Despite the fact it was Islamic extremists that were responsible for the 9/11 attacks and dozens of others, we must use new language to describe the terrorists for fear of offending them.

In the latest move to use politically correct language in our war against terror, the Obama administration has decided that ‘Islamic extremism’ and other such terms are unacceptable.  News came out today that those terms will be removed from the key document that outlines the United States’ national security strategy. 

The effort to correct our vernacular so as to not offend Islamic extremists began soon after President Obama took office.  In March of last year the president decided the term ‘enemy combatant’ was not a term we would use to describe terrorists we capture.  That was soon followed by the decision that the United States was not involved in a Global War on Terror, rather it is an Overseas Contingency Operation. 

It is interesting to note that while we must discontinue the use of the ‘Islamic extremism’ for fear it might offend those in the Middle East, the administration had no problem warning of the ‘threat of right-wing extremism’ last April.  We dare not upset Islamic extremists but it is okay to brand our own citizens with such language.  Interesting. 

Before the administration decides that ‘Islamic extremism’ isn’t an accurate term, let’s take a quick walk down memory lane:

• In 1979 Islamic extremists stormed the U.S. embassy in Iran and took 53 Americans hostage.  They were held in captivity for 444 days.
• In 1983 Islamic extremists bombed the U.S. embassy in Beirut.  60 people lost their lives. 
• Also in 1983, Islamic extremists bombed American and French military barracks in Beirut.  299 people were killed including 241 American servicemen. 
• In 1985, the cruise ship Achille Lauro was hijacked in the Mediterranean.  The Islamic extremists that took the ship killed a disabled American tourist, Leon Klinghoffer, and threw his body overboard.
• In April 1986, U.S. service members again were targeted by Islamic extremists when a discotheque in Berlin was bombed, killing one American. 
• In 1988 Pan Am Flight 103 was bombed out of the sky over Lockerbie, Scotland.  Islamic extremists were responsible for 270 deaths.
• In 1993 Islamic extremists came to our shores and executed the first bombing of the World Trade Center.  Five people were killed, hundreds injured.
• In November 1995 a car bomb set by Islamic extremists in Saudi Arabia killed five Americans and wounded 30 others.
• In June, 1996, Islamic extremists once again targeted our American service members by bombing the Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia.  19 brave Americans died, hundreds were injured.  It is worth noting that the Saudi Arabian government’s investigation blamed “Saudi Islamic militants.”
• In August, 1998, U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania were bombed by – you guessed it – Islamic extremists.  More than 200 people died, thousands were injured.
• In October, 2000 the U.S. Navy destroyer USS Cole was in port in Aden, Yemen when it was approached by a boat filled with explosives piloted by Islamic extremists.  The bomb detonated next to the Cole putting a 40 x 40 foot hole in the ship.  17 of my shipmates were killed and 39 injured. 
• On September 11, 2001, a day which many Americans seem to need prodding to remember, 19 Islamic extremists hijacked four airplanes and turned them into missiles against Americans on our own soil.  2,976 people lost their lives and thousands were injured. 

Mr. President I have to ask, if Islamic extremists aren’t our enemy, then who is?

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• On the net: Obama Bans Islam, Jihad From National Security Strategy Document

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