Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Muslim Population in the Military Raises Difficult Issues
Wall Street Journal ^ | November 7, 2009 | By YOCHI J. DREAZEN

Posted on 11/07/2009 9:36:54 AM PST by Oldeconomybuyer

Today, recruiting more Muslims is a top priority for many branches of the military. Under the Army's "09 Lima" program, Muslims willing to enlist and serve in Iraq and Afghanistan as military translators and cultural advisers receive hefty signing bonuses and expedited paths to citizenship.

The Army recently established its first full unit of Muslim personnel recruited under the program, the 51st Translator Interpreter Company at California's Fort Irwin. The unit has more than 120 soldiers who are native speakers of Arabic, Farsi, Pashto and Dari.

In interviews in recent years, more than a half-dozen Muslim soldiers serving in Iraq said they had initially felt uncomfortable about being sent to fight in an Islamic country. But all the soldiers said they were proud of their service, and several re-enlisted.

Army officials at the Pentagon said that Muslim soldiers who felt their religion prevented them from fighting in Iraq or Afghanistan could claim conscientious objector status and seek noncombat assignments in the U.S. But they weren't aware of any Muslim soldiers who had done so.

(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections; War on Terror
KEYWORDS: cair; forthoodarchive; fthood; islam; islamists; muslimamericans; muslims; muslimtroops; nidalmalikhasan; obama; usmilitary; waronterror

1 posted on 11/07/2009 9:36:55 AM PST by Oldeconomybuyer
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: Oldeconomybuyer

Wouldn’t they be better off teaching non-Muslims the languages or recruiting Christians from these areas?


2 posted on 11/07/2009 9:40:17 AM PST by conservative cat (America, you have been PWNED!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oldeconomybuyer
Today, recruiting more Muslims is a top priority for many branches of the military. Under the Army's "09 Lima" program, Muslims willing to enlist and serve in Iraq and Afghanistan as military translators and cultural advisers receive hefty signing bonuses and expedited paths to citizenship.

Hefty signing bonuses based on their religion or language skills? A world of difference.

3 posted on 11/07/2009 9:40:21 AM PST by 2banana (My common ground with terrorists - they want to die for islam and we want to kill them)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oldeconomybuyer

There certainly is a need for native speakers...
If it were up to me I’d try to recruit Christian Arabs, other religious minorities or non-practicing Muslims as far as possible.


4 posted on 11/07/2009 9:41:38 AM PST by SolidWood (Sarah Palin: "Only dead fish go with the flow!")
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oldeconomybuyer

It doesn’t seem that the immigrants are the problem; it’s more the first-generation citizens and the converts.


5 posted on 11/07/2009 9:42:08 AM PST by B Knotts (Calvin Coolidge Republican)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oldeconomybuyer

Our military seems to be committing suicide. I don’t get it.

They can hire translators, if they want. They don’t have to recruit them in to the military.


6 posted on 11/07/2009 9:43:07 AM PST by Marie2 (The second mouse gets the cheese.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oldeconomybuyer

OK everyone.
Here is the big question!!!

....
The MILITARY has a rule (for now) called DADT for homosexuals.
And as we all know homosexuals were BANNED from the military until Clinton.
..................
WHY IS THERE NOT A BAN ON MUSLIMS.
SINCE WE ARE AT WAS WITH ISLAMOFASCISTS...AND THE KORAN FORBIDS MUSLIMS FROM SUPPORTING SUCH ACTION.
WHY ARE MUSLIMS ALLOWED TO EVEN BE IN THE MILITARY????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????


7 posted on 11/07/2009 9:47:34 AM PST by Marty62 (former Marty60)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oldeconomybuyer
This Country elected a man named Barack Hussein Obama just 7 years after 911.

Why doe this article not surprise me?

Oy

8 posted on 11/07/2009 9:47:34 AM PST by Las Vegas Ron (Oath keepers + The NRA = FReeRepublic (.com baby))
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oldeconomybuyer
Today, recruiting more Muslims is a top priority for many branches of the military.

Multi-culti, PC stupidity. They should seek Arabic speakers and cultural knowledge among Christians from Arabic nations. It's often reported that half the Iraqi Christians now live as refugees outside Iraq due to increasing persecution, and the Coptic Christians of Egypt.

