Islamic Terror: Lessons From the London Attack

The barbaric attack in London near the iconic Parliament building was followed by the usual outpouring of sympathy.  Governments worldwide, including the U.S., expressed solidarity. Perfunctory tributes for the victims rolled in.  However, the moral outrage was eerily muted.

After the world was shaken by the events of September 11, 2001, leaders and ordinary citizens were angry.  They demanded retribution for the senseless killing of 2,996 people.  Since that tragedy, each new assault is greeted with somber public expressions before fading from the world's spotlight.

It raises a troubling question: Have world leaders and global citizens been desensitized to terrorist killings? There appears to be an almost grim acceptance that extremist violence is now a normal part of society. Resignation has become the enemy of action.  

No democratic society should ever, ever tolerate terrorism as the price of freedom. Once a country concludes it is helpless to defend itself against the evil of terror, then it invites violence. Soon the terrorists will rule the nation through fear and intimidation the way drug cartels control Mexico.

Clearly, world leaders are tiring of the seemingly endless battle against terror.  Too many believe threatening words are a substitute for a military campaign to eliminate ISIS and its Islamist-inspired offshoots.  It is not working.  The terrorists are winning.  Something must change and soon.

Another clear lesson from the London attack is the ongoing failure of counter-terrorism intelligence organizations to deal with the threat.  In the days after the brutal siege, it was learned that the killer Khalid Masood had an extensive criminal record and was once investigated for extremism.

Despite his past, Masood was not considered a threat by British intelligence. That has become a familiar pattern after each terrorist ambush both in Europe and the United States.  Violent criminals with jihadist backgrounds are escaping detection because of inexplicable intelligence bungling.

For example, the thug who murdered 50 people and injured 53 last year at an Orlando gay night club had been "on the radar" of the FBI since 2013.  The perpetrator  Omar Mateen had made inflammatory comments about terrorism to co-workers and surfaced in an FBI investigation in 2014.

It was a similar scenario in the San Bernardino slaughter in 2015 when a man and a woman gunned down 14 and wounded 22 in California.  The duo, Syed Farook and Tashfeen Malik, had contacts with at least five people under FBI investigation for possible terrorist activities.

In the aftermath of the 2015 carnage in Paris, investigators discovered the mastermind of the massacre Oussama Atar had been arrested and imprisoned by the U.S. in Iraq in 2005.  He was incarcerated in three different prisons, but was freed for humanitarian reasons to return to Brussels.

Intelligence impotence is a disturbing pattern that must be reversed if future terrorist attacks are to be prevented. In their defense, counter-terrorism officials are always quick to point out how many plots have been foiled.  However, even one murderous rampage is one too many.

Terrorism demands a swift and lethal response, supported by a robust and effective intelligence effort designed to keep the world safe. Public indifference to the massacre of other human beings is the kind of defeatism that will undermine a country's freedom and embolden its enemies.

Islamic Terror: Obama's Lasting Legacy

Three of the bloodiest terrorist attacks in American history have shuddered the country since Barrack Obama became president.  Under any other administration, there would be a national outcry of righteous indignation over the president's inability to keep America safe.

After the horrific terrorist assaults of September 11, 2001, then President George W. Bush was vilified in the media for failure to prevent the bloodshed and berated by Democrats for his response to evil. For the remainder of his two terms, there were no Islamic terrorist strikes on American soil.

Yet there has been hardly a whimper from Obama's apparatchik media in the wake of the weekend terrorist spree in Orlando, where 50 Americans were mercilessly gunned down. This president should be held accountable for dereliction of his duty to defend America from attack.

Hours after the slaughter, an indifferent President Obama went on national television and tepidly condemned terror. He refused to utter the words "Islamic terror," despite overwhelming evidence the rampage had all the earmarks of an ISIS-inspired genocide.

Within minutes of the president's robotic teleprompter monologue, ISIS boasted responsibility for the carnage at the Orlando nightclub.  An FBI agent at the scene had already acknowledged the Orlando shooter was on the government's radar and was suspected of ties to a radical Islam group.

A member of Mr. Obama's party, California Democrat Representative Adam Schiff, who serves on the House Intelligence Committee, confirmed that a Department of Homeland Security briefing indicated the gunmen murdered in the name of ISIS.

