The Case For Surveillance On Muslims...

During a talk show debate the other day, Congressman Peter King (R), New York, said that many law enforcement agencies are observing and monitoring Islamic neighborhoods and groups in the United States.   Citing New York as an example, Congressman King said law enforcement monitor the groups looking for radical and/or terrorist type activities that need to be investigated and trying to discover how American citizens become radicalized to jihad.

Since about 90% of recent terrorist activity in the world is committed by radical Islamists, and there have been numerous incidents in the USA prevented (and several that were not prevented) it only makes sense to watch the groups who spawn the radical behavior.  Congressman Keith Ellison, (D), Minnesota, the first Muslim ever elected to a US House seat, disagrees. 

“Once you start saying we’re going to dragnet or surveil a community, what you do is you ignore dangerous threats that are not in that community and you go after people who don’t have anything to do with it," Ellison said.  He then went on to make the ridiculous comparison of Islamic monitoring to the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War 2.

Now Congressman Ellison, I’m not well educated and not a huge student of history but I can tell you why you're wrong and why your comparison is so ridiculous.  First of all, specific task forces are set up to monitor/surveil specific groups.  It doesn't cause law enforcement to "ignore dangerous threats that are not in the community" as you state.  Secondly – radical Islam is responsible for most of the terrorism in the world today.  Want statistics?  Here they are, beginning with the attacks on the USA on September 11, 2001, and the number of people left dead in parentheses:

     

1.  1 Sep 2001: crashing of planes into WTC, New York, Pentagon in Virginia, and Pennsylvania, USA (2,993)

2.  12 Oct 2002: car bombing outside nightclub in Kuta, Indonesia (202)

3.     29 Aug 2003: car bombing outside mosque in Najaf, Iraq (125)

4.     1 Feb 2004: two suicide bombings of political party offices in Irbil, Iraq (109)

5.      21 Feb 2004: armed attack and arson at refugee camp, Uganda (239)

6.      27 Feb 2004: bombing and fire on ferry near Manila, Philippines (118)

7.      2 Mar 2004: multiple suicide bombings at shrines in Kadhimiya and Karbala, Iraq (188)

8.      11 Mar 2004: bombings of four trains in Madrid, Spain (191)

9.      24 Jun 2004: multiple bombings and armed attacks in several cities in Iraq (103)

10.   28 Feb 2005: car bombing outside medical clinic in Hilla, Iraq (135)

11.   14 Sep 2005: multiple suicide bombings and shooting attacks in Baghdad, Iraq (182)

12.   5 Jan 2006: bombings in Karbala, Ramadi, and Baghdad, Iraq (124)

13.   11 Jul 2006: multiple bombings on commuter trains in Mumbai, India (200)

14.   16 Oct 2006: truck bombing of military convoy near Habarana, Sri Lanka (103)

15.   23 Nov 2006: multiple car bombings in Baghdad, Iraq (202)

16.   22 Jan 2007: multiple bombings in Baghdad area, Iraq (101)

17.   3 Feb 2007: truck bombing in market place in Baghdad, Iraq (137)

18.   6 Mar 2007: two bombings and other attacks on pilgrims, Hilla, Iraq (137)

19.   27 Mar 2007: two truck bombings in Tal Afar, Iraq (152)

20.   18 Apr 2007: bombings in Baghdad, Iraq (193)

21.   3-10 Jul 2007: hostage taking and subsequent storming of mosque in Islamabad, Pakistan (102)

22.   7 Jul 2007: bombings in Baghdad and Armili, Iraq (182)

23.   14 Aug 2007: multiple truck bombings in Al-Qataniyah and Al-Adnaniyah, Iraq (520)

24.   18 Oct 2007: bombing of motorcade in Karachi, Pakistan (137)

25.   17 Feb 2008: bombing at dogfighting festival in Kandahar, Afghanistan (105)

26.   2 July 2008: Jerusalem bulldozer attack, several cars on Jaffa Road in Jerusalem, Israel using a front-end loader .  (3)

27.    26 July 2008: Ahmedabad bombings, India. Islamic terrorists detonate at least 21 explosive devices in the heart of this industrial capital. (56)

28.   3 August 2008:  Mogadishu bombings in Somalia. (21+)

29.    21 August 2008:  Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan spokesman Maulvi Umar claimed that the group was responsible for 21 August 2008 suicide bomb attack on a military complex.

