The whole imam thing was a setup. They deliberately acted suspiciously on that flight for some unknown reason.
Did they want to be thrown off? Probably. The big question is WHY.
There are two possible reasons that immediately suggest themselves. The most likely was what those of us who lived through the '60s remember as "guerrilla theater", a form of political protest and performance art in which one proves (for example) that the "pigs" are violent racists by provoking them (e.g. by spitting at them, by throwing urine or feces at them, by threatening them with violence, or by hurling vile insults at them) so that they will, it is hoped, "over-react" in a manner that will confer "victim" status on the initiator(s).
The other less likely possibility is that they are conducting reconnaissance for their compatriots in the jihadi movement (i.e. testing the reactions of the crew and passengers to see whether it's possible to venture back into the hijacking business). Now that I mention it, it's also possible that instead of "reconnaissance" per se, these clowns may also hope that their newfound "victimhood" will result in new legislation or regulations which will prevent crew members or other passengers from interfering in future jihadi operations.
Did anyone listen to Hannity's radio program yesterday. He spoke to a woman who was on the flight. She said these guys had press coverage from the get-go, as if they knew what would happen. It was a set-up from the get-go. If I was the head of US Airways, I would tell them to go ahead and sue. But then, everything comes out. The passenger witnesses, the airline employees, the history of the Inmans, everything. I bet they would back off most ricky-tic.
"Did they want to be thrown off? Probably. The big question is WHY?"
the oldest reason in the world. M...O...N...E...Y!
Giving you the benefit of any doubt, those are rhetorical questions, aren't they?
It's transparently clear that they wanted the media to pick up the story.
By the time Achmed in the Middle East hears about it, it's just another example of why America must be destroyed.
If a child can't pray during school recess, then why should anybody be allowed to spread rugs on the floor in a boarding area and make a spectacle of their praying by louding calling upon Allah?
And the part of the story of their switching seats and not buckling their seat belts, making anti-American cracks...
I wish some American passengers in that plane would have kicked the crap out of all of them. WITH THEIR SHOES ON!
*THAT* would have been a story.