We know America has domestic terrorists, and in recent years, they’re mostly rightwing extremists, who among other things have:
- Blown up a federal building in Oklahoma City, killing 168 people, including children
- Flown an airplane into an IRS building
- Torched abortion clinics and murdered abortion doctors
- Threatened to shoot, or shot at, federal law enforcement agents (Ruby Ridge, Waco, Bundy Ranch)
Now add keying someone’s car because they have a Planned Parenthood bumper sticker on it.
Yeah, it’s petty as terrorist acts go, in the sense that no one was killed and the damage is hundreds, not millions, of dollars. But it’s still terrorism. It’s motivated by hate, driven by intolerance, and intended to instill fear. And it’s committed by slinking cowards operating under the cover of anonymity, people who are unwilling to defend their ideas in debate, and have no respect for the rights of others to disagree.
And, of course, it probably never occurred to this parking lot terrorist that Planned Parenthood does things besides provide abortions, for example,
- Cancer detection (Pap tests and breast exams for women; colon, prostate, and testicular cancer screenings for men)
- HIV testing for men and women
- Testing and treatment for STDs for men and women
and maybe, just maybe, that’s what the car owner is urging the public to support by having that bumper sticker on her car. But then, you can’t reason with terrorists. You have to remove them from society.