The shooter, identified as 29-year-old Omar Mir Seddique Mateen, was born in New York to parents from Afghanistan.  He was a Muslim, who married a Uzbekistan woman in 2009, before divorcing her in 2011.  The ex-wife accused Mateen of repeatedly beating her.

If there was any doubt of Mateen's radical connection, Orlando police revealed that he called 911 during his massacre to pledge his allegiance to ISIS, the masked goons who decapitate, rape and execute so-called infidels under the black banner of the Islamic State.

The Orlando shooting frenzy has become a familiar scene under Mr. Obama.  On February 18, two Muslim extremists mowed down 14 people in San Bernardino, California.  In 2009, an Army major with Islamic ties senselessly murdered 13 people at Fort Hood, including 12 members of the military.

Under Mr. Obama, there have been other lower profile terrorist slayings. Shootings at military recruiting centers in Little Rock and Chattanooga were the work of Islamic thugs.  Two Islamic gunmen opened fire at a Texas art show.  Two New York policemen were slain by a Muslim.

This president can bury his head in the desert sand but America is under a terrorist siege orchestrated by ISIS. This latest spasm in Orlando comes on the heels of a public warning from ISIS, urging Muslims to launch attacks during Ramadan, the holiest month on the Muslim calendar.

One of Mr. Obama's first acts as president was to officially expunge the words, "War on Terror," from being used by anyone in his administration. In doing so, he forced America to drop its guard. The nation and its intelligence apparatus no longer stand on full alert, but bow to political correctness.

As a result, America has become more vulnerable to terrorist eruptions on its home soil.  Mr. Obama owns sole responsibility as commander in chief, sworn to protect America against all enemies, both domestic and foreign.  By any measurement, he has utterly failed to carry out this duty.

His so-called campaign to destroy ISIS is laughably inept.  The terrorist group has spread its tentacles across the globe while the president has dithered, kowtowed and begged for a coalition to defeat the enemy. Without American leadership, ISIS will never be extinguished from the face of the Earth.

This weak-kneed president can talk all he wants about smart diplomacy, nuclear treaties and broad coalitions. None of that matters in the war on terror.  If President Obama refuses to act to protect Americans from the Islamic scourge, then he should be impeached.      

Terrorists Winning The War On The West

Brutal massacres of innocent victims in Brussels are grim reminders of the utter failure of western countries to defeat radical Islamic terrorism.  This most recent slaughter comes on the heels of deadly terrorist ambushes in Paris and in San Bernadino, California.

In fact, since the start of the new year there have been 22 terrorist attacks worldwide.  Much of the savagery has been done in the damnable name of ISIS, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.  World leaders have thundered in moral outrage about the carnage, but have done little to halt terrorism.  

America and its European allies have lobbed a few bombs over ISIS-held territory with minor impact. For his part, the U.S.Commander-in-Chief Barrack Obama has struggled to articulate a coherent strategy for dismantling the terror network.  He also has consistently underestimated ISIS.

It is difficult to understand how an enemy with a rag-tag army and unsophisticated weaponry can render impotent the world's powers. Europe and America appear unwilling to stop the bloodthirsty rampage committed in the name of Islamic jihad.  They preach patience without solutions.

Meanwhile, scores of recruits from the west are heading overseas to join this growing menace.  The director of Europol, the European Union's law enforcement arm, recently estimated that as many as 5,000 Europeans left to join ISIS in just the month of February.

Last year the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) surmised there were up to 31,500 jihadists in Iraq and Syria. Recently a Kurdish leader in Iraq put the number at 200,000, labeling the CIA figure rubbish. In actuality, both are guesses.  No one really knows, underscoring the lack of intelligence.

The tentacles of this terrorist organization have spread to 20 countries. In Syria and Iraq, ISIS now controls an area about the size of Great Britain and rules a population roughly between 10 and 12 million. The thugs behead, rape and pillage with impunity in their self-proclaimed caliphate.

Every leader on the world stage calls for a coalition to destroy ISIS.  But no nation, including the U.S., appears willing to accept the command role.  Leadership dawdles, procrastinates and finger points.  The foot-dragging is allowing ISIS to win a battle no one wants to fight but the enemy.

How many more killings will it take to finally awaken the world to this threat to civilization?

No leader wants to say aloud that ISIS can only be wiped off the face of the Earth with a targeted ground and air war.  But that is the truth. Half-hearted measures such as random bombing raids and drone strikes will not deter ISIS one iota.  If it would, the enemy would be defeated by now.

