FOR AMERICAN MUSLIMS, THIS COULD BE WORSE THAN 9/11

I'm concerned that things are going to get ugly for law-abiding Muslims in America -- uglier than they did after 9/11.

Recall that in the aftermath of 9/11, President Bush said positive things about Islam. Less than a week after the attack, he went to a Washington mosque and said, "The face of terrorist is not the true faith of Islam. That's not what Islam is all about. Islam is peace." This was three days after the bullhorn speech. Bush was extremely popular with the general public and, more specifically, he was becoming a right-wing hero. Muslim-hate was widespread, but he limited the extent to which it became the overt ideology of the right.

There's no one in the GOP who'll do that now. President Obama is believed to be a Muslim by 30% of Republicans. Many Republican officeholders fear a tea party challenge when they run for reelection, which means they may feel they have no choice but to Muslim-bait (and suggest that Obama is either Muslim himself or a jihadist sympathizer).

Right-wingers mostly gave Bush a pass when he said positive things about Islam because he was satisfying their thirst for bloodshed in the Muslim world. President Obama isn't likely to offer the right (and middle Americans who are susceptible to right-wing arguments) the same satisfaction -- no, I don't think he's going to attack Iran, which, to be totally cynical about it, would help him with this problem.

Hell, I think attacking North Korea would help him slake this bloodlust. But I don't think he's going to do that, either.

So I fear there could be more open, unapologetic Muslim-bashing in America than there was a decade ago. I fear there could be more hate crimes. I'm afraid there's nothing left that could keep the lid on.