Don’t worry about terrorism; worry about workplace violence?

By Phil Lawler ( bio - articles - email ) | Sep 29, 2014

The Oklahoma beheading, analysts solemnly tell us, was an act of workplace violence, not terrorism. They explain that the killer acted on his own; he was apparently not in contact with any terrorist group.

Why doesn’t that reassurance make us feel any better? Because if you’re worried about being beheaded, you’re not necessarily concerned with your potential assailants’ motives. If there’s a potential killer out there who might be moved to homicidal violence becaue he doesn’t like the color of your necktie, that’s still a problem.

In Oklahoma, the accused killer’s motivation was, it seems, work-related. But there’s no way to ignore the other factor that pops out of the story: his recent conversion to Islam.

The Islamic State, which is classified as a terrorist group, beheads victims. An isolated man in Oklahoma, who is classified as an alienated employee, beheads his victim. There’s a unmistakable connection here. Let’s be honest. It’s not formal membership in a terrorist organization that worries us; it’s Islam.

Are we wrong to worry about Islam? If so, the peaceful behavior of our Muslim neighbors will eventually allay those fears. Public officials and TV analysts, by denying what seems so obvious, only inflame them.