Free Speech Rights and Hasan

In the news today, it appears that free speech rights prevented the authorities to deeply investigate into Hasan's (the terrorist who attack at Fort Hood) emails. He apparently sent emails to an imam (a person in an Islamic leadership position) seeking "spiritual and religious guidance." These emails were discovered, and were sent to the authorities including the Department of Defense, however little was done, because they didn't want to be "crucified" by investigating further, and it didn't seem like religious guidance was a big deal. Some people have wondered if that Hasan was treated lightly because the military and government didn't investigate this as much. However, investigators don't have any evidence that he was treated lightly.

Also, Religion plays a role, however big or small is to be debated, in this shooting. He apparently yelled God Is Great in Arabic. Some people feel that his religion has nothing to do with the crime he committed, while others believe that it played some role.

Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, an anti gun advocate, claims that guns were the driving factor of the attack. He feels that America loves guns so much that we see them on a daily basis. The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence feels the same. They think that the solution to gun violence isn't to arm more people with guns.

My Opinion: (Oh no!) I feel that Hasan committed a terrorist act, even though he isn't a "terrorist" in the traditional stereotype of "belongs to the Taliban or other such group." I feel that he was wrong in doing this and that his punishment should be carried out to the fullest extent of the law. I feel that the government didn't want to do much because of what happened when "We the People" heard of "wire tapping." People forgot that it was for our safety. In this case, the emails should have been looked at more closely. If it came to nothing, great. If there was something dangerous in them and it was dealt with then, it might have saved some soldiers lives and wounds. It would have saved the families of the soldiers a lot of heartache and stress. I don't know if Religion was an aspect of it, but I do feel that he is a radical, not a peaceful Muslim. If people are so into gun control, and so against guns, then how come cities that ban them have a higher crime rate than cities that don't ban guns. I think there should be rules to get guns, but it shouldn't be extremely regulated or banned. I know that if I was a robber and I wanted to rob a house, but I knew that there was a gun in the house and that the owner could use it well, I would probably not go there. However, if there was no gun at the house, I would be more inclined to go rob it. Even if you ban guns, there are still ways to kill people. That won't change. I also feel that the media has been very "politically correct" in reporting this story. Since when is doing something this awful just a "post-traumatic stress disorder?" This is an act of terror and violence. If it's just post-traumatic stress disorder, then how come I don't go crazy and shoot people right around finals time? If I did that, I would be arrested and thrown in jail. The media needs to be not so politically correct and report the news.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/11/10/coverage-fort-hood-shooting-press-dodges-religious-component/

Yes, I did get that article from Fox News.
David Webb