The Americans Slain by ISIS That You Haven't Heard About Yet
A week ago, Wednesday: Three Dearborn residents, including a mother of four who had returned to her native Lebanon in a quest to bring her family to the U.S., were among at least 43 slain Thursday in twin terrorist bombings in Lebanon . . . Also killed was Leila Mazloum, who recently became a permanent resident of the U.S., and had moved to Dearborn in the past year. A week ago Thursday Obama said ISIS was "contained" and said it was "premature" to say that ISIS is "the greatest terror threat in the world." A week ago, Friday: A 23-year-old California State University, Long Beach student was killed in the Paris terror attacks, the school announced Saturday. Nohemi Gonzalez, an El Monte resident, was a junior studying interior design. She was in Paris attending the Strate College of Design as part of a semester abroad program. Last Monday: ISIS has claimed responsibility for the attack on a Jordanian police training facility that left two Americans dead -- an attack Jordan says had no links to terrorist groups. In addition to the two Americans, one South African trainer and two Jordanian translators were also killed. Thursday: An 18-year-old U.S. citizen was among three people killed in a shooting attack in the West Bank on Thursday afternoon. Ezra Schwartz, an 18-year-old resident of Sharon, Massachusetts, was a recent graduate of the Maimonides School in Brookline, MA. Friday: Anita Ashok Datar, an American aid worker of Indian-origin was among the 27 victims of the terrorist massacre in Bamako, Mali, the Obama administration confirmed on Friday, even as world powers closed ranks at the United Nations to defeat the terrorist group ISIS. ISIS and its affiliates or related Islamist groups have had a really good month for killing Americans. They've done it on three continents. The Only Thing We Have to Fear . . . Is a Bunch of Guys Trying to Kill Us On ABC News' This Week yesterday: Rep. Keith Ellison, D-Minnesota: Fear, we – we -- Roosevelt made it clear, the only thing to fear is fear itself. GOP Strategist Matthew Dowd: And he put the Japanese into internment camps. I've always disliked the "the only thing we have to fear is fear itself" mantra. If you think Americans of the 1930s really had nothing to fear but fear itself, go watch The Man in the High Castle. Fear is an entirely rational response to a threat, and right now, there is an international network of homicidal maniacs who have pledged to kill us. Fear is not the same as panic. Fear is an indicator that you care about something and you don't want to lose it. You fear a car accident because you don't want you and your loved ones getting hurt. You fear foreclosure because you don't want to lose your house. You fear being wrongfully accused because you don't want to go to jail. We are afraid of terrorist attacks because we don't want to see innocent people killed and blood in the streets. Fear can be a powerful motivator; it's a good antidote to apathy and ennui. So we need to not walk around in denial of the threat -- COUGH-"JVteam"--"contained"--COUGH – but we also can't be paralyzed by our fears. Some days ISIS and like-minded groups are going to nothing. Some days they're going to pull off an attack like the one in Paris. The good news is that the odds are you'll never be at the site of a terror attack. The bad news is, the odds that you'll be at the site of a terror attack are greater than zero percent. In the past two weeks, we've seen a slew of planes making emergency landings since the Paris attacks, usually in response to false alarms and false threats. We're seeing more reports and rumors about "chatter" suggesting upcoming attacks. This weekend was a busy one for these sorts of reports. First there was this report Saturday: A group of online activists reported this week that ISIS is planning an attack on Sunday at WWE event in Georgia on Sunday. The FBI confirmed that they are taking the threat reported by Anonymous seriously and are looking into the possible attack at Phillips Stadium in Atlanta where the WWE Survival Series is being held at 7:30 p.m. EST. Then there was this report floating around in the early morning hours of Sunday: The cyber attackers declared war on the jihadis, also known as ISIL and Daesh, in the wake of the Paris attacks last week. And now the group has released a statement claiming the terrorists are planning up to EIGHT attacks on the same day - November 22. Alongside the hashtags #22Daesh #OpParis, they published a list of events in France, the United States, Indonesia, Italy and Lebanon which are reportedly being targeted. The good news? Nothing happened yesterday – at least, not as we feared. (Hearing ISIS reports from Anonymous feels like one of those stories where the hero has to team up with the hated rival villain to deal with an even bigger threat.) 
