A Letter From An American Airlines Pilot

By American Airlines Pilot  Captain John Maniscalco

I've been trying to say this since 9-11 but you worry me.
I wish you didn't. I wish when I walked down the streets
of this country that I love, that your color and culture still
blended with the beautiful human landscape we enjoy in
this country. But you don't blend in anymore. I notice you,
and it worries me.  I notice you because I can't help it
anymore.

People from your homelands, professing to be Muslims,
have been attacking and killing my fellow citizens and our
friends for more than 20 years now.  I don't fully
understand their grievances and hate but I know that
nothing can justify  the inhumanity of their attacks.
On September 11,

Nineteen ARAB-MUSLIMS hijacked four jetliners in my
country.  They cut the throats of women in front of
children and brutally stabbed to death others.  They took
control of those planes and crashed  them into buildings
killing thousands of proud fathers, loving sons, wise
grandparents, elegant daughters, best friends, favorite
coaches, fearless public servants, and children's mothers. 

The Palestinians celebrated, The Iraqis were overjoyed as
was most of the Arab world.

So I notice you now.  I don't want to be worried.  I don't want
to be consumed by the same rage and hate and prejudice
that has destroyed the  soul of these terrorists. 

But I need your help.  As a rational American,  trying  to
protect my country and family in an irrational and unsafe
world, I must know how to tell the difference between you,
and the Arab/Muslim   terrorist.

How do I differentiate between the true Arab/Muslim-Americans
and the  Arab/Muslims in our communities who are attending
our schools, enjoying  our  parks, and living in OUR communities
under the protection of OUR  constitution, while they plot the
next attack that will slaughter these same  good neighbors and
children? The events of September 11th changed the
 
answer.  It is not my responsibility to determine which of you embraces
  our
  great country, with ALL of its religions, with ALL of its
different
  citizens, with all of its faults.  It is time for every
Arab/Muslim in
  this
  country to determine it for
me.
  I want to know, I demand to know, and I have a right to know
whether or
  not
  you love America.  Do you pledge allegiance
to its flag?  Do you proudly
  display it in front of your house, or
on your car?
  Do you pray in your many daily prayers that Allah will
bless this nation,
  that He will protect and prosper it?  Or do you
pray that Allah with
  destroy
  it in one of your "Jihads"? 
Are you thankful for the freedom that only
  this
  nation
affords?  A freedom that was paid for by the blood of hundreds of
 
thousands of patriots who gave their lives for this country?  Are
you
  willing to preserve this freedom by paying the ultimate
sacrifice?  Do you
 love America?  If this is your commitment,
then I need YOU to start
  letting
  ME know about
it.
  Your Muslim leaders in this nation should be flooding the
media at this
  time
  with hard facts on your faith, and what hard
actions you are taking as a
  community and as a religion to protect the
United States of America.
  Please, no more benign overtures of regret for
the death of the innocent
  because I worry about who you regard as
innocent.  No more benign
  overtures
  of condemnation for
the unprovoked attacks because I worry about what is
  unprovoked to
you.  I am not interested in any more sympathy...I am only
 
interested in action.  What will you do for America - our great country --
  at this time of crisis, at this time of war?
  I want to
see Arab-Muslims waving the AMERICAN flag in the streets.  I
 
want
 to hear you chanting "Allah Bless America".  I want to see
young
  Arab/Muslim
  men enlisting in the military.  I want
to see a commitment of money, time,
  and emotion to the victims of this
butchering and to this nation as a
  whole.
  The FBI has a list of
over 400 people they want to talk to regarding the
  WTC
 
attack.  Many of these people live and socialize in Muslim communities.
  You
  know them  You know where they are.
 
Hand them over to us, now!  But I have seen little even approaching
this
  sort of action.  Instead I have seen an already closed and
secretive
  community close even tighter.  You have disappeared from
the streets.  You
  have posted armed security guards at your
facilities.  You have threatened
  lawsuits. You have screamed for
protection from reprisals.
  The very few Arab/Muslim
representatives that HAVE appeared in the media
  were defensive and
equivocating.  They seemed more concerned with making
  sure that the
United States proves who was responsible before taking
  action.
 
They seemed more concerned with protecting their fellow Muslims from
 
violence directed towards them in the United States and abroad than they
  did
  with supporting our country and denouncing "leaders" like
Khadafi,
  Hussein,
  Farrakhan, and Arafat.  If the true
teachings of Islam proclaim tolerance
  and peace and love for all people
then I want chapter and verse from the
  Koran and statements from popular
Muslim leaders to back it up.  What good
  is it if the teachings in
the Koran are good and pure and true when your
  "leaders" are teaching
fanatical interpretations, terrorism, and
  intolerance?
 
It matters little how good Islam SHOULD BE if large numbers of the
world's
  Muslims interpret the teachings of Mohammed incorrectly and
adhere to a
  degenerative form of the religion.  A form that has
been demonstrated to
  us
  over and over again.  A form whose
structure is built upon a foundation of
  violence, death, and
suicide.  A form whose members are recruited from the
  prisons
around the world.  A form whose members (some as young as five
 
years
  old) are seen day after day, week in and week out, year after
year,
  marching
  in the streets around the world, burning
effigies of our presidents,
  burning
  the American flag, shooting
weapons into the air. A form whose members
  convert from a peaceful
religion, only to take up arms against the great
  United States of
America, the country of their birth.  A form whose rules
  are so
twisted, that their traveling members refuse to show their faces at
 
airport security checkpoints, in the name of Islam.
  Do you and
your fellow Muslims hate us because our women proudly show
 
their> faces in public rather than cover up like a shameful whore? 
Do you and
  your
  fellow Muslims hate us because we drink wine
with dinner, or celebrate
  Christmas?  Do you and you fellow Muslims
hate us because we have
  befriended
  Israel, the ONLY civilized
democratic nation in the entire Middle East?
  And if you and your
fellow Muslims hate us, then why in the world are you
  even here? 
Are you here to take our money?  Are you here to undermine our
 
peace and stability?  Are you here to destroy us? If so, I want you to
  leave
  I want you to go back to your desert sandpit where women
are treated like
  rats and dogs.  I want you to take your religion,
your friends, and your
  family back to your Islamic extremists, and STAY
THERE!  We will NEVER > give
  in to your influence, your
retarded mentality, your twisted, violent,
  intolerant religion.  We
will NEVER allow the attacks of September 11, or
  any others for that
matter, to take away that which is so precious to us:
  Our rights under
the greatest constitution in the world. I want to know
  where every Arab/
Muslim in this country stands and I think it is my right
  and the right
of every true citizen of this country to demand it  A right
  paid
for by the blood of thousands of my brothers and sisters who died
 
protecting the very constitution that is protecting you and your family.
  I
  am pleading with you to let me know.  I want you here as
my brother, my
  neighbor, my friend, as a fellow American. But there can
be no gray areas
 or
  ambivalence regarding your allegiance and
it is up to YOU to show ME where
  YOU stand.  Until then ..you
worry me. **********************************************

LET'S COVER THE COUNTRY WITH THIS ONE!