Within days of a shooting rampage in the US, when the single criminal had as many as four guns of various types to himself, and Mr.Obama said, rather feebly, 'such violence is senseless', another struck, this time inside a Sikh temple, out of all places, in suburban Milwaukee, leaving four dead and several wounded. It was on 5 August.
The Sikhs are originally from the Punjab in northwestern India. They(the men) are well-built, wearing turban, and are easily recognizable. They are also known to be good-natured, hard-working. It may be said that they have become the victims because they are recognizable, as the suspect is reported to be a US Army veteran, who might, or might not, have a fighting experience abroad. Although nothing is as yet known on his career, it is said that 'Everyone here is thinking this is a hate crime for sure. People(local Americans) think we are Muslims'.
If I may exaggerate a little here, whether or not the suspect has gone to the Middle East to fight, the 9/11 and the ensuing prolonged wars by the US have ensured that the idea is ingrained in the American mind that the Muslims are an enemy. It is a wrong idea. It is a wrong idea still to say that the Sikhs are Muslims. And the US could have taken a different course than what she actually did, wasting enormous lives and money. My hearty condolences to the six Sikhs.
Every time this kind of thing happens in the US, we inevitably point our finger at the rules, or non-rules in the US. which defend the private possession of 200 million guns. They have a powerful organizational and industrial back-up.
But this writer thinks that the freedom of having guns make the atmosphere in the US dangerous not only to the local Americans, but the foreigners as well, as the above case would show. It is also helping to make the US. all the more war-like and fearful in the world.
The Sikhs are originally from the Punjab in northwestern India. They(the men) are well-built, wearing turban, and are easily recognizable. They are also known to be good-natured, hard-working. It may be said that they have become the victims because they are recognizable, as the suspect is reported to be a US Army veteran, who might, or might not, have a fighting experience abroad. Although nothing is as yet known on his career, it is said that 'Everyone here is thinking this is a hate crime for sure. People(local Americans) think we are Muslims'.
If I may exaggerate a little here, whether or not the suspect has gone to the Middle East to fight, the 9/11 and the ensuing prolonged wars by the US have ensured that the idea is ingrained in the American mind that the Muslims are an enemy. It is a wrong idea. It is a wrong idea still to say that the Sikhs are Muslims. And the US could have taken a different course than what she actually did, wasting enormous lives and money. My hearty condolences to the six Sikhs.
Every time this kind of thing happens in the US, we inevitably point our finger at the rules, or non-rules in the US. which defend the private possession of 200 million guns. They have a powerful organizational and industrial back-up.
But this writer thinks that the freedom of having guns make the atmosphere in the US dangerous not only to the local Americans, but the foreigners as well, as the above case would show. It is also helping to make the US. all the more war-like and fearful in the world.
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