Terrorism

I hope everyone has taken a few moments to collect themselves after that spectacular finale. Midway through, I was a bit worried as the episode was beginning to seem more like a series finale than a season finale. However, the last 15 minutes provided everything a good finale should: suspense, murder, a love triangle (quadrangle!), a drug overdose, break-ups (bonus points for calling off an engagement), a conniving friend, heart break, a parent finding their child unconscious, unplanned pregnancy, a declaration of “never speak to me again” followed by a quick hang up, an engagement, a serious accident (plane instead of car, way to go big!

Five weeks after the Sept. 11 attacks, Osama bin Laden publicly commanded his foot-soldiers to ramp up the violence against American civilians. But five weeks before his death, he privately instructed his lieutenants to refrain from killing any civilians. Did the world's most notorious terrorist have a moral awakening and grow soft? Hardly. His unheralded tactical shift was purely strategic. This month, the Combating Terrorism Center at the West Point Military Academy released 17 declassified documents that were seized from bin Laden's Abbottabad, Pakistan, compound in the targeted killing last year.

Five weeks after the Sept. 11 attacks, Osama bin Laden publicly commanded his foot-soldiers to ramp up the violence against American civilians. But five weeks before his death, he privately instructed his lieutenants to refrain from killing any civilians. Did the world's most notorious terrorist have a moral awakening and grow soft? Hardly. His unheralded tactical shift was purely strategic. This month, the Combating Terrorism Center at the West Point Military Academy released 17 declassified documents that were seized from bin Laden's Abbottabad, Pakistan, compound in the targeted killing last year.

With a full math and science scholarship to the Johns Hopkins University and accolades for his writing, Howard County's Mohammad Hassan Khalid seemed ready to continue the American dream his father embarked on years ago when he brought the family from Pakistan. But instead, on Friday the 18-year-old Khalid became one of the youngest people ever convicted in federal court of conspiracy to aid terrorists. He could receive up to 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine at his sentencing, which has not been scheduled.

For the past few days, I've watched commentators on both the left and the right examine and analyze the reaction of the "American street" to the news of the death of Osama bin Laden. Many of those who gathered at the White House and other places of national significance have been college and university students. It is an error to compare these spontaneous demonstrations with those in the Arab world following the attacks of 9/11 or to insinuate that such demonstrations by young people were simply expressions of over-excited youth.

Those who keep statistical records on the subject report that about 95 percent of terrorist incidents in this country are perpetrated by non-Muslims. Yet U.S. Rep. Peter King wants us to believe that his concentration on the 5 percent is justifiable and that vilifying an entire religious group because of the actions of a few of its members is justifiable, too. Further, he believes that critics of this action are guilty of mere "political correctness" — such a convenient whine when defending one's bigotry!

Thank you for your editorial concerning lapses in security that resulted in the Christmas day airline bombing attempt. I was chagrined by the GOP reflex response laying blame on President Obama, and suggest that in constantly attempting to bring down a duly elected sitting president for every imaginable selfish reason, irresponsible congressional Republicans can be as great a danger to the strength of this nation as any possible enemy terrorist organization...

In the wake of Sept. 11, there were many over-reactions. As a result of some of them, our hard-won constitutional rights were eroded. There were also attempts to gain partisan political advantage by claiming to be tougher on terror than the other guy. Unfortunately, some of that kind of dangerous over-reaction and game playing is still happening. A phony problem has been manufactured, and the solution created to solve it would damage all of our rights and undermine our legal system.

In what was described as an act of terrorism, a Nigerian passenger attempted to ignite an incendiary device Friday aboard a Northwest Airlines flight from Amsterdam to Detroit as the plane began its approach for landing, federal officials said. The plane landed safely shortly before noon. The suspected would-be bomber suffered burns as the result of his attempt, and two of the other 277 passengers reported minor injuries, authorities said. FBI agents were investigating the incident, which a White House official said was thought to be an attempted act of terrorism.

The debate about the location of a mosque in New York City has reached a point beyond ridiculous and has become a dangerous example of the intolerance of American citizens. Equating an entire religion with terrorism is ignorance and bigotry. Think back several years ago when the federal building in Oklahoma City was bombed by Timothy McVeigh, a man who was raised as a Christian. I don't recall any outrage or debate about the proximity of Christian churches to the bombing site. I don't recall anyone stating that Christian churches near the site would be an insult to the memory of the people who died there.

