Of course Muslims can build a mosque at ground zero if it tickles their fancy, but in lieu of what happened just down the block doesn’t it kinda feel like a bad joke? Like in the same way a Japanese water park a ship or two over from the remains of the USS Arizona would be?
I don’t believe this is me spewing some sort of anti Muslim cyber bigotry, I’m more inclined to think it’s just some form of common sense pointing out some nonsensical-ness, like calling out a friend who accidentally walks out the door wearing two different patterns of plaid.
For instance, would it be cool if a fringe Christian group flew a plane into, and totally destroyed the Mosque of the Prophet, and then built a church by its remains a few years later? That would seem kinda tasteless, or lacking in style, wouldn’t it? Oh well…
You know my first reaction was to freak out over this whole ordeal, but then I started hearing more and more and my attitude changed. Like that it’s actually blocks away in an old Burlington coat factory that was already heading toward disrepair or that it’s actually more of a community center with a room for prayer than a mosque.
I think I’m more offended by the lies that we are told to get us to lean one way or another. We shouldn’t be lead to feel hatred toward groups of people rather than the extremist religions that acted against us. But that always seems to be the result.
Hmm, interesting insight. It does sound a little blown out of proportion, but don’t you think that it is still kind of tactless to have a mosque like center built near ground zero?
I don’t think it is tasteless at all. If part of the American agenda in defeating radical Islam is promoting moderate Islam, then this is just the sort of thing we should promote. These are the types of Muslims we welcome with open arms and say come enjoy religious freedom in America.
Ben, your example of the Mosque of the Prophet is just off. (Aside from the fact that a church used to stand in that same place). 1. WTC was not a religious sight. 2. This mosque/community center is actually a few blocks from ground zero, not on it. How close is too close?
Why not work with the developers to further honor the dead, even the muslims who were killed because the worked in the WTC.
The more we demonize Islam as a whole the more we undergird our moral standing in the world to defeat an ideology that most Muslims are sickened by.
Joe, always a pleasure – But a Japanese water park built 500ft from the remains of USS Arizona would be tasteless, even if built by moderate Japanese imperialists. The Mosque of the Prophet/WTC comparison is not off, sadly, it’s on, both represent shrines of importance to the cultures they represent. In the end, to build or not to build isn’t going to ruin my birthday, this isn’t a blog on “America’s agenda in defeating radical Islam”, just my gut saying that’s one ugly sweater they’re wearing to the party…