Open Borders' Inevitable Result

Terrorists and Their Supporters Live among Us

• It is feared that there are more Islamic “sleeper ”agents already in the U.S., living apparently middle-class lives until called upon to take part in an act of terrorism. For example, hijacker “Abdulaziz Alomari lived in Vero Beach, Fla., with his wife and four children in a $1,400-a-month town house.” (Washington Times, 9/15/01)

• Open supporters of the Taliban live in the Bay Area communities of Hayward and Fremont. “Two weeks ago, Hamid and other Taliban supporters met in the Bay Area with Rahmatullah Hashemi, a visiting Taliban representative who briefed them on events in Afghanistan.” (San Francisco Chronicle, 3/18/01).

• Newsweek reported (2/19/01) that the FBI has investigated Somali followers of Osama bin Laden living in Minnesota for providing substantial financial help to his efforts.

• In March, a federal grand jury indicted a Hezbollah cell in North Carolina which provided material support to the terrorist group.

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Decades of nonexistent borders, criminally permissive immigration and denial of the fact that America has enemies finally culminated on September 11, 2001. Thousands of Americans died because of delusions of a post-national world based on globalist commerce. Political and financial leaders imagined a world where the only zealotry would be the quest for profits. They ignored other agendas, such as religion and culture, at our peril. The ruling elites disregarded the growing desire of radical Islam to destroy the United States and western culture because of the threat they represent to the Moslem sphere.

Numerous signs of danger were ignored by a Congress under the sway of the powerful mass immigration lobby, consisting of cheap-labor business interests and ethnic hucksters desiring more political power for their group. The bombing of the World Trade Center in 1993 should have been a major alert, with six dead and a thousand injured, but the issue quickly faded and the media paid little attention even during the trial of the fundamentalist Islamic perpetrators who were based in New Jersey. In 1998, two American embassies in Africa were bombed within minutes of each other, indicating increasing coordination and sophistication of the terrorists. In those attacks, hundreds were killed including 12 Americans. Just last year, the U.S.S. Cole was nearly sunk by a suicide bomber in Yemen. Seventeen young American sailors died in that case. (See the earlier LTG article written in March 2001 for more.)

In addition, several important studies predicting a terrorist threat were submitted to Congress, but no action was taken. Respected leaders like former Senator Warren Rudman pleaded for more attention to the danger, but he and others were ignored. The prime purpose of the national government, namely to protect its citizens, was sacrificed on the altar of business as usual.

Also distressing, other than the horrific act of war itself, is how political correctness apparently remains in place. Many pundits and politicians refuse to focus on the issues of the border or immigration despite the obvious fact that many of the terrorists were illegally in the U.S. (All had entered legally, according to the Washington Post, 10/5, using business or tourist visas but had overstayed.) We are fervently urged not to act in any way untoward regarding Arabs in our communities.

Earnest commentators stress that Moslems living in America are not guilty while at the same time the news also reports the existence of “sleeper” agents who live ordinary lives in American communities until called upon to participate in an act of terrorism. Hijacker Abdulaziz Alomari lived a middle-class lifestyle with a wife and children in a Florida townhouse until the call came. Then the family was packed off to Egypt once Alomari received word that the time had come.

Because of lax immigration laws and open borders, there are terrorist enemies who live among us. Senator Dianne Feinstein stated that “We know there is [terrorist] cell activity in California... my suspicion is that it is broader than many people think” (SF Chronicle, 9/16). She later emphasized the point (Chronicle, 10/5), saying, “Everyone has to realize that we have terrorist cells in this country, right in the San Francisco Bay Area, even — all over the country. I think you've got to give law enforcement the tools they need.”

The Bay Area is home to the largest Afghan community in America — an estimated 60,000 concentrated in Fremont and Hayward. An area of Fremont is known informally as “Little Kabul” and a $2-million mosque opened not long ago in Hayward. And while many local Afghans do not like the Taliban, the fundamentalist rulers of Afghanistan have their supporters in the East Bay. When a representative of the Taliban toured the U.S. last winter, Najia Hamid of Union City and other supporters welcomed him (SF Chronicle, 3/18/01).

Freedoms Abridged?
There has already been much loose talk in the media about how much freedom Americans are willing to give up. Most do not clarify the line between convenience and Constitutional protections. Others are unclear on the concept of citizen versus non-citizen. The CNN political talk show Capitol Gang had a discussion about harassment of Moslems in America a few days after the attack. In a painful display of political correctness, both conservatives and liberals on the show decried the suspicion placed upon Moslems in the U.S. (even as the CNN broadcast news about “sleeper agents” in the country). Only columnist Kate O'Beirne had the wit to draw the distinction between citizens and foreign nationals.

