This post is not about how Obama is messing everything up. It is about respecting the brave men and women who have selflessly sacrificed so much, including their lives, to keep our country safe. Last week, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a report titled, "Rightwing Extremism: Current Economic and Political Climate Fueling Resurgence in Radicalization and Recruitment." I've strived for objectivity here, forming my opinion after reading the report itself, not after listening to or reading conservatives' opinions about it. For those so inclined, click here to read the entire report.Here are some quotes from the report: "The DHS has no specific information that rightwing terrorists are currently planning any acts of violence, but [they] may be gaining new recruits by playing on their fears about several emergent issues. The economic downturn and the election of the first African American president present unique drivers for rightwing radicalization and recruitment." Hmmmmmm, no specific information. They may be gaining new recruits. This speculative theme continues throughout the report (I'll quickly admit this is definitely not the first time our government has produced speculative "intelligence." Republican administrations are guilty as well).
So who are these potential recruits DHS is so concerned about? None other than our returning military vets. "The possible passage of new restrictions on firearms and the return of military veterans facing significant challenges reintegrating into their communities could lead to the potential emergence of terrorist groups or lone wolf extremists capable of carrying out violent attacks." Here's another one under the "Disgruntled Military Vets" section. "A prominent civil rights organization reported in 2006 that 'large numbers of potentially violent neo-Nazis, skinheads, and white supremacists are now learning the art of warfare in the [U.S.] armed forces." Apparently, the organization was so prominent that DHS forgot to mention its name, the numbers so great that DHS omitted the count. How about a citation for this report? Why not name it? Why accept this bigoted hearsay? Where's the proof? Where's the data?
Just ONE 14 yr. old statistic is cited in the entire report - Tim McVeigh, the 1995 OKC bomber who quickly washed out of the Special Forces program. But to make the link that all returning vets are disgruntled, violent, anti-semitic, racist (our president is half black), can't handle the economic recession, and can't be trusted with firearms, and therefore likely recruits for Rightwing extremist groups, is laughable based on merely ONE example that happened 14 years ago. That's just as absurd as assuming that every bearded, turban-wearing man is likely to become a jihadi warrior, hijack a plane, or blow himself up.
I'm not a military vet, but I have family members who are, and I find this shoddy report downright offensive. If they don't come home in flag-draped caskets, our vets will now be suspiciously monitored thanks to the baseless, politically-biased propaganda produced by their own government. Veterans deserve, at minimum, to be thanked, respected, and honored by people of EVERY political persuasion. They don't deserve to be monitored, feared, and labeled as possible recruits for Rightwing extremist groups. I think an apology would be appropriate.
To her credit, Janet Napolitano, Sec. of DHS, offered an "apology" last Thursday: "To the extent that veterans read it as an accusation, an apology is owed. This was an assessment, not an accusation." Hey, it's better than nothing, right? But wouldn't it have been much better if she apologized for the report's actual contents, and not for how the veterans reacted to them?
2 comments:
OK, Devin, you got my attention. I apologize for my absence. When school's going on, everything else takes a back seat. A very far away, 4 cars behind me, back seat. It's a good thing finals start in a few days because my house looks like a war zone. I do, however, manage to keep the kitchen and bathrooms fairly clean. Adequately so, I suppose.
I don't even know where to start with this one. To me, it sounds more like the left's own profiling, if that's what you want to call it. It's not a racial issue, therefore it's perfectly acceptable. I guess it's OK when THEY'RE the ones doing it for their own reasons. I don't think that anyone in this administration is the least bit in touch the average Joe, much less anyone in the military. In order to have an idea what someone thinks or feels, you need 2 things: 1) A realistic understanding of that person, and 2) Common sense. It seems to me that this administration is greatly lacking both.
Fort Hood is the largest military installation in the U.S. I can see my husband's hangar from my house, and I don't live on Post. I'm constantly surrounded by all things military. I know how and what they think (in general, I'm not a mind reader. This is just my own observation.). Texas, as anyone knows, is HUGELY conservative, but a lot of these military families, who are from various parts of the country, are Obama supporters. (They have a couple reasons, but I'll get to that later.) They’re anything but right-wing crazies. I believe that people in this country are much more conservative than they believe they are. I have a “keyhole/connect-the-dots theory.” Yup, that’s a topic for another day. Of course, if you want to know……you know where to find me.
The only reason these guys voted for Obama is because they think he’ll save them from Iraq. That’s it……and one other reason. They treat being in the army like it’s the draft, like it wasn’t their choice to sign the papers, get off the bus and stand on the yellow footprints. (Then they signed the papers AGAIN because they had no other way to support themselves outside of the army!) Now, they’re feeling what it’s really like, so they looked to him to “save” them.
Now, back to the subject. Janet “From Another Planet” Napolitano really shouldn’t even open her mouth. (That’s not entirely fair because I feel that way about a lot of them.) It was evident that they didn’t do their research. The only example I’ve heard them use in this case is Timothy McVeigh. Wow. That’s like saying that ALL teenagers are likely to run into their high schools while they’re armed because it happened at Columbine. (And a couple others, I’ll give you that.) Really? I’m not saying I agree with McVeigh, nor am I the least bit sympathetic.
The point of all of this? It’s just one more example of the direction things are headed. These guys that come home from where ever are, for the most part, normal people that aren’t engaging in any right-wing anything. Or left for that matter. Had DHS done their homework PROPERLY, they might’ve found some guys with PTSD or prosthetics or a few scars, but these guys aren’t crazy. Some of them have seen things that the rest of us couldn’t even imagine. But that’s one reason we have them, isn’t it? They’re not doing anything that Napolitano accused them of doing. Then she had the nerve to give them a disrespectful, kinda-sorta apology. Perhaps the Washington Elite, both sides included, should descend from their thrones and find out what these guys are REALLY all about. This whole thing has proven that they're utterly clueless.
This is one more reason I need to be the Governor of Texas-so we can secede. Then I can take care of our guys the way they deserve.
Get ready for a post on Gov. Rick Perry and his secession talk!
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