Can you Tell a Sunni From a Shiite?

I am sure at the time New York Times came up with this question, every one picked it up in their blogs. But for entertainment value (because I have been feeling quite morbid lately and it is time to take a deep breath and laugh in the face of the ignorant enemy), here are some highlights:

Jeff Stein asks Can you tell a Sunni from a Shiite?

F.B.I.’s spokesman, John Miller: "A leader needs to drive the organization forward ... If he is the executive in a counterterrorism operation in the post-9/11 world, he does not need to memorize the collected statements of Osama bin Laden, or be able to read Urdu to be effective."

Willie Hulon, chief of the FBI’s new national security branch: "Yes, sure, it’s right to know the difference. It’s important to know who your targets are. The basics goes back to their beliefs and who they were following. And the conflicts between the Sunnis and the Shia and the difference between who they were following.” ... "Iran and Hezbollah, Sunni!"

Representative Terry Everett, a seven-term Alabama Republican who is vice chairman of the House intelligence subcommittee on technical and tactical intelligence: "One’s in one location, another’s in another location. No, to be honest with you, I don’t know. I thought it was differences in their religion, different families or something.” [After a brief explanation by the interviwer ...] "“Now that you’ve explained it to me, what occurs to me is that it makes what we’re doing over there extremely difficult, not only in Iraq but that whole area.”

Representative Jo Ann Davis, a Virginia Republican, head of the House intelligence subcommittee in charge of overseeing the C.I.A.’s performance in recruiting Islamic spies and analyzing information: " Do I [know the difference bw Sunni and Shiite]? You know, I should. It’s a difference in their fundamental religious beliefs. The Sunni are more radical than the Shia. Or vice versa. But I think it’s the Sunnis who’re more radical than the Shia. Al Qaeda is the one that’s most radical, so I think they’re Sunni. I may be wrong, but I think that’s right.”