Op-ed: President Obama owes every American apology over handling of mosque affair
Moshe Dann
Published: 08.25.10, 00:01 / Israel Opinion
President Obama's defense of the right of Muslims to build a mosque and Islamic center in New York City turned the issue into one of religious freedom. That was wrong.
Obama's first priority - like that of every national leader - is to speak for his country and on its behalf. Obama's refusal to do so, his insinuation that questions raised about a proposed Islamic mega-center near the site of the 9/11 attacks are un-American, unconstitutional, and prejudiced have shamed every American, and the good name of America.
Obama could have defended America; instead, he apologized for it.
He could have said that 4,400 Americans have died in Iraq, 1,200 have died in Afghanistan, and hundreds of thousands of Americans have been wounded - to help those Muslim countries attain freedom. And of course, hundreds of billions of dollars were spent towards that effort. But he didn't.
Obama might have said that Islam is the fastest growing religion in the US; hundreds of thousands of Muslims have found a home in America since and despite 9/11. He could have said: America has and continues to stand for freedom and democracy. He did not.
He is probably the first American president to malign his own country.
Obama could have explained that American law and values do not support discrimination, certainly not against Muslims; our history proves that. There are about 2,000 mosques in the United States, serving about 8 million Muslims; NYC alone has a dozen mosques. And Muslims are doing well in America: 67% have higher degrees; their average income is over $42,000; 26% earn over $100,000; 67% buy a new car every 3 years.
President Obama could have also noted that most American Muslims don't attend prayer services; mosques are often political and social centers, some of which are problematic.
'Grave threat to non-Muslims’
According to FBI estimates, 10 % of the mosques in the United States are associated with radical Jihadist ideology. Others estimate that 80% of mosques are dominated by the extremist Wahhabi ideology promoted by Saudi Arabia. And they are allowed to practice, under American principles of freedom of religion.
Unlike houses of worship in America which are built and supported by the local population, most mosques receive funding from foreign countries, especially Saudi Arabia.
President Obama might have noted that the Muslim Brotherhood, a Nazi organization that is banned in Egypt, is associated with some American mosques.
A study by Freedom House concluded that American mosques offer a wide selection of Saudi publications that promote hateful ideology, with all materials found to have some connection to Saudi Arabia.
According to the study, these publications advanced a "dualistic worldview in which there exist two antagonistic realms or abodes that can never be reconciled. The study also concluded that these publications "pose a grave threat to non-Muslims and to the Muslim community itself."
President Obama could have explained that this is obviously not an issue of religious freedom. He could have championed America, its reputation, institutions and values. Instead, he reinforced the view that America is bigoted.
For that, President Obama owes every American an apology.
source:http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3943359,00.html
Showing posts with label 9/11. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 9/11. Show all posts
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Nancy Pelosi Supports Mega Mosque and Wants Those Opposed Investigated
by Staff
August 23, 2010
MEDIA ADVISORY, (christiansunite.com) -- Speaker Nancy Pelosi is now demanding to know how the Religious Freedom Coalition and other organizations fund their opposition to the Ground Zero mega mosque, but she does not seem to care that the UK Company planning the construction refuses to say where their funding comes from. Pelosi said, "I join those who have called for looking into how is this opposition to the mosque being funded."
Sharif El-Gamal of SoHo Properties, which owns the property where the mega mosque is to be built, has refused to disclose funding and has said that the "non-profit" that will operate the mosque has not yet been formed. But, Speaker Pelosi is more concerned about an alleged conspiracy by those opposing the mosque and appeared to ask for an investigation saying, " ... we should also ask who is funding the attacks against the construction of the center."
The Religious Freedom Coalition operates the www.no911mosque.org site opposed to the mega mosque and is producing a 60 second commercial exposing the double standard of Islam; Muslims demand the mosque be built at Ground Zero, and at the same time nearly 1,000 Christian churches and other buildings have been attacked or destroyed by Muslims since 9-11.
Religious Freedom Coalition chairman, William J. Murray said, "Apparently Nancy Pelosi is so invested in the Islamic concept of, 'the enemy of my enemy is my friend,' that she will blindly support a mega mosque at Ground Zero simply because it is opposed by social conservatives."
source:http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion09607.shtml
August 23, 2010
MEDIA ADVISORY, (christiansunite.com) -- Speaker Nancy Pelosi is now demanding to know how the Religious Freedom Coalition and other organizations fund their opposition to the Ground Zero mega mosque, but she does not seem to care that the UK Company planning the construction refuses to say where their funding comes from. Pelosi said, "I join those who have called for looking into how is this opposition to the mosque being funded."
Sharif El-Gamal of SoHo Properties, which owns the property where the mega mosque is to be built, has refused to disclose funding and has said that the "non-profit" that will operate the mosque has not yet been formed. But, Speaker Pelosi is more concerned about an alleged conspiracy by those opposing the mosque and appeared to ask for an investigation saying, " ... we should also ask who is funding the attacks against the construction of the center."
The Religious Freedom Coalition operates the www.no911mosque.org site opposed to the mega mosque and is producing a 60 second commercial exposing the double standard of Islam; Muslims demand the mosque be built at Ground Zero, and at the same time nearly 1,000 Christian churches and other buildings have been attacked or destroyed by Muslims since 9-11.
