems straight forward, but it has a "he said, she said" flavor to it.
We know it happened in downtown Tampa. We know that Jasen Bruce claims that someone with a beard and dressed in a robe yelled "Allahu Akbar." We know the person in the robe was a Greek Orthodox priest, Father Alexios Marakis.
Not everyone in a robe and with a beard is a Muslim, let alone a terrorist.
Heck, while many people who think of themselves as experts think they know what happened at Fort Hood, the fact is they don't and we don't. I hope some day we do. In the mean time we should be keeping an open mind.
I think we can all be pretty clear on the fact that Major Hasan was the shooter at Fort Hood, although that has to be proven at his court martial. Maybe the officers trying him will be convinced he is completely psychotic—there is some evidence his supervisors at Walter Reed thought that was a possibility. If, however, he is judged sane, but doesn't get the death penalty, then I would like to see his sentence include his being assigned to the US Navy and placed aboard a US Navy ship outbound to some location and from that ship, upon its return, to be passed to another US Navy ship, such that now Private Nidal Malik Hasan never again enters the six mile limit of these United States. He would spend the rest of his life in exile at sea.
If he is found guilty.
In the mean time, let us be careful of who we think is a terrorists. Greek Orthodox Priests studying in Massachusetts are probably not terrorists. And lets be careful of believing what the media tells us happened at Fort Hood. I am betting against Major Hasan shouting "Allahu Akbar," or some version thereof, as he started shooting.
Regards — Cliff
LOL, wondering if there's an ex-squid on the bench out there somewhere who would call your out to sea idea "cruel and unusual."
ReplyDeleteGlad you mentioned this story...I also saw that it said the priest didn't speak a lick of Arabic, so that gives more credence to the idea that this thing was fabricated by the 28 year-old Marine reservist. Something similarly strange happened a few years back in Virginia Beach and the target was an elderly white couple who were temporarily *detained* by someone(s) suffering from either PTSD or under some other type of influence..
If Major Hasan is truly sane, then he has rejected his oath of office and his allegiance to This Great Nation. Fine, let him go elsewhere. However, there is the little thing of his debt to society. So, I thought that we might put into actual life the story "The Man Without a Country." No offense to the Navy meant.
ReplyDeleteRegards — Cliff
Let him bathe, shave and wear pants. Greek clergy are very sympathtic to terrorism and preach islamosoviet anti-Americanism and anti-Semitism
ReplyDeleteSorry Cliff, et al. There is way too much anecdotal evidence of Hasan's state of mind and hatred of the very country he pledged to serve. And thus, while he is undoubtedly the shooter, there are many who are complicit in the final act.
ReplyDeleteMoreover, he needs to be put to death. Yeah, I know, two wrongs don't make a right and his was "psychotic." But, what do we tell the families of his victims? Gee, sorry, but he has civil rights? Or, sorry, he was just mentally unbalanced. Finally, murder is by definition and act of psychosis.
We have become so politically correct as a society that we are afraid to confront reality and are afraid of our own shadow...for fear someone will object that we call a shadow by its own name. As one person said, the Ft Hood mess is what happens when you have a one night stand between fascism and political correctness.
The sadness of the Hasan thing is......the taxpayer will pay millions and will in the end get no return on their investment.
One final point, all Muslems are not terrorists, but all terrorists are Muslim. His reprehensible crime was NOT terrorism. It was treason.
Neal