By I don’t know if “struggles” is the best word to use to describe Muslims in the US military as this article’s title says. Every soldier “struggles” with something in the military not just Muslims:
At a nondescript mosque just a few miles away from this sprawling U.S. Army base, Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan had recently befriended a young Muslim convert, taking him under his wing and mentoring him in his new faith.
The two talked in general terms about religion and righteousness. But two weeks ago, the conversation turned to Hasan’s distress about deploying to Afghanistan. Hasan advised Duane Reasoner Jr., the son of two retired soldiers, not to join the Army.
“He said Muslims shouldn’t be in the U.S. military, because obviously Muslims shouldn’t kill Muslims,” Reasoner recalled.
Last week Hasan, an Army psychiatrist, allegedly shot up a soldier readiness center on Fort Hood, killing 13 and wounding 29 others. And although his alleged shooting spree marks him as an extremist, Hasan’s struggles to reconcile his faith with his military service are familiar to thousands of other Muslims serving the U.S. armed forces.
“Every Muslim soldier in the Army has at least confronted that question one way or another,” said Maj. Derrill Guidry, an intelligence officer stationed at Fort Hood. “You tend to question it, but not everybody is conflicted.”
Guidry spent two years deployed to Iraq, and noted that “it was a little easier for me because I wasn’t in a combat role.”
But he added that Muslim soldiers sometimes feel like they’re being forced to choose sides “between our country, our military and other Muslims.” [Stars & Stripes]
I like this response from this Muslim chaplain on being Muslim in the US military:
Maj. Dawud Agbere, one of only a few Muslim chaplains in the U.S. military, said he counsels Muslim soldiers and those of other faiths in the same way when they struggle with the “business of killing.”
“Unfortunately, some think in terms of solidarity,” he said. “But it’s not about solidarity, it’s about justice. A Muslim has the right to defend someone from a Muslim if he is being unjust to that person.
“The issue is about doing the right thing, not about religion,” Agbere added. “You can’t say. ‘This is where I begin to be an American and then it stops, and then I begin to be a Muslim.’ Our identities overlap and there’s no dichotomy there.”
I also like what this retired E7 had to say:
Sabree, who attended the Islamic Community Center of Greater Killeen with Hasan and described him as “odd,” said he avoided talking with Hasan because no matter the topic, he always brought the conversation back to “his favorite talking point: Muslims being oppressed” in the Army.
“It was troubling to me to hear that he just got here and had made an assessment of the installation,” Sabree said. “I’ve been here since 2001 and never heard any soldiers say they were being oppressed.”
This same advice can apply to anyone else who “struggles” with their religion or whatever other affiliations they have when in the military. All that stuff should be set aside before joining the military and if someone’s group affiliation is compromising their military duties it is time for them to get out and become a private citizen. If they don’t get out then the military should make that decision for them. I just wish someone would have done that with Major Hasan.
11:50 pm on November 11th, 2009 1
Hasan wouldn't have served in the capacity of a combatant anyway.
During WWII, there were Mennonite medics…pacifists who served in the capacity of helping injured soldiers, though fighting was anathema to them. Physicians aren't sent to Afghanistan to fight. This person is a horror of a human being on several different levels.
4:16 am on November 12th, 2009 2
"Allegedly" is this a joke?
"Last week Hasan, an Army psychiatrist, allegedly shot up a soldier readiness center"
What the heck does that mean? Allegedly? What a joke of an article!
Smart people who read this article will also take this away immediately: muslims can't be trusted in the U.S. Army fighting the Global War on Terrorism. Because if a muslim has to struggle with fighting terrorist and the terrorist are muslims are we that stupid? "If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck its a banana split" What dimension of space and time are we living in?
4:49 am on November 12th, 2009 3
This guy apparently struggled with more than him military service obligations. If the stories told are to be believed, to fellow Muslims he was in search of the perfect, pious, Muslim wife. But after hours, he was also an excellent customer in the strip clubs and enjoyed his lap dances. He probably went home and committed self-flagellation afterword.
While, outwardly, he appeared to be a man of peace, tolerance and forgiveness, internally he seems to be a mess. And, his solution was a burst of violence. Even in the hours before the attack, people who saw him said he seem seemed perfectly normal and relaxed.
I am sure there are labels for people with such deep set inner conflict and contradictions. As a psychiatrist he probably was very familiar with the terms. Ironically, he will probably make a prime case study for mental health text books in the future.
In another era, the treatment for his condition might have been an exorcism.
9:36 am on November 12th, 2009 4
In this case, it is a muslim whose faith apparently conflicted with military service, with horrible consequences.
And it ties in with my own belief that all religions can be dangerous to the military on many levels. I have looked on in dismay at evangelical christians and their attempts to influence military operations and policies.
The Air Force academy is a glaring example of that.
How could we trust any soldier that believes their religion is a higher authority than the Officers and NCOs above them?
Get all religion out of the military.