Religious Freedom Coalition chairman, William J. Murray said, "Apparently Nancy Pelosi is so invested in the Islamic concept of, 'the enemy of my enemy is my friend,' that she will blindly support a mega mosque at Ground Zero simply because it is opposed by social conservatives."
source:http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion09607.shtml
Monday, August 23, 2010
Qur’an says no to “9/11 mosque”!
From blog of Son of Hamas
====================================
The controversy over the “9/11 mosque” has dangerously missed the point.
Yes, it is an offense to the families of nearly 3,000 victims who were killed in the deadliest terrorist attack ever on American soil. Yes, it will reopen and infect deep wounds. And yes, it is perfectly legal and protected by the constitutional guarantee of religious freedom.
But it is also an affront to Allah.
Open your Qur’an and read sura 9, verse 107. I will reproduce it here in English for our Western readers:
“And there are those who put up a mosque by way of mischief and infidelity – to disunite the Believers – and in preparation for one who warred against Allah and His Messenger aforetime. They will indeed swear that their intention is nothing but good; But Allah doth declare that they are certainly liars.” (The Qur’an, sura 9, verse 107, Yusufali translation)
You can see that the language is much stronger in Arabic.
Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf may not intend “to disunite the Believers,” but his irresponsibility will accomplish the same end, even while he and his supporters, both Muslim and America’s progressive elite, “indeed swear that their intention is nothing but good.”
Hamas, the Muslim Brotherhood, Hezbollah and the Taliban are counting on the inevitable outcome of such irresponsibility.
Do not be deceived, my brothers and sisters, this issue will not die. It will not go away. It is already dividing Believers and will fester and putrify like an open wound.
In addition to killing thousands of innocent Americans, Osama bin Laden’s stupid attack destroyed the reputation of Muslims everywhere. The result was Arab profiling, false arrests and, yes, an Islamophobia that has not been entirely unjustified. It also resulted in the creation of hundreds of organizations worldwide working tirelessly to encourage constructive dialogue and repair the shattered image of Islam, at a cost of hundreds of millions of dollars that could have been better used for education, healthcare and other noble causes.
If you allow Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf and the Cordoba Initiative to build this shrine to terrorism, you will only generate more hatred, suspicion and violence, destroy nearly a decade of image-rebuilding and set in motion a backlash against all Muslims.
Think for a moment. Do you really believe that Americans will just say “Oh, well” and move on while the 9/11 mosque is being built? Day after day, they will drive by, walk by on the way to work, and their anger and outrage will be renewed. The media will broadcast updates on the mosque’s progress, inflaming millions of viewers with every report.
How will Muslims react, then, when an angry citizen smears garbage on a wall of the mosque or covers it with blasphemous graffiti? How will they respond to protests and pickets? What if some hothead sets off a bomb?
Hatred and violence are not confined to Hamas, Hezbollah, al-Qaeda and the Taliban. They lie just below the surface of us all and only require sufficient heat to erupt.
And the violence will not be contained in Manhattan. You have seen how our brothers and sisters have reacted to books and cartoons. You can expect outraged mobs to burn homes and churches, attack embassies, kidnap and behead hostages not only in the Middle East but also in Africa and Asia, in obedience to the Qur’an’s mandate to defend the honor of Allah and his Prophet.
The blood—Muslim and non-Muslim—will be on the hands of the foolish Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf. But he and Islamists like him will blame everybody else, just as he blames America instead of bin Laden for 9/11. Just as he will not admit that Hamas is a terrorist organization. Instead, he provokes and blames the provoked.
And you will share the blame because you did nothing stop it when it was in your power.
Even your Qur’an warns that the 9/11 mosque is not the will of Allah. It is the work of “mischief and infidelity.”
The 9/11 mosque will do nothing but push people over the edge. Americans and Muslims. Not for days or weeks, but for years, for as long as the building stands. And the violence will only escalate. Eye for eye, tooth for tooth. On every continent.
The Cordoba project will never be a community center where people will gather to seek and find common ground.
You can, and must, stop it. Through petitions and boycotts. By demanding accountability from your leaders. By withholding funds. By refusing to take any part in the sins of Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf and the Cordoba Initiative.
In short, you must stop it by being a responsible Muslim.
source:http://sonofhamas.wordpress.com/2010/08/18/qur%E2%80%99an-says-no-to-%E2%80%9C911-mosque%E2%80%9D/
====================================
The controversy over the “9/11 mosque” has dangerously missed the point.
 |
| What persuades you that this will end well? |
Yes, it is an offense to the families of nearly 3,000 victims who were killed in the deadliest terrorist attack ever on American soil. Yes, it will reopen and infect deep wounds. And yes, it is perfectly legal and protected by the constitutional guarantee of religious freedom.
But it is also an affront to Allah.
Open your Qur’an and read sura 9, verse 107. I will reproduce it here in English for our Western readers:
“And there are those who put up a mosque by way of mischief and infidelity – to disunite the Believers – and in preparation for one who warred against Allah and His Messenger aforetime. They will indeed swear that their intention is nothing but good; But Allah doth declare that they are certainly liars.” (The Qur’an, sura 9, verse 107, Yusufali translation)
You can see that the language is much stronger in Arabic.
Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf may not intend “to disunite the Believers,” but his irresponsibility will accomplish the same end, even while he and his supporters, both Muslim and America’s progressive elite, “indeed swear that their intention is nothing but good.”
Hamas, the Muslim Brotherhood, Hezbollah and the Taliban are counting on the inevitable outcome of such irresponsibility.
