Bowfinger
Lifer
- Nov 17, 2002
- 15,776
- 392
- 126
Now that the hate-mongers have had their daily dose of outrage, I thought I'd offer a few less inflammatory versions of the story from more credible news organizations. (Hint: the NY Post is a nutter tabloid that appears far less concerned with accurate reporting than it is with sensationalism.)
Anyway, here are three links:
Mosque to go up near New York's ground zero
Muslim and Prayers Renewal Near Ground Zero
Plan for mosque near World Trade Center site moves ahead
A couple of things I found interesting. First, none of the articles mention opening this mosque on 9/11/2011. The only thing even close is that the groups hope to break ground BEFORE then. Given that they are just starting fund raising, it should have been obvious to all the Chicken Littles that completing an unfunded $100 million project that quickly was absurd ... but I suppose whipping up a good outrage is much easier without pausing for critical thinking.
The other thing I noticed is that this location is not next to Ground Zero, but is actually two blocks away. That's still the same neighborhood, to be sure (along with a hundred or so other businesses and organizations), but it's not nearly as sensational as some have suggested.
Finally, here are a few quotes from the articles:
Anyway, here are three links:
Mosque to go up near New York's ground zero
Muslim and Prayers Renewal Near Ground Zero
Plan for mosque near World Trade Center site moves ahead
A couple of things I found interesting. First, none of the articles mention opening this mosque on 9/11/2011. The only thing even close is that the groups hope to break ground BEFORE then. Given that they are just starting fund raising, it should have been obvious to all the Chicken Littles that completing an unfunded $100 million project that quickly was absurd ... but I suppose whipping up a good outrage is much easier without pausing for critical thinking.
The other thing I noticed is that this location is not next to Ground Zero, but is actually two blocks away. That's still the same neighborhood, to be sure (along with a hundred or so other businesses and organizations), but it's not nearly as sensational as some have suggested.
Finally, here are a few quotes from the articles:
"Ro Sheffe, a board member who attended the meeting, said the project did not need to get the board's approval. 'They own the land, and their plans don't have any zoning changes," Sheffe said. "They came to us for our opinions and to let us know their plans. It was purely voluntary on their part.'"
"Daisy Khan, executive director of the Muslim society, described her vision of a center led by Muslims, but serving the community as a whole. 'It will have a real community feel, to celebrate the pluralism in the United States, as well as in the Islamic religion,' Khan said. 'It will also serve as a major platform for amplifying the silent voice of the majority of Muslims who have nothing to do with extremist ideologies. It will counter the extremist momentum.'"
"However, Khan emphasized that the attacks killed Muslims, too. 'Three hundred of the victims were Muslim, that's 10 percent of the victims,' she said. 'We are Americans too. The 9/11 tragedy hurt everybody including the Muslim community. We are all in this together and together we have to fight against extremism and terrorism.'"
"Those who have worked with him say if anyone could pull off what many regard to be a delicate project, it would be Imam Feisal, whom they described as having built a career preaching tolerance and interfaith understanding."
Anyway, something for those who want a little more objective version of the story."Daisy Khan, executive director of the Muslim society, described her vision of a center led by Muslims, but serving the community as a whole. 'It will have a real community feel, to celebrate the pluralism in the United States, as well as in the Islamic religion,' Khan said. 'It will also serve as a major platform for amplifying the silent voice of the majority of Muslims who have nothing to do with extremist ideologies. It will counter the extremist momentum.'"
"However, Khan emphasized that the attacks killed Muslims, too. 'Three hundred of the victims were Muslim, that's 10 percent of the victims,' she said. 'We are Americans too. The 9/11 tragedy hurt everybody including the Muslim community. We are all in this together and together we have to fight against extremism and terrorism.'"
"Those who have worked with him say if anyone could pull off what many regard to be a delicate project, it would be Imam Feisal, whom they described as having built a career preaching tolerance and interfaith understanding."
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