There is a difference between a run of the mill muslim, who on the whole do not cause trouble and the jihadist/islamist types – they are as bad as & deluded as the BNP if they think they are going to get their way in this country.

I’m a secularist, I have a problem with our head of state also being head of the church…Should I move out because I don’t agree with all of the ways in which out country is run? there are many people that I would just love to emigrate, but that is not going to happen either…

Honestly, I love & defend freedom of speech, but I have to say what should be good for me must be ok for other people too – but just because a person is free to say something does not meant that their opinion does not deserve to be derided [he says setting himself up for a fall]

Being a financial burden on western countries is also regarded as jihad. I think they should listen to this guy and leave and the sooner the better before we have war in our lands too.

1. Maj. Hasan was not a peacenik who objected to all wars, but only to wars against Muslims. As I mentioned in my earlier comment, were there to be a policy of granting a conscientious objector status to anyone solely on the basis of their religion, it’d be a dumb policy indeed. I am not even sure if it’d be constitutional.

2. Maj. Hasan declared no religious preferences at the time of his recruitment. From the Wall Street Journal:

… the military “Officer Record Brief” of Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, the suspect in the Fort Hood shootings, said he had “no religious preference” and didn’t identify him as a Muslim.

3. And, today from the Washington Post:

The Army psychiatrist accused of killing 13 people last week at Fort Hood, Tex., did not formally seek to leave the military as a conscientious objector or for any other reason, an Army official said.

None of this excuses the U.S. Army and the FBI from failing to read the alarm signals early on, I agree, but knowing how government bureaucracies work, I am not surprised. And, I am even less surprised that this should happen in an army under pressure to recruit and retain Muslims, for political and not so political reasons. Nonetheless, I still believe that conflating the Army’s omissions with the “triggers” for Maj. Hasan’s killing spree is a stretch.

A chilling question, however, is: was this guy ever involved in any psychiatric evaluation of the recruits for highly sensitive American military installations?

“Army officials at the Pentagon said that Muslim soldiers who felt their religion prevented them from fighting in Iraq or Afghanistan could claim conscientious objector status and seek noncombat assignments in the U.S. But they weren’t aware of any Muslim soldiers who had done so.”

It was reported in UK press that this loon had tried to buy his way out but had not been allowed.

Simply ststing you have the right to “claim” such a status and “seek” noncom assignments doesn not guarantee that such a claim will be recognised or indeed such an assignment give.

Far be it from me to suggest there’s potentially a political motive for claiming no knowledge of any such request.

Furthermore , the function of the army paying for a degree education is to effectively lock highly qualified personnel into problem positions for a known period of time. Its not designed to be a cheap loan so I could understand a possible military reluctance to allow people to buy themselves out easily.

I know of one chap in UK who was funded through his medical degree by the air force who was able to buy himself out BEFORE commencing his post.

I remain openminded about the “triggers” for this guy’s actions. In no way do I seek to minimise the effect of his religion in underpinning his state of mind, however I do question the following

#1 Did such a request to buy himself out exist?
#2 What was the stated reason for a requested buy out of service if it actually existed?
#3 What was the official response?
#4 What risk assessment was taken in regards to potential affect on state of mind and possible consequences?

A glib one liner from the pentagon stating “they were’nt aware” is insufficient in my view.

I stand by my original posting.

Of course, I meant: help Islamists emigrate away.
Differentiating between a private – if irrational – belief system and the ideology of political islam and shariah.

My abject apologies to all those muslims who actually believe in the religion of peace, and who are willing to obey our laws and contribute to our society.

Well, I hope ‘incomprehensible’ is not where the matter ends although this is where it started right after the shootings.