Do not be deceived, my brothers and sisters, this issue will not die. It will not go away. It is already dividing Believers and will fester and putrify like an open wound.
In addition to killing thousands of innocent Americans, Osama bin Laden’s stupid attack destroyed the reputation of Muslims everywhere. The result was Arab profiling, false arrests and, yes, an Islamophobia that has not been entirely unjustified. It also resulted in the creation of hundreds of organizations worldwide working tirelessly to encourage constructive dialogue and repair the shattered image of Islam, at a cost of hundreds of millions of dollars that could have been better used for education, healthcare and other noble causes.
If you allow Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf and the Cordoba Initiative to build this shrine to terrorism, you will only generate more hatred, suspicion and violence, destroy nearly a decade of image-rebuilding and set in motion a backlash against all Muslims.
Think for a moment. Do you really believe that Americans will just say “Oh, well” and move on while the 9/11 mosque is being built? Day after day, they will drive by, walk by on the way to work, and their anger and outrage will be renewed. The media will broadcast updates on the mosque’s progress, inflaming millions of viewers with every report.
How will Muslims react, then, when an angry citizen smears garbage on a wall of the mosque or covers it with blasphemous graffiti? How will they respond to protests and pickets? What if some hothead sets off a bomb?
 |
| Hatred and violence are not confined to Hamas, Hezbollah, al-Qaeda and the Taliban. They lie just below the surface of us all and only require sufficient heat to erupt. |
Hatred and violence are not confined to Hamas, Hezbollah, al-Qaeda and the Taliban. They lie just below the surface of us all and only require sufficient heat to erupt.
And the violence will not be contained in Manhattan. You have seen how our brothers and sisters have reacted to books and cartoons. You can expect outraged mobs to burn homes and churches, attack embassies, kidnap and behead hostages not only in the Middle East but also in Africa and Asia, in obedience to the Qur’an’s mandate to defend the honor of Allah and his Prophet.
The blood—Muslim and non-Muslim—will be on the hands of the foolish Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf. But he and Islamists like him will blame everybody else, just as he blames America instead of bin Laden for 9/11. Just as he will not admit that Hamas is a terrorist organization. Instead, he provokes and blames the provoked.
And you will share the blame because you did nothing stop it when it was in your power.
Even your Qur’an warns that the 9/11 mosque is not the will of Allah. It is the work of “mischief and infidelity.”
The 9/11 mosque will do nothing but push people over the edge. Americans and Muslims. Not for days or weeks, but for years, for as long as the building stands. And the violence will only escalate. Eye for eye, tooth for tooth. On every continent.
The Cordoba project will never be a community center where people will gather to seek and find common ground.
You can, and must, stop it. Through petitions and boycotts. By demanding accountability from your leaders. By withholding funds. By refusing to take any part in the sins of Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf and the Cordoba Initiative.
In short, you must stop it by being a responsible Muslim.
source:http://sonofhamas.wordpress.com/2010/08/18/qur%E2%80%99an-says-no-to-%E2%80%9C911-mosque%E2%80%9D/
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Senator Reid says mosque shouldn't be built near ground zero
Breaking from President Obama, top Democrat says despite First Amendment, mosque should not be built near site of 9/11 attacks
WASHINGTON - The Senate's top Democrat says a mosque should not be built near the site of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada on Monday became the highest-profile Democrat to break with President Barack Obama, who on Friday backed the right for the developers to build a mosque near ground zero.
In a statement, Reid said the First Amendment protects freedom of religion and he respects that, but the mosque should be built somewhere else.
Critics have said the location of the mosque is insensitive because the terrorists who struck were Islamic extremists.
The plan to build a mosque and Muslim cultural center not far from ground zero in Manhattan has irked the Right. Many Republicans, including former Alaskan governor, Sarah Palin, are working hard, and with significant success, to place the issue on the public agenda ahead of the mid-term elections on November 2.
Reid is in a tight campaign for re-election in Nevada. His opponent, Republican Sharron Angle, earlier in the day called for Reid to say whether he agreed with Obama.
source:http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3937824,00.html
WASHINGTON - The Senate's top Democrat says a mosque should not be built near the site of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada on Monday became the highest-profile Democrat to break with President Barack Obama, who on Friday backed the right for the developers to build a mosque near ground zero.
In a statement, Reid said the First Amendment protects freedom of religion and he respects that, but the mosque should be built somewhere else.
Critics have said the location of the mosque is insensitive because the terrorists who struck were Islamic extremists.
The plan to build a mosque and Muslim cultural center not far from ground zero in Manhattan has irked the Right. Many Republicans, including former Alaskan governor, Sarah Palin, are working hard, and with significant success, to place the issue on the public agenda ahead of the mid-term elections on November 2.
Reid is in a tight campaign for re-election in Nevada. His opponent, Republican Sharron Angle, earlier in the day called for Reid to say whether he agreed with Obama.
source:http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3937824,00.html
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Israeli general opposes Ground Zero mosque
Brig.-Gen. Dov Shefi (ret.), a former chief IDF prosecutor who today serves as attorney-general of Israel's Defense Ministry, lost his son, Haggai, nine years ago when Muslim terrorists flew two passenger jets into the World Trade Center towers in New York City.
He is appalled that today the city of New York seems ready to approve the construction of a mosque at the site of history's most bloody Islamic terrorist attack.
"I think that the establishment of a mosque in this place, a place that serves as a memorial site for [thousands of] families, is like bringing a pig into the Holy Temple," Shefi told Israel's Arutz 7 radio station. "It is inconceivable that in all the city of New York, this site was specifically chosen to establish an institution that represents the culture that led the terrorists of Al-Qaeda to carry out the greatest crime ever."
Shefi said that people around the world admire America for its openness and commitment to personal freedom, but lamented that "this belief often makes [Americans] lose sight of reality."
Shefi has joined with several conservative groups in the US that are fighting to make sure a mosque is not erected at Ground Zero, as it would be seen throughout the Muslim world as a testament to the domination of the world's greatest economic and military power by Islam.
Unreported was the fact that the death of Haggai Shefi in the southern World Trade Center tower on September 11, 2001 stands in sharp contrast to the conspiracy theorists who claim the terrorist attack was orchestrated by Israel, and that all Jews were secretly evacuated.
source:http://www.israeltoday.co.il/default.aspx?tabid=178&nid=21641
He is appalled that today the city of New York seems ready to approve the construction of a mosque at the site of history's most bloody Islamic terrorist attack.
"I think that the establishment of a mosque in this place, a place that serves as a memorial site for [thousands of] families, is like bringing a pig into the Holy Temple," Shefi told Israel's Arutz 7 radio station. "It is inconceivable that in all the city of New York, this site was specifically chosen to establish an institution that represents the culture that led the terrorists of Al-Qaeda to carry out the greatest crime ever."
Shefi said that people around the world admire America for its openness and commitment to personal freedom, but lamented that "this belief often makes [Americans] lose sight of reality."
Shefi has joined with several conservative groups in the US that are fighting to make sure a mosque is not erected at Ground Zero, as it would be seen throughout the Muslim world as a testament to the domination of the world's greatest economic and military power by Islam.
Unreported was the fact that the death of Haggai Shefi in the southern World Trade Center tower on September 11, 2001 stands in sharp contrast to the conspiracy theorists who claim the terrorist attack was orchestrated by Israel, and that all Jews were secretly evacuated.
source:http://www.israeltoday.co.il/default.aspx?tabid=178&nid=21641
NYC Panel Clears Way for Ground Zero Mosque
A New York City panel sponsored by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg will allow a mosque to be built near Ground Zero.
The 9-0 vote Tuesday by the Landmarks Preservation Commission permits the existing building to be torn down and paves the way for a group called the Cordoba Initiative to begin construction on a 13-story Islamic center.
According to the commissioners, the 152-year-old building does not meet historic criteria to qualify as a landmark.
"We really stand for peace, and peace is what matters the most," said Daisy Khan, executive director of the American Society for Muslim Advancement. "And we believe the symbolism of being close to the site that had so much tragedy emanating from it is the very site that we believe will bring about much healing."
However, the American Center for Law and Justice, which is representing a New York City firefighter who survived the 9/11 terror attacks, expressed a different view.
"The actions taken by the City of New York represent a blatant disregard for the city's own procedures, while ignoring the fact that this is a historic and hallowed site that should not be destroyed to build an Islamic mosque," said Jay Sekulow, Chief Counsel of the ACLJ.
"It has been clear from the beginning that the city has engaged in a rush to push this project through - ignoring proper procedure and ignoring a growing number of New Yorkers and Americans who don't believe this site is the place to build a mosque," Sekulow continued.
Sekulow said his organization would be filing a legal challenge to the panel's "flawed" decision on behalf their client.
Former New York Mayor Rudi Giuliani also didn't mince words when he called the mosque a "desecration," while talking to conservative talk radio host Jeff Katz. He added that "decent Muslims" would take no offense at opposition to the Islamic center since they too desired peace.
"Nobody would allow something like that at Pearl Harbor. Let's have some respect for who died there and why they died there," Giuliani said. "Let's not put this off on some kind of politically correct theory."
Meanwhile, a prominent Jewish group has also spoken out against the mosque. The Anti-Defamation League said the mosque would be disrespectful to the victims and families of Sept. 11 and that the location was "counterproductive to the healing process."
source:http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/us/2010/August/NYC-Panel-Clears-Way-for-Ground-Zero-Mosque/
The 9-0 vote Tuesday by the Landmarks Preservation Commission permits the existing building to be torn down and paves the way for a group called the Cordoba Initiative to begin construction on a 13-story Islamic center.
According to the commissioners, the 152-year-old building does not meet historic criteria to qualify as a landmark.
"We really stand for peace, and peace is what matters the most," said Daisy Khan, executive director of the American Society for Muslim Advancement. "And we believe the symbolism of being close to the site that had so much tragedy emanating from it is the very site that we believe will bring about much healing."
However, the American Center for Law and Justice, which is representing a New York City firefighter who survived the 9/11 terror attacks, expressed a different view.
"The actions taken by the City of New York represent a blatant disregard for the city's own procedures, while ignoring the fact that this is a historic and hallowed site that should not be destroyed to build an Islamic mosque," said Jay Sekulow, Chief Counsel of the ACLJ.
"It has been clear from the beginning that the city has engaged in a rush to push this project through - ignoring proper procedure and ignoring a growing number of New Yorkers and Americans who don't believe this site is the place to build a mosque," Sekulow continued.
Sekulow said his organization would be filing a legal challenge to the panel's "flawed" decision on behalf their client.
