There seems to be a clear double standard at work in the US military’s information operations; it is apparently perfectly okay, even requisite, to mention the enemy’s religion when we are apologizing for some slight or error, but it is almost always verboten when reporting on the enemy’s actions against us in the name of that religion.
There is something wrong when the US military has time to issue a press release on the destruction of Korans in Afghanistan (we don’t even know who destroyed the Korans, based on the release, but rest assured the US military will be accused of doing it), but in an 86-page report on last fall’s murder of 13 soldiers at Fort Hood, it cannot mention the shooter’s name or note that the attack was carried out by a Muslim terrorist who was inspired by a radical Islamist preacher linked to al Qaeda and based in Yemen.
Lest I be accused of Islam-bashing here, I want to forcefully state that I believe that Muslims are our greatest ally in the war against radical Islamist terrorists. Through US military trainers, I have embedded with Iraqi Army, police, and Awakening forces in Fallujah, Haqlaniyah, Mosul, and Baghdad. I’ve watched Iraqi Muslims fight for their country and heard them describe their horror at what al Qaeda and Islamist terrorists represent. Iraq and Afghanistan will ultimately be won, or lost, by those Muslims who stand against the tide of radical Islamists. I’ve entrusted my life to these Muslim warriors and am proud to have walked with them.
But we must not shy away from identifying who the actual enemy is and what they represent. Political correctness only serves to blind us to the nature of the real threat. US servicemen and Americans deserve far better than the so-called blue ribbon panel that released “Protecting the Force: The Lessons from Fort Hood,” or ISAF press releases apologizing for the destruction of Korans.
Top ISAF leaders are “outraged” over the alleged destruction of Korans. Are any top military leaders outraged over the military’s failure to identify the Fort Hood shooter by name, religious affiliation, or motivation?