30.    23 August 2008: Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan claimed responsibility for the 2008 Swat Valley bombing.

31.    13 September 2008:  Delhi, India - Pakistani extremist groups plant bombs at several places including India Gate, out of which the ones at Karol Bagh, Connaught Place and Greater Kailash explode (30)

32.    29 October 2008:  Hargeisa–Bosaso bombings by Al-Shabaab.  (30)

33.    6 November 2008:  Someone using the name Abdur Rehman claimed that the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan was behind a 6 November 2008 suicide bombing that targeted tribal elders.  (16)

34.    26 November 2008: Muslim extremists kill at least 174 people and wound numerous others in a series of coordinated attacks on India's largest city and financial capital, Mumbai.

35.   30 March 2009:  In telephone interviews with news media Mehsud claimed responsibility for the 30 March 2009 attack on the police training academy in Lahore

36.    4 April 2009 – Mehsud claimed responsibility for the Binghamton shootings, stating that they were in retaliation for continued missile strikes from American drones.

37.   18 June 2009 – 2009 Beledweyne bombing by Al-Shabaab.  (35)

38.    17 July 2009: Marriott and Ritz-Carlton Hotels bombing in Mega Kuningan, South Jakarta, Indonesia;  (9)

39.    27 August 2009: Azam Tariq, spokesman of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing at a security checkpoint along the Pakistan-Afghan border near Torkham on 27 August 2009. Tariq said by telephone that the attack was the first in retaliation for the death of Baitullah Mehsud.  (35)

40.   5 October 2009: Azam Tariq claimed responsibility for a suicide attack that killed five at the UN's World Food Programme Islamabad offices.

41.    12 October 2009: The Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, through Azam Tariq, claimed responsibility for the October 2009 attack on the army's headquarters at Rawalpindi.

42.   15 October 2009: The Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan claimed responsibility for three separate coordinated attacks in Lahore

43.    25 October 2009: Baghdad, Iraq. During a terrorist attack, two bomber vehicles detonated in the Green Zone, killing at least 155 people and injuring 520.

44.    28 October 2009: Peshawar, Pakistan. A car bomb is detonated in a woman exclusive shopping district, and over 110 killed and over 200 injured.

45.    3 December 2009: The 2009 Hotel Shamo bombing in Mogadishu, Somalia. A male suicide bomber disguised as a woman detonates in a hotel meeting hall. The hotel was hosting a graduation ceremony for local medical students when the blast went off.  (25)

These statistics are only through 2009.  I could go on but this post would be more like a book.   The list for 2010 was so long it would take at least four pages to list them all.  Do you get the idea, Congressman Ellison?  Are you seeing any patterns here – no matter how simple?  Radical Islam is a force to be reckoned with and, as such, Islam as a whole bears some scrutiny - especially since “peaceful” Islam as a whole has not stood up and said “Enough!”

Oh, and since you brought it up, Congressman, let’s look at the list of known incidents of terrorism and/or espionage by Japanese-Americans before or during World War 2 that led to their internment:

1.

There’s your list.  Do you understand now why your comparison was so ridiculous?  I doubt it.

I will agree that it's sad when a "religion" has to be under law enforcement surveillance however, just last year in Michigan, some Christian protesters were outside of a Muslim festival carrying signs and they were attacked by the Muslim crowd and assaulted with bottles and rocks.  And the police did absolutely nothing about it.  People like that need to be watched.  And where do you stand on the World Church of the Creator?  Are you against them being monitored?

Radical and militant groups are constantly watched in the United States.  White Supremacist groups and militias are watched.  Black extremist groups are watched.  (At least they have been.  Since Eric Holder ignored voter intimidation by the New Black Panther Party in 2008 that may have changed. )  Extremist environmental groups are watched.  And according to the Department of Homeland Security even  military veterans and Christians (especially evangelical Christians – you know – like Billy Graham) are watched these days.  And God help you if you happen to be both a veteran and a Christian.  So get over it, Mr. Ellison.  As long as Islam continues to blow up innocent people around the world they are going to be a target for surveillance and monitoring.  They are the ones who capture people, torture and kill them.  But I guess it’s just too easy to ignore that type of behavior to further your own cause.