Steven Emerson: One of those neo-con propagandists hyping the "home grown terrorism" threat

June 25, 2006 -- This editor will be appearing on Al Jazzera this morning talking about the hype over the recent "terrorist" apprehensions in Miami, Toronto, and London. These appear to be yet additional neo-con inspired "crises" to push their all-too-evident agendas.

The case of the "Liberty City Seven," a group of self-employed youths of mainly Haitian descent, is yet another example of the propaganda of the neo-cons creating new bogeyman. The barrage of fear mongering was best represented by agenda-laden cable news polemicists like Steven Emerson, Joel Mowbray, Sean Hannity, William Kristol, Ann Coulter, and Byron York, to demonize yet another sector of American society, this time Miami's Haitian and non-Cuban Caribbean community. First, it was the Arabs and Muslims, then, it was the turn of the Hispanics, now, it is the Haitians. Tomorrow, it will be sub-continental Indians, then, Native Americans, and Chinese and Koreans. "Homeland security," that awful Teutonic phrase, is being used to establish an apartheid South African-style racial regime in the United States under the cover of "counter terrorism" and "homeland security."

The Liberty Seven are said to have run a "temple" in an old warehouse in the desperately poor Liberty City section of Miami. The seven, who gave out bottled water to people in the wake of Hurricane Wilma last year and sold shampoo and hair tonic on the street, studied Islam, Christianity, and Judaism. That is a far cry from being members of Al Qaeda or Black Muslims, which was claimed by the mainstream media. It is clear the neo-cons are now looking for Fallujahs and Ramadis right here in the good old USA. Liberty City was perfect for the neo-con agenda. It is poor, ethnic, and populated by people who the neo-cons despise -- legal and illegal Haitian immigrants.

The Liberty Seven appear more like a self-styled Caribbean ersatz religious sect than an "Al Qaeda" affiliate. The group seems to be a milder and smaller version of Philadelphia's M.O.V.E. group, which, because of their odd "back to nature" beliefs, drew the ire of their neighbors. M.O.V.E. was ultimately shattered by violence created by itself and an overreaction by the Philadelphia police in 1985. It is interesting to note that Miami's current police chief, John Timoney, was appointed Philadelphia's police chief by then-Mayor Ed Rendell. Rendell was a chief prosecutor against M.O.V.E. and Timoney was a proponent of attacking the headquarters of "subversive" groups during major conferences and political conventions. Timoney called the anti-globalist Ruckus Society "a cadre of criminal conspirators" who "go in and cause mayhem." In 2000, Timoney raided the Ruckus Society warehouse and confiscated wire and gasoline-soaked rags. Immediately, Timoney charged Ruckus with planning terrorist acts, even though the materials were used to construct large puppets used in protests during the Republican National Convention. Timoney did not care that Ruckus was supported by the Ted Turner Foundation, the Ben and Jerry's Foundation, Body Shop International, and Patagonia, Inc., hardly terrorist groups.

Now Timoney is in Miami, and seven Miami residents belonging to a religious order calling itself the "Seas of David" find themselves charged by the Justice Department with conspiring to blow up the Sears Tower in Chicago and the FBI Building in Miami. It is clear that these not very smart Seas of David members were entrapped in an FBI sting. It is doubtful that they could bring down any building. They were not even interested in obtaining explosives from the FBI informant who posed as an "Al Qaeda" representative -- they merely wanted a video camera and boots. It is also suspicious how the charges against the Liberty Seven were announced. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales made the announcement of the arrest at a heavily-covered Washington, DC news conference in the same manner as John Ashcroft's announcement of the arrest of "dirty bomber" Jose Padilla in June 2002. FBI Director Robert Mueller chose a suspicious outlet to discuss the case -- the Larry King Show on CNN. Meanwhile, the neocon-run Fox News, NBC, and CNN were all speaking of a derailed violent Islamist Jihad plan to launch a terror attack worse than 911. All this was false. The Seas of David, which number no more than 50 adherents, is a quasi-Christian group, with elements of Caribbean animism. Iy has been linked to the Chicago-based Moorish Society Temple of America, a group that combines Islam with the teachings of Jesus. Hardly the Islamist Jihadi group ballyhooed by the droning neocon commentators who receive their talking points from Israeli-influenced propaganda outlets in Washington, New York, Boston, and Jerusalem.

Steven Emerson: One of those neo-con propagandists hyping the "home grown terrorism" threat

What attracted the attention of local police and the FBI was the fact that the Seas of David members dressed up fezzes and dashikis and flew the flags of Haiti, Cuba, and Jamaica at their warehouse compound. They were also seen practicing karate. If wearing fezzes is a sign of terrorist activity, perhaps the FBI would think of rounding up all the fez-wearing Shriners in the United States. As for dashikis, the aficionados of any Tiki bar in the United States could soon be rounded up as terrorists.

The arrests in Miami are similar to the recent incidents in Toronto and London. In Toronto, 12 men and 5 teens were arrested for planning terrorists attack in Canada, including attacking the Canadian Parliament, taking MPs hostage, and beheading Canada's new right-wing kooky Prime Minister Stephen Harper. The Royal Canadian Mounted Policy (RCMP) raid was obviously concocted by Harper's Public Safety Minister, the Christian fundamentalist lunatic Stockwell Day, who also sees gays as threats to Canadian public safety. The leader of the so-called "terror cell," Steven Vikash Chand, aka Abdul Shakar, turned out to be a former member of Royal Regiment of Canada, a reserve unit. He and others, mostly teens who were members of a mosque in Mississauga, Ontario, were charged with planning terror attacks because they dressed up in military fatigues, played with paintball guns, and discussed ancient Islamic battles. The team was "stung" by a group of Muslims in northern Virginia were arrested and charged with terrorism because they, too, played with paintball guns. The Toronto "terrorists" were set up in an entrapment arranged by the neocon-imbued Canadian Tory government in order to advance the same neocon agenda for Canada as had been implemented in the United States. The first target of the Canadian neocons was Canada's "multiculturalism." They cited this as a cause for Canadian "home grown terrorism." As in the United States, the target of the Canadian neocons includes immigrants from Third World countries, especially Muslim and Arab nations.

The arrest of two east London Muslim brothers on June 2 by 250 armed police was the result of a false tip from a prison inmate who claimed the two brothers were planning an Al Qaeda chemical attack in London. One of the brothers was shot in the chest during the raid of their Forest Gate home. They were also beaten by police. The brothers were later released over lack of any evidence that they were planning any crime. The prison inmate involved in the hoax has an IQ of 69. Nevertheless, the neocons, including Rupert Murdoch's media network in Britain, hyped the raid on the two brothers as proof that Britain's large immigrant population represents a huge "home grown" terrorist threat. "Home grown terrorism" is the new neocon and Israeli propaganda talking point. It has been successfully used to hype faux terrorist incidents in London, Toronto, and now, Miami. However, the only real examples of a home grown terrorist attacks remain the Oklahoma City bombing and the Washington, DC sniper shootings, both carried out by military veterans of Desert Storm.

***WayneMadsenReport***