Leadership must convince a skeptical public, especially in the United States. Most Americans (53%) oppose sending U.S. ground troops into Iraq and Syria even as a part of a coalition to annihilate the Islamic scourge.  Mr. Obama also has made it clear he wants no part of a ground campaign.

Despite the reticence, Americans overwhelmingly (84%) view ISIS as a critical threat to security, according to the latest Gallup Poll.  But the public has no appetite for a protracted military clash with ISIS.   Americans want peace and protection without sacrifice.  

Public opinion has wilted the resolve of America's politicians.  They cower at the thought of rallying a suspicious public of the need for military action. Weak-kneed politicians including the president are emboldening Islamic assassins to wage terror without fear of reprisal.  

Strong leadership is needed to convince the world that anything short of a full-scale offensive will not be effective against a determined foe. Great leaders have risen to the task in World Wars I and II. Yet no one on the world stage today appears willing to lead a crusade to eradicate Islamic jidhadists.

It certainly won't be Barrack Obama, who refuses to even identify the butchers as Islamic terrorists. He kowtows to political correctness while lecturing Americans on religious tolerance and ignoring the ISIS genocide against Christians. The man is detached from reality when it comes to terrorism.  

If the world wants to see what good leadership looks like, it needs to gaze no further than ISIS. These monsters have terrorized entire countries, massacred thousands and grabbed bloody headlines all over the world.  Their band of followers are motivated and willing to die for their Islamic cause.

The world can no longer afford to dither in the face of an evil that will never go away unless it is exterminated. Words are no substitute for military action.  War is never a painless undertaking, but in this case, it is the only option if the world wants to rid itself of the radical Islamic beast. 

The alternative is to hunker down and wait for the next terrorist attack. Perhaps, that will become the default policy of the United States, a once great nation that no longer wants to accept the mantle of world leader.

The Night The Lights Went Out in Paris

The City of Light had not seen such darkness since World War II.  Islamic terrorists slaughtered 129 innocent people in a series of coordinated strikes on November 13 in Paris.  The unspeakable horror of that night will never be erased, even in this city which celebrates life on a grand scale.

Calling the attacks an "act of war,"  French President Francois Hollande acted decisively, declaring a curfew and deploying thousands of military troops to secure the city.  That shining symbol of Paris, the Eiffel Tower, was bathed in darkness instead of light.  City life came to a sudden halt.

The tree-lined streets of Paris were eerily silent with no pedestrians in sight.  Sounds of joy that normally echo from crowded cafes and bars were muted. The tense hush reminded many of France's darkest days during the German occupation of France in World War II.

As dawn shook residents from their slumber, small groups of Parisians began venturing into the empty streets.  They snapped photos with their smart phones and posted pictures online as a rebuke to terrorists who hoped to shut down the city.  Resilient Parisians refused to be cowered by murderers.

Their ancestors stood up to the Germans during the occupation.  These spunky Parisians would again show the world they would resist those who wanted to destroy their city and their way of life.

Soon what began as a trickle, turned into a wave of humanity.  Parisians streamed into the streets of their city, hastily erecting memorials to the victims.  They clutched friends and strangers alike as they mourned the loss of so many.  They searched for answers and found none that made sense.

The murderous rampage struck at the heart of the spirit of Paris.  The worst attack was carried out by jihadists at the Bataclan Concert Hall, a legendary venue for rock music. Terrorists sprayed the theater with automatic weapons, snuffing out the lives of 89 innocent victims and wounding 99 more.

The hall is one of many cozy performance venues that dot the city.  It is a temple of Paris nightlife in a city that is fond of live performances, concerts, nightclubs and unpretentious cafes. They even delight in music played by amateur artists who ply their craft in the cavernous subway underground.

The Islamic terrorists' thirst for blood was not satiated by the massacre at the concert hall.  They carried out lightning strikes at a restaurant and two cafe bars, firing indiscriminately at patrons. Small cafes and bars hold an almost reverential place in Paris because they are safe refuges from tourists.

More than 100 rounds were fired inside one restaurant, La Petit Cambodge.  As people scattered for cover, the terrorists kept emptying their assault weapons.  The barrage of gunfire left 15 dead and 15 with life-threatening injuries.  A leisurely dining experience had turned into a crimson nightmare.

