One Of Us

When you identify yourself as a part of any group, Middle Aged Teachers For Chocolate Treats for example, you run the risk of painting all Middle Aged Teachers who believe that chocolate treats are yummy as Middle Aged Teachers who believe that chocolate treats are necessary. Others might believe that this opinion is shared with all teachers. Pretty soon there is a call for chocolate treat reform across the country, and then around the globe. It's all a part of the Groucho Marx rule that suggests that you should never be a member of any club that would have you as a member.
Imagine how Muslims in Oregon feel about last week's attempted bomb plot. Nineteen year old Somali-American Mohamed Osman Mohamud planned to blow up a van filled with explosives near a Christmas tree lighting ceremony. Luckily, the explosives were duds, bought from undercover officers, and the cell phone he used to detonate the device instead called the authorities, directing them to his location. That happy coincidence aside, things could have turned out much worse for all of those holiday shoppers. Consequently, things look to turn much worse for those who identify themselves as Muslims in that corner of the country. Portland Mayor Sam Adams said Sunday that he beefed up protection around mosques "and other facilities that might be vulnerable to knuckle-headed retribution" after hearing of the near-miss.
"We left Somalia because of war, and we would like to live in peace as part of the American community," said Kayse Jama, executive director of a local organization founded after the 9/11 attacks to fight anti-Muslim sentiment. "We are Portlanders. We are Oregonians. We are Americans, and we would like to be treated that way. We are your co-workers, your neighbors."
And the rest of us, it would appear, might be knuckleheads who like chocolate treats.