re: #1 researchok

I have no issue with the hearings. Anything we can do to root out terror from anywhere in our society is OK by me.

My issue is with King.

If his motives were pure he would have made sure the hearings were held behind closed doors. The fact that he wanted a circus speaks to his real motives.

Also, Ellison has no business validating the hearings, irrespective of what he has to say.

This is all a sham.

It is indeed a sham and King is fooling no one with half a brain. First of all because, as you mentioned, he’s is making a circus of it instead of doing it behind closed doors, and second of all because of the list of controversial people he’s attempted to have speak (all of which he’s had to back off of except for Jasser, the token “moderate” Muslim). I’m convinced he’d gladly let Geller, Spencer and Gaffney speak if he thought he could get away with it. His numerous negative comments about Muslims haven’t helped (even when he follows them with disclaimers).

As for Ellison, he probably feels like he’s the lone member Congress who will try to defend the vast majority of law-abiding Muslims from being lumped in with extremists, so I’m not going to fault him for that any more than I would fault a Catholic, Jewish, or Mormon congressman for trying to do the same if the shoe was on the other foot.

As for having hearings, of course we should do anything we can to root out terrorism in our society. I don’t know of any sane person who would argue otherwise. I’ve never personally heard an American Muslim complain that our government shouldn’t do whatever it can (within the bounds of the Constitution) to protect Americans—including American Muslims—from terrorism.

As far as I know, there are no bombs, bullets, biological, or chemical weapons that are capable of distinguishing between Muslim & non-Muslim Americans when they’re unleashed. I know the 9/11 attacks sure didn’t spare Muslims that were in the buildings, and terrorists overseas have shown they have no compunctions about slaughtering fellow Muslims there as well.