When the Redlands Tea Party Patriots objected to the resettling of Syrian Muslim migrants in their community, CAIR accused them of “paranoia and phobia is rooted in a combination of ignorance and bigotry.”
But “paranoia and phobia” are the modern condition that the free world has found itself living in. Islamic terrorism can strike anytime and anywhere from a Paris concert hall to a San Bernardino County facility where disabled children were being helped. It’s ignorance to ignore that and bigotry to defend it.
“What will be done to ensure the safety of our community? Our biggest concern is the safety of our family, our children and our grandchildren,” Victoria Hargrave of Redlands Townhall had asked.
It was a good question. As the country watched police charge towards a home in the Redlands, it has become an even better question.
The shooter has been named as Sayeed Farouk. His father described him as a religiously devout Muslim. “He was very religious. He would go to work, come back, go to pray, come back.” Co-workers say that he “grew a beard and started to wear religious clothing. The long shirt that’s like a dress and the cap on his head.”
And at some point his “religiosity” took him down the familiar path of Jihad.