Sheiks On A Plane!

[Okla-homey]

:eek: :eek: :eek:


Muslim religious leaders removed from a Minneapolis flight last week exhibited behavior associated with a security probe by terrorists and were not merely engaged in prayers, according to witnesses, police reports and aviation security officials.

Witnesses said three of the imams were praying loudly in the concourse and repeatedly shouted "Allah" when passengers were called for boarding US Airways Flight 300 to Phoenix.

"I was suspicious by the way they were praying very loud," the gate agent told the Minneapolis Police Department.

Passengers and flight attendants told law-enforcement officials the imams switched from their assigned seats to a pattern associated with the September 11 terrorist attacks and also found in probes of U.S. security since the attacks -- two in the front row first-class, two in the middle of the plane on the exit aisle and two in the rear of the cabin.

"That would alarm me," said a federal air marshal who asked to remain anonymous. "They now control all of the entry and exit routes to the plane."

A pilot from another airline said: "That behavior has been identified as a terrorist probe in the airline industry."

But the imams who were escorted off the flight in handcuffs say they were merely praying before the 6:30 p.m. flight on Nov. 20, and yesterday led a protest by prayer with other religious leaders at the airline's ticket counter at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.

Mahdi Bray, executive director of the Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation, called removing the imams an act of Islamophobia and compared it to racism against blacks.

"It's a shame that as an African-American and a Muslim I have the double whammy of having to worry about driving while black and flying while Muslim," Mr. Bray said.

The protesters also called on Congress to pass legislation to outlaw passenger profiling.

Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee, Texas Democrat, said the September 11 terrorist attacks "cannot be permitted to be used to justify racial profiling, harassment and discrimination of Muslim and Arab Americans."

"Understandably, the imams felt profiled, humiliated, and discriminated against by their treatment," she said.

[KStatePike]

Islamophobia

why do I get the feeling that this will not be the last time we hear this word?

[jk the sooner fan]

too damn bad for them

[Widescreen]

I think it's more Dontwannagetmyazzblownupaphobia.

[OCUDad]

the September 11 terrorist attacks "cannot be permitted to be used to justify racial profiling, harassment and discrimination of Muslim and Arab Americans." Uh... why not?

[bri]

http://images.scotsman.com/2006/08/16/2006-08-16T133130Z_01_NOOTR_RTRIDSP_2_OUKEN-UK-LEISURE-SNAKES.jpg

THAT'S IT! I HAVE HAD IT WITH THESE MOTHER****IN' SHEIKS ON THIS MOTHER****IN' PLANE!!!!

[olevetonahill]

Sheet is simple
Just have all muslims fly on the same plane , with muslim pilots and a fighter jet escort. They **** up an inch splash em ! :cool:

[WILBURJIM]

Someone should do some deep digging into these imams lives. Omar Shahin, one of the 6 imams taken off that flight, had admitted previously, to ties with bin Laden. He also represented an islamic charity that the government has shut down. These guys are not your average prostrate prayin' airline passengers.

[bri]

Maybe they were praying really, REALLY hard that their luggage wouldn't get lost.

'Cause, you know, it would suck if the wrong airplane got blowed up due to clerical error.

Get it? "Clerical"? "Clerics"? "MUSLIM clerics"?? BWHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

i can understand the 2 in 1st on the bulkhead
i can understand the 2 in the exit row

where it becomes suspicious is the two in the back. who in the world wants to be in the back of the plane? seriously, if they had that much clout (as the other 4 are in frequent flyer slots) you'd think they'd go for the front coach bulkhead.

[GottaHavePride]

Maybe they're incontinent and wanted to be near the bathroom?

Seriously, I'm all in favor of profiling foreign bastards trying to kill me.

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

but if their domestic, your against it?

[GottaHavePride]

OK, let's just cut it to profiling bastards that want to kill me.

We could just profile bastards, but I think we'd have too many results.

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

haven't we been doing that for the last month in the moderator forum?

[GottaHavePride]

Zang!

On second though, I think Zang is played-out.


Thwipp!

[StoopTroup]

Is it a Phobia if I just don't like many of them?

[bri]

Zang!

On second though, I think Zang is played-out.


Thwipp!

Who died and made YOU the boss of "ZANG!", huh?

[Frozen Sooner]

Out of curiosity, if you already know they want to kill you, why would you need to profile them, foreign or not?

Doesn't look like these guys were caught on religious or racial profiling. It looks like they were caught on behaviorial profiling, which is a completely different kettle of fish, and much more effective.

[yermom]

what if 6 white guys tried to sit in such a formation?

[Frozen Sooner]

what if 6 white guys tried to sit in such a formation?

If they were in a group and requested seats in that formation?

Kick 'em off the flight.

[yermom]

but seriously, i don't think the ****ers will try the hijacking thing the same way again, their tactics didn't even work later in the day of 9-11

they'll blow one up before they take over another cockpit, unless they infiltrate airline employees or something

[yermom]

If they were in a group and requested seats in that formation?

Kick 'em off the flight.

how could you tell they were in a group, unless they were like the only white dudes on the plane?

[Frozen Sooner]

'Cause they were all standing together acting like r-tards before the flight?

[yermom]

like chanting Orange Power or something?