There was also a story last year about Jewish Arab speakers from Arab nations who were turned down as military interpreters. If we scratch beneath the surface on this, we'll probably find that Muslim whining and victim-mongering, and PCness in general, has been allowed to influence how the need for interpreters has been addressed.

9 posted on 11/07/2009 9:51:29 AM PST by Will88
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oldeconomybuyer

Since taqi’yah is a prinicple of Islam, how could you believe a Muslim translator’s work? If it benefits islam, he is duty bound to lie.


10 posted on 11/07/2009 9:53:46 AM PST by JimRed ("Hey, hey, Teddy K., hot enough down there today?" TERM LIMITS, NOW AND FOREVER!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oldeconomybuyer

My life was on the line more than a few times in Nam, with the “chu hoi’s” that were turned into kit carson scouts.

Now what do you do when a former enemy says it’s ok to proceed on patrol in a given area?


11 posted on 11/07/2009 9:54:22 AM PST by devistate one four (Back by popular demand: America love or leave it (GTFOOMC) TET68)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: conservative cat

Always been foreign born Amer citizens in the military. I remember chinese from taiwan and koreans also; they were USA citizens. This was outta the norm, I actually know Palestinian Americans who are Christian and very respectable.


12 posted on 11/07/2009 9:57:03 AM PST by Eska
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: Oldeconomybuyer
recruiting more Muslims is a top priority for many branches of the military

Why?

13 posted on 11/07/2009 9:58:06 AM PST by Altura Ct.
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SolidWood

I agree - let’s ship out all non-citizen muzzies, like right now. Let’s recruit Christians who live in muzzie countries and offer their families immigration in return for faithful service to the US.


14 posted on 11/07/2009 10:02:56 AM PST by rigelkentaurus
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

To: Oldeconomybuyer

Nothing difficult about it... Obama said so! Just did not say it in those words
He is just a marsixt /muslim out to dismantle and destroy the US of A. Plain and simple. He is also a muslim and that has already started to shape global politics.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9yI9LCILhU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCAffMSWSzY


15 posted on 11/07/2009 10:08:31 AM PST by himno hero
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oldeconomybuyer
Muslims in the military is fine as long as they:

1, Renounce Islam
2. Get Baptized as a Christian
3. Eat Pork
4. Own a dog.
5. Where a Cross
6. Quit beating their wives

16 posted on 11/07/2009 10:12:03 AM PST by stubernx98 (cranky, but reasonable)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Oldeconomybuyer
Here's an interesting article about Hitler's attempt at recruiting Muslims into the German Army during the war:

Hitler's Muslim Legions

17 posted on 11/07/2009 10:14:42 AM PST by Larry381 ("in the final instance civilization is always saved by a platoon of soldiers" Oswald Spengler)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: conservative cat

There are no native Christians in Afghanistan that I know of.

There are a good number of Christian Pakistanis.

There are plenty of Christian Arabs.

The problem with Christians, even Arab or Pakistani ones, is that Muslims in those places would tend to see these as enemies, perhaps even more so than foreign Christians, which to a degree defeats the purpose.


18 posted on 11/07/2009 10:35:50 AM PST by buwaya
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: devistate one four
Now what do you do when a former enemy says it’s ok to proceed on patrol in a given area?

Put him on point.

19 posted on 11/07/2009 10:56:28 AM PST by Repeat Offender (While the wicked stand confounded, call me with Thy Saints surrounded)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 11 | View Replies]

To: Oldeconomybuyer

It makes no sense for the military to recruit Muslims during this so-called War on Terror because there is no real way to gauge their loyalty. A committed Muslim like this traitor Hasan, who wanted to join our military, would have no problem taking a loyalty oath and then turning on his fellow soldiers when the opportunity arose. There really is no way to screen someone like this out short of prohibiting Muslims from serving in the armed forces. While this is not politically correct and may not seem fair, no one has the “right” to serve in the military. Not everyone is fit to serve. And those whose loyalties are divided between Islam and the U.S. are not fit to serve. There are going to be more incidents like this unless the Pentagon rethinks its current policy.


20 posted on 11/07/2009 1:00:37 PM PST by steadfastconservative
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson