Commentaries


DC News & Views: Full Body Scanners: A Security and Privacy Concern

March 19, 2010

After the attempted Christmas Day bombing, one of the government’s fixes to flaws in airport security is to expedite the installation of full-body scanners, which provide very graphically detailed images of people, to detect non-metallic weapons. News agencies reported at least 11 more U.S. airports will be installing new full-body scanners, with plans to install another 1,000 such machines across the nation by the end of the year.

DC News & Views: Biden Condemns Israeli Defiance and Settlement Expansion

March 12, 2010

Shortly after Vice President Joe Biden's arrival to Israel on Monday, the Israeli Ministry of Interior announced its expansion of settlement plans of another 100 housing units in the West Bank and 1,600 in East Jerusalem.  These announcements were made at a time when the highest-ranking official thus far of the Obama Administration was to visit the region in an attempt to revive peace talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, which have been put on hold for the past 14 months.

DC News & Views: US Congress Addresses Deteriorating Image Abroad

March 05, 2010

Yesterday, both the House and Senate held hearings relevant to the Middle East, U.S.-Muslim world engagement and the U.S. image abroad.  The Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing, “Middle East: Ground Truths, Challenges Ahead,” emphasized the ongoing discourse over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and its impact on the Muslim communities’ perception, which reflects a lack of confidence in all parties involved to follow through with the implementation of the much-talked about two-state solution.

DC News & Views: Austin Plane Attack Highlights Double Standards

February 26, 2010

A week ago, Joseph Stack flew his plane into an IRS building in Austin. It is shocking that there wasn't non-stop news coverage of the tragic event. After all, the image of shattered buildings and a smoke-filled sky is forever ingrained in the minds of Americans after the attacks of 9/11.  Instead, the news of the day was dominated by the Conservative Political Action Conference and Tiger Woods' impending apology.

DC News & Views: A Dialogue on Our Nation's Security, Without Compromising Our Nation's Integrity

February 19, 2010

On February 13, John Brennan, Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Adviser for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism, delivered an address on national security at New York University hosted by the Islamic Center at NYU and the Islamic Law Student’s Association. The speech brought together a group of diverse individuals ranging from leaders from the Muslim American community to government officials for a discussion entitled, “A Dialogue on Our Nation’s Security.”  MPAC’s Executive Director, Salam Al-Marayati, was invited by the White House to attend this important discussion and meet privately with the keynote speaker, John Brennan.

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