Domestic Terrorism and Hate Crimes

With the stereo-typical portrayal of a terrorist as one with an Arabic ancestry, wearing an explosive vest and blowing himself up in a crowded place, you’d think all terrorists are like this.  But recent and current events have once again brought us back to the reality that even among us, there are those who are ready to spread havoc and kill innocent people who did nothing but be at the wrong place at the wrong time.  Who would expect that an 88-year old man would suddenly appear on the steps of the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. today, shoot an unsuspecting security guard and attempt to enter the museum, where there are about 80 people – mostly kids on an educational field trip, to spread terror and possibly take several lives.

Fortunately, alert security guards inside the museum were able to stop this deranged man and shot him down before he could do any further damage.  As we write this, the shooter and the fallen guard are both in critical condition. 

James Von Brunn is the name of this domestic terrorist.  This man is a World War II veteran and is said to be highly decorated.  But there is another side to him.  He has been known by civil rights organizations as affiliated with white supremacist neo-nazi groups, and has written several incendiary articles attacking Jews, African-Americans and other minority groups.   From his sordid background, it is clear that this attack, coming only a few weeks after Dr. George Tiller of Kansas has been fatally shot point blank by a man believed to be against the doctor’s abortion activities, is a hate crime.

To this day that we already have a black president, it is unfortunate that racial hatred and violence still persist.  I’m not suggesting that by electing a black president America’s problems about race have already disappeared or will disappear.  It is just shocking to our moral sense that there are still some people who live with that non-sense and abominable idea that one race could be superior to another, and could go down to that pit of darkness so low that they would have no qualms about resorting to violence just to get their twisted message across.

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