Former New York Mayor Rudi Giuliani also didn't mince words when he called the mosque a "desecration," while talking to conservative talk radio host Jeff Katz. He added that "decent Muslims" would take no offense at opposition to the Islamic center since they too desired peace.
"Nobody would allow something like that at Pearl Harbor. Let's have some respect for who died there and why they died there," Giuliani said. "Let's not put this off on some kind of politically correct theory."
Meanwhile, a prominent Jewish group has also spoken out against the mosque. The Anti-Defamation League said the mosque would be disrespectful to the victims and families of Sept. 11 and that the location was "counterproductive to the healing process."
source:http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/us/2010/August/NYC-Panel-Clears-Way-for-Ground-Zero-Mosque/
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Palin, Bloomberg Spar over NYC Mosque Plans
Plans to build a mosque two blocks from Ground Zero in New York City is stirring a heated back and forth between two prominent political figures.
Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is speaking out against the project as New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg is defending the plans against her comments.
Palin has joined the opposition against the Cordoba House mega mosque center set to be built in New York City.
This week on the social networking site Twitter, Palin charged the mosque plans were an emotionally slap to the 9/11 victims.
"Peace-seeking Muslims, [please] understand, [the] Ground Zero mosque is unnecessary provocation; it stabs hearts," she said.
The post brought a response from New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who defended the project.
"Sarah Palin has a right to her opinions, but I could not disagree more. Everything the United States stands for and New York stands for is tolerance and openness," he said.
"And I think it's a great message for the world that, unlike in other places where they might actually ban people from wearing a burqa or they might actually keep people from building a building, that's not what America was founded on. Nor is it what America should become."
Since approval for the Cordoba House center passed, New Yorkers already had plenty of passion about the idea of a mosque at Ground Zero.
"This house of evil will be the birthplace of the next terrorist event," one New York resident said.
"Why should there be a Muslim place here? No, I don't support it," another added.
"In some ways it raises the very question of what is at the heart of all of this furor and that is ignorance," said Daisy Khan, spokeswoman for the Cordoba Mosque project.
Retired Gen. Jerry Boykin believes American ignorance about Muslim history could come back to haunt the U.S.
"When Mohammed conquered Mecca, he built a mosque on their most holy and prominent site. The message was Islam reigns supreme," Boykin said.
"When he conquered Jerusalem, he did the same thing [at] the most prominent site in Jerusalem, the most holy site," he said. "Now, we are going to build a mosque at Ground Zero, where once the Twin Towers were a great monument to America. Now there will be a mosque there."
"What's the message in that and what's the impact it's going to have on the Islamic world?" Boykin went on to ask. "It will increase the recruiting to the jihadist cause exponentially."
The Cordoba House is named for the city in Spain where Muslims began their conquest of the West in the eighth century.
source:http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/us/2010/July/Palin-Bloomberg-Spar-over-NYC-Mosque-Plans/
Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is speaking out against the project as New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg is defending the plans against her comments.
Palin has joined the opposition against the Cordoba House mega mosque center set to be built in New York City.
This week on the social networking site Twitter, Palin charged the mosque plans were an emotionally slap to the 9/11 victims.
"Peace-seeking Muslims, [please] understand, [the] Ground Zero mosque is unnecessary provocation; it stabs hearts," she said.
The post brought a response from New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who defended the project.
"Sarah Palin has a right to her opinions, but I could not disagree more. Everything the United States stands for and New York stands for is tolerance and openness," he said.
"And I think it's a great message for the world that, unlike in other places where they might actually ban people from wearing a burqa or they might actually keep people from building a building, that's not what America was founded on. Nor is it what America should become."
Since approval for the Cordoba House center passed, New Yorkers already had plenty of passion about the idea of a mosque at Ground Zero.
"This house of evil will be the birthplace of the next terrorist event," one New York resident said.
"Why should there be a Muslim place here? No, I don't support it," another added.
"In some ways it raises the very question of what is at the heart of all of this furor and that is ignorance," said Daisy Khan, spokeswoman for the Cordoba Mosque project.
Retired Gen. Jerry Boykin believes American ignorance about Muslim history could come back to haunt the U.S.
"When Mohammed conquered Mecca, he built a mosque on their most holy and prominent site. The message was Islam reigns supreme," Boykin said.
"When he conquered Jerusalem, he did the same thing [at] the most prominent site in Jerusalem, the most holy site," he said. "Now, we are going to build a mosque at Ground Zero, where once the Twin Towers were a great monument to America. Now there will be a mosque there."
"What's the message in that and what's the impact it's going to have on the Islamic world?" Boykin went on to ask. "It will increase the recruiting to the jihadist cause exponentially."
The Cordoba House is named for the city in Spain where Muslims began their conquest of the West in the eighth century.
source:http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/us/2010/July/Palin-Bloomberg-Spar-over-NYC-Mosque-Plans/
Monday, July 19, 2010
Son of Hamas - Zero Tolerance for “Ground Zero” Mosque
From Son of Hamas blog:
================================
The five-story building at 45-47 Park Place in Manhattan, two blocks north of “Ground Zero,” was built more than 150 years ago. The religion practiced within its walls, however, dates back nearly 1,500 years—and is directly responsible for the slaughter of nearly 3,000 Americans.
