Between the two of them, an elderly WWII vet who claims to be a member of MENSA and a bigoted preacher who had the President's ear for twenty years kicked over a rock yesterday. And they seem to be the only ones who are comfortable with what came slithering out.
Let's start with a quick rehash of the facts:
Yesterday, Wednesday, June 10, an 88-year-old man named James W. von Brunn (allegedly) walked into the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and opened fire with a 22-caliber rifle. He shot and killed security guard Stepen T. Johns before being gravely wounded himself by other security guards. Von Brunn is now in the hospital. His prognosis is uncertain.
Also on that day, the dailypress.com published an interview with the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, former pastor to President Obama, in which the preacher said that the "Jewish vote and AIPAC vote"are controlling" the President. (The complete and correct quote can be heard in the video accompanying this article.)
Wright believes that "the Jews" are "controlling" the President. In 1983 von Brunn believed that "the Jews" controlled the Federal Reserve.
Whenever people begin to speak of a nebulous group like "the Illuminati" or "the Opus Dei" or "the Jews" and claim they are "controlling" things like interest rates and Presidents, it is usually because the speaker has run out of facts and now has to begin dealing in fear and suspicion. If he or she can create acute fear and suspicion of some group in the listener, than his/her own anger and bigotry will be justified.
Von Brunn's wife is on record saying that he never shut up about Jews and African Americans as the root of all evil. There was no doubt in her mind that his hatred was consuming him. Wright had a 2,000+ flock to preach to for over 20 years. When YouTube snippets of his sermons began making the rounds, they were followed by a wave of excuse-making- everything from the evergreen "taken out of context" to "it's a black thing- you wouldn't understand."
Yet now, with his "them Jews" and "controlling" remarks, Wright makes himself clear.
Two weeks ago, when abortion provider Dr. George R. Tiller was shot to death in his church, some pundits tried to blame political commentators on Fox News for inciting his assassin. Will those same pundits now cast aspersions on Wright for inspiring von Brunn? After all, Wright is an influential figure and he was publicly stating that "the Jews" "control" the President.
Of course not. Wright will not be held responsible- and indeed, should not- because, in addition to hating Jews, von Brunn apparently loathed African Americans as well. He would not look to Wright for leadership.
But here is the rich irony: the "far-right" white man who apparently loathed African Americans shared a similar view of Jews with the "far-left" African American preacher.
I wonder how Wright feels about that, seeing as von Brunn murdered an African-American guard during his rampage at the museum.
I call this kind of phenomenon WrapAround Hate. The world is a circle and if you go too far in one direction you will inevitably collide with someone coming from the opposite direction.
And each of you will still think yourself morally superior to the other.
So, how do recommend Americans respond to this terrible thing? I'm not sure, but I think Laurence Simon is on the right track:
The train took me to Museum District.
I ran off and headed to the Houston Holocaust Museum.
When I arrived, I walked to the front desk and put down my credit card.
The volunteer was preparing to head out for the day.
They close at five, and it was pretty close to five.
"Not before you put a $100 on this," I said.
(Hat tips: Don Surber,Anne Althouse)
The official website of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum is here.
(Final thought: What does it say about the world that such a museum requires a staff of fully-armed, highly-trained guards?)
(photo courtesy of Museum website)
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