Acts of Treachery

Brothers in arms do not sacrifice solely for nation or ideology but often give their own lives to protect the lives of their comrades. Yesterday in Afghanistan, five British troops were killed when they disarmed and took off body armor to show their trust in their Afghan police colleagues over tea. Their faith was betrayed by a policeman whose first loyalty was to the Taliban. Today a greater treason befell US troops at Fort Hood in Texas as an army doctor betrayed his Hippocratic oath, his comrades in uniform, and the nation in whose military he had volunteered to serve. In spite of preliminary reports that multiple gunmen staged the Fort Hood attacks, it only stood to reason that the perpetrator was a jihadist, motivated by Islamic fanaticism. Some have termed our adversaries cowardly, which I would never do- they are neither yellow nor prompted to act by lack of education or privation. The murderer at Fort Hood was like Mohamed Atta, well-educated, he held the rank of major and practiced psychiatry. Our opponents are dedicated, devoted, even courageous with ready willingness to lay down their lives. We must be equally prepared to do what it takes to defeat them.