Tancredo suggests targeting Muslim holy sites!

From time to time, I come across a story that is so bizarre I'm sure it's a spoof. But then I check the the URL, the header, the source, and am forced to conclude that we're living in bizarre times. The story I'm referring to appeared on CNN's Inside Story yesterday. A U.S. congressman (not Limbaugh, not Savage, but an elected official) suggested bombing Islamic holy sites as a possible retaliation for a terrorist attack against the U.S. One interesting aspect of the exchange is the almost tribal mentality that comes out in the language. There's talk about "we" and "them" as if every American were a fundamentalist Christian ready to attack the Muslim holy sites to destroy the Muslim foe who are all terrorists. I always thought that the Crusades or the Taliban's destruction of Buddhist holy sites were historical events far from the well-swept streets of the Land of the Free, but evidently it just takes a couple bombs going off somewhere, and Americans devolve into a tight-knit fascist tribe willing to offend millions simply to get at a dozen criminals.

Fucking wake up people. If we ever go down this road of attacking large groups of people for being of a particular social or cultural group, all is lost. At that point, there's really nothing to save, win or protect. The people who would consider such attacks are actually just as much our enemies as the people over in Pakistan and Iraq who are blowing up churches. And from a more practical point of view, Osama bin Laden and other terrorists couldn't have ever dreamed of a more powerful recruiting tool than George Bush or Tom Tancredo. If any of you want to march off on the current crusade to protect God and Country, you'll have to do it without my blessing. My idealism for such ventures has been jaded by the lessons of history.






The original article:

DENVER, Colorado (AP) -- A Colorado congressman told a radio show host that the U.S. could "take out" Islamic holy sites if Muslim fundamentalist terrorists attacked the country with nuclear weapons.
Rep. Tom Tancredo made his remarks Friday on WFLA-AM in Orlando, Florida. His spokesman stressed he was only speaking hypothetically. Talk show host Pat Campbell asked the Littleton Republican how the country should respond if terrorists struck several U.S. cities with nuclear weapons. "Well, what if you said something like -- if this happens in the United States, and we determine that it is the result of extremist, fundamentalist Muslims, you know, you could take out their holy sites," Tancredo answered. "You're talking about bombing Mecca," Campbell said. "Yeah," Tancredo responded.

The congressman later said he was "just throwing out some ideas" and that an "ultimate threat" might have to be met with an "ultimate response." Spokesman Will Adams said Sunday the four-term congressman doesn't support threatening holy Islamic sites but that Tancredo was grappling with the hypothetical situation of a terrorist strike deadlier than the September 11, 2001, attacks.

"We have an enemy with no uniform, no state, who looks like you and me and only emerges right before an attack. How do we go after someone like that?" Adams said. "What is near and dear to them? They're willing to sacrifice everything in this world for the next one. What is the pressure point that would deter them from their murderous impulses?" he said.

Tancredo is known in the House for his tough stand on immigration. Mohammad Noorzai, coordinator of the Colorado Muslim Council and a native of Afghanistan, said Tancredo's remarks were radical and unrepresentative but that people in Tancredo's position need to watch their words when it comes to sacred religious sites and texts.

Other blogments...

Washington and the West has a follow-up news article saying that Tancredo "won't back down" and apologize for his statement.

From Liberty Just in Case: Good Lord. What a stupid thing to say. I could care less if he's a Republican, or what conservative credentials he may have, this needs to be withdrawn, and an abject apology made immediately.
We ARE NOT at war with Islam. We are at war with a radical sect of Islam. As Hugh Hewitt says, saying we'll bomb Mecca if we suffer a nuke strike is like the British saying they will bomb the Vatican because of IRA terrorists.

One Hand Clapping and Kokstra's Blog (Dutch) also discuss Tancredo's comment.