I think the part that interested me was the possibility of them criticizing the US policy in Arabic or the Qur’an comment. Even though both can be seen as totally circumstantial and innocent I understand anyone reacting with the “Maybe I should say something” Maybe it’s BS and justification. Certainly there was paranoia and prejudice. What hangs in my mind is the idea that just maybe they made some less than judicious comments, the shit came down and got out of control. On the outside fringe I still accept the possibility that they were hoping for an incident. What makes me doubt that is that they were already seated on the plane, although perhaps they had plan B. To move from their separate seats to speak with each other repeatedly and see what reaction that stirred up. Dam I’m cynical. Perhaps it was to bring attention to a serious issue. Perhaps to help raise money. In the Imams statement he claimed they chose separate seats to help put people at ease. I just don’t get that. Why would that be the perception? If he was thoughtful enough to contact the FBI why not airport security? If I’m planning an event in Nashville I contact Metro not the just the staties. It rings a little disingenuous to me.
I find that unlikely because no other source even mentions it but then again , few seemed all that interested in accurate details.
Com on Tom The point of heightened security means everyone is more cautious and everyone is more inconvenienced. We certainly won’t wait for a direct threat.
The last threat we dealt with this summer was several people trying to separately smuggle various chemicals on board that could be later combined to make a bomb.
Thats why they took my after shave, deodorant and shampoo. Resistance won’t help much after the bomb goes off.
I don’t know why the airline refused to fly them afterwards. My own experiences in customer relations tell me that after the shit starts flying sometimes the damage cannot be repaired. They were detained for hours. How many times do you listen to their outrage and apologize for the inconvenience, before you’re tired of listening and wind up just as angry and frustrated as they are.
I don’t find the US air silence on the subject to be condemning or speaking volumes as someone put it. It could easily be policy to not discuss it until we have some official position.
The reason why the airline isn’t talking: most probably, the imams have retained lawyers-and “damages” are just around the corner! For you leagl types: how do you assess 'pain and suffering" caused by being refused passage on a flight? :eek:
"Muslim religious leaders removed from a Minneapolis flight last week exhibited behavior associated with a security probe by terrorists and were not merely engaged in prayers, according to witnesses, police reports and aviation security officials…Passengers and flight attendants told law-enforcement officials the imams switched from their assigned seats to a pattern associated with the September 11 terrorist attacks and also found in probes of U.S. security since the attacks – two in the front row first-class, two in the middle of the plane on the exit aisle and two in the rear of the cabin. "
First, the actual pattern was for the hijackers in 9/11 was for all to be in first class seats. (A bit that IMHO has been attempted to be minimized by fat cats trying to get back easier access to planes and not to be inconvenienced like everybody else)
Second, this is the Washington Moonie Times padding what was already reported. Also with a “fair and balanced title” of: “How the imams terrorized an airliner”
Third, once again, they were interrogated by the FBI, Police and Airport security, and released. The fears and assumptions were not accurate or exaggerated.
Forth, by pure experience I would wait for a better source, in controversial topics I have caught the Washington Times lying or equivocating too many times before.
So I see now that the meme among the anti-muslim types is that any incident where muslims are singled out for investigation on any flimsy pretext, and not shown to be an immediate danger, is either an attempt to troll for a lawsuit or a ‘terrorist probe of security’.
Furthermore, in this case, according to the esteemed Washington Times, the FBI and/or Minneapolis Police have shown themselves to be thoroughly incompetent, since they let these dangerous terrorists simply walk away to get on another flight. What were these so-called law enforcement agencies thinking?
If the rearrangement of seating by the Imams occured as stated in the update, I would be concerned as well . Six conspicous people travelling together and deliberately spacing themselves like that at the exits is worthy of concern IMHO regardless of whether they are Arab or not.
Of course they may be just concerned about quick evacuation in case of fire.
Don’t forget, if you see a Muslim who is trying to be inconspicuous, report him, because he might be trying to keep a low profile so he can carry out a terrorist attack. However, if you see a Muslim who is making himself the center of attention, you must also report him, because he might be a terrorist using reverse psychology to make you think he’s not planning a terrorist attack.
In fact, if you see any Muslim at all, report him. You can’t be too safe.
Unless the airlines knew this at the time they threw them off their plane, I fail to see the relevance.
I’d also like to know when, exactly, Shahin supported bin Laden. Was it, perhaps, during the same time frame that the US government was supporting bin Laden?
Another opinion piece with items that are likely not true.
It is actually a very sad piece, they are implying all Imams **remain ** terrorists. And I do see the beginning of character assasination to the first elected Muslim sworn into Congress. Oh noes!
You crack me up. You say all the evidence points toward bigotry and when someone offers some that contradicts then it is probably a lie.
The sources you quoted must be true but this one probably isn’t. Why is it so hard to admit that *maybe * that’s *maybe * there were some legitimate reasons for people to be nervous.
Or maybe the Imams were creating a situation. The spokesman for them said they went way out of their way to put people at ease. Not sitting in your assigned seats sure isn’t that.
Note the article mentions several sources. Not just one paranoid passenger who passed a note but a consensus of opinions from a variety of sources.
And one more time, them being released by authorities doesn’t mean what you imply it means. You’re not even close. Those authorities found nothing **illegal **, period. That says nothing about whether or not there was suspicious behavior before the flight. It says nothing about whether or not they were trying to instigate some incident. It is only somewhat relevant to the refused other flights question. The police can pull someone in for questioning and if they lack evidence they release them. Thats not *proof *of innocence or even a strong indicator. Do you finally fathom that important distinction?
You are an idiot. The Washington Times is widely known to be a sack of shit, owned by soi-disant Reverend Sun Myung Moon. Cite. Virtually nobody takes it remotely seriously. This has nothing to do with the content of the article, merely a source with a long tradition of completely biased reporting.
Not just “someone.” The Washington Post. The Post is not a reliable source of information. It’s Rev. Moon’s personal propaganda organ.
Because the reasons given by even the most biased sources for this story are not sufficient to be suspicious of these men! Okay? The people who were nervous about these men have given their reasons, and taking them completely at face value, these reasons are total bullshit. I think that’s been stated about a hundred thousand times in this thread already, so I’m not sure how you missed it.
Aside from the stewardesses, how would anyone else on that plane know if they were seated in their assigned seats or not?
Not Post, Times. (You know that, I know that, everybody here probably knows that or figured it out from Captain Carrot’s post, but just in case somebody missed it.)