Stu Bykofsky: Terrorists who look 'like us'? In JihadJane, that day is here
JihadJane has a message for racial-profiling fans: Nyah, nyah, nyah, nyah, nyah.
JIHADJANE has a message for racial-profiling fans: Nyah, nyah, nyah, nyah, nyah.
JihadJane blew up the notion - never really widely held - that being a blue-eyed blonde should slide you through airport security like grease through a goose while everyone with a Middle Eastern name, a swarthy complexion or a turban should be strip-searched by Transportation Security Administration screeners.
JihadJane is 5-foot-2 American-born Colleen LaRose, accused of recruiting terrorists online and volunteering for a jihad to murder a Swedish artist who had depicted the prophet Muhammad as a dog. A self-described convert to Islam, JihadJane's religious beliefs apparently trumped her democratic ideals.
Those who fought religious profiling always said the day would come when Islamofascists trying to kill us would recruit those who looked "like us" to do their dirty work. If the accusations made against LaRose by authorities are correct, that day has arrived.
Hell, even if the feds don't convict JihadJane, that day is here.
We know, thanks largely to the Internet, that murderous jihadists can recruit globally with a few keystrokes. Since we now know they will recruit Americans who may be white or black or red or yellow, color coding won't work in the fight against terrorism.
In the recent past, the religious zealots who have been led to jihad looked "different" - like unwrapped Army shrink Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, New York subway plotter Najibullah Zazi and would-be Sears Tower bomber Narseal Batiste.
Now, JihadJane sashays onto the scene looking like the Midwest farmer's daughter the Beach Boys sang about. Thus should end any thought of racial profiling.
All the above-named villains have a frightening common element: They are American citizens. Being an American - native-born or naturalized - is no longer a guarantee of loyalty. I suspect we have more potential traitors among us than at any time since the Revolution, when an estimated 20 percent remained loyal to the Crown.
The feds assembled their case against LaRose by using wiretaps and e-mail intercepts, among other means. I trust that they followed correct procedures and got court orders.
Does this amount to the "government spying on its citizens"?
Yes. (Quick aside to Daily Kos: George W. Bush was not president at the time.)
Sadly, provably, some U.S. citizens need to be spied on. But the government must do it legally.
Last month, CIA Director Leon Panetta told Congress he expects a domestic attack within six months.
We can't ignore that we live under a death threat.
Whenever there's a debate about freedom versus security, the "freedom" side can be counted on to drag out a Ben Franklin quote:
"They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."
To me, the key word is the qualifier "essential."
On 9/11, we learned what devastation our enemies are capable of causing. Osama bin Laden and his theocratic thugs have declared war on us. Whether we like it or not, we are at war.
As they adapt their tactics, we must adapt our defenses.
I'll close with another quote from Ben Franklin:
"By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail."
E-mail stubyko@phillynews.com or call 215-854-5977. For recent columns: