The Islamic Center Controversy in New York

I haven't felt outraged enough to add any new items to my blog but there has been a controvery brewing for the past three month that I have been verbal about but have not committed to writing. As many of you are aware there is a proposed Islamic Cultural Center being proposed on Park Place a mere throw of a stone from the World Trade Center site.

Politically I am slightly left of the middle. I believe in the GOP's doctrine that government should not be too big. However, I also believe that the government's responsibility is to watchout for their citizen's interests and regulate when necessary. The failure of the government to do so during the last administration has led to the economic problems that exisit today. By saying this I am in no way giving the Dems a free pass. Many of these problems exisited during Clinton's administration and were not corrected. Regardless who is in charge there is one constant, and that is that money is power.

Now that I have established my political position, I can now establish as to how I feel about the Islamic Cultural Center being built near the World Trade Center site. I am for it. I have read many of the editorials and letters to the editors of several news magazines and newspapers. The vast majority of people are either vehemently against it being built at this site or at other site or feel that it sould be built but at a different location far, far away (perhaps in Iraq). Once it is accepted that you can infringe on one groups rights it makes it easier to infringe on others.

I would like to emphasize that the atrocity was not perported by every Islamic practitioner in the world. It was done by a small faction of terrorists that not only enginered this attack against us but also ongoing attacks against countless muslims in the Middle East, Africa and Asia. Were there non-participating muslims that celebrated the attack here? Yes, but bear in mind that there are many "Christians" in this country that would like to wreak havoc and destruction on their fellow citizens as well. Case in point, Timothy McVeigh and the Denver Federal Building Bombing.

We love to go to the Renaissance Festival in Tuxedo, New York and usually visit it every other year. The faire romanticises chivalry and honor and the wonderful things about the age of King Arthur, Robin Hood and Ivanhoe that we have read as children. What they glossed over (or didn't cover at all) was that the crusaders, in their quest to save the birthplace of Christianity, killed and maimed thousands of Muslims AND Jews. They sacked and plundered the towns and cities,raping the women, and pillaging the fields that they came across on their journey to the holy land.

The Muslims at the time of the Crusades invented the number systems that we use today, they invented advanced mathematical concepts and excelled in the physical sciences. They had strongly promoted arts and culture and when the Jews were driven out of other areas of the world, they were invited in and made an integral part of their society. This had changed in the late 1900's by the British, French, Germans and the Dutch who had split these lands in their Colonial quests and pitted each group against one another. Divide and Conquer! As long as you can get the Arabs and the Jews (both semites and of common origin) to hate each other your position of power is exponentially strengthened.

Isn't it time for the hate to end? If hate causes divison, shouldn't acceptance foster understanding and unification? Is the WTC a sacred place? No. It should be a site were we can start to make changes in the way we percieve and react to each other. If the site was sacred, why are there strip clubs in the same area? If the area was sacred why are they building office and retail space on the site and not just a shrine? Who would the site be sacred to? Christians, Jews, Muslims and Buddists were among the people killed. The causalties were not only Americans but foreign nationals as well.


Lately the newspapers were printing articles about how the Imam of the center owns some slum property in New Jersey. How many Rabbis and Priests were accused (and some convicted) of pediphile and embezzelment and being slum lords over the past ten years? Would there be the same furor to stop a Jewish or Christian Cultural center from being built at the WTC site if this was the case?

Living in a multicultural city I have known and worked with people of different races, religions and creeds. What I have learned is when you have a common goal you learn to work with each other and you learn to like and respect each other (in most cases). There are a billion muslims in this world and their population is growing. We must put our differences aside and embrace our commonalities or we will continue to face hate and distrust.

It is not the American people that are disliked by Muslims and other groups around the world. Young muslims embrace American culture. It is the governments and the quest for money and power by people within and on the outskirts of government that are not trusted. I for one share that mistrust. The young muslims will be the leaders within the next 10 years. Let's not alienate them. Peace is cheaper and a lot more productive than warfare and occupation.