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Political correctness reared its ugly head during the Boston Marathon bombings investigation. The description of suspects in any crime should not be impacted by the illogical desire to avoid offending a particular segment of society. Statements by CNN’s Jon Tobin and President Barack Obama during the search for the terrorism suspects illustrate how deeply the role of political correctness plays in media coverage. The public trust is broken when simply reporting the facts in the case are deemed too difficult for citizens to understand and digest in a responsible manner.
Americans from across the country wanted the guilty parties brought to justice; the race or religious preferences of the bombing suspects did not matter. Overly sensitive government agencies and boot-licking journalists who refuse to do their jobs by asking the hard questions are a big part of the problem. National security should be a top priority. Giving an accurate description of the Boston Marathon suspects was far more important than fears that either Saudi Arabia or followers of Islam might be offended.
I am a rural, white, gun-owning, Methodist. If the suspect matched the same description, I could handle that fact—and want the offender brought to justice. It would not matter to me, or the bulk of Americans, if the terrorism suspects shared the same religious beliefs or skin color.
All followers of Islam are not, of course, radical individuals bent on increasing the death toll in the United States. But those who have vowed to wipe America off the face of the Earth are Muslims, and therefore should face reasonable vetting before being granted a green card, citizenship, or a student visa. The country where you were born should not automatically disqualify you from entering this county, but political correctness should not impede a thorough background check either. Call it profiling if you must, but saving the lives of Americans is worth a little extra paperwork and imposition when applying for asylum or a student visa.
Dzhokhar Tsarnaev “will not be treated as an enemy combatant,” White House spokesman says. on.cnn.com/123moJ2
— CNN Breaking News (@cnnbrk) April 22, 2013
The American people should always stand up and demand answers when an atrocity is committed or threatened on our own soil or against our citizens. While watching the coverage of the Boston Marathon unfold over the past week, the words from the politicians and some journalists were clearly spoken, but all I heard was, “You can’t handle the truth.” The scene from A Few God Men where Jack Nicholson was on the witness stand kept running through my head. We are not children who need to be protected from the facts. We pay the salaries of the lawmakers who feel shielding us from the truth is an acceptable practice and we are the potential targets of terrorism. The White House and some journalists appeared to want to push the “lone wolf” or homegrown terrorist angle from the get-go. It was apparently acceptable to insinuate (or in some cases, even hope) that the marathon bombings were committed by an American, but to even consider that Muslim extremists could be responsible for the attack was irresponsible journalism. We very well could have had another Timothy McVeigh on our hands, but a foreign terror attack was equally as likely. While it was all right to remind viewers/listeners/readers that the origins of the attack were unknown as the information evolved, it was irresponsible to bend over backwards to dismiss the possibility that the Boston bombings were the result of Muslim extremists. 
When journalists are afraid to use descriptive words to paint an accurate picture of a mass murderer who remains on the loose, they lose all credibility and cannot adequately do their jobs. When the government engages in such politically correct behavior, claims of a cover-up begin circulating and conspiracy theories start to take shape. The end result of such nonsense is an ill-informed public. The shadows which remain around the Saudi national who was once allegedly a person of interest in the Boston Marathon bombings are disturbing. If mainstream media journalists were doing their jobs properly, unanswered questions about the man would no longer remain. The Saudi national was reportedly set to be deported on security and terrorist activities grounds. The man was identified as Abdul Rahman Ali Alharbi by The Blaze. An FBI file was allegedly created on the Saudi national and the college student was also supposedly flagged on a terrorist watch list. The details about Ali Alharbi remain unconfirmed primarily because government officials have refused to address the claims by unnamed informants and the mainstream media is once again asleep at the wheel. First Lady Michelle Obama allegedly visited the Saudi national in the hospital. That viral news story remains speculation because the White House has yet to confirm or deny the widely reported and controversial tidbit of information. Abdul Rahman Ali Alharbi was reportedly granted a student visa to take courses in Findley, Ohio—a town a few hours down the road from where I live. I am sure the good folks of Findley were just thrilled to find out such an individual was living among them. Well, allegedly living among them—he reportedly had an apartment in Boston. Even those of you unfamiliar with this section of the country realize that a Boston to Ohio trip would be one heck of a daily commute. A rough timeline of the Saudi national story indicates that his status was not moved from “potential suspect” to “person of interest” to “just a guy at the Boston Marathon” until after Secretary of State John Kerry met with Saudi Foreign Minister Saud last Tuesday. President Barack Obama met Saud and Saudi Ambassador Adel al-Jubeir at the White House last Wednesday, but only the ongoing strife in the Middle East region was reportedly discussed. The INA § 212(a)(3)(B) potential security threat provision as posed by the Saudi national was allegedly removed later Wednesday evening. The Saudi national has reportedly been in America for about six months. The unknown far outweighs the known when it comes to information about the Saudi national who was allegedly an Ohio college student. Scenarios such as this breed increased distrust of not only the government, but the media as well. Journalists on the Washington D.C., beat should be acting like pit bulls and not lap dogs. The House Homeland Security Committee is now reportedly in possession of the original FBI file about the Saudi national. The committee sent a formal request to Janet Napolitano requesting a classified briefing about the alleged deportation order. Could the Saudi national merely be an innocent man who switched colleges and was linked to the Boston Marathon bombings by mistake? Sure, but the active skirting of the issue by government officials only serves to increase suspicions. It is time for the pendulum to swing back into the common sense realm in America. Government agencies should only be concerned about the accuracy of their statements when offering details about suspects. Where their comments register on the political correctness scale should not factor into the information shared with the American public the least little bit. An informed and educated populace can aid police officers in locating suspects. When we live in the dark due to a lack of knowledge, we can only huddle seemingly safe inside our homes or fear everyone we pass on the street. National security should be a top priority every day, not just in the weeks following a horrific crime. I am sick and tired of seeing our glorious flag fly at half-staff.
5 viral stories about #Boston attacks that aren’t true on.cnn.com/112Wp2G
— CNN Public Relations (@CNNPR) April 17, 2013
