"A building by any other name..."

I know this issue has died down since September 11^th, but I want to get my thoughts out.

“The Ground Zero Mosque”, or more accurately, the “Community center built by Muslims with a Mosque inside, two blocks from Ground Zero and out of sight from the site of the terrorist attacks”. It doesn’t have the same rig to it as “Ground Zero Mosque”, but it’s more accurate.

The issue to come up again on The View when Bill O’Reilly blurted out his opinion (why the hell would he go on this show???) and started a heated debate. Dumbass Elizabeth Hasselbeck, after things calmed down, blamed Obama for not allowing us to use the term ‘Terrorist’. What the hell does that have to do with anything?

(On a side note, thank you media for turning this into a big deal. It was a small story that almost fell through the cracks until you brought it out into the light. An issue that was “Only New York City’s problem” according to many people was now tearing the nation apart.)

Anyway, what is the big deal with this “Mosque”? Here are some of my points on why this is stupid.

It’s not at Ground Zero. As mentioned above, it is two blocks away from the location and it is out of sight from the former World Trade Center Grounds.

Islam shouldn’t be considered anti-American or offensive. RADICALS from the religion hijacked their beliefs to commit these terrible actions. Islam and 90% of Muslims support peace and non-violence. Newt Gingrich wanting attention again said Muslims can’t be loyal Americans because of their obligation to the Koran and its subversive nature. Hey Newt, you divorce-your-cancer-dying-wife-to-marry-a-floozy-of-a-woman man? The religion you converted to, Roman Catholicism, was criticized for the same damn thing! People though Al Smith and John F Kennedy couldn’t be a good president because they were Catholics and would have to be loyal to the Pope! Muslims were killed in the attacks (I am NOT counting the terrorists btw). Muslim-Americans…no, Americans who were Muslim, were killed that day. Firefighters responding to the attacks were Muslim. Anybody can be a good American, no matter your race, gender, sexual orientation, or religion.

We have freedom of Religion. Again, Newt Gingrich said another stupid thing (causing me to exclaim that his non-sequitur gave me cancer!) “Why should we have a mosque when Saudi Arabia doesn’t have a church or synagogue?” (PS they are about to build a church) First, since when is Saudi Arabia the only Muslim country? Other Muslim countries like Indonesia, the country with the largest Muslim population, have churches. Not a lot, but they do. Second, what does that have to do with anything? We are a free country that allows people to worship or not worship as we please. Saudi Arabia is a monarchy with strict Islamic law. Shouldn’t we strive to be better than that, Newt? Or do you want us to be a theocracy like them? Freedom of religion means freedom for all, not just for the Christians. Do we really want to be like Salem, MA?

Finally, this is about a much bigger picture. Planned mosques all over the country, thousands of miles away from Ground Zero, are facing protest, harassment, and defacement. Do you really think that the people holding up signs that say “This is Not Your Country”, “Islam builds Mosques at the sites of their Victories and Conquests”, “Building a mosque is like building a memorial to Hitler at Auschwitz” and countless other insensitive and ignorant statements care about sensitivity? No they don’t. They are ignorant people who take every forwarded email seriously.

On a side note, do you protestors realize how stupid and ignorant you look when you play “Born in the USA” to oppose the Mosque? The song, written by life-long Democrat Bruce Springsteen, is about criticizing the nation’s treatment of its Vietnam veterans, the conduct of the war, and the loss of the common man’s input in government. IT IS NOT A PATRIOTIC SONG!

I just love what the middle ground approach has been: “They have the right, but they really shouldn’t”. It’s like a Klansman telling a black person “You have the right to vote, but you really shouldn’t” as he holds a club. This would mean that freedom of religion is a privilege, not a right. Passed out to a select group and withheld from others determined by popular will. (You know, popular will also wants no taxes and free money. Will that happen? Does it make it right?)

America has a deep seated fear of what we don’t know. We hate communism and socialism even when we can’t define it and even support parts of it while decrying all of it (Social Security). We don’t understand Islam. Older Americans (40+) didn’t need to learn about Islam when they were in school and most of their knowledge comes from those damn emails that are forwarded to them from their reactionary uncle, cousin, or friend of a friend. Those of us that are younger are able to be properly informed on the subject thanks to high school and college classes. While some are still trapped in ignorance from their parents, most of us will be given the truth. Hopefully, most of my generation will be educated enough to override the ignorant in a few decades and Islam will be accepted by mainstream culture. In 50 years, I hope this whole Mosque issue will be seen as another silly panic, like organ transplants, Catholicism, and masturbation…

PS. My only criticism of the “Community center built by Muslims with a Mosque inside, two blocks from Ground Zero and out of sight from the site of the terrorist attacks” is the design. I think they are trying to make a reference to classic Islamic geometric designs:
http://inhabitat.com/2010/10/01/renderings-released-for-park51-mosque-and-community-center/
But, I hate it. It's too modern and weird for my tastes. For trying to keep a low profile, they sure did fail!
 

Colbert's take on the design: 

http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/361889/october-12-2010/tip-wag---peabody-public-schools--andy-rooney---ground-zero-mosque-design