Look, Fawker, I know you're trying to help. And maybe these are genuine ISIS communications, plans, or chatter you're obtaining. Maybe by publicizing them, you're deterring them. But the side effect is that you're making it sound like a cell of ISIS plotters is ready to go into action around every corner, and eventually you're going to sound like the boy who cried wolf. Terrorists and wannabes apparently love talking about all the things they want to do, and never get around to doing. Thankfully, even terror groups have procrastinating slackers. It seems the rumor-mill is dusting off old rumors from fall 2001; last week I heard two guys at the next table in a restaurant discussing this one: A photo of a supposed U.S. Department of Homeland Security alert has been making the rounds on social media-- warning people of possible terrorists. But don't be fooled-- the picture is a hoax. The fake alert says a large purchase of United Parcel Service, or UPS, uniforms were made on eBay, $32,000 worth of uniforms, to be exact. The alert then goes on to warn readers a UPS worker could be a terrorist dropping off "anything with deadly consequences." This hoax first emerged in 2003. A Google search will turn up the Washington Post article where they called up UPS, eBay and HSI asking about the alert-- and confirmed it wasn't true. You can probably think of a half-dozen "soft targets" for ISIS or other terror groups in 30 seconds: any airport terminal the day before Thanksgiving, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, Black Friday crowds at the malls, the lines outside the theaters at the Star Wars movie opening next month, the ceremonies for the lightings of the Rockefeller Center or White House Christmas trees, any sporting event of any kind, any concert of any kind. Yup, every one of those could be a target, but probably won't be. We can't cower in our beds. We gotta go out there and live our lives, and just live by the mantra, "If you see something, say something." If you have a concealed-carry permit, maybe you bring some heat, abiding by all appropriate laws. New York City Police Commissioner William Bratton had some of the better comments of the past week in a late-night Times Square press conference Wednesday. In New York, we understand that we are a terrorist target. It reflects the importance of the city. Understanding that, this city places great importance on the safety of New Yorkers and the almost 60 million visitors who will come to this city. As we move into this time of year of great celebration and great activity in New York -- the Thanksgiving Day parade, the lighting of the Christmas tree in Rockefeller Center -- the holiday celebrations that will bring millions into this city --people can feel comfortable coming into the city enjoying themselves and to celebrate. Be aware, but do not be afraid. The NYPD will protect you. The NYPD, working in close, close cooperation with the FBI and our government colleagues, and with the great, great assistance of the residents of this great city, will keep us safe. We cannot be intimidated. That is what terrorists seek to do. They seek to create fear. They seek to intimidate. We will not be intimidated, and we will not live in fear. 'Probably Not at This Stage . . .' Hey, remember my "Ben Carson isn't stupid, he's just uninformed about key foreign-policy and economic topics" piece from last week, the latest evidence that I'm a RINO-establishment-squish-you-know-what-servative-sellout-running-dog-Bolshevik? Notice this comment yesterday? "Ben Carson equipped to be president? Um -- probably not at this stage," Limbaugh told Fox News Sunday's Chris Wallace in an interview this morning. "But any of these Republicans running would be better than Hillary or better than anything we've got now, so on that, based on that comparison, yes. I would vote for him if it was up to him and Hillary. Absolutely, without a doubt." What's fascinating is that in the comments section, people are furious at NRO for reporting Rush's comments. ADDENDA: Know what's been a little frustrating? Some kind readers of the Morning Jolt have picked up Heavy Lifting and, while enjoying it, express surprised at how little it discusses politics. (Cam and I touch on schools, zero-tolerance policies, and a few other ones, but this is a book mostly about culture and how we live our lives, not government policies or candidates.) I don't mind that. But there are other folks, like the 31-year-old who found it "condescending as f***" and who dismissed me as an "ultra-consertative [sic] writer." It's apparently a little light on politics for the people used to reading my political coverage, but because of that past political coverage, some people will tune it out. It's like you're not allowed to preach beyond the choir if you've ever preached to the choir. Then, of course, there's the reviews like this . . . Telling young men to be like Ward Cleaver, in a society where women aren't interested in being like June Cleaver, is setting them up for disappointment or worse. Do everybody a favor and write a book on how a young man can have a successful life without getting married and risking eventual divorce, financial ruin and separation from his children by a vengeful ex-wife. We're not really talking about the book anymore, are we, pal? | 
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