Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Last Mosque Comment b'n

I think its really this simple:

You're a <strike>racist</strike> bigot if you wish to deprive a whole community of their civil rights because of a crime committed by someone else. Blocking the mosque on the grounds that ten years ago a completely different group of Muslims attacked the Towers, is exactly like saying no black people should be allowed in my neighborhood because ten years ago different black people went on a mugging spree. (Thanks to Klypod for this analogy.)

You're a fascist if you wish to deprive a whole community of their civil rights because of something individual members of that community said or thought. Blocking the mosque on the grounds that the Iman, or some of his congregation, expressed sympathy (whatever that might mean) for the 9/11 criminals is exactly like saying no shuls should be allowed near Wall Street because Avi Shafran et al. have expressed both sympathy and admiration for Bernie Madoff, that  killer from Florida, and Shlomo Rubishkan.

You're an idiot if you don't understand and accept that (a) Al Queda, i.e. the real 9/11 villains, take the same dim view of this mosque, with its public swimming pool and auditorium, as they do of America. (b) A few blocks in lower Manhattan might as well be a different state. The buildings are really that tall, and the area is really that congested. (c) There are already mosques in lower Manhattan! What shall we do with them? Shut them down? What principle says this mosque gets denied, but the others stay? (d) The glorious and marvelous U.S. constitution protects this mosque, and RLUIPA makes it impossible for any municipality to stop it on zoning pretexts. 

This sums up my view of the anti-mosque arguments.

Note: I didn't say "If you disagree with me you're an idiot, fascist, or  bigot." I said "If you are making any of the following listed claims and arguments then you are an idiot, fascist, or bigot." See the difference? Read this note again, if you don't.

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