The murder of 49 people at a nightclub in Orlando on Sunday by a self-radicalized and very troubled American Muslim points to just how complex the motives are of young men and women who kill in the name of their religion and the murderous regime of Daesh.
Each act of terrorism committed by men and women anywhere in the world usually cannot be attributed solely to Islam. As law authorities delve deeper in the motives of terrorists they find deeply troubled individuals whose unfulfilled lives and frustrations prompt them to lash out at society.
Omar Mateen, the killer of innocent young adults at an Orlando nightclub, is perhaps one of the most complicated examples of a man wrestling with so many demons that his radicalization and pledged allegiance to Daesh almost seems secondary to his motives behind the mass murder.
Mateen, a native-born American, expressed intense undirected anger toward his family, coworkers and acquaintances. He physically abused his first wife. He drank alcohol, forbidden in Islam, to excess. He struggled with his sexual identity. He approached homosexual men using an app that helps gays meet each other. He frequented the nightclub, a favorite of the LGBT community, where he ultimately would commit his murderous rampage.
Clearly Mateen was torn by his desire to engage in behaviors forbidden in Islam — drinking alcohol and his attraction to gays — and following his religion. He was a conflicted man. It can be argued that he sought to radicalize himself and support the objectives of Daesh as a way to justify his acts of murder that allowed him to vent his rage.
The FBI and Florida law authorities have been circumspect in their assessment of what drew Mateen to commit mass murder. President Obama and Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton have been cautious, but outspoken that it’s dangerous and un-American to paint 1.6 billion Muslims with a broad brush due to the acts of one deranged individual.
However, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and the American media are less responsible and seek to stoke fear with simplistic black and white answers to address Mateen’s motives. Trump reiterated his positions that Muslim foreigners should be banned from the US, and stepped up his incendiary rhetoric by announcing individuals who are citizens of Muslim countries with a “proven history of terrorism” will receive special attention while applying for immigration to the US. Trump made no mention of whether terrorist groups in Europe, such as the neo-Nazis, or the right-wing militias in the US should also receive special attention.
Now the American media has grasped a new tidbit that Mateen had visited Saudi Arabia twice — in 2011 and 2012 — and that his trips may have been for terror training.
Here’s a classic example of American media reporting courtesy of Fox News:
“Orlando gunman Omar Mateen’s two trips to Saudi Arabia, one of which was a pricey package that included four-star accommodations and fancy meals, were highly unusual and may have been cover for terror training.”
The article tells readers that Mateen traveled to Saudi Arabia for Umrah, which is a pilgrimage that can be performed at any time. The article points put that it’s “unusual” for a young man to perform Umrah two years in a row and that he may have used one of his trips to travel to Yemen for training.
Naturally, the article exploits the ignorance of American readers of the religious practices of Muslims and what the Saudi government can and can’t do about foreign travel. It’s not unusual at all for Muslims to perform Umrah on multiple occasions. I know of many people to perform Umrah annually.
The “pricey package” reported by Fox News is not pricey at all, but according to the article, cost $4,000, which is about the lowest cost package for any Umrah pilgrim. The Umrah travel agent is required by the Saudi government to provide lodging, meals and transportation. Lodging in the four-star sense in Saudi Arabia is equal to a Holiday Inn Express or Hilton Gardens Hotel in the states. Meals are generally buffets, so “fancy” does not apply.
In addition, Mateen traveled to Saudi Arabia before the Saudi-Yemen war. Saudi Arabia has no authority to prevent travelers from making trips to Yemen or any other Arab country. And to be clear, there is no evidence so far that Mateen traveled anywhere other than Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
Trump and the media want to bolster the argument that Mateen was an agent of Daesh, or at least a sympathizer doing the terrorist organization’s bidding by pledging allegiance to its cause. While Mateen’s mental health and sexual identity has gained wide exposure it doesn’t quite fit the narrative of the media that Mateen was a “radical Islamic terrorist” who “hates American society.”
We don’t know whether Mateen hated America or whether he hated the gay community. He certainly was a part of the gay community. He certainly hated himself.
