Unfortunately, a segment of American society leap to judgment and condemn an entire people for the acts of one or two.

Agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation have been called in to aid the investigation into an arson fire at the Corvallis mosque where Portland bomb plot suspect Mohamed Osman Mohamud sometimes attended.

The fire at the Salman Alfarisi Islamic Center was discovered by an on-duty police sergeant at about 2:15 a.m. today. It took firefighters 10 minutes to put it out and it damaged about 80 percent of the office it was contained to. No one was injured.

While it is not my intent to diminish the hard work of the FBI capturing another terrorist mastermind cunningly disguised as a Somali-born, pimply faced, angst ridden teenage rapper, one has to wonder how far Mohamud might have gotten with his plans without encouragement. Perhaps, if someone had befriended this kid and gotten him some help instead of setting him up as a terrorist the community of Corvallis would be a safer place for everyone.

Veterans for Peace has issued the following press release condemning the attack.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Bart Bolger, Chapter President
November 28, 2010 Veterans For Peace, Chapter 132
Corvallis, Oregon, USA
email: info@vfpcorvallis.org
phone: 541-207-7762

OREGON VETERANS FOR PEACE CHAPTERS CONDEMN CORVALLIS ISLAMIC CENTER ARSON ATTACK

All five Oregon chapters of Veterans For Peace, a non-profit in its 25th year, representing over 5,000 veterans nationwide, condemn the arson fire attack on the Salman Al-Farisi Islamic Center in Corvallis, Oregon early on the morning of November 28, 2010.
This attack must be investigated as a hate crime. It was set in apparent retaliation for the alleged plot by a 19-year-old Oregon State University student, Mohamed Osman Mohamud, to explode a bomb near a tree lighting ceremony in Portland on November 26.
Veterans For Peace abhors violence of any kind, certainly including the alleged Portland attack plot, but also violence targeting innocent groups because of their race, religion, nationality or ethnicity.
According to press reports, Mr. Mohamud was only loosely affiliated with the Corvallis Islamic Center, having occasionally attended services there. The leader of the Islamic Center, Imaam Yosof Wanly, has condemned the Portland plot, saying he “denounced the actions of Mohamed Mohamud.” Bart Bolger, president of the Corvallis Veterans For Peace chapter, said, “We deplore this vigilante-style attack on the Islamic Center. It was clearly meant to intimidate our Muslim neighbors and was completely contrary to the inclusive and diverse nature of our community.” He added, “Hate in response to hate does not foster the healing process.”

The following Oregon Veterans For Peace chapters endorse this release:
Portland Chapter 72; Corvallis Chapter 132; Bandon Chapter 141; Rogue Valley Chapter 156; Lane County Chapter 159.

Contact information for these groups may be obtained from the contact person listed above.
For more on Veteran For Peace go to: www.veteransforpeace.org.

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Let’s stand in condemnation of both of these events, the attempted bombing in Portland and the arson in Corvallis, they are equally wrong.