The last week showed Americans that we cannot be lulled into complacency when it comes to our safety. The ISIS-inspired murder of 14 innocent people on New Year’s Eve and another 35 injured is a vivid reminder that terrorism can strike at any time and anywhere. After four years of open borders that have allowed known terrorists to roam free inside the U.S. and public safety offices that have focused on diversity hires and political witch hunts instead of real threats, it is really no surprise that the NYE attack happened.
But wait, the murderer was an American, born and raised in Texas. He served in the Army, and up until a few hours before he mowed down innocent people, there was no social media footprint to identify him as a deranged follower of ISIS hell-bent on a terror attack on NYE.
All true. So what’s going on? The truth is we may never know. We will need any person close to the murderer who may have noticed something off about his attitude or noted that he purchased an ISIS flag or that he was talking about Jihad to come forward. How was he radicalized? And can we prevent such in the future?
The truth, also though, is that our open borders over the last four years should make us all the more aware of the potential for more terror attacks in the future. In our country, which allows for much personal freedom and protects individual liberty, one of the only ways to prevent these terror attacks in the future is for Americans to adopt the “See Something, Say Something” mantra when truly concerning actions and words come up.
By all appearances, New Orleans’, LA (NOLA) top officials dropped the ball when it came to security. They knew Bourbon Street would be full of revelers, likely many of them out-of-towners who may not have known the area well, and they knew the street should be blocked off for car traffic, which is why they made a weak attempt to do so. Their failure to secure the area from vehicle traffic should haunt Police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick. Unbelievably, Kirkpatrick was one of three finalists to become Chicago Police Superintendent under Rahm Emanuel in 2016. Instead of getting the top job she was hired to oversee the extensive overhaul of the department as chief of the Bureau of Professional Standards and left after only six months then the Oakland job was offered to her.
While we can’t expect police to protect against every madman, we should expect them to mitigate security risks. Given that vehicles seem to be the weapon of choice by these fanatical lunatics, certainly stronger barriers should have been erected on Bourbon Street, a prime target.
Mitigating risks would also include deporting all non-citizens with ties to terrorists. At this point, the FBI or local police should have a number of people on their watch list, like some of the hundreds that showed up in New York City to chant “Intifada revolution” just hours after the madman killed 14 innocents in NOLA.
This FOX News story noted, “Protesters were chanting “Resistance is glorious — we will be victorious;” “We will honor all our martyrs;” and “Gaza, you make us proud.” And “Protesters carried signs reading “Zionism is a cancer,” “No war on Iran” and “End all U.S. aid to Israel,”
In the age of cancel culture, maybe it is these folks who should be shunned by Americans and deported if they aren’t citizens. Why should we let non-citizens and likely quite a few illegal VISA-overstay visitors march in our streets, inciting violence?
By the way, is anybody keeping watch on the radicals that taught folks how to say Death to America at the Teamsters hall in Chicago this past Spring? Did we find out more about those folks? If you missed the story, read HERE.
In the meantime, our schools should take a hard look at teaching world history, religious persecution and the connection to current events.
But, instead of strengthening that curriculum, your Springfield politicians passed bills requiring teaching the benefits of unions, fentanyl education beginning in 6th grade, and allowing for relaxation periods in school.
Good Grief.
One last note, about the Allstate CEO, Thomas Wilson, who put out the tone-deaf video calling for acceptance of others in the wake of the NOLA murders; he is just another out-of-touch corporate elitist from Illinois – a place where business executives bow to Woke-speak and Democrats. He’s programmed to only speak tolerance, which is why he couldn’t speak about the Islamist-inspired evil that clearly happened in NOLA. Just pathetic. If you missed his message, which Allstate took down, the internet is forever, and you can see it HERE.
Then, just hours after the NOLA tragedy, it appears a Special Forces MSG decided to shoot himself and then immediately blow up the Tesla truck he was driving. There is nothing that makes sense in this situation. His family, friends, and members of his unit had no indication that he was feeling suicidal. By all reports, he was good at his job, having earned many awards. With 19 years in service, he had obviously been in many pressure situations our special forces operators find themselves in. But I doubt anyone gets used to it. I have been reading about the emails he sent and messages left on his devices, and given the ease with which things can be manufactured, it is hard to know what is true. Plus, none of it makes sense. How do you shoot your head off with a high-caliber weapon and then blow up the vehicle? Was it perfectly timed to blow up? It’s awful. I’m hoping those who know him best can look back and see if there were any warning signs that may have been missed so we can prevent these tragedies in the future.