October 29, 2009
Shots at LA Synagogue -- None Dare Call it Terrorism
Two Jewish men shot as they entered the Adat Yeshurun Valley Sephardic in North Hollywood. The victims were shot in the legs, expected to recover. Police calling it a possible "hate crime".
I've never supported "hate crimes" legislation. Not because I don't think some of the crimes called "hate" aren't more heinous than some other crimes -- they sometimes are. But because we already have a category and a word to describe when individuals are victimized because they represent a broader class of people.
The true intent of "hate crimes" are to terrorize the larger community.
When the KKK terrorized individual blacks in the South the intent was to terrorize the larger black community. They were sending a political message. They were terrorists.
So, let's call "hate crimes" what they are: acts of domestic terrorism.
