One must wonder, if this had been any other religion....

[PaceAdvantage]

....would it be labeled as simply a "prank" and the perpetrators as mere "culprits" or "grinches?"

Or would the Justice Department and FBI be involved by now, coupled with a smattering of "civil rights leaders" of various persuasions, depending on the offended religion?

You make the call.

http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2010/12/20/vandals-ruin-hoffman-estates-familys-christmas/

[Let's Roll]

Sad to see this happen to such a nice family.
This encouraging quote from the 13 year old son,

“We’re not gonna back down, we’re gonna keep the Christmas spirit alive in this household,” said Ryan.

Way to go Ryan ! :ThmbUp:

[Overlay]

I'm not saying that the incident can be defended, or that if other religions were involved, it wouldn't be treated from the start primarily from a "hate crime" perspective. But the prima facie assumption in this country (being considered as either secular or predominantly Christian) would be that the crime either was committed for non-religious motives (such as for personal animus against the victims for non-religious reasons, where the religious display was just a "target of convenience"), or was a motiveless act of vandalism for no specific reason. I don't think that you can necessarily ascribe anti-Christian motives to the act unless other existing evidence or circumstances point in that direction. It's the majority/minority distinction in this country between Christianity and non-Christian religious faiths that causes different spins to be put on acts perpetrated against members of those other (minority) faiths, however biased that might appear.

[Tom]

You can bet your ass if someone did something similar to a mosque Obama would have been all over it.

Doubt me?

Go try it! ;););)

[Native Texan III]

10/1 on that it was mindless vandalism.

You see it everyday! You're walking down the road, driving in a car or riding a bike. Then you see it. Something is on the ground. It's a smashed mailbox. A broken window. A knocked-over gravestone at the local historic cemetery. Graffiti or some wannabe's "gang" tag. The person who damaged this piece of private or public property just wasted money that could have gone towards a good cause. Instead it must be used to repair/replace this important piece of property.


Vandalism- action involving deliberate destruction of or damage to public or private property. This disrespectful and punishable act continues to affect people everyday. Examples of vandalism include mailbox smashing, tagging, egging cars or buildings, breaking gravestones, graffiti, A.T.V. trespassing and erosion, breaking windows, signing or scratching notes on bathroom stalls, or pulling a false fire alarm. Most vandalism occurs at nighttime when no one is around. This crime makes the community look like a dangerous and scary place to live.

Vandalism is usually committed by adolescent boys between the ages of 10 and 19.
42% of all teen arrests are for vandalism
School-realted vandalism alone in the USA in 2004 cost over $93 Million!
Vandalism costs in America last year exceeded $650 Million!!!
In these tough economic times, vandalism costs us thousands of jobs, millions of dollars in local investment, millions in tax dollars better spent on schools, fixing community needs, providing scholarships; it hurts the people and communities that can least afford to repair or replace things that are broken or vandalized.
Vandalism hurts people and communities economically, psychologically, culturally, politically...and for no good reason.

http://www.stopvandalism.net/ (http://www.stopvandalism.net/)