A Military Affair
A psychiatrist should maintain a cool persona that can assist those who seek their guidance. So Major Nidal Malik Hassan's attack on Fort Hood have lead Americans to question what transpired on that November morning.
As information continues to emerge on the incident surrounding the shooter's mental capacity, the spotlight shines brightly on the government's handling of a seemingly preventable attack.
Hassan is responsible for killing 13 United States military personnel as well as wounding 29 others. The initial shock of the shooting has mellowed down, however many are turning their attention to Hasan.
The media's portrayal of Hasan further emphasized some of the countries core issues. Because Hasan is a Muslim, Palestinian-American, his religion and race fell right into the media's hands. Rather than using facts and witness accounts to describe the shooter, they focused on Hasan's racial and religious background. However, the media's portrayal eventually revealed Hasan as an extremist whose erratic behavior should have been noticed by the government sooner.
Hasan was born and raised in Arlington, Virginia to parents who immigrated to the US to live the American dream. He was an Army Veteran American who was given numerous verbal warnings due to his behavior.
According to MSNBC, Army personnel labeled him as "paranoid", "disconnected", "aloof", and "schizoid". Most importantly, Hasan had a confirmed link to a Muslim leader Anwar al-Awlaki, strongly suggesting that Hasan was a threat to himself and those around him.
The government and the distinguished officials in the military are partly to blame for what happened on November 5. It is hard to fathom, how domestic terrorism could happen right under the government's watchful eye, and the fact that it occurred on America's largest and most secure army base seems to add more salt to the wound.
The government's lack of accountability exposes how the government was afraid to make a move on Hasan. While his emails seemed to suggest he was interacting with terrorists it seemed this was not enough evidence to dismiss Hasan. It appears the government developed a sudden case of political correctness. The result was infectious and limited their logical reasoning and their decision-making.
Anyone else would wonder why Hasan continued to receive a slap on the wrist when according to Fox News, Fort hood faculty members and many high ranking military officers witnessed first hand accounts of anti-Americanism by Hasan. So, many should ask why Hasan was able to maintain his employment with the army?
The answer is sadly just over perception. The army did not want to be accused of racial and religious profiling for axing Hasan as a psychiatrist. The government did not want to receive the "supposed" bad publicity that would ensue by the discharge of Hasan. So the erratic behavior continued while the government turned their head.
This was not about the great job Hasan did as a psychiatrist for the military. This was about trying to maintain Muslim representation in the army. Once again, the government is all about numbers.
By trying to appease a small percentage, they cost people their lives. Ironically thousands of willing soldiers are discharged every year over their sexuality. How many soldiers have been discharged for being homosexual? According to CNN, the military has discharged more than 13,000 gays, lesbians, and bisexuals.
The government's hypocrisy is so evident it is scary. By trying to fill a quota, they watched an individual fall deeper into mental illness without punishing him. How are we to feel safe when the government cannot handle their own employees? Are we to believe the government is following every threat imposed on America or do they give the terrorist a slap on the wrist like Hasan?
Ultimately, no one will truly know what drove Hasan to kill, but the signs were there. The military did not know how to respond to Hasan so they did nothing. When all is said and done, doing nothing never inflicted such harsher consequences. If the Government does not ask, why should one tell?