9:44 am on November 12th, 2009 5
The guy is a Terrorist.
He was in touch with Al Qaeda thru email.
According to his "leadership" during his training, he was Hostile in conversations where Islam was always brought up—by him.
The "burst of violence" was what he felt his God commanded.
He was clearly heard by multipl individuals calling out to his God, "Allahu-akbar", as he fired over one hundred rounds at unarmed American Soldiers.
His deep set conflict and contradictions were between his military duty and his religious duty.
His religious duty won out with the result of thirteen American Soldiers Murdered by his hand.
He was a mess, I agree. A mess of Islamic Jihadist, that erupted in the first Terrorist attack on American soil since 2001.
The reason it was allowed to happen was Political Correctness.
The people that should have and could have stopped it, being too afraid of being seen as anti-islamic to raise any alarm.
The "treatment" for his condition is hanging, followed by burial with pig guts.
His Label is ——— Terrorist.
He may have also been stupid. I've seen some fine women in topless bars, but I don't think it a good place to find the "perfect, pious Muslim wife".
No offense intended to my topless dancer friends.
I'll bring some extra "ones" next time.
Hope I was calm enough for you gentle souls out there.
I would hate to offend those that love this guy so much that they never stop making excuses for him.
He is a Terrorist. He is the enemy.
1:03 pm on November 12th, 2009 6
Any person in the military, (even though joining is voluntary), should be given the option of conscientious objector if they have a change of mind, and feel they can no longer serve their country for whatever reason. A general discharge would be in order.
The military does not need these people or want these people. They disrupt what the military mission is. Fight and win wars.
It would get rid of many undesirables, improve morale, and make for as better military.
5:16 pm on November 12th, 2009 7
The bigger question is why his co-workers and chain of command felt that they couldn't report him for his open anti-American attitude. Oh, and SOMEONE SOMEWHERE knew about his contacts with known international terrorists. These are the same people who will blithely destroy the careers of lower enlisted over weight, divorce, bad credit, and even tattoos.
1:29 am on November 13th, 2009 8
Which suggests that if the story is true, he didn't have a good grasp on reality.
1:57 am on November 13th, 2009 9
POLITICAL CORRECTNESS is the answer to your question.
In the Army it is better to get a DUI than to be thought an anti-islamic.
It is better to be turned in as a wife beater than as an anti-islamic.
Child abuse is easier to accuse someone of than being anti-islamic.
We can not have religious hate in the army, well maby anti-christian would be ok BUT NOT anti-islamic.
If you want to be a member of a PROTECTED GROUP in the Army, join the Muslims.
3:42 am on November 13th, 2009 10
You are all stupid kafir!!!!!!!
I declare membership in the muslims. Give me friday off so I can go to the mosque. Give me special MRE's when I go to the field. Give me a work schedule that is adjusted so I can attend special programs at my mosque. Give me conscientious objector status so I don't have to put my life on the line. Just because I am lazy and perform at a level way below the standard, don't critize me BECAUSE I'M A MUSLIM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ALAH AKHBAR MF!
7:05 am on November 13th, 2009 11
Dude—-
You are too Funny!
The gentle souls here get upset when I show passion. It's ok for lemmy to lose his mind?
But really "kafir"? I'll be sure and let my Black friends know about this. I can hear them laughing at you now.
Funny story: 2002 and I'm at the Mustang club outside Stanley.
My Yoja waitress friend asked about a word she could call "some guy".
I told her that word. The white guy at the table laughed. The black guy didn't know what the meaning of it was. She was so happy because she knew a word that a GI didn't know.
I miss her little skinny butt, and the soju slushie.
CH—-ever had a soju slushie?
The Murderer of Fort Hood is STILL a Terrorist. The Enemy. But I now think death is too good for him. He should live and only be served "ham" and "beacon" for meals. No cnn (communist news network)for him. Only "porn".
Only pig and porn for the rest of his days in solitary.
Send pictures of him eating pig to Pakistan. No koran either. Only smut mags.
3:23 am on November 22nd, 2009 12
When I went through the special warfare school in Ft Bragg as the token Marine from FMFPAC I was put with the Foreign Officers. I guess thats what the U S Army thinks of the Marine Corps, hehehe.
I smelled all kinds of wierd ass crap each night I came home to study. I was getting bored, so I decided to stir the pot. Since out in 29 Palms I had already taught classes on desert warfare and Islam I decided to advertize a discussion on the differences and similarities of Christianity vs Islam. The base chaplain came to see me and read me the riot act. Well, the base would not endorse but did not stop me from doing this for 4 consective Friday nights. It was NEVER attended by any Christians, but about 35-40 Arabs from Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt were all there. These discussions went on for 5 hours per night and at times I thought they were going to kill me. I have never heard so much violence and hate directed towards me that could only be somewhat equal to the Obama Messiah contingent.
Islam is a political system that was won by the sword and will not rest till world domination. Ironically the Dutch, American and British oil explorers gave them this power to corrupt rulers of the arab world.