There is no excuse for wanton murder under any circumstances. Mateen deserves to burn in hell.
Each act of terrorism committed by men and women anywhere in the world usually cannot be attributed solely to Islam. As law authorities delve deeper in the motives of terrorists they find deeply troubled individuals whose unfulfilled lives and frustrations prompt them to lash out at society.
Omar Mateen, the killer of innocent young adults at an Orlando nightclub, is perhaps one of the most complicated examples of a man wrestling with so many demons that his radicalization and pledged allegiance to Daesh almost seems secondary to his motives behind the mass murder.
Mateen, a native-born American, expressed intense undirected anger toward his family, coworkers and acquaintances. He physically abused his first wife. He drank alcohol, forbidden in Islam, to excess. He struggled with his sexual identity. He approached homosexual men using an app that helps gays meet each other. He frequented the nightclub, a favorite of the LGBT community, where he ultimately would commit his murderous rampage.
Clearly Mateen was torn by his desire to engage in behaviors forbidden in Islam — drinking alcohol and his attraction to gays — and following his religion. He was a conflicted man. It can be argued that he sought to radicalize himself and support the objectives of Daesh as a way to justify his acts of murder that allowed him to vent his rage.
The FBI and Florida law authorities have been circumspect in their assessment of what drew Mateen to commit mass murder. President Obama and Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton have been cautious, but outspoken that it’s dangerous and un-American to paint 1.6 billion Muslims with a broad brush due to the acts of one deranged individual.
However, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and the American media are less responsible and seek to stoke fear with simplistic black and white answers to address Mateen’s motives. Trump reiterated his positions that Muslim foreigners should be banned from the US, and stepped up his incendiary rhetoric by announcing individuals who are citizens of Muslim countries with a “proven history of terrorism” will receive special attention while applying for immigration to the US. Trump made no mention of whether terrorist groups in Europe, such as the neo-Nazis, or the right-wing militias in the US should also receive special attention.
Now the American media has grasped a new tidbit that Mateen had visited Saudi Arabia twice — in 2011 and 2012 — and that his trips may have been for terror training.
Here’s a classic example of American media reporting courtesy of Fox News:
“Orlando gunman Omar Mateen’s two trips to Saudi Arabia, one of which was a pricey package that included four-star accommodations and fancy meals, were highly unusual and may have been cover for terror training.”
The article tells readers that Mateen traveled to Saudi Arabia for Umrah, which is a pilgrimage that can be performed at any time. The article points put that it’s “unusual” for a young man to perform Umrah two years in a row and that he may have used one of his trips to travel to Yemen for training.
Naturally, the article exploits the ignorance of American readers of the religious practices of Muslims and what the Saudi government can and can’t do about foreign travel. It’s not unusual at all for Muslims to perform Umrah on multiple occasions. I know of many people to perform Umrah annually.
The “pricey package” reported by Fox News is not pricey at all, but according to the article, cost $4,000, which is about the lowest cost package for any Umrah pilgrim. The Umrah travel agent is required by the Saudi government to provide lodging, meals and transportation. Lodging in the four-star sense in Saudi Arabia is equal to a Holiday Inn Express or Hilton Gardens Hotel in the states. Meals are generally buffets, so “fancy” does not apply.
In addition, Mateen traveled to Saudi Arabia before the Saudi-Yemen war. Saudi Arabia has no authority to prevent travelers from making trips to Yemen or any other Arab country. And to be clear, there is no evidence so far that Mateen traveled anywhere other than Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
Trump and the media want to bolster the argument that Mateen was an agent of Daesh, or at least a sympathizer doing the terrorist organization’s bidding by pledging allegiance to its cause. While Mateen’s mental health and sexual identity has gained wide exposure it doesn’t quite fit the narrative of the media that Mateen was a “radical Islamic terrorist” who “hates American society.”
We don’t know whether Mateen hated America or whether he hated the gay community. He certainly was a part of the gay community. He certainly hated himself.
There is no excuse for wanton murder under any circumstances. Mateen deserves to burn in hell.
