My college classmate and longtime dear friend Carlos, writing from Monterrey, Mexico, knows how to pose difficult questions. Speaking of the murderer at Fort Hood, he asks:
The guy was a citizen, so what does “citizenship” mean? What should the core values of citizens be? Can a religion like Islam, many of whose members hold “anti-American” views on the structure of society, be free like other religions are? What should be the values/beliefs of people joining the military?
The freedom of one person’s belief vs the well being of society. What should society’s attitude be towards newcomers who don’t share some of the core values, or may implicitly threaten them?
He wants me to respond but, as of now, the questions go beyond my knowledge and wisdom.