The rest has been down hill. The western world has mishandled arab muslim immigrants ever since. No where do they integrate into society. Rather, they get a certain number in their european and american neighborhoods and then try to take over. They are built on a lie from an Angel…..An angel from the pit of HELL!
1:11 pm on November 22nd, 2009 13
I can't imagine why your discussion group was so hostile towards you. I wonder what the Army Chaplain's problem really was?
There are a few other things I would like to learn. How did you qualify to teach a course on Islam? Was it part of the Marine Corps curriculum? Did you teach yourself? Was it an official class for Marines? How was it received by your Marine students, especially the Muslim ones?
Twenty years ago, I bought a book titled, "The Struggle Within Islam: The Conflict Between Religion and Politics," by Rafiq Zakaria. It was a difficult read. Too many difficult to pronounce names. It's not very chronologically organized. It jumps back and forth in time. It covers the development Islam and the people of interest in almost every country that has a significant Muslim population. It has 30 pages of end-notes and 14 pages of bibliography. I have used it as a handy reference book over the years. I whipped it out when Iraq invaded Kuwait and again on 9/11.
Before reading it, I knew the basics. I knew the situation in the early days of Islam, with the dispute over who should lead Islam that resulted in the feud between Sunni and Shia. What I didn't know before was how politics and nationalism influenced the varieties of Islam we find around the world. The main thing I learned from the book was because the Koran specifies certain rules for social order and justice, many of it's followers believe that, by definition, Islam must be the basis for a complete system of government. Most of the struggle come from the issue of separation of mosque and state.
If there ever was a deal with the devil made, it probably occurred in the early 20th century. Then, Abd al-Aziz b. al Sa'ud, the leader of a tribal clan on a mission to reclaim its family's ancestral kingdom, struck up alliance with Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab, the zealot leader of a puritanical Islamic sect that came to be known as Wahabbis. (I told you there were difficult names) Together, they were able to conquer and consolidate what is now Saudi Arabia. To this day, the family of Saud honors its indebtedness to the Wahabbis, even though spawns of the Wahabbis have turned against the family for corruption and compromising with infidel. Bin Laden is one of those spawn.
Wahabbi influence spread from Saudia Arabia on a mission to take down any compromised or compromising governments in Muslims countries, which to them was any secular government. Turkey and Egypt were early targets. Bin Laden's mentor and partner in crime, the Egyptian Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri, was a convert to the Egyptian version of Wahabbism. Having read the book, I was immediately skeptical of the claims that Sadam and allied himself with Al Qeda to commit the 9/11 attack. Sadam was on their hit list and they don't compromise. I wonder if members in our government had read this book or others like it, that thousands of lives and billions of dollars may have been spared.
I do believe the military should be doing more to educate the troops on the subject of Islam, but I don't believe it should be the kind of education you are offering.
2:48 pm on November 22nd, 2009 14
I recommend reading this book:
http://rokdrop.com/2009/04/20/rok-drop-book-revie…
Iraq did have some Al Qaeda connections, but the Bush administration went to war with Iraq not because of these connections, but to send a message to state sponsors of terrorism that it was no longer business as usual and Iraq was the easy target. Iraq was no where near a state sponsor of terrorism as Syria or Iran but the administration felt like they had a better pretext to overthrow Saddam because it was a "slam dunk" that he had WMD. We all now know how that worked out.
4:50 pm on November 22nd, 2009 15
I had taken a grad course by a Prof Phil Parshall-Phil Parshall has served as a missionary in Muslim nations for forty years.He has graduate degrees from Wheaton Graduate School, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, and Fuller Seminary, and fellowships with Harvard and Yale Universities.Among his other books on Islam are Bridges to Islam and The Cross and the Crescent.
This was just prior to Desert Storm when I had return to the staff of the 7th Marine regiment in 29 Palms, Ca.
Students were combat Marines, tankers, infantry and artillary.
Chaplain didnt want anyone making waves. Interesting things I found out from the muslims officers:
They love the teachings of Christ, but none could tell me one thing Jesus said. They see the Apostle Paul as a polluter of the sayings of Christ, kind of like a jewish conspirator, double agent. Hmmm, I guess they have seen too many James Bond movies. I said Paul working for the Jews? Let me see, beaten, imprisoned, shipwrecked, and kicked out of one city after another by the jews. Not exactly a life of a James Bond.
Christianity started as an illegal religion for the first 400 years spread by love and grew faster then than anytime since. Islam started with the sword, forced into the populace with a detailed tax structure. They tolerate other religions ONLY when it is for their own advantage.
I love watching them in Thailand with muslim men walking in t shirts, sandals, and shorts. Their wives with those hot steamy portable black tents covered from head to toe walking 6 paces behind their husbands.
I now teach the DoDDs curriculum which covers the Rise of Islam between the fall of Rome and the Crusades each year.