By Lee Kaplan
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
The media and police authorities have pretty much dismissed the killing of32 students and teachers at Virginia-Tech as just the actions of one mentally derangedindividual who went on a rampage. But Cho Seung-Hui's actions, besidesbeing the worst massacre at a college campus in US history, revealsomething else that is being ignored that has been going on at Americancollege campuses across the country.
In his diatribe on video, Cho spoke of being "oppressed," the victim of acruel unnamed "other" who had mistreated him all his life. Based on thekiller's plays and other samples of his writings, one might assume he wassexually abused as a child, or perhaps an undiagnosedparanoid-schizophrenic. But his videos are eerily reminiscent of al-Qaedavideos and exactly like Palestinian terrorist videos used just beforeattacks where the killers hold up guns and recite words of martyrdomagainst "oppression" and alleged countless incidents of mistreatment,whether real or imaginary.
Some pundits have been quick to point out the tattoo on Cho's arm thatsaid "Ismail AX." Bloggers immediately began pointing out that Ismail isthe Arabic version of Ishmael, Abraham's other son whose progeny becamethe Arab people, whereas Isaac, the other son carried on for the Jews.Some have speculated that Ismail AX is a reference to Shiite Muslimtradition on holidays when Shiites self-flagellate themselves and theiryoung children drawing blood. The question persists: "Was Cho involvedwith Muslim groups on the Virginia Tech campus?"
One thing is for certain: he was a loner and sexually frustrated aroundgirls. His social orientation matched that of pious Muslims who build uptremendous sexual frustration and a sense of being "oppressed" in theirpresent life and seek release through martyrdom. Some become suicidebombers because they believe they can overcome their "oppressors" and alsoreceive the blessing of 72 virgins. It is doubtful Cho thought he wouldget girls by his killing spree; to the contrary, he probably killed atleast one girl because she rejected him earlier and by doing so assertedhis sexual frustration in a different way. But one thing is certain: thisshooting reveals how campus life and culture in America due to constantpermissiveness by administrators couching support for overseas terroristgroups as merely academic discussion and freedom of speech has resulted inone of our greatest domestic massacres in history.
One can visit any major campus in America today and see countless flyersand demonstrations held by the Muslim Students Association and assortedPalestinian irredentist organizations that are allied with campusCommunist and Anarchist groups. The message at these demonstrations conveya tolerance and understanding, even sympathy, for terrorist missionsoverseas, such as suicide attacks done by the PLO and Hamas, or the Iraqiterrorists who are killing American troops.
This May, the University of California at Riverside is hosting the FifthNational Conference of Al Awda, the Palestine Right of Return Coalition. The event will be an unabashed support event for Hamas, the knownterrorist organization, and feature a regular speaker who says thatnonviolence is "overrated." Just weeks earlier, the Students for Justicein Palestine had a west coast conference at UCLA with the same message. Alittle over a year ago, a 67 year-old ex-police officer, a Jew, wasseverely beaten at Georgetown when he asked at one of these conferences ifthe speakers supported suicide bombings and terrorism. The same thinghappened to a 19 year-old Jewish student at CUNY in New York only twomonths ago. The media ignored both events. Similar conferences go on allthe time at our colleges.
The reasons these beatings occurred were because the organizers at theseconferences do support terrorism overseas and do not want to be put in aposition to say it outright. Hence, terrorist attacks overseas are"legitimate resistance" and "fighting oppression," rather than what theyreally are: murder. Anti-Semitism is also rife at these events, beingveiled under the rhetoric of fighting "Zionists." But the organizers makeit clear they are against the Jews and Jewish institutions by theirorganizational planning and activities.
This veiled rhetoric is epidemic on campuses all over America today whereyoung adults shape their minds and ideas for the future. And who is tosay that a Cho Seung-Hui, alone and socially inept, perhaps mentally ill,was not influenced by this same sense of entitlement to violence that ouruniversities are so willing to allow to be spread on our campuses? He,too, according to his videos, felt "oppressed" and claimed he was fightingback due to some unnamed societal "other" that allegedly persecuted himand had forced him to kill so many other people. Anyone has only to watchtranslated media in the Arab world to see similar videos all the time.
Was Cho a stooge for Muslims terrorists? Not likely. At least one of thestudents, a girl killed by Cho, was of Arab descent. Another student ofArab descent provided photos from his phone camera for CNN as theshootings occurred, so it is doubtful this was a conspiracy by Muslims toattack infidels. But that student who provided the photos is most likelyfrom the same clan as Marwan Barghouti, a Palestinian terrorist andpolitical leader who killed 100 people in terrorist attacks in Israel.Yasser Arafat's key spokeswoman, Hanan Ashwari was also a graduate of theVirginia State University system, though not the same campus, whoreceived her PhD in literary fiction (she now writes fiction for the PLO).The Saudi-funded Muslim Students Association, so active in supporting allthe hatemongering and demonstrations across 150 American campuses, has itsheadquarters in Virginia. It's doubtful Cho, a young man of South Koreanheritage, was equipped and trained to go on a killing spree in their ownbackyard.
But what is more likely, their constant railing about the justification ofkillings to end "oppression" overseas and whining about allegeddiscrimination that can be heard all day long on campuses, did inspirethis lunatic to emulate what these groups do endorse--killing throughviolence and martyrdom those you disagree with. In some legal circles,that would be called creating a hostile environment for work or study.
Most likely Cho was not a Muslim convert. But he was on a path of his ownjihad, a path justified and reinforced on his campus, where he watched andlearned a justification for murder was just so much politics and rhetoric.Like terrorists overseas who are quietly indoctrinated from hearth andgrade school on to a justification for violence against the Jews andperceived "oppression" of America against the Arab totalitarian world, Chowas influenced to act out his mania.
Perhaps the Virginia Tech shootings will make America wake up to theeffect such propaganda is having on our campuses and for once we will tryto do something about it.
Pursuant to Title 17 U.S.C. 107, other copyrighted work is provided for educational purposes, research, critical comment, or debate without profit or payment. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for your own purposes beyond the 'fair use' exception, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. Views are those of authors and not necessarily those of Canada Free Press. Content is Copyright 1997-2024 the individual authors. Site Copyright 1997-2024 Canada Free Press.Com Privacy Statement