McDaniel heads into Friday's semifinal against Washington in the Centennial Conference tournament on a five-game winning streak. And for the last four games, senior Brad Motley has been the primary goalkeeper. The Fallston native and graduate replaced sophomore Christian Dallmus as the starter after the Green Terror's 6-5 overtime decision against Franklin & Marshall on March 31. According to coach Matt Hatton, an injury Dallmus - who had started the first 11 contests - suffered during the week of practice after that win opened the door for Motley.

One semifinal of the Centennial Conference tournament pits a pair of familiar faces as No. 1 seed Washington meets No. 4 seed McDaniel in Chestertown, Md., on Friday. That familiarity, unfortunately, hasn't bred much success for the visiting Green Terror, which has dropped the last 12 contests in the series. “They've had our number for a long time now,” McDaniel coach Matt Hatton said. “I think if you look closely at the rivalry - although it's tough to call it a rivalry when you've lost 12 games in a row - there are a lot of one- and two-goal losses that we've suffered, and this year was no exception to that.

Members of the public may watch the arraignment of self-proclaimed 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four other terror suspects Saturday at Fort Meade, a Pentagon spokesman said Monday. Mohammed and his co-defendants are to be arraigned at Guantanamo Bay on charges of terrorism and murder in the attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people in the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and United Airlines Flight 193. Fort Meade is one of four military bases scheduled to receive a secure, closed-circuit television feed of the proceedings, Lt. Col. Todd Breasseale said.

I was shocked by the brazen disregard shown toward the public byRobert L. Ehrlich Jr.in his recent column on the war against terror ("Do we have what it takes to beatal-Qaida?" April 27). Mr. Ehrlich characterizes peace groups as placating and ignoring "those whose primary goal it is to terrorize and destroy the world. " This claim is baseless. These groups simply want a more just and fair world where America is respected instead of hated. Yet Mr. Ehrlich goes on to declare that Americans are "lazy" and "withdrawn" in "the absence of organized, direct threats.

Members of the public may watch the arraignment of self-proclaimed 9/11mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four other terror suspects from Fort Meade on Saturday, but seating for the video feed will be limited, a spokesman for the Army base said Tuesday. Mohammed and his co-defendants are to be arraigned at Guantanamo Bay on charges of terrorism and murder in the attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people on Sept. 11, 2001. The proceedings are scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. Saturday.

McDaniel's 12-10 victory over then-No. 13 Gettysburg Saturday produced two positive results. It snapped a 17-game losing skid to the Bullets and put the Green Terror in position to make the Centennial Conference Tournament for the third time in four years. If McDaniel (8-6 overall and 4-3 in the league) can beat Swarthmore (6-8, 2-5) this Saturday, it will finish the season in fourth place and clinch the final spot in the tournament. The Green Terror can qualify for the tournament if Haverford (5-8, 3-4)

Last week, a man named Joseph Stack set his Texas home on fire, stole a single-engine plane and intentionally crashed it midday into Austin's Echelon Building, where the local Internal Revenue Service offices are located. Mr. Stack left behind a lengthy suicide note complaining about the U.S. government, and particularly the IRS. His strongly populist letter directed anger at the powerful and wealthy often echoed by liberals. But Mr. Stack's letter was mostly full of conservative rage against the "tyranny" of government taxation.

Members of Maryland's congressional delegation praised the U.S. raid in Pakistan that led to the death of Osama bin Laden on Sunday, but many members also tempered their optimism by cautioning that the war on terror will continue. While expressing hope that bin Laden's death would bring closure to the families of those killed in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, lawmakers also said the threat of terrorism remains real and cautioned the public, in the words of Rep. Steny H. Hoyer, to remain vigilant to "confront the national security threats we face.

McDaniel ended years of frustration and heartbreak with Saturday's 12-10 decision against Centennial Conference foe Gettysburg. The win was the Green Terror's first against the Bullets since 1997. “When you play in this conference, you get to play against teams like Gettysburg every year, and Gettysburg has been one that we've been chasing since I've been here, which is going on nine years now,” coach Matt Hatton said Tuesday morning. “They're a class act, they're well-coached and very talented.

A Laurel man was indicted by a federal grand jury Wednesday on a charge of attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization. Craig Benedict Baxam, 24, is accused of trying to travel to Somalia last year to join al-Shabaab, an al-Qaida linked group that U.S. officials say is responsible for assassinations, suicide bombings and other attacks on the central government, civil society leaders, aid workers, peace activists and journalists. Baxam, an Army veteran who served in Iraq, was detained by police in Kenya in December and interviewed there by FBI agents.