The attacks were centered in and around the Eleventh Arrondissement, an administrative district in Paris.  It is home to a mix of young suburban Parisians, expats and newly-arrived immigrants. There is a blossoming nightlife, featuring little bars, restaurants and quirky boutiques.

On the northern fringe of Paris, bomb explosions also shuddered the Stade de France stadium. The field was the scene of France's World Cup soccer triumph in 1998 and has hosted raucous concerts.  A suicide bomber and a passerby were killed by the blasts outside the packed stadium.

As security whisked President Hollande from the stadium, most in the crowd reacted with stunned silence to the explosions.  There was no panic, despite the frantic call to evacuate.  The resolute French filed out in an orderly fashion, although some stayed and milled around on the stadium floor.

As word of the killing spree spread, Parisians sought shelter in their apartments.  Many opened their doors to complete strangers reeling in shock.  Paris taxi drivers shuttled people to their destinations for free. Everyone pitched in and did what they could to relieve the human suffering.

This was Paris at its best.  This city that glitters often has shone the brightest in times of turmoil. Though tourists view Parisians as cold and aloof, they are passionate about their city, their culture and their collective resilience in the face of evil.  No city reflects its citizens like Paris.

The terrorists left a deadly trail of carnage.  But they never will kill the spirit of this city. Ingrained in every Parisian is the will to survive even in the worst of circumstances.  The city will never forget what happened November 13, however, it will emerge united and stronger.

The Undeclared War on the Military

The political hang-wringing has been shameful over what to call the vicious murders of five servicemen in Chattanooga.  No one dares label it terrorism.  Even the FBI employed gibberish to explain that procedural semantics dictated its reference to the killings as "terrorism."

But representatives of the federal crime agency went to tortured lengths to point out that it had no evidence that the premeditated killing rampage was an act of terrorism.  
   
The word-spinning would be almost laughable if this was not such a serious matter. Jihad inspired Muslims are plotting to kill U.S. military personnel worldwide.  This latest incident in Tennessee confirms what most in the intelligence community know.  There is an undeclared war on the military.

The combat is being waged by ISIS, a savage band of terrorists who have publicly called on sympathizers to kill those who wear the military uniform of the United States.  Despite the group's chilling mandate, the president and his government refuse to acknowledge the terrorist threat.

Although its own men and women are being murdered, military service branches have chosen procrastination over action.  The Army and Navy have studied the issue of violence for countless months without unveiling a single plan on how to protect its members.  The dawdling is disgraceful.

There no longer can be any doubt about the ISIS-motivated campaign to slaughter as many members of the U.S. armed forces as possible. The bloody carnage in Chattanooga was the work of a 24-year old Muslim who had been radicalized.  He left a trail of telltale signs all over social media.

Official reports emerged that the cowardly killer conducted Internet searches on martyrdom for several days prior to the shootings. Writings unearthed by investigators revealed the Jihadist was "displeased" with the U.S., particularly its former war on terrorism.

Within days of the Chattanooga massacre, police in Britain arrested two Muslim relatives who were plotting terror-related attacks against personnel at the largest U.S. air base in the country.  According to British prosecutors, one of the men was planning to detonate a suicide vest once inside the base.

There was no hesitancy by British authorities to identify the conspiracy as terrorism.

On the heels the arrests in Britain, a pair of ISIS collaborators were arrested in Italy for threatening to carry out a terrorist attack on a U.S. military base in the northern city of Brescia.  An Italian prosecutor said the men planned to travel to Syria for military training to prepare for the siege.

There was no demurral on the part of Italian brass in designating the scheme as terrorism.

How then do you explain the reluctance of the Obama Administration to call slayings of U.S. military personnel the work of Islamic terrorists?

There are some who attribute the denial to political correctness. Others postulate the president is secretly a Muslim.  The opinion here is that neither is correct.  This is about his conceit and the president's all-consuming desire for an inflated legacy.

The president wants to be able leave office touting his record for keeping the country safe from terrorism through dialogue and detente with Islamic nations instead of the use of force.  One of his first acts as president was to expunge the words "war on terror" from official pronouncements.

However, his approach has not made the country immune from Islamic-inspired assaults. Even when the evidence clearly points to terrorist attacks on the home front, President Obama has used deception and weasel-wording to avoid assigning blame where it rightly belongs.  

