Do what's right, legislators

If Alabama is going to have a hate crime law -- and it is, because the law is already on the books, and no legislator in his or her right mind would dare to suggest its repeal -- then crimes motivated by a victim's actual or perceived sexual orientation should be included within its scope.

That's especially true when you consider that FBI statistics show that sexual orientation is the third most common motivator of a hate crime, trailing only race and religion, according to the Montgomery Advertiser. If there's going to be a hate crime law, it's illogical to exclude more than 15 percent of all hate crimes.

State Rep. Alvin Holmes, D-Montgomery, plans to sponsor a bill to address the oversight, and it's tough to think of a reason it shouldn't pass. Of course, these are the same lawmakers who fell all over themselves last year to make gay marriage double-plus illegal, so I wouldn't be shocked if it didn't.