[yermom]

i guess adding those things together i can see it, i mean loud praying together THEN changing seats like that is pretty scary

that probably almost warrants some waterboarding or something

[Frozen Sooner]

like chanting Orange Power or something?

Yeah, or if they were hanging out in a little group yelling "HAIL CTHULU!" when gate announcements were made or something.

[Frozen Sooner]

For what it's worth, I don't think it's unreasonable to start denying people seat requests. You get randomly assigned to seats in the part of the cabin you buy.

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

For what it's worth, I don't think it's unreasonable to start denying people seat requests. You get randomly assigned to seats in the part of the cabin you buy.

only if the upgrades don't go through

[TUSooner]

the September 11 terrorist attacks "cannot be permitted to be used to justify racial profiling, harassment and discrimination of Muslim and Arab Americans."
Translation:
Experience is not to be used as a guide for future action.

[VeeJay]

I wouldn't have gotten on the plane either with those stinking bastards.

[MamaMia]

They prayed together but decided to sit apart? :confused:

Thats very scary.

[Jerk]

What you do is offer a bag of pork rinds to everyone at the gate.

Those who don't eat get searched.

[PhxSooner]

I f you have a group of men asking for lap belt extensions when they don't need them, moving around to different seats, and generally calling attention to themselves, you have a bad situation no matter what. Yank 'em off the plane.

[GottaHavePride]

Who died and made YOU the boss of "ZANG!", huh?

Heh.

[TheHumanAlphabet]

what if 6 white guys tried to sit in such a formation?

Happens all the time, but 1) I don't think they get up and change seats after settling in and 2) probably don't pray loudly in the passenger terminal or scream "God" out loud as well.

Wilburjim has an idea, but I doubt if the Drive-by Media would investigate deep enough to tell us more about these stupid islams.

[TheHumanAlphabet]

I f you have a group of men asking for lap belt extensions when they don't need them, moving around to different seats, and generally calling attention to themselves, you have a bad situation no matter what. Yank 'em off the plane.

Since you are in the area and many were headed to Pu-hon-ix, has there been more in-depth info on the screaming islams locally?

[bri]

I wouldn't have gotten on the plane either with those stinking bastards.

:les: WHY DO YOU HATE POLO AND B.O.??!?!?

[OU4LIFE]

Two asked for 1st class upgrades and were denied, then sat there anyway.

One of the 2 in first class went to the back of the plane TWICE during boarding to talk to one of the others.

They were also speaking in arabic and english according to the other passengers, even though they claimed to not be.

EVERY ONE OF THOSE is enough reason to yank them off the flight, IMO.

[OU4LIFE]

the rest of the article:


According to witnesses, police reports and aviation security officials, the imams displayed other suspicious behavior.
Three of the men asked for seat-belt extenders, although two flight attendants told police the men were not oversized. One flight attendant told police she "found this unsettling, as crew knew about the six [passengers] on board and where they were sitting." Rather than attach the extensions, the men placed the straps and buckles on the cabin floor, the flight attendant said.
The imams said they were not discussing politics and only spoke in English, but witnesses told law enforcement that the men spoke in Arabic and English, criticizing the war in Iraq and President Bush, and talking about al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden.
The imams who claimed two first-class seats said their tickets were upgraded. The gate agent told police that when the imams asked to be upgraded, they were told no such seats were available. Nevertheless, the two men were seated in first class when removed.
A flight attendant said one of the men made two trips to the rear of the plane to talk to the imam during boarding, and again when the flight was delayed because of their behavior. Aviation officials, including air marshals and pilots, said these actions alone would not warrant a second look, but the combination is suspicious.
"That's like shouting 'fire' in a crowded theater. You just can't do that anymore," said Robert MacLean, a former air marshal.
"They should have been denied boarding and been investigated," Mr. MacLean said. "It looks like they are trying to create public sympathy or maybe setting someone up for a lawsuit."
The pilot with another airline who talked to The Washington Times on condition of anonymity, said he would have made the same call as the US Airways pilot.
"If any group of passengers is commingling in the terminal and didn't sit in their assigned seats or with each other, I would stop everything and investigate until they could provide me with a reason they did not sit in their assigned seats."
One of the passengers, Omar Shahin, told Newsweek the group did everything it could to avoid suspicion by wearing Western clothes, speaking English and booking seats so they were not together. He said they conducted prayers quietly and separately to avoid attention.
The imams had attended a conference sponsored by the North American Imam Federation in Minneapolis and were returning to Phoenix. Mr. Shahin, who is president of the federation, said on his Web site that none of the passengers made pro-Saddam or anti-American statements.
The pilot said the airlines are not "secretly prejudiced against any nationality, religion or culture," and that the only target of profiling is passenger behavior.
"There are certain behaviors that raise the bar, and not sitting in your assigned seat raises the bar substantially," the pilot said. "Especially since we know that this behavior has been evident in suspicious probes in the past."
"Someone at US Airways made a notably good decision," said a second pilot, who also does not work for US Airways.
A spokeswoman for US Airways declined to discuss the incident. Aviation security officials said thousands of Muslims fly every day and conduct prayers in airports in a quiet and private manner without creating incidents.

[Frozen Sooner]

I agree with everything OU4LIFE just quoted.

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

uh, you can be IDB'd for moving to first class on just about any airline without an upgrade. you try that crap on american and a flight attendant will send you off the plane with her shoe stuck up your butt.