Last year, Soho Properties, a Muslim-run real estate company, paid $4.85 million cash for the property. Two of the investors—Cordoba Initiative and the American Society for Muslim Advancement—now want to turn it into what has been called a “mega mosque.”
According to its website, the “Cordoba Initiative hopes to build a $100 million, 13-story community center with Islamic, interfaith and secular programming.” In addition to the mosque, the project calls for a 500-seat auditorium, swimming pool, art exhibition spaces, bookstores and restaurants.
Please understand that I have no problem with buildings. But I have a very big problem with the politics and symbolism behind this building.
The proposed “Ground Zero” mosque, despite its humanitarian cocoon and politically correct marketing, would shout five times every day the contempt the American Muslim community has for thousands of innocent victims and their families. While Westerners who consider themselves chic and enlightened go to any lengths to avoid offending Islam, the Muslim community appears to think nothing of pouring acid in America’s open wounds.
Why was this particular site selected? Because the need for a $100 million mosque is so great? Because 45-47 Park Place is the only place left in Manhattan to put a mosque? No. Because it will make a powerful political and religious statement.
Americans need to understand that the soul of this so-called community center will be an altar to the god that justified and mandated the 9/11 massacre. If allowed to proceed unopposed, it will stand as a bold affirmation of the same Qur’an quoted on camera by 19 fedayeen as they prepared to kill themselves and thousands of innocent men and women. It will be a Petri dish for the virulent virus called Islam, a holy place where its dark god is honored and worshiped.
We need to remind ourselves where thousands of Muslims in America have come from. They came from mosques, just like the one the Cordoba Initiative wants to build up the street from the ruin of the World Trade Center. Mosques in Iran and Iraq and Afghanistan and Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. They came here to escape the corrupt systems and brutal regimes of their homelands.
From the oppression of these Quranic cultures, they came to America to enjoy the benefits of liberty and the protections of the Constitution. Now a growing number of Muslim organizations are using their precious freedoms of speech and religion as weapons against the freedoms themselves. They are using fine-sounding arguments to convince uniformed Westerners that Islam is peaceful, good and caring. And they shame others into feeling foolish and guilty if they dare to insist that the emperor is naked.
“I think this particular group of people in the Cordoba Institute can do a huge amount of good not only for Muslims in New York but also for interfaith relations throughout the country,” said Ibrahim Ramey, director of the Human and Civil Rights Division of the Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation, on CNN’s American Morning.
If Cordoba and other Muslim organizations in America would like to “do a huge amount of good,” let them build a hospital instead of a mosque. Build something that will help the families of the 9/11 victims. Do something productive for humanity in general, instead of challenging liberty and confusing people about the realities of Islam. This is how they can generate good will, not by building a rock of offense two blocks from Ground Zero.
source:http://sonofhamas.wordpress.com/2010/07/16/zero-tolerance-for-%E2%80%9Cground-zero%E2%80%9D-mosque/
================================
The five-story building at 45-47 Park Place in Manhattan, two blocks north of “Ground Zero,” was built more than 150 years ago. The religion practiced within its walls, however, dates back nearly 1,500 years—and is directly responsible for the slaughter of nearly 3,000 Americans.
Last year, Soho Properties, a Muslim-run real estate company, paid $4.85 million cash for the property. Two of the investors—Cordoba Initiative and the American Society for Muslim Advancement—now want to turn it into what has been called a “mega mosque.”
According to its website, the “Cordoba Initiative hopes to build a $100 million, 13-story community center with Islamic, interfaith and secular programming.” In addition to the mosque, the project calls for a 500-seat auditorium, swimming pool, art exhibition spaces, bookstores and restaurants.
Please understand that I have no problem with buildings. But I have a very big problem with the politics and symbolism behind this building.
The proposed “Ground Zero” mosque, despite its humanitarian cocoon and politically correct marketing, would shout five times every day the contempt the American Muslim community has for thousands of innocent victims and their families. While Westerners who consider themselves chic and enlightened go to any lengths to avoid offending Islam, the Muslim community appears to think nothing of pouring acid in America’s open wounds.
Why was this particular site selected? Because the need for a $100 million mosque is so great? Because 45-47 Park Place is the only place left in Manhattan to put a mosque? No. Because it will make a powerful political and religious statement.
Americans need to understand that the soul of this so-called community center will be an altar to the god that justified and mandated the 9/11 massacre. If allowed to proceed unopposed, it will stand as a bold affirmation of the same Qur’an quoted on camera by 19 fedayeen as they prepared to kill themselves and thousands of innocent men and women. It will be a Petri dish for the virulent virus called Islam, a holy place where its dark god is honored and worshiped.
We need to remind ourselves where thousands of Muslims in America have come from. They came from mosques, just like the one the Cordoba Initiative wants to build up the street from the ruin of the World Trade Center. Mosques in Iran and Iraq and Afghanistan and Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. They came here to escape the corrupt systems and brutal regimes of their homelands.
From the oppression of these Quranic cultures, they came to America to enjoy the benefits of liberty and the protections of the Constitution. Now a growing number of Muslim organizations are using their precious freedoms of speech and religion as weapons against the freedoms themselves. They are using fine-sounding arguments to convince uniformed Westerners that Islam is peaceful, good and caring. And they shame others into feeling foolish and guilty if they dare to insist that the emperor is naked.
