Fort Hood – Questions and answers
As the aftermath of the shooting at Fort Hood begins to unfold and more details are released, one thing is apparent. There are a lot of questions and no so many answers. It is now known that Major Nidal Malik Hasan is still alive and is in stable condition. The female civilian police officer who 
exchanged gunfire with him was originally thought to be dead as well, but she appears to have survived and may have been the one to bring him down. (You go girl!) The casualty toll now stands at 13 dead and 30 wounded.
We know that Hasan was a devout Muslim and had previously served at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. He was transferred to Fort Hood in July and was about to be deployed to Iraq. He apparently had strong feelings against the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and those feelings had been the cause of altercations with other personnel. That’s about all of the answers we have right now, or at least those that have been released. Now to the questions.
At the risk of sounding bigoted or prejudiced against Muslims, I have to ask this question. Given the propensity of radical Muslims to engage in suicide attacks against people and targets they do not agree with, how did someone like Nidal Malik Hasan slip through the cracks? For that matter, given his past actions and his open opposition to the wars, why was his still in the Army, much less given access to a place such as Fort Hood? I have no doubt there are other Muslims in our military who are not radical and who love our country, but when someone like Hasan is openly against what the military is doing, a red flag should be raised. No matter if the person in question is a Muslim, Christian, or of any other religious faith, the red flag should have been waving from the rooftop.
As the investigation unfolds, it appears Hasan gave away all of his furniture to his neighbors, as well as copies of the Koran. This was not a spur of the moment decision to go shooting, but was rather an event planned to produce as many casualties as possible before being shot down himself. That’s probably why he chose the Soldier Readiness Center; he knew the only armed people in the room would be military and civilian police. Everyone else was unarmed and the place was crowded.
It is still unknown at this time if Hasan was influenced by a radical Islamic group, but the FBI is looking at Internet postings that were made by someone who claimed to be Nidal Malik Hasan. These postings seem to equate suicide bombings as heroic acts.
Let me finish by saying this. With the culprit still alive and the shooting happening on American soil, there will certainly be a trial. I would voice one request. When the details begin to emerge and the truth is known, I hope the media, the White House, Congress, bloggers, and anyone else who weighs in on the subject are honest with their words. If this is a terrorist act, let’s call it a terrorist act. The last thing we need is to sugar coat this event and pass it off as the act of a “troubled individual”. NPR was already using that term this morning and I find it insulting.
As I said, there are still a lot of questions and very few answers. More details are sure to follow as authorities begin to dig into Hasan’s life, in an attempt to discover the motive for this terrible tragedy. No matter what the motive, it is a sad day for the people at Fort Hood and for all of America.
UPDATE: There now appears to be growing evidence that Nidal Malik Hasan had radicalized himself. He apparently attended the same mosque that was attended by two of the September 11, 2001 terrorists. This was the same period during which a radical iman preached there. He also gave a speech at the Uniformed Services University that tried to justify suicide bombings and declared that Islamic law trumped the Constitution of the United States.
Well said, Larry, especially on the political correctness issue.
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At least he does not get this 72 virgins and must hang around in army custody to answer for his murders. Kinda rought path ahead for this devotee of hate.
He was abused and vilified for several months before this incident by extremist Christians. It’s quite obvious that he was made into who he is by the right-wing Christians in the US military – you know, the ones refusing to follow orders because they somehow think that “god” comes before “Country”. It’s not a terrorist act because he was a.) acting alone, and b.) obviously troubled if he’s resorting to violence.
What I find more insulting than calling him a ‘troubled individual’ is you describing the police officer the way you did. Would you ever say “The male police officer. (You go guy!)”? Of course not. The gender is immaterial, and I think we could all do without the 1990s teenage girl platitudes, however well meant.
Otherwise, good post. Court martial and psychiatric assessment for him. These things shouldn’t happen, but they do.
Richard,
Thanks for taking the time to comment on Political Realities.
The reason I referred to the female police officer the way I did was because of how she rose to the occasion to take the man down, even though she was wounded herself. No, I may not have said “You go, guy” if it had been a male police officer, but I would have drawn attention to the fact, just the same.
As the investigation is still unfolding, it is still unknown if he was part of a larger effort. However, there is some evidence that he was making statements on the Internet that would lead one to believe he sympathized with suicide bombers and extreme Islamic groups.
As for his being harassed, I do not condone that in any way. However, that does not explain his actions and in no way does it give him leeway to do what he did. To suggest that it does is insulting to those he killed. If he was so insulted, why did he not go after the ones who were giving him such a hard time? Instead, he chose to start shooting in a crowded room where no one was able to defend themselves. No matter what kind of abuse he had to take from his fellow soldiers, there is no excuse for that.
