Until Sept. 11, we saw terrorists as nothing but extremists who had taken their violent turn in history.
After Sept. 11, it became a public religious battle where extremists have now taken to the streets and to legislation.
This year, a mosque is fighting for its natural right to exist in New York City as many opponents are claiming it’s a victory lap for the Muslim community.
This extremism has been seeping into our beloved town. The group, whose name I refuse to have in this letter based on principle, is planning a “Burn a Quran Day” as another way for the group to get the attention their parents probably neglected to give them.
Now, of course, we have many religiously tolerant groups making petitions to stop it and planning rallies against it, but are we approaching it the right way?
The point is that, when a child throws a fit, you don’t justify it by acknowledging him or her. Ignore the child and don’t give him or her attention. These people are only doing this because their message is heard further by word of mouth, and not by theirs, but ours. The more we let them offend us, the more they win.
