Posted by
drpete on Friday, November 06, 2009 4:46:56 PM
Thursday November 5, 2009 in the early afternoon there was a terrorist attack at the U.S. Army's Fort Hood. The apparent sole-perpetrator was an Islamist who gunned down 43 people, killing 13 and wounding another 30. The victims were Fort Hood military personnel, soldiers either preparing to ship out for duty, soldiers having just shipped in from duty, and some bystanders.
It is no surprise here that CNN, ABC and PBS "news" people, et al, are reporting this as a possible case of PTSD with the shooter as victim. After all, the shooter is Muslim, a devotee of the religion of peace. After all, what could have set him off to do something so crazy? And there's also the matter that this would have to be a brand-new disorder. "PTSD" would have to stand for "pre-traumatic stress disorder" since this psychiatrist hasn't done anything yet other than talk with people. Of course, when deployed, he'd be in the rear, not in combat. Such PC drivel is standard stock in trade for these folks.
What is of surprise to me, however, is the handling of this Islamist by the United States Army. Up until July, Major Nidal Malik Hasan was psychiatric fellow at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland and a captain. In late Spring he received both a poor performance review and a promotion. Following graduation from Virginia Tech in 1997, Hasan enrolled in the military's Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences in Bethesda. Following that schooling he did an internship, then a residency, then a six-year fellowship, all at Bethesda.
In his off hours for all of those years Hasan gave speeches, chastising infidels, and imploring conversion to Islam. He was combative both on-duty and off-duty, and explicit regarding his disagreement with American involvement both in Iraq and Afghanistan. According to an aunt, he had sought a discharge from the Army. He was not a closet Islamist.
Was it an actionable clue to intelligence people when Islamic men enrolled in pilot training, but didn't want to learn take-offs and landings? I think the clues here were as clear and as actionable for U.S. Army superior officers and the clues were repeated and repeated by Hasan for years. What made it clear to Hasan that it was time? Impending deployment overseas to support a war against Islamists.
Nidal Malik Hasan resided within the U.S. Army and "prospered" there for a decade, became an officer, was even promoted to the rank of major. Enlisted -- even sgt. majors -- and even lieutenants and captains had to salute him and follow his orders. He wasn't just allowed to infiltrate the mammoth Fort Hood Army base; he was placed there. And as an obvious radical Islamist was even not proscribed from owning and possessing personal firearms and ammunition. The wolf was in the hen house.
Do we expect the "news" media to kneel at the altar of PC crapola? Do we expect such from college professors? Do we expect such from k-12 government-school teachers? Do we expect such from the Hollywood elites? Do we expect such from an Obama and a Pelosi and a Reid and a, well you know the roster? Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Do we expect such from the ranking officers of the U.S. Army? We'd better not.