Yet another hate crime, something becoming increasingly common it seems, but it’s strange to see a racist shooting near where I grew up.
Kent police are searching for a gunman they say opened fire in the East Hill neighborhood.
Officers say the victim, a Sikh man, was in his driveway working on his car Friday around 8 p.m. when another man approached him and began yelling, “Go back to your own country.”
They give the address, which gave me a start — it was a familiar neighborhood. It was actually near where my girlfriend lived, up past the top of James Hill (I made so many rubber-legged treks up that monstrous hill). I can’t even imagine this sort of crime happening 30 years ago.
I wonder what motivated him to do that. Somebody must have punched him earlier.
I wonder what the white shooter would think that if later, while he is in his driveway washing his 4×4 pickup (with Trump sticker) and some American Indian approaches him and yells “Go back to your country” and shoots him with an arrow.
Since Sikhs usually wear their hair up and bind it in a turban, they must be Muslims, right?
Ignorance, hatred, more ignorance… this never ends well. If you want to know who to blame, look to the loudmouth cretins who spout nationalistic slogans but then say, ‘Oh, we didn’t mean that guy’.
Ugh, why do they do that? (And show a picture of the house.) Might as well put up a huge neon arrow while they’re at it for all the copycat assholes.
At what point would the US be considered a 3rd world country?
My opinion, that was when Ronnie Raygun was elected. Down hill from there, with minor upward adjustments during democratic administrations.
Jeez–there are two or three Sikh gentlemen I see in the East Hill Fred Meyer all the time. I wonder if it was one of them?
Nerd is right–I’ve considered the United States a failed experiment since election night 1980.
And I can’t even imagine trying to walk up that freakin’ hill–my car can barely make it.
When you live at the bottom and your girlfriend lives at the top, you find the motivation.
Whilst the girlfriend at the top was the excuse, it was the Cave of Caerbannog at the bottom which was the motivation. Not The Cave of Caerbannog, one of the franchise operations, the one in question having a Killer Dormouse. Who was always falling asleep, allowing Young Poopyhead to sneak up & down the hill…
There’s a disturbing uptick of outgrouping going on. This horrible attack on a Sikh is yet another indicator. The spotlight is cast upon Muslims and Mexicans thanks to our president. There is more antisemitism with threats against Jewish community centers and desecration of a cemetery. There’s even disturbing obsession with witches lately coming from people ranging from Pat Robertson, Alex Jones to a Florida Legislator named Kim Daniels. Granted this was as I came to find out related to witches casting binding spells on Trump to prevent him doing harm, but witches are kinda a canary in a coal mine. Atheists too are a marginalized group. I am reminded of Martin Niemöller’s “First they came …”. Scary times.
[meta]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_World#Shifting_in_definitions
Le sigh. What I know about the Sikh is that they have been historically discriminated against (even in India) and from the Oh No! Ross and Carrie podcast:
http://ohnopodcast.com/investigations/2011/6/1/ross-and-carrie-seek-the-sikhs-warm-oatmeal-edition.html
Apparently their grandmothers are like Dutch grandmothers, they want to make sure you have enough to eat! Cup of tea? Cookie? And everyone was lovely.
I don’t like that “Making America Great Again” involves targeting brown people.
I am so glad the victim will survive. And the gunman will likely be caught soon, if only because he won’t be able to keep from bragging about it to establish his racist street cred.
Sikhs here in Nova Scotia take pride in their stylish snow shoveling.
They should have actually moved some actual snow.
That is just the warm up. They would then move the snow and then start in with their version of “dad jokes.”
Seriously, my first introduction to Asian Indian culture was a family near Minneapolis. The chemist dad never started a conversation without what could now be considered a “dad joke.” Which would be a after a day for working at a food processing company
Those hate crimes have now become so common that I never know if it’s still the last one or already a new one.
I agree that 30 years ago a lot of what’s happening today would have been unthinkable, but then only six months ago the actual election of Donald Trump to the presidency seemed unthinkable. I shudder at what still-unthinkable things might yet come to pass.