don from madison: i have one question for you. what do you define a a right wing extremist?

right wing extremists????? what do they call a right wing extremist? also, what is a left wing extremist? or is there no left ing extremists because of the media's MAJOR bias against conservatives and republicans. wouldn't obama be a left wing extremist because he spent his whole life surrounded by people like Ayers and Rev. Wright? answer me that.

Yes it is of great concern. These groups should be watched closely.

No I am not upset by these stats as this report was full of errors and miscategorizations. These stats are politically motivated. Returning Veterns are not extremists as this report indicates, and they have now recieved an appolgy. Those who support limited federal government in favor of more local control (such as Ron Paul supporters) are not extremists as this report indicates. Those who vote on issues such as ProLife are not extremists as this report want us to believe. This report also claims it has no direct evidence to support these facts, but is full of "could of's" and "might be's". This report should not be believed.

As my stats professor at the UW said to our class "Be an informed consumer when it comes to statistics". I guess I would have to see the studies first. What criteria are they using, what variables do they account for, what type of research tool and method did they use for survey group participation, etc. Just to read on a piece of paper that some number has gone up is not "proof" that something has changed. Perhaps the very thing that has changed is the way they measure hate groups? Like the famous example- the number of crimes may not be increasing, the number of crimes being reported is increasing, but there is still the same amount of crime. What defines a hate group, anyway? Is a bar full of Packer fans shouting "We hate the bears" a hate group? How does someone measure hate vs. intolerance, or extreme dislike? ambitious disapproval? ferverent displeasure? unbridled discontent? unrestrained annoyance? how do you measure a subjective emotion of another person like hate?

Why is it when it involves those who's political views are to the right they are reported as "extremists" or "hate groups" but when it involves those who have politicial opinions who lean to the left they are reported as "activists" or "protestors." We never hear in these reports about the left wing extremists groups and thier acts of hate.

I think this report and these stats are a bunch of baloney! If you read the report, you find that it includes as rightwing extremists those who look more to the states or local authority instead of the federal(which is a guiding principle in our constitiution) and it also includes as extremists those who vote on particular issues such as abortion or immigration. So anyone that is Pro-Life, a Ron Paul supporter, or a returning veteran, is labeled as an extremist by this report. Also, if you look at the report, you see a lot of holes in its evidence to support its claims. Most of it is written like "may be";"possibly"; or "could lead" It cites no evidence of any credible threats and even states that there is no specific information on threats. They use Tim Mcveigh as a template for this report. This report is nothing but propaganda designed to destroy the crediblity of those who disagree with the current governments actions by labeling them extremists.