Gibbs,

   You say, "If the Cordoba house was being built by Christians this would receive much less publicity."

   If it was being built by Christians it would receive no publicity. It's not really a "dilemma", it is a failure on the part of Imam Rauf and the planners to deal with this in a rational manner. It was obvious at a certain point that the project in serious trouble and was opposed by a majority of the people that it is supposed to reach out to. To simply do nothing and then accuse Americans of being "anti-Muslim" or "anti-Islamic" just makes the problem worse.

   Who does the P.R. for these people?

Larry

Edited by Larry - 28 October 2010 at 7:03pm

 "Let's try respecting each other for a change."

Ron Webb wrote: Gibbs wrote: To as a christian what is your solution to the issue of the so called mosque near ground zero? � For a start, Christians and Muslims can both get involved in the Rally to Restore Sanity this weekend.� Build the "mosque", don't build it, whatever; but let's all pledge to "turn it down a notch" and stop shouting at each other like this issue even matters in the grand scheme of things.� Let's try respecting each other for a change.

Well I respect those who give it. Again this issue is an issue at least how the people in the city of New York perceives it why this building being built. Ron look at our world we chastise, condemn, terrorize others on the basis of some metaphysical faith. Christians Muslims and Jews can hold bands and sing around the camp fire but the problem still remains.

The Economist/YouGov poll taken the week of August 19, 2010 concurred that Democrats (57.5�24.9%) and Independents (62.3�25.2%) believed Muslims had a "constitutional right" to build a mosque at the site, but found that Republicans (31.8�53.2%) did not believe that Muslims had such a right. The poll found that 50.2%, overall, supported the constitutional right to build at the site, 32.7% were opposed and 17.1% had no opinion.<sup>[125]

The wingnuts, Spenserites and Gellerites venom should be felt by the American Muslims and they need to wake up and smell coffee as they want to smear all of you in 911 tragedy! They are so ignorant till foul Geller blogged  don't know what is what! Yea like Irack had the nukes and these Repuke's devoured Dubya's lies and they still not satisfied after millions dead including thousands  from the land of the brave!
Sooner it is understood the better it would be the propaganda of these unemployed Brown shirts clamoring with the Zionists against a poor Sufi Imam! How stu.pid and pathetic one can get! As if kicking a few brown skinned Muzlims will solve their economic problems!</sup>

They're Spoiling It For the Rest of Us!

It's the Muslims Fault!

By CHRISTOPHER BRAUCHLI

"Happily the Government of the United States, which gives to bigotry no sanction . . . requires only that they who live under its protection should demean themselves as good citizens in giving it on all occasions their effectual support."

George Washington, Letter to the Jewish Congregation of Newport, Rhode Island

It�s the Muslims� fault. They�re spoiling everything for the rest of us. That�s because they are bringing out the worst in us and it turns out there is a lot of worst for them to bring out.

It all came to mind when Juan Williams was fired by National Public Radio for saying on the Bill O�Reilly show on Fox News that if he gets on an airplane and sees people dressed in Muslim garb �I get worried. I get nervous.� I know lots of people who get nervous when they get on airplanes but it has nothing to do with what other people are wearing. It has to do with their own fear of flying. (Mr. Williams did go on to point out that he was not disparaging all Muslims and to disparage all Muslims for the actions of a few was like eschewing all Christians because of Timothy McVeigh.) Mr. Williams� sartorial comments prompted an even dumber response. A more-than-ten year employee of National Public Radio, he got a phone call from his supervisor, Ellen Weiss, who said that his comments had been inappropriate and that he was being fired. She is a busy person and told him there was no reason to sit down face to face with him since nothing he could say would change the corporate mind. She did not know (although going to see the movie Up in the Air would have informed her) that when firing people, common courtesy suggests meeting with them in person even though nothing they will say will change the corporate mind. Those are not the only examples of how the Muslim presence in the country has brought out the worst in many of its denizens. There are more.

Consider the proposed construction of a mosque in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. In that town the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro is attempting to build new facilities to accommodate its expanding congregation. According to the Los Angeles Times it wants to build a 10,000 square foot center that would include a school, gym, pool and a house of worship. There would also be a pavilion and cemetery. The good citizens of Murfreesboro, putting their worst instincts on display for all to see, oppose the construction for, among other reasons, that �Islam is not a valid religion but instead a political cause to force the U.S. to adopt Muslim laws.� In order to add an exclamation point to the opponents� arguments, in August some of the construction equipment at the site was set on fire and signs were posted in the area saying, �not welcome.� The approach of opponents to the Center may well resonate with African Americans who can remember only too well how their presence brought out the very worst in white citizens in many parts of the country. And then, as now, the worst was not only brought out in the ordinary citizen. It was brought out in religious leaders, defenders of minorities, public servants and those aspiring to be public servants as well. For examples we need only examine the reaction to the proposed Islamic Community Center near Ground Zero in New York City.

Richard Land, president of the Southern Baptist Convention�s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission came out against the project.

The Anti-Defamation League that in theory is opposed to the worst in people said building the Center �in the shadow of the World Trade Center will cause some victims more pain-unnecessarily-and that is not right.�

In a Twitter, Sarah Palin who might or might not like to be the next president, said that the proposed Center which she erroneously calls a mosque, stabs hearts (thus apparently releasing the malignancy in those hearts although she didn�t say that) and the Center�s proponents should not proceed with their plans.

Newt Gingrich, who, too, might like to be president some day soon, takes advantage of lots of opportunities, like divorcing his wives, to put his worst side on display. He compared those proposing the Islamic Center, whom he referred to as �radical Islamists,� to �Nazis.�( following a Sufi Imam) He also said �There should be no mosque near Ground Zero in New York so long as there are no churches or synagogues in Saudi Arabia.�

Rudy Giuliani, one-time New York City Mayor, confirming my thesis, pointed out that it is the Muslims� fault that many Americans are behaving badly. He said the people [Muslims] wanting to build the center are �creating more division, more anger, more hatred� correctly putting the blame on them for bringing out the worst in us.

Muslims are, of course, not alone in bringing out the worst in us. Elections do so as well. That is a subject for another day.

Christopher Brauchli is an attorney living in Boulder, Colorado. He can be e-mailed at [email protected].

Edited by Sign*Reader - 29 October 2010 at 10:06pm