lisa your a riot, not that this is funny, but you give it a lighter touch. I agree with everyone.. to a point.. and on FOX news, geez Glenn Beck a lunatic and Rush Limbaugh as well, both to me are crazy. I see both sides and actually listen to everyone on it all. A have a friend in New York who's husband was a firefighter on 9/11, and did get burnt, so they are against it. But I've got a Muslim friend [cute guy], that's also against it, go figure. He thinks is will be a bone of contention forever.. Then there's the ones who have a ligit. argument for it. To me it was the most horrific tragedy ever purported on American soil. And then there's the country star Willie Nelson, who think's 9/11 was partly an inside job. That someone from inside was in on it. All kinds of different opinions, views & theories.~ Here's a link [below] and some ideas about this. I guess bottom line, it's the location of it all, not about a Mosque being built~ http://www.aolnews.com/category/politics/
there was an excellent piece in the chicago sun times today (or yesterday, i'm lost on time zones!) which also linked to a previous idea for ground zero. i basically agree with it completely - it's here: http://blogs.suntimes.com/ebert/2010/08/ten_things_i_know_about_the_mo.html
This is a video of young Muslims speaking about this Mosque, and all the controversary surrounding this topic~ VIDEO
I don't know why the Mosque is such a hot topic. It seems really silly to make such a big deal out of it.
I think the media have just blown it way out of proportion, like they do with a lot of things. I can understand why some people, especially some 9/11 family members and some Muslims might be against it, but to be honest I think it's their business to deal with. They're the people who will be most affected by it being built. Everyone else will forget about it as soon as something bigger and juicier comes along, and life will go on as normal. It actually seems to be a more a Muslim community centre with a prayer room that a 'real' mosque, I think the media has been exagerating and getting people all hot under the collar about it, and that politicians have been jumping on the issue to push their own ideologies and get some face time in the media - and I think both liberals and conservatives are guilty of that. I personally wonder why more people don't have an issue with them building that great big Freedom Tower right on Ground Zero, I guess it's meant to be a sign of moving on etc (which the Muslim centre could be too) but I think it's a bit odd. I think it would have been nicer to keep it as a purely memorial site. On a different and more positive note, what do people think about the American combat troops leaving Iraq? It seems a good thing, the war was a wrong one, and the troops shown on tv seem happy to be coming home. But it'll be interesting to see how the Iraqi army copes on it's 'own', and what will happen if they need help in the future.
First I have to say that I disagree that "most" Americans are against the mosque. It's just that the ones who are against it are screaming the loudest so it makes it appear they are the majority. I have a real problem with people being against the mosque. First, it's not being built at ground zero. Second, it's private property and anyone has the right to build whatever the hell they want. Third, many of the people I've heard being against it are against it for racist reasons or not wanting to allow freedom of religion - if a Catholic church wanted to build on the site no one would be bitching about it at all and that's just wrong. On FB almost all of the pages added for being against the mosque are filled with ignorant, racist hate speech, and most of the arguments from politicians and the like are meant to do nothing but stir up fear and more ignorance and racism. Not letting this mosque be built is taking the country in the wrong direction and not moving it forward.
PerfectAnomaly it's not the Mosque perse' it's the location.. 2,700 people lost their lives near there, and some think it's just common decency to not have anything that close, whatever it might be to a site that's considered to be "sacred/hollowed ground". And MacsLady I think it's fantastic that our troops are coming home from a asinine war that we never should have been invloved in. President Obama said on the campaign trail that he'd bring them home in August 2010, so that's a promise that he stuck too:bolian: Here's some more stories about the Mosque..amonst other political news, and on and on it goes~ http://www.aolnews.com/category/politics/page/3/
there was a fantastic article in the uk press today by charlie brooker (who, frankly, is usually right! for those that don't know him, i don't think he's really made it stateside, he's a kind of tv commentator, satirist and all round cynic i suppose, but he's very observant and can be movingly serious when he needs to be), about how the hoohah over this issue is belying the fact that it's not as controversial as people think.... http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/aug/23/charlie-brooker-ground-zero-mosque
I happen to think that calling land that isn't on ground zero "sacred ground" a bunch of crap. If that's the case they should make a determination on how far of a radius is "sacred" and get rid of every business that is on that land because nothing should be near "sacred ground." I saw a blog (I can't remember how I got to it) that shows what businesses are the same distance from ground zero as the proposed mosque (only in different directions) and included are a McDonalds and a "Gentleman's Club." If that distance is "sacred ground" then surely it's disrespectful to have a fast food joint and a strip club sitting there too. The reasons many people don't want this are racist and hateful. Period.
Well, PerfectAnomaly you apparently didn't lose a loved on on 9/11, in the firey inferno, and it's a bit disrespectable to call it "a bunch of crap" If you had a place wherever you are that was important and hallowed and you didn't want a certain religious place there and someone called it "a bunch of crap" would that please you? And to call everyone who doesn't want it "racist and hateful" makes you sound like the same thing your calling them, and very prejudiced. I have a friend who was a firefighter on that horrible day, and is scared and scarred forever. It's just a hot topic and I see all sides to it, but it's certainly not "a bunch of crap"? And those other places of business's are not religious spots~
I find the fact that many people calling land that is NOT at ground zero "sacred ground" for the most part to be a smoke screen for their ignorant and racist views, which I consider a load of crap. I never said everyone who is against the mosque is racist. And I also find singling out a place of worship for Muslims to be futher proof of racism and hatred. Like I said before, if a Catholic church were going to build there no one would object, but because it is a religious place for non-Christians it's "disrespectful??" And to me, if it's disrespectful to build a place that is meant as a place of worship and peace that distance from ground zero then it should certainly be disrespectful to have a fast food joint and a strip club an equal distance away. Singling out one religion is not fair and not what this country should be about, IMO.
not that i want to get involved particularly as i can see both sides, but i've read articles quoting/interviewing/citing people who lost relatives and/or were involved with the fire teams and so on who have no problem with the building of the non-mosque. i also have read about some muslims who do have a problem with it - so i guess a lot of it just comes down to personal outlook, as opposed to an inherent sense of what is sacred and how far that bit of ground should extend.
This is from Mike Bloomberg, the 'common sense of it all', very good points~ http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0810/Bloombergs_arguments.html
ANALYSIS:OBAMA "RESIGNED" TO BEING WARTIME PRESIDENT Poor baby, I watched him this morning and he's turning grey and has a "furrowed" brow, this job is making it hard for him to function in a normal enviornment. so much mud slinging thrown at himHe's expected to be a "miracle worker" in his 19 months, he's been in office, and change things that the last adminstration had dragged us down for 8 years..He is going to give a speech tomorrow about bringing our troops home from Iraq.. go Barack~ http://www.news.com/category/politics/