Well, let’s take a look at the events of the past few months, when the MSM, as well as my own government has accused my of being a terrorist, a racist, an ignorant redneck, a teabagger, a hired member of a Republican mob, and a hatemonger. Yet, I have somehow escaped pulling a gun and shooting a bunch of people. That’s interesting.
Whether he was harassed or not, is NOT the issue and gives Hasan NO excuse for his actions.
I am of the belief that there were *other* agendas at work, and some are saying that as Muslims in the U.S. military, they have never been harassed and are doubting Hasan on these allegations…
TexasFred´s last blog ..Maj. Malik Nadal Hasan – The tale of the tape so far
Larry,
You say:
“At the risk of sounding bigoted or prejudiced against Muslims, I have to ask this question. Given the propensity of radical Muslims to engage in suicide attacks against people and targets they do not agree with, how did someone like Nidal Malik Hasan slip through the cracks?”
Sure, you go on with a perfectly reasonable statement-and the only one based on any facts at this point- that his past actions and unstable behavior should have been a red flag for the military. And, given the disturbing rise in murders and suicides by active military personnel who have been deployed (and deployed again and again, in some cases), wouldn’t that be the most likely place for you to have started?
Why do you feel you have to even mention his religion as a possible factor at this particular juncture, when no facts about how his religious views may or may not have bearing on his actions have been established? Fort Carson in Colorado has 14 soldiers who are being held for 11 murders and rape/murders in the past several months. All American, most Christian and the rest undeclared. In fact, the vast majority of crimes that have been committed by members of our military- even heinous crimes- have been committed by those who, by birth and in many cases in practice, are Christians. Would you ask a similar question of them?
You are not alone. Last night, when the case was just hours old and no facts whatsoever had been established here’s what FOX New’s Shep Smith said, in an interview with Kay Bailey Hutchinson of TX about Islam being the culprit:
“The man’s name tells us a lot, doesn’t it Senator?” Wow.
An investigation into possible ties to radical Islamic extremist byt the FBI is underway. If there is reason to “blame Islam”, then they’ll let us know. Until then, though, you might do well to ask yourself this question:
How did you, as a devout Christian, feel when some in our country and in the media identified Scott Roeder (killer of George tiller and a member of the Montana Freemen) as a “Christian terrorist”?
I seem to remember you posting something condemning his actions but pleading for reason from those who would color all Christians with the same brush.
Laurie,
The reason I asked the question is in the question itself. Extremist Muslim groups teach that there is nothing wrong with suicide attacks. They radicalize their children to believe this and willingly let them go blow themselves up and at the same time, kill innocent men, women, and children. It is far from uncommon to see this from these groups.
As for those soldiers at Fort Carson, did they commit their acts in the name of Christianity? Most likely, they did not, where as a Muslim extremist who decides to go blowing themselves up does. I think there is a bit of a difference there.
Speaking of my earlier article, I don’t believe I actually mentioned Christians, but rather those of us who are strongly pro-life. Admittedly, most of us are Christians, but I would venture to guess, some are not.
Larry,
You are talking about extrmist Muslim groups. Do we know for sure that this guy was part of them? Do we know that this man committed his acts in the name of Islam? I think a lot of people are putting two and two together before we have any real information. When and if we “know” these things, then we know. Until then, why infuse the conversation with speculation?
You can bet Larry the MSM will sugar-coat this and by the time the trial starts he will be depicked as a great doctor and a credit to his community and the villians will be those who harassed him because of his religion. The trial with be a circus with the media fighting for places if the trial is open to the press. The OJ trial will pale in comparsion.
Ron Russell´s last blog ..Fort Hood: A Terrorist Act
Let’s see…
Malik Nadal Hasan – Sounds Islamic to me
Virginia born to Jordanian parents, that are Muslims.
Friends are saying he was a DEVOUT Muslim.
Armed with two FN 57′s 20 rounds of 5.7×28 in each pistol and at least 2 spare magazines.
The Muslim battle cry of Allahu Akbar as he opened fired on targets of opportunity, unarmed targets.
He may not have belonged to an extremist Muslim group, other than the religion of Islam, which IS an extremist group unto itself, but armed as he was, he appears to have been an extremist group of 1…
I don’t buy into the *I was picked on* crap, I don’t buy into *the religion of peace* thing, group or no group, Malik Nadal Hasan is an EVIL Islamic terrorist now, by ANY definition.
TexasFred´s last blog ..Maj. Malik Nadal Hasan – The tale of the tape so far
Add to that the fact that he was giving his possessions away as well as giving out Korans, when combined with statements from other military personnel that state that he was making pro-Islamic and anti-American statements. One must look at the big picture.