Abridgement of freedom for foreign nationals would be supported by most Americans. Foreigners are in the country as guests, at the pleasure of the nation: no one has a “right” to be present in America. Unfortunately, we have had open borders for so long that it is difficult for many to grasp the idea of sovereignty and citizenship. Of the many lessons that needs to be learned from September 11 is that the need for the nation-state remains, despite the delusions of globalists.

Follow the Money
It is certainly true that Osama bin Laden is heir to a considerable fortune — somewhere in the neighborhood of $300 million, it is regularly reported. But many sources believe that he does not need to tap his own resources to fund the current spate of terrorism. High on the list of supporters are the nations that fund terrorists, some of which allow terrorists to live protected within their borders.

A disturbing conduit is the network of contributions to charity organizations made by thousands of Moslems in this country and Europe. Some of those organizations do good works while giving money to terrorists. For example, the Holy Land Foundation of Richardson, Texas, funnels money to the terrorist Hamas group which gives annuities to family members of suicide bombers, and the State Department has concluded that Holy Land is therefore sponsoring terrorism (U.S. News, 10/1). In 1998, federal prosecutors in Chicago confiscated $1.4 million from the Quranic Literacy Institute which funneled money to Hamas (Time, 10/8). Bin Laden's chief deputy toured the U.S. in the 1990s to raise funds for terrorist activities, brought by two confessed members of a Silicon Valley terrorist cell (SF Chronicle, 10/11). He may have raised $500,000 which supposedly was for Afghan war refugees.

Charities and religious organizations do not need to reveal sources or the destinations of the contributions. However, it is illegal in the U.S. to give money to terrorist organizations and immigrant groups have already been investigated by the FBI (see sidebar above).

What's to Be Done?
At the time of this writing, the military is amid a bombing campaign to root out terrorists in Afghanistan. This is surely necessary. However, it seems a strange priority for the armed forces to be sent all over the world when there are terrorists in our own country. The immediate threat is here. Why not mobilize the military, perhaps the National Guard, to rid the nation of the many millions who have no right to be here? An unknown number of them are in America with our destruction as their goal — yet there is no broad program to repatriate them.

Also disturbing is the overly broad encroachment on civil liberties envisioned by the Attorney General, criticized across the political spectrum. Actual enforcement of America's borders and immigration law would appear to be a far more profitable strategy than clamping down on citizens' rights.

— by Brenda Walker
 

 
FURTHER READING:

Executive Summary of U.S. Commission on National Security Report
Here is the short version of the important and basic Hart-Rudman report. It predicted the terrorist danger, stating, "The combination of unconventional weapons proliferation with the persistence of international terrorism will end the relative invulnerability of the U.S. homeland to catastrophic attack. A direct attack against American citizens on American soil is likely over the next quarter century." The report was ignored by the media when released, even though the two authors were widely respected retired Senators.

Terrorism: Background and Threat Assessments
The Federation of American Scientists has compiled a thorough collection of terrorism information, reports etc.

60 Minutes: Lost in America
The television news program interviews Rep. Lamar Smith and other experts about the problem with visas, that a substantial number of persons illegally in the U.S. entered legally as a tourist or student, but then overstayed the time limits of the visa. In 2000, 30 million people entered the U.S. on temporary visas and there is no program to track them.

The Coming Anarchy
This 1994 article by Robert Kaplan shocked many with its blunt surmise of the future, but now it seems on target.

An Interview with Robert Kaplan
“The real cause of the attacks is that the terrorists have an existential hatred of the modern technological world, even though they use its toys. And that hatred exists because they see our world as the real challenge to Islam in a way that communism never was.”

The Deep Intellectual Roots of Islamic Terror
The New York Times reviews the politically incorrect history of violence from the followers of Mohamed on the rest of the world.

The Clash of Civilizations
Prof. Samuel P. Huntington got a lot of attention with his book of the same name which predicted that future conflicts would be based on different cultures. This article covers important points.

War on All Fronts
Prof. Victor Davis Hanson has combined his knowledge of the classics with unique examinations of the effects of cultural values in the arena of war, most recently in the book “Carnage and Culture: Landmark Battles in the Rise of Western Power.” He has written a series of articles for the National Review which have been powerful statements about the morality of war in some situations. The archive is here. His article for the American Heritage magazine, The Longest War takes the historical view.

International Terrorism and Immigration Policy
Steve Emerson's Testimony to the House Immigration Subcomittee (1/25/00) is a thorough look at the problem from one of the major experts on Islamic terror. You can watch a tiny-screen version of his PBS documentary, Jihad in America, by clicking on the icon of that name on this page with RealPlayer.

