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What jihad has cost Americans
by Guy Rodgers
Executive Director
Perhaps you’ve noticed. Every time there’s a jihadist attack, whether
foiled or successful, government leaders, media mouthpieces, Muslim
Brotherhood front organizations, and academic apologists bend over
backwards urging us not to rush to judgment.
They collectively decry “Islamophobia” and wring their hands in fear for
all the Muslims who will now be persecuted by “bigoted” Americans.
It’s so predictable, it’s like watching a bad remake of the movie
“Groundhog Day.”
Perhaps you’ve also noticed that the alleged bigoted wave of Muslim
persecution never comes. If it did, it would be front page news all over
America.
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What you won’t
find on the front page news is the horrific cost in lives, money, and
freedom, that America specifically, and the West generally, has paid—and
continues to pay—thanks to the rising tide of global Islamic jihad.
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Most of us have
some awareness of the cost in lives, from 9/11 to Ft. Hood to the Boston
Marathon bombings.
The direct cost in dollars is tougher to calculate. Since its creation
we’ve spent over $400 billion for the Department of Homeland Security. The
wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have cost close to $1.5 trillion. Throw in the
creation of the TSA; extra costs for security at every level of society;
the costs for Guantanamo Bay and every prosecution of every Islamic
terrorist; and I’d estimate we’re conservatively talking about $2.5
trillion since 9/11.
We’re paying that with our taxes and the national debt we’re piling on our
children and grandchildren.
What’s more, as soon as a jihadist blows up something at one of our ports
we’ll have to implement heightened security and screening measures not now
in place. Ka-ching.
And all these costs don’t include the indirect cost in dollars due to the
recession after 9/11. Hundreds of billions? Who knows? I know my IRA took a
huge hit after 9/11.
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But what about
the intangible costs we’ve incurred? The costs in loss of freedom, rising
fear, and impositions on our way of life?
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- Onerous shakedowns, pat-downs, put-downs, and
invasive imaging at airport security.
- Extra time we have to allow to go through long
security lines at airports.
- Watching the TSA agent throw away your expensive
bottle of perfume you forgot was in your carry-on bag.
- Explosion of public surveillance cameras.
- Extra time we have to allow when attending any
public event where security is considered necessary (such as
sporting events).
- Fear of going to public events.
- That knot in our stomachs when we see an
abandoned backpack in a public place.
- The time law enforcement has to spend preventing
terrorism and tracking down terrorists—time that takes them away
from keeping us safe from murderers, rapists, thieves and vandals.
- Bag searches at theme parks like Disney World.
- Endless intimidation tactics, such as the
persecution of free speech, name calling and threats (“Islamophobe,”
“racist,” “bigot,” etc., etc.). I’m thinking of that wonderful
teacher in Concrete, Washington, whose reputation has been smeared
by CAIR-Washington because she dared to tell the truth about the
Taliban and Hamas.
- Government intimidation, such as reported instances
where government agents (e.g., police), have shown up at people’s
homes to question them after complaints of “Islamophobia.” I wonder
how many burglaries occurred while those police were busy
interrogating innocent people?
- Messing with the minds of our children and
grandchildren thanks to biased and inaccurate public school
textbooks.
- Heightened security precautions for every person
or organization that speaks out against the threat of radical Islam.
For instance, some of our chapter leaders use pen names. Brigitte
Gabriel has been the target of death threats.
- Government surveillance of our websites and blog
sites.
- The NSA (National Security Agency) collecting
phone records nationwide. The justification for this, and it’s
understandable even if disconcerting, is the terrorist threat to our
national security. No terrorist threat, no phone records seizure.
- Banking and financial regulations that impose
often unseen burdens on our ability to engage in financial
transactions. One group of nuns actually had their bank account
frozen because they were suspected of terrorism. Why? One of the
nuns didn’t have her Social Security number and photo ID on the
account!
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In short, the
entire fabric of American society has been dramatically altered by the
rising tide of global Islamic jihad. There is no aspect of our lives that
hasn’t been negatively impacted by this. We have less privacy, less
freedom, more cost, more fear—the inevitable consequence of jihadist
terror.
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And the jihadists
know this. They know their actions are negatively impacting our lives. It’s
part of their strategy to break our will.
I’m not saying Islamic jihad is the only threat that has spawned all of
these changes to our lives. But clearly, it’s the most predominant, by far.
As I assess the incredible price we’re paying for jihad, I’ve grown weary
of hearing how Muslims are being inconvenienced or feel uncomfortable or
feel like their rights are being infringed upon.
Join the club. Every time I have to virtually undress at the airport, I
feel violated and my rights infringed upon.
I’ve lost patience with the complaining about how bad Muslims are being
treated in America, about the price they’re paying.
We’re ALL paying a price. Where’s the sympathy and empathy for us
non-Muslims who didn’t ask for this?
To the degree that Muslims are suffering repercussions, they’re paying a
price for the actions of other Muslims. If they really want things to
change, they can do something about it by going to the heart of the problem
and standing up to the stealth and violent jihadists in their midst,
including their leaders.
- Stop screaming “Islamophobia” and start exposing
all the hate-filled, violent and jihadist literature in the majority
of mosques in America.
- Join together with reformist Muslims and
organizations who are confronting the Muslim Brotherhood and its
alphabet soup of legacy organizations in America (CAIR, ISNA, MAS,
MPAC, MSA, IIIT, NAIT, etc., etc., etc.).
- Start asking why historically open and tolerant
countries like the Netherlands, who welcomed Muslim immigration for
decades, are now experiencing a growing citizen pushback against
that immigration.
- Start putting yourselves in the shoes of us
non-Muslims. We’re paying a hefty price for something we didn’t ask
for and we didn’t deserve.
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And please, no
more lectures about how supposedly “intolerant” Americans are. It’s a
remarkable commentary on the goodness and tolerance of Americans when you
consider the enormous price we’ve paid thanks to jihad, which we’ve
shouldered virtually without retaliation against the Muslim community.
So the next time someone complains to you about the price Muslims are
paying, however that price is defined, nod your head and say “I hear you.
Have you ever calculated the price non-Muslims are paying because of global
Islamic jihad?”
And then spell it out for them.
Who knows? You might change a few minds along the way.
Yours for a safe and free America,
Guy Rodgers
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