SHORT COMMUNICATION 124
Asleep At The Switch
By
Roger Behra
The recent killing spree by Maj. Nidal Malik at Fort Hood, Texas, that left 13 people dead end more than two dozen people severely injured is a prime example of those in charge not paying attention to their important duties. The ineptitude of the F.B.I. and Defense Department, as well as Hassan’s superiors, is totally inexcusable and very, very unacceptable to say the least. It is a clear cut case of failure to act when all the signs were quite obvious that definite follow-up and action was needed. The lingering behavior of Maj. Hass waved so man red flags that went unheeded.
Maj. Hassan’s behavior was full of contradictions that boiled over with discontent. He felt harassed because of his Muslim faith. He believed the war on terrorism was a war against Islam. He was outspoken on that issue. The give away concerning his behavior was his goodbyes to neighbors and given his belongings away. Lastly, he gave two week’s notice about his apartment.
There was also his computer activity. That revealed he was in contact with a well know radical terrorist Islamic religious a man. The right people had plenty knowledge about, but they did not take action because no terrorism was discussed during the conversations. It was certainly a red flag. Terrorism could have been discussed away from the computer, or with an intermediary.
The terrorism task force looked into Hassan’s background months before the shootings. That gave the military worrisome evidence about Hassan. Their findings revealed Hasan communicated 10 to 20 times in 2008 with radical a man Anwar al-Awlaki, who encourages Muslims around the world to kill U.S. troops in Iraq. So, it is not a coincidence that Muslim, Maj. Hassan, killed 13 U.S. troops in a shooting rampage. Trouble seemed to be definitely brewing.
How could the task force, the F.B.I., and the military people not pay much closer attention and see plenty of handwriting on the wall? They are very much to blame. They should have changed his type of duty or discharged him. All the arrows do point to several red flags that were not taken seriously. A very large group of people were sound asleep at the switch, indeed.
R.B.
11-28-09