America's Most Wanted Terrorists
The BBC helpfully posted the mug shots and crimes for which the terrorists are sought.

Fighting Terrorism: Lessons from France
A series of terrorist outrages prompted France to enact tough anti-terrorism laws and increase human-level intelligence gathering. French police can arrest and hold a suspect with “association with wrong-doers involved in a terrorist enterprise.”

Osama Admits Guilt
The World Trade Center was a “legitimate target” because Americans there were working for the American system, bin Laden says on a tape circulated for his followers.

Educating the Enemy
Sixty Minutes II examines how many of America's Islamic enemies learned skills used against this country in U.S. universities. Iraqi students, for example, have been sent to study the science necessary to build a nuclear bomb for Saddam Hussein.

'Arab Terrorists' Crossing the Border
The southern border, that is. One Border Patrol agent estimated that one in ten illegals apprehended is a Middle Easterner.

Covering Terrorism
The author of Coloring the News, William McGowan, criticizes the media for continuing to ignore the immigration component of the terrorist attacks. Among other observations, he notes that the press still regularly prints stories about illegal aliens as victims, such as how their receiving drivers' licenses would be beneficial to society.

Buying a Brand-new Identity
The problem of fake IDs (and ease in obtaining them) is spotlighted here. An undercover investigation by Dateline NBC found that it was "incredibly easy" to get bogus identification. A wanted criminal (or terrorist) can slip right through the system if he has fake ID — after all, the authorities are looking for someone with a different name.

Islamic Snuff Films
Is Islam really a "religion of peace"? Films of brutal wartime atrocities in Afhanistan and Algeria have been shown in London mosques for recruitment purposes. Close-ups of bloody carnage are cut with admonishments to kill infidels. Decapitation, slitting of throats, brains splattered — all for Allah.

Islamism Is Fascism
Researcher Daniel Pipes is interviewed and makes known his strong feelings about the dangerous tendencies of extremist Islam. In particular, he warns of groups like the Council for American Islamic Relations and what they have in mind for America. (Interestingly, The Nation columnist Christopher Hitchens has also used the word "fascism" in connection with certain branches of Islam.)

Why Clinton Slept
Will Bill Clinton be remembered as the Neville Chamberlain of the late 20th century? Yes, if Dick Morris has anything to say about it.

Bin Laden's Bay Area recruiter
To get a clue about sleeper-cell types in our communities, meet Khalid Abu-al-Dahab, 37, an Egyptian-born U.S. citizen, Silicon Valley car salesman and confessed terrorist. His specialty appears to have been recruiting Arab-Americans into the al-Qaeda gang for Osama bin Laden, because obtaining terrorists with U.S. passports was a top priority. His close pal in Silicon Valley jihad activities was Ali Mohamed, a major planner in the 1998 bombing of American embassies in Africa.

Where are the sleeper cells?
Cal Thomas asks the right question in a column that has many worrying numbers. Among them are 314,000 visa absconders, at least 100 al Qaeda operatives hiding in the United States and 200-300 Islamic schools in America instructing children in anti-western, anti-semitic hate.

When Cultures Collide — Interview with Prof. Samuel Huntington
PBS ThinkTank moderator Ben Wattenberg discusses the cultural chasms in the world with Prof. Huntington. In 1993 he wrote an article for Foreign Affairs, later to become a book called The Clash of Civilizations, in which he said that ideologies would be replaced with cultures as the source of political identity.

Tunisia's Hopeful Example Deserves World's Examination
Arab development may seem an oxymoronic concept, but pragmatic columnist Georgie Anne Geyer has found some very hopeful signs in the North African nation of Tunisia. Part of the secret has been population control; also an emphasis on education and the emancipation of women. Results include: 80 percent of the people own their own homes; 75 percent are now middle class; poverty has been reduced to only 4 percent.

Muslims Calculate They have the Right to Kill Four Million Americans
An Al Qaeda spokesman performs his special bin Laden math to show that Allah supports the murder of millions, including two million children.

Islam and the West: Can Islam Accept the "Software" of Modernity?
Most Muslims are happy to have the hardware of the West, such as the internet, wristwatches and big airplanes, but are not much interested in the "software" the makes the whole thing run, namely reason, skepticism and individualism. Islam is based on certainty, and many do not want to give that up in order to get institutions like democracy and free speech. Fascinating observations.

Just say no for a while to immigration
Black columnist Stanley Crouch recommends suspending immigration from Muslim countries for a decade, noting, "I am not willing to see American lives put in danger to make an academic point about our history and our ability to rise above xenophobia and religious prejudice." He further recognizes that immigration has historically been economically harmful to blacks.