Oh, those rascally Muslims, are they vandalizing their own mosque again to get attention and sympathy?

The ugly underside of society has reared its head in Manteca.  It’s been here before. And unless we all step up to fight it, the beast will return again and again with increasing frequency and viciousness. It may even, heaven forbid, turn violent. (Oh, NOES!)

The vulgarities and the affront to the religious tenets of the Islamic faith are attempts to put fear into the hearts of law-abiding Americans. (Um, no, it’s Muslims who put fear into the hearts of law-abiding Americans)

Manteca should not treat this as an isolated incident. Our neighbors should not feel threatened simply because of their faith, their beliefs, their skin, their dress, or any other factor. The evil that left its mark must not go unchallenged. It must not be allowed to fester and multiply.

[NOTE from CAIR: Muslims are prohibited from consuming pork products and bigots often use pigs or pork to offend Muslim sensibilities.]

We like to think that hate fueled by bigotry or prejudice is on the wane. Perhaps it is, perhaps it isn’t. The point is that it exists. And as long as it exists it must be kept in check. Unless we counter it by making it clear we are all Americans then all of our freedoms and safety are in jeopardy.

What happened at the Islamic Center of Manteca should outrage us. Community leaders — secular and spiritual — must stridently condemn from podiums to pulpits the acts of hate designed to fuel fear.

History’s lessons are crystal clear. As World War II should have taught us, if we don’t stand up for attacks on those who are different than us merely because they are different those that feed off hate may come after us next. (Oh, here we go, hijacking the Holocaust to create a moral equivalency with graffiti on a mosque. Maybe we should we call it “Kristallmosque?”)