There still are many questions to be answered, in my opinion one of those questions is not “is he a terrorist?’ I think with what we have learned about his behavior and the fact that the FBI had been watching him for 6 months, he is a terrorist. I know that some may say that I dhouldn’t make that statement yet, but that is how I feel.
Like you said Larry, once this goes to trial if it becomes evident that this man is a terrorist I hope that the media does not sugar coat that fact.
The biggest question that remains to me is– how could this man have become a major and spent all these years in the military with all of the warning signs? I hope that it was not done for political correctness.
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Just curious…
…”given the disturbing rise in murders and suicides by active military personnel who have been deployed (and deployed again and again, in some cases), wouldn’t that be the most likely place for you to have started?
Now wouldn’t this have been a convenient place to link to the source of this data on troops coming back from deployments and “murdering” people???? The pot calls the kettle black maybe??? Laurie, I get the impression that you are demanding certain standards from Larry, that you yourself is not exercising. This implication about our troops is an insult and I suspect highly inaccurate. The suicide rate is a definate concern, but they are not coming home and murdering people in great numbers as you are implying.
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HoosierArmyMom-
It’s obvious that you took my comments personally. I have a friend who is a doctor at Fort Carson, who was the first person to tell me what has been happening there and around the country. In no way am I suggesting that all military personnel are having these issues, but the fact remains that there is a rise in violent crimes, including rape, murder and suicide within the population of soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.
I don’t demand higher standards for Larry than I practice myself, but in this case I was simply encouraging him to not dismiss the probable in favor of the possible.
A link to the issues at Ft Carson (and there are many independent stories-search the Colorado Springs papers and military newspapers).
http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story/30794989/the_fort_carson_murder_spree/2
And, if you’re curious, check out what General Honore (an authority I respect-do you?) has been saying about the state of our military-still great but stretched badly and undermanned- and the consequences, both current and future. You can find his comments all over the net, should you choose to do your own research.
One more link referencing the Ft. CArson incidents and some at other US bases.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/11/05/eveningnews/main5541051.shtml
Again- the vast majority of military personnel aren’t going to these extremes. Neither, does it seem, is there a pattern of “jihad” in any of the other precedent cases. The one thing nearly all had in common? Recent combat experience and problems dealing with the after effects.
The spin on this is absolutely crazy with those on the left pointing to the mental problems this guy must have while totally putting aside his religious beliefs and the right pointing to his Islamic background. Lets see if the shooter had been from some right wing Christian group then the reverse would probably be true. But we are at war with radical Islamic and not radical Christians so I will have to come down on that side. Additionally, the MSM are pointing to mental illness coupled with some form of second hand battle fatigue(don’t think I’ve ever heard that one). The big tent policies of the Democrats has come home to roost and their policy of inclusion of all religious groups with the obvious exception of Christians is blinding them to the truth that most Americans see.
Ron Russell´s last blog ..Ft. Hood: The Largest Terror Act Since 9/11?
Ron, you have to understand, it’s only appropriate to blame religion when Christianity is involved.
I don’t see how they can say he had battle fatigue, second hand or otherwise since he had never been in battle had he? I thought he was just about to be deployed.
Those of you who are subscribed to the comments on this post, please revisit and read the update at the bottom of the article. More light is beginning to be shed on the activities of Nidal Malik Hasan.
Larry,
If this is true, and I have no doubt that it is true, then he should have been taken out of the Army a long time ago. I think the Army brass need to revisit their way of dealing with people like this. If they had taken him out, discharge or some other way, this nightmare might never have happened.
I wrote an article for tomorrow you might find interesting on this very subject. It’s titled, Fort Hood: Deadly consequences of Political Correctness.
Political correctness appears to be the reason that allowed so many red flags to go unnoticed in Hasan’s case..
Furthermore, as a Vet, I think we need to seriously reconsider putting Muslims in our military no matter how beneficial. And here is why. I have dual nationality. I am American and French. Let’s say I decided to return to Cannes and spend my retirement years on the beach. Now let’s assume a war happens and I am asked to fight against America. I could not do this. I would be fighting against my own people.
That is one of the problems with Hasan. We are asking him to fight against his own people and it goes against what he believes god says he should not do. It makes no rational sense.
Now I don’t think all Muslims (who are American born) would struggle with this, but the problem is we just don’t really know which ones will and which ones won’t and that is a major problem.
Something has to be done to prevent this from ever happening again. Also, we need to allow Muslims to leave the military at any time on grounds of religious conflict.
I agree with you that we need call a spade a spade here. As the first terrorist attack on America under Obama, we need to deal with the truth so we can prevent another incident. If not, we may be looking at another 9-11.
One note: I don’t know how much of the trial will be up for public consumption if this becomes a military trial. Federal trial I can see the media there. I’m just not so sure that will happen with a military trial.
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