“I think this particular group of people in the Cordoba Institute can do a huge amount of good not only for Muslims in New York but also for interfaith relations throughout the country,” said Ibrahim Ramey, director of the Human and Civil Rights Division of the Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation, on CNN’s American Morning.
If Cordoba and other Muslim organizations in America would like to “do a huge amount of good,” let them build a hospital instead of a mosque. Build something that will help the families of the 9/11 victims. Do something productive for humanity in general, instead of challenging liberty and confusing people about the realities of Islam. This is how they can generate good will, not by building a rock of offense two blocks from Ground Zero.
source:http://sonofhamas.wordpress.com/2010/07/16/zero-tolerance-for-%E2%80%9Cground-zero%E2%80%9D-mosque/
Thursday, July 15, 2010
A Christian Response to the 'Ground Zero Mosque'
by Staff
July 14, 2010
ST PETERSBURG, Fla., (christiansunite.com) -- Bill Keller, leader of the world's largest interactive Christian website for 11 years, Liveprayer.com, will open this September the 9-11 Christian Center at Ground Zero as a Christian response to the mosque the Muslims are building just blocks away.
Keller said that rather than hold a protest that people will forget an hour after it is over, he wanted to take an ongoing stand against this new mosque in a bold, visible, and meaningful way.
Keller stated that he sees this as an incredible opportunity to take a stand for Christ within a block of the hallowed ground where the World Trade Center Towers once stood, and give people a place where they can come to pray and find true peace and hope at a time when so many lives are in turmoil.
Keller is no stranger to conflict with Islam. In 2007, under pressure from the extremist Muslim group CAIR, Keller's highly rated nightly TV program that ran for 4 1/2 years on a CBS owned station in Tampa, Florida, was cancelled by CBS because he refused to stop telling his viewers that "according to the Bible Islam is a 1400-year-old lie from hell, and that history clearly shows Mohammed was a murdering pedophile who propagated his false religion through hatred, violence, and death."
Keller also has numerous fatwas (sentences of death) issued against him for a video he sent in 2006 to Osama Bin Laden that was played worldwide in which Keller encouraged Bin Laden to "renounce the lies of Islam" and come to faith in Jesus Christ.
In asking Keller about what he hopes to accomplish with the new 9-11 Christian Center, he said, "If the Muslims can without conscience build a mosque to propagate their religion of violence and hated a block away from where their Muslim brothers perpetrated the greatest act of terror on US soil, killing 3,000 innocent souls in the process, we can open a place where people can come to hear the truth of the Bible and learn about the peace, love, and saving grace of Jesus Christ"
Keller's 9-11 Christian Center will begin holding services Sunday, September 5th at the Embassy Suites New York through the end of the year. They will move into their permanent facility on January 1st.
source:http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion09496.shtml
July 14, 2010
ST PETERSBURG, Fla., (christiansunite.com) -- Bill Keller, leader of the world's largest interactive Christian website for 11 years, Liveprayer.com, will open this September the 9-11 Christian Center at Ground Zero as a Christian response to the mosque the Muslims are building just blocks away.
Keller said that rather than hold a protest that people will forget an hour after it is over, he wanted to take an ongoing stand against this new mosque in a bold, visible, and meaningful way.
Keller stated that he sees this as an incredible opportunity to take a stand for Christ within a block of the hallowed ground where the World Trade Center Towers once stood, and give people a place where they can come to pray and find true peace and hope at a time when so many lives are in turmoil.
Keller is no stranger to conflict with Islam. In 2007, under pressure from the extremist Muslim group CAIR, Keller's highly rated nightly TV program that ran for 4 1/2 years on a CBS owned station in Tampa, Florida, was cancelled by CBS because he refused to stop telling his viewers that "according to the Bible Islam is a 1400-year-old lie from hell, and that history clearly shows Mohammed was a murdering pedophile who propagated his false religion through hatred, violence, and death."
Keller also has numerous fatwas (sentences of death) issued against him for a video he sent in 2006 to Osama Bin Laden that was played worldwide in which Keller encouraged Bin Laden to "renounce the lies of Islam" and come to faith in Jesus Christ.
In asking Keller about what he hopes to accomplish with the new 9-11 Christian Center, he said, "If the Muslims can without conscience build a mosque to propagate their religion of violence and hated a block away from where their Muslim brothers perpetrated the greatest act of terror on US soil, killing 3,000 innocent souls in the process, we can open a place where people can come to hear the truth of the Bible and learn about the peace, love, and saving grace of Jesus Christ"
Keller's 9-11 Christian Center will begin holding services Sunday, September 5th at the Embassy Suites New York through the end of the year. They will move into their permanent facility on January 1st.
source:http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion09496.shtml
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Thousands protest planned 'mega mosque' at Ground Zero
Thousands of protesters gathered around the corner of Liberty and Church Streets on Sunday to voice their opposition to a proposed “mega mosque” near New York City’s Ground Zero.
The protest, organised by Stop Islamisation of America (SIOA), kicked off at noon and rallied support behind efforts to stop construction of the Cordoba House – a 15-story facility that project leaders claim will promote tolerance and serve as a platform for people of all backgrounds to come together.
“This proposed project is about promoting integration, tolerance of difference and community cohesion through arts and culture,” say those behind the Cordoba House.
“Cordoba House will provide a place where individuals, regardless of their backgrounds, will find a centre of learning, art and culture; and most importantly, a centre guided by Islamic values in their truest form - compassion, generosity, and respect for all,” they add.
