Terenz, you are full of S%$#@!

Simply relating known/reported/historical facts DOES NOT make anyone a bigot/racist/whatever. White-washing (no pun intended) the truth so as to be PC or minimally offensive to all people at all times does nobody a service and actually is intellectually dishonest. Based on photos on TV and the net, the Reid charactercertainly COULD have passed as middle-eastern, her certainly WAS a Muslim fanatic, and he certainly WAS out to cause trouble.

As for the secret service agent, he's a grown man, he can handle himself and was minimally offended. But I do not fault security for stopping a middle-eastern looking man carrying a weapon in a secured area, certainly after 9-11. Why his ID could not be verified defies belief, however.

In case you forget why certain people are jumpy when they see a fit middle-eastern man, travelling alone, with a weapon:

The men who used passenger jets to attack America on Sept. 11 were Muslim extremists.

Last year, the USS Cole, was attacked by Muslim extremists killing sailors.

In 1998, U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania were bombed by Muslim extremists, killing 212 people and wounding thousands.

In 1996, Muslim extremists exploded a truck bomb outside an Air Force housing complex in Saudi Arabia, killing 19 and injuring hundreds more.

In 1995, five Americans were killed in a car bomb explosion executed by Muslim extremists.

In 1993, the World Trade Center was bombed by Muslim extremists, killing six and injuring thousands.

Also in 1993, Muslim extremists plotted to assassinate then U.S. President George Bush. (Intriguingly, the word "assassin" comes from a Muslim sect active in the 11th to 13th centuries known as "the Assassins" for their religious practice of murdering infidels.)

In 1988, another passenger jet, Pan Am Flight 103, was bombed by Muslim extremists, killing 270 people.

In 1986, Muslim extremists bombed a West Berlin discotheque frequented by U.S. servicemen.

In 1985, Muslim extremists seized an Italian cruise ship, the Achille Lauro, and murdered Leon Klinghoffer, a 69-year-old, wheelchair-bound American.

In 1983, Muslim extremists blew up U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut, killing 241 American servicemen.

In 1982, Muslim extremists bombed the U.S. Embassy in Beirut, killing 49 people, including 17 Americans.

In 1979, Muslim extremists stormed the U.S. Embassy in Iran and held American Embassy staff hostage for 444 days.
(above pasted from another article)