There can be no other rationale for an administration to brazenly lie to the American people when it labeled the Fort Hood mass murders "workplace violence."  The killings in 2009 were the work of an Army major and Muslim linked to the notorious Islamic terrorist Anwar al Awlaki.

Thirteen people were gunned down and more than 30 injured in a hail of gunfire.  Victims and family members sued the federal government for negligence in 2012 because it dodged legal and financial responsibility for the shootings by referring to it as "workplace violence" rather than a terrorist attack.

Until this president acknowledges the scourge of radical Islam, nothing will be done to protect America's military on its home turf or abroad. His stubbornness and callowness will increase the danger to those who serve the country while emboldening the enemy to launch more attacks.

The President of the United States has a sacred duty to safeguard those who voluntarily answer the call to protect the country.  If Obama is not willing to confront the enemy attacking the military, then Congress must step into the breech, demanding the president fulfill the duties of his office.

A country that won't protect its armed forces is a nation in moral and political decline.

The Cowards in the Media and The White House

After the barbaric murders of staff members of a French satire weekly, the American news media and its president issued perfunctory expressions of outrage.  But their words were followed not by action, but by silent surrender because they were intimidated by Islamic extremism.

Big Media and its prophet Barrack Obama chose the coward's path instead of taking a courageous course.  It was a shameful performance that leaves every American wondering if free speech is no longer cherished in the nation that enshrined the principal in the First Amendment to the Constitution.

After the bloodbath in Paris, leading American news media outlets went to great pains to show their solidarity with the murdered French cartoonists and journalists.  However, none were willing to print or display the controversial cartoon of the Prophet Mohammad that ignited the Islamic outrage.

They were frightened into submission by the Islamic assassins.  The offending cartoon appeared on a few online sites, but it was banned from The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Reuters, the Associated Press, The Boston Globe, ABC, NBC and most other mainstream media outlets.

These pious hypocrites, who have no problem mocking Jesus or God, were muzzled by political correctness and cowardice.  The editor of the Philadelphia Inquirer spoke for most media organizations with its fainthearted claim that it was a bad idea to run a cartoon "gratuitously insulting" Muslims.

Some media outlets, such as the gutless Financial Times, went so far as to blame the French satirical paper for baiting French Muslims with its reckless portrayal of Mohammad.  It seems freedom of press does not extend to depictions of Islamic leaders.

Yet this same pack of journalistic pacifists harrumphed when North Korea vowed to censor the showing of a movie about the country's lunatic leader.  They railed against suppression of free speech and savaged Sony Pictures for pulling the movie, "The Interview" from theaters.

These same charlatans showcase deliberately provocative photos and cartoons of those who protest abortion, same-sex marriage or gun rights.  They insult Americans who want to pray in public.  They ridicule displays of crucifixes, the Ten Commandments or the bible.  

But they won't cross the line when it comes to the Muslim Prophet Mohammad.  Americans have a right to view the cartoon that led to the slaughter of innocents and make up their own minds about its decency.  Instead, the spineless media caved and let terrorists dictate journalistic standards.

The partisan media's sympathizer-in-chief President Obama spoke about the brutal killings with all the passion of a person discussing a neighbor's unsightly yard sign.  In his monologue delivered for the benefit of television cameras, not once did the president use the term "Islamic terrorists."

This president has an aversion for mouthing the words "terrorists" and "Islamic" in the same sentence much less linking them together.  Yet even the news media referred to the cold-blooded killers as "Islamist gunmen" or "Jihadist terrorists."

But President Obama refuses to acknowledge the threat of Islamic extremists who are spreading terror throughout the world. No country can win a war against the cancer of religious-inspired violence unless it first recognizes the enemy.  The world's adversaries are Muslim fanatics who kill in the name of Allah.

In Obama's world view, terror doesn't exist.  These acts of violence are manifestations of the past mistakes of the United States.  It's sheer utter nonsense.  But it helps explain why America is no longer seen as the defender of democracy and the scourge of evil.

Americans are stuck with a president who is afraid of offending Muslims and a media that values advertising dollars and nothing else. As a result, in a moment of history when America could have stood for its values, instead the nation's leader and his media cowered to blood-thirsty thugs.

The hooded terrorists have been allowed to kill free speech in America.  Shame on President Obama.  Shame on the news media. Shame on any American who remains silent about this affront to freedom.