With so much at stake & everything going on in the world...

He was not going to burn anything in this particular case. He requested a permit for a demonstration and was told he had to post a bond for "police protection". The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that it is unconstitutional to require a bond for police protection. That is what this article was about.

I only got involved because the opinions page became a 'mecca' for anti-Islamic sentiment

It certainly did become a 'mecca' for such sentiment, and the major point of the article was blurred by the emotion over religious view points. So I understand why you replied!