Extreme Religious Radicalism at Fort Hood?

Since the attacks against the United States and its citizens on September 11, 2001, we - the public - have been consistently cautioned to consider the possibility of future attacks from "sleeper cells" or other extremist groups connected with al-Qaeda. As a nation, everyone was told to pay attention to what happens around our country and to people who may have a reason to cause us harm.

Unfortunately, it now seems that we are not to believe anyone can have such nefarious contacts or backgrounds. In fact, according to President Barack Obama, we can no longer refer to our stance against terrorist attacks as our "Global War on Terror" and the descriptive wording has been changed to the "Overseas Contingency Operations". The reality is that even if folks decided to call it the "Rosy Red Rainbow", it does not change the fact that people of the United States are at risk of physical injury and even death from radical groups or countries who wish to see the United States disappear into the new blazing sun of radical extremism.

Major Nidal Malik Hasan, a 39-year-old U. S. Army psychiatrist stationed at Fort Hood, Texas shot and killed 13 people and wounded 30 others. Did he commit these murders due to stress from his job and an increasing mental disability or was he an "extremist sleeper agent" as some now believe?

The thought occurs to me, "If it walks like a duck . . ."

At this time, almost all the allegedly known facts concerning the massacre at Fort Hood are still subject to interpretation by the agencies involved and by the public. Speculation reigns high on whether this man was a home grown American Jihadist - or the result of a religious conversion to an extremist Islamic view and facilitated to this end by his fundamentally radical contacts.

The truth appears to be evidenced by Hasan's very acts before and leading up to the shootings. Even though he made over $100,000 a year in wages, benefits, and other cash incentives, he was living frugally in a cheap apartment. What did he do with his money? There is evidence that show he was either making money transfers to or getting money transfers from someone in Pakistan. Was he giving all his money to members of his family located in the Middle East - or to a group of Islamic extremists?

Hasan was sending emails and making telephone calls to a radical Muslin iman or cleric named Anwar al-Awlaki, a radical cleric who lives in Yemen. Was he seeking religious guidance - or was he instead surreptitiously getting a much-needed religious blessing on what he was preparing to do at Fort Hood?

Postings online where someone claiming to be Nidal Hasan compared extremist suicidal acts as being equivalent to a soldier jumping on a hand grenade in order to save his fellow troops. It does not take a rocket scientist (or an ordinary American citizen) to realize that comments to co-workers and others, especially comments made to colleagues where he denounced the US war in the Middle East, are all indications that he had turned to Islamic extremism.

At the time of the shooting, Hasan reportedly shouted "Allahu akbar" and opened fire inside a building at Fort Hood. Islamist usage of "Allahu akbar" has been a part of terrorist activity for years by Islamic extremists and evidence exists to prove that, including the attack on the USS Cole and the plot to attack Fort Dix in New Jersey.

After 9/11, the FBI released a four page handwritten letter found in three separate areas. These letters were found at Dulles International Airport within the belongings of Nawaf Alhazmi, at the Shanksville Pennsylvania crash site, and in Mohamed Atta's suitcase. The letters included a checklist of reminders for the 9/11 hijackers and with the following being stated: "When the confrontation begins, strike like champions who do not want to go back to this world. Shout, 'Allahu Akbar,' because this strikes fear in the hearts of the non-believers."

Although Hasan's business cards found in his apartment made no mention of his military standing, listed after his name is both SoA followed by (SWT). SoA is commonly used on jihadist Web sites as the acronym for Soldier of Allah. SWT is commonly used by Muslims as an acronym for Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala, and translated to mean "Glory to God". It has also been reported that Hasan used multiple e-mail addresses and screen names to contact several jihadist web sites around the world.

The police and military agencies are saying that Hasan was a lone shooter and no one else appears to have been part of a conspiracy. However, that does not mean that others were not involved and may be heavily complicit in what happened due to personal dealings, prior agreements, monetary payments, and religious blessings. However, no matter the primary causes for the Fort Hood attack or Major Hasan's reasons for killing these people, it was indeed a terrorist act.

At the very least, premeditation for committing these killings is apparent by Hasan giving away all his personal belongings. There is little doubt he intended to commit suicide by his own hand or by that of American soldiers in order to become a martyr to his cause. In Hasan's case, it is my opinion that shouting "Allahu akbar" was said in order that the soldiers and civilians being shot at would distinguish that this was a terrorist attack by a true Islamic extremist believer.

My dad used to tell me "if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it is a duck". Of course, that was back years ago when common sense was also considered to be a normal given human condition and most ducks were not automatically assumed to be a fox in disguise - or in this case, a Major in our own U. S. Army military. Another important question then begs to be asked, "How many more like Major Nidal Malik Hasan exist in our own military today?"

Resources:
Profile: Major Nidal Malik Hasan
Major Hasan: Soldier of Allah; Many Ties to Jihad Web Sites
Hijacking Letter Found at Three Locations
Hasan had communications with Pakistan