Investigating Teh Muslims, part deuce

[kinvore.livejournal.com]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110615/ap_on_re_us/us_muslims_terror_hearings

So NY Congressman Peter King is holding more hearings, this time on violent Islam in prison. It hasn't resulted in nearly as much controversy as his previous hearing where he just attacked "violent Islam" in general, but it's still drawing some protests.

For the record when it comes to violence done in the name of Islam I tend to condemn it rather strongly. Few things annoy me more when my fellow liberals seem to give certain acts a pass, often citing cultural reasons. What gets me is if these acts (such as honor killing and/or the systematic suppression of women) were done in the name of Christianity then they'd be screaming bloody murder. It shouldn't be a different reaction just because it's done by the enemy of your enemy.

That being said these investigations are awful and hateful. I think of it this way: imagine if he held hearings on violent blacks in America. He would be rightfully tarred and feathered for even suggesting it. Why? Because it's not right to suggest an entire group of people is guilty for the actions of a few. These hearings are thinly-veiled hate speech and have no place in Congress.

I'll save you some time, Congressman King. There's violence in the name of Islam. There's violence in the name of Christianity. There's violence in the name of nationalism. There's violence done in many names, so please stop the hateful posturing and work on issues that actually matter, such as jobs.

Comments

[whoasksfinds.livejournal.com]

men in american prisons can be recruited to carry out attacks around the world. american citizens have already joined al qaeda affiliates in yemen and somalia, so no, they may not be domestic terrorists.

let me know when we're engaged in world wide militarily operations against a gang that has declared war on the united states, and killed hundreds of thousands of civilians around the world in the past decade alone.

i have no problem if you want to investigate other radical groups. but we shouldn't be afraid to focus on a group that poses the greatest threat to national security.

[blue-mangos.livejournal.com]

You keep conflating world wide activities with domestic ones. How many citizens within America, hell I'll even give you American citizens worldwide, have radical Islamic groups killed? Because I'm pretty sure the total number killed by gangs will be higher.

[whoasksfinds.livejournal.com]

You keep conflating world wide activities with domestic ones

because were dealing with a global threat. that threat can emanate from the united states, or from abroad.

How many citizens within America, hell I'll even give you American citizens worldwide, have radical Islamic groups killed?

why are we only talking about american citizens? radical islamist groups are carrying out attacks against civilian targets every single day around the world. they have killed hundreds of thousands of civilians in the past decade, and they'd like to kill many more. just because we had success at preventing attacks inside the US does not mean we should be complacent.

gangs are a problem, but i don't know of any gang that has declared war on the united states government. there is nothing wrong with focusing in on specific groups that pose the greatest threat to our national security. al qaeda affiliated groups, which recruit from muslim populations, pose the greatest threat to our national security.

[kylinrouge.livejournal.com]

Hmm, this sounds like you think there is some grand organizational structure among Islamic extremist groups that ties them all together. I can't imagine this to be true, it's like a bona fide conspiracy.

The idea that Islamic extremist recruitment in an American prison filled with American prisoners has ties- or hell, even contact, with groups in other countries in any meaningful amount seems far-fetched to me. Singling out Muslims in prisons or giving them more attention in prisons sounds like it would have negligible effects on worldwide terrorism, anymore so than investigating the other extremist groups in prisons.

[whoasksfinds.livejournal.com]

there is some grand organizational structure among Islamic extremist groups that ties them all together

there is on specific franchise called al qaeda. and in fact we know that the branch of al qaeda in yemen has actively inspired american citizens to carry out attacks in the US.

The idea that Islamic extremist recruitment in an American prison filled with American prisoners has ties- or hell, even contact, with groups in other countries in any meaningful amount seems far-fetched to me

we already know that americans have been recruited to go to pakitsan, yemen, and somalia. we already know that al qaeda has recruited americans to carry out attacks. there really is no good reason to ignore reality.

Singling out Muslims in prisons or giving them more attention in prisons sounds like it would have negligible effects on worldwide terrorism

perhaps, but why pretend the threat doesn't exist? complacency kills.

[kylinrouge.livejournal.com]

There are all-encompassing threats, and then there are isolated incidents. Doing something violent and saying you're Al Qaeda does not suddenly make you join the global mind-meld of Islamic terrorists so you can communicate on the 7th plane of existence.

[whoasksfinds.livejournal.com]

not sure what your point is.

[kylinrouge.livejournal.com]

My point is that Peter King is a bigot.

[whoasksfinds.livejournal.com]

holding hearings about jihadist recruitment in american prisons makes someone a bigot? now thats just funny.