Nobody like the boogeyman…

On the murder of Luis Ramirez in Shenandoah, Pennsylvania, a lot has been said.  Maria Anglin wrote this in this morning’s San Antonio Express-News

It’s no wonder hate crimes happen; nobody likes the boogeyman.

There are those who have made high-profile careers out of fueling fear, anger and disappointment; who dole out large doses of carefully crafted hate speech, gloomy forecasts and xenophobic fear of outsiders to millions of good people itching to blame someone for everything from the price of gasoline to salmonella outbreaks to every crack-cocaine death in America.

And if it’s true that immigrants, just by being in the country’s classrooms, restaurants and front yards, have the power to shift the nation’s values, it is also true that it doesn’t take much goading by some wise guy on TV — or a parent, relative, neighbor, family friend, teacher, mentor or politician — to tilt the balance of fear, anger and disappointment in teenagers learning to find their way in the world into the realm of full-blown hate.

Packs of angry boys can be dangerous; the mob mentality that takes over can turn even the harmless kid who eats paste into a hell of a lot of trouble. Add a little underage drinking and things can get ugly really fast.

But those who fan the flames of fear, anger and disappointment are much scarier.