Opponents of the Muslim-led project, however, say building an Islamic center so close to Ground Zero would be demeaning and offensive to the 2, 976 victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
Some even said the construction of the Cordoba House would mark a victory for those who sought and still seek to terrorise the American people.
“Ground Zero is a war memorial. Ground Zero is a burial ground,” said SIOA Co-Founder Pamela Geller during Sunday’s rally. “We are asking for sensitivity.”
As a New York community board had voted 29-1 last month in favour of the plans to build the centre, the only way now to derail the project would be to landmark the site that was purchased for the centere – the old Burlington Coat factory that stands just 600 feet from where the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center fell.
Knowing this, opponents of the Islamic centre are pressing the Landmarks Preservation Commission to vote in favour of granting the building landmark status. Aside from being a 152-year-old building, the old Burlington building also had a piece of one of the hijacked airplanes crash into it.
“We are going to sue the US Government to get a designation of war memorial status,” declared Geller on Sunday.
In addition to SIOA, other groups standing against the proposed Cordoba Center include the Freedom Defense Initiative, the Staten Island Tea Party, Shalom International, the Unity Coalition for Israel, 911 Families, and Faith Freedom International.
The Cordoba Center, meanwhile, is a collaboration between the American Society for Muslim Advancement and the Cordoba Initiative – both founded by Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, who preaches in a mosque twelve blocks from Ground Zero.
Born in Kuwait and educated in England, Egypt, and Malaysia, Rauf holds a Bachelor of Science in Physics from Columbia University in New York and a Master of Science in Plasma Physics from Stevens Institute of Technology in New Jersey.
source:http://www.christiantoday.com/article/thousands.protest.planned.mega.mosque.at.ground.zero/26056.htm
The protest, organised by Stop Islamisation of America (SIOA), kicked off at noon and rallied support behind efforts to stop construction of the Cordoba House – a 15-story facility that project leaders claim will promote tolerance and serve as a platform for people of all backgrounds to come together.
“This proposed project is about promoting integration, tolerance of difference and community cohesion through arts and culture,” say those behind the Cordoba House.
“Cordoba House will provide a place where individuals, regardless of their backgrounds, will find a centre of learning, art and culture; and most importantly, a centre guided by Islamic values in their truest form - compassion, generosity, and respect for all,” they add.
Opponents of the Muslim-led project, however, say building an Islamic center so close to Ground Zero would be demeaning and offensive to the 2, 976 victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
Some even said the construction of the Cordoba House would mark a victory for those who sought and still seek to terrorise the American people.
“Ground Zero is a war memorial. Ground Zero is a burial ground,” said SIOA Co-Founder Pamela Geller during Sunday’s rally. “We are asking for sensitivity.”
As a New York community board had voted 29-1 last month in favour of the plans to build the centre, the only way now to derail the project would be to landmark the site that was purchased for the centere – the old Burlington Coat factory that stands just 600 feet from where the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center fell.
Knowing this, opponents of the Islamic centre are pressing the Landmarks Preservation Commission to vote in favour of granting the building landmark status. Aside from being a 152-year-old building, the old Burlington building also had a piece of one of the hijacked airplanes crash into it.
“We are going to sue the US Government to get a designation of war memorial status,” declared Geller on Sunday.
In addition to SIOA, other groups standing against the proposed Cordoba Center include the Freedom Defense Initiative, the Staten Island Tea Party, Shalom International, the Unity Coalition for Israel, 911 Families, and Faith Freedom International.
The Cordoba Center, meanwhile, is a collaboration between the American Society for Muslim Advancement and the Cordoba Initiative – both founded by Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, who preaches in a mosque twelve blocks from Ground Zero.
Born in Kuwait and educated in England, Egypt, and Malaysia, Rauf holds a Bachelor of Science in Physics from Columbia University in New York and a Master of Science in Plasma Physics from Stevens Institute of Technology in New Jersey.
source:http://www.christiantoday.com/article/thousands.protest.planned.mega.mosque.at.ground.zero/26056.htm
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Israel dedicates monument to 9/11 victims
Israel on Thursday dedicated an impressive monument to the victims of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States.
At nearly 30-feet tall, the huge sculpture and the expansive courtyard in which is it placed form a very visible commemoration of that dreadful day. The sculpture itself, designed by artist Eliezer Weishoff, is of a waving American flag that transforms into a memorial flame.
The base of the sculpture is actually a piece of the ruins of the World Trade Center, donated toward the Jerusalem memorial by the New York City Municipality.
While the Jerusalem memorial is by no means the first 9/11 memorial set up in Israel, it is one of the only memorials outside the US that includes the names of all 2,980 victims of the attacks.
source: http://www.israeltoday.co.il/default.aspx?tabid=178&nid=19960
At nearly 30-feet tall, the huge sculpture and the expansive courtyard in which is it placed form a very visible commemoration of that dreadful day. The sculpture itself, designed by artist Eliezer Weishoff, is of a waving American flag that transforms into a memorial flame.
The base of the sculpture is actually a piece of the ruins of the World Trade Center, donated toward the Jerusalem memorial by the New York City Municipality.
While the Jerusalem memorial is by no means the first 9/11 memorial set up in Israel, it is one of the only memorials outside the US that includes the names of all 2,980 victims of the attacks.
source: http://www.israeltoday.co.il/default.aspx?tabid=178&nid=19960
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