The Associated Press, usually counted on to deliver fairly unbiased reporting presents us with a piece from Rachel Zoll which is just another example of shoddy research and claims unverified. Ms. Zoll never asks the pertinent questions, nor endeavors to provide any kind of real context, she just regurgitates what the left believes: opponents bad, supporters good and while were at it lets re-arrange the deck chairs. Veiled threats, misplaced anger and an unwillingness to examine critically what is spewed by mosque supporters characterizes this piece.
Here for your enjoyment is my reply.
Insulting a Majority of Americans isn’t Productive for Mosque Proponents
On 8-30 Rachel Zoll for the Associated Press writes of the misery and fear that questions about the ground zero mosque/community center are causing Muslims in America. Adnan Zulfiqar says that his topic for the opening khutbah, or sermon at the University of Pennsylvania will be the mosque controversy. After all, he says what other topic could he choose that generated so much vitriol, epithets, smears and even violence over the summer. Who’s fault is that, Mr Zulfiqar? Mosque proponents have consistently labeled opponents as racists, hatemongers, bigots, Islamophobes and zealots. These are the usual charges leveled against those who try to stand up for freedom of speech and raise awareness of the jihad ideology and Islamist supremacism. What is frightening is these charges are being thrown out against 70% of Americans who oppose the building of the mosque at 45-51 Park Place, and in a totally indiscriminate way. Labeling a majority of Americans as racists is not the warm, tolerant and inclusive dialogue as the imam, his wife and the property owner claim they are for.
Mr Zulfiqar continues to ponder over the potential fallout and what can be done about Muslim backlash. He asks whether young Muslims will become second-class citizens, inferring that the debate over the mosque/community center will cause some kind of radical change in them, now that they are second-class. No one is suggesting taking away any rights from anyone, Muslim or not. No one advocates the taking away of any rights from anyone, Muslim or not. The questions raised are legitimate questions about the imam and his support of Hamas, about the symbolic aspect of a mosque at GZ and about the financing. That line of inquiry has nothing to do with Muslims being second-class citizens. When a developer decides to build a new sub-division there are hundreds of hoops they must jump through, hoops which ask serious and probing questions of the contractor, backers and sub-contractors. Where is the money from? How many in the crew?. How long until completion? There is never a cry of developer-phobia as these hoops are seen as the cost of doing business. So by asking the same questions of a mosque/community center which is not much more than a large building project the shouts of racist and Islamophobia echo across the site, effectively stopping any and all dialogue.
Serving the University of Pennsylvania ‘s campus ministry Mr Zulfiqar worries about the struggle for young Muslims between being American and Muslim. It’s disconcerting for them, and this kind of scrutiny on their religion could make them a radical or worse, they could become more conservative in how they perceive themselves fitting into the American tapestry. Let me understand this: if I continue to ask questions about the mosque/community center then will I be responsible for creating radicals who, often enough blow things sky-high? Mr Zulfiqar knows, as does the left that no matter what they say to smear, defame and ostracize opponents of the mosque/community center those people will never strap a bomb onto themselves and explode inside a pizza parlor or nightclub in the name of Jesus or Buddah or the Pope. In short, most people will not be radicalized no matter how hard you push. Radicalization does not happen merely because someone was mean to you.
Eboo Patel, an American Muslim leader explains how other immigrant groups were subjected to ostracism and hatred as new arrivals. Historian Jonathan D. Sarna of Brandeis University points out that Jews in particular had it rough, as New York at one time banned the building of synagogues. Yes, of course, we all remember the history of Jews proclaiming that they were going to take over, and that Jews were plotting all sorts of terror attacks. Do we remember the Fort Hood jihad shooting, the Arkansas recruiting center jihad shooting, the Christmas underwear bomb jihad attempt, the Times Square jihad car bomb attempt, the Fort Dix jihad plot, the North Carolina jihad plot, the Seattle jihad shooting, the JFK Airport jihad plot and others? Oh, wait! Those weren't plots by 19th-century Jews in New York, but by 21st-century Muslims all over the U.S.! I’m sorry, my bad!
My point is that not all Muslims engage in this kind of behavior, but that when supporters of the mosque/community center such as the imam and his wife support sharia in America, refuse to condemn Hamas and other like-minded groups, and are grossly dishonest it makes the demand that Americans assume that they are different from the Muslims who were responsible for those jihad plots seem like unmitigated bullying, and a complete refusal to engage the legitimate concerns that people have about sharia and the intentions of the Ground Zero mosque/community center cheerleaders.
Patel believes Muslims today in America are on the same path with integration and believes it will be a difficult period of adaptation. With the dialogue going on now about the mosque/community center Patel feels this will cause widespread damage that will linger for years. Actually, the widespread damage that will linger for years comes from all the jihadist terror, the lies, smears and supremacist declarations groups like CAIR and people like imam Rauf continue to advance.
Cries of oppression from the Muslim quarter on their claim that more mosques are needed is misleading as mosques are going up all over the country, even as we speak with some in areas which have neither the numbers of the money to sustain them. That raises questions, but if asked the label Islamophobe is quickly slapped on.
There are numerous Muslims in America who champion democracy and religious tolerance but now they question whether it is all worth it. Calling the imam of the mosque/community center “apparently liberal” assumes he can also be “apparently conservative” thus hanging the label of extremist on him would negate Raufs claim that he supports women’s rights, human rights and interfaith outreach. Identifying someone as extremist does require more than accusations. When the imam says he does not support religious dialogue, that should indicate extreme views to most.
University of Delaware political scientist Muqtedar Kahn bemoans the fact that the joke of all this is on moderate Muslims. He says there is no point in becoming American since you will be treated as a radical anyway due to being Muslim. He wants to know if he will be treated as one supporting Al-Qaeda if(or when) he gets into trouble. Questioning your motives, including beliefs in, or support of Al-Qaeda during the course of an investigation is normal procedure. Taking offense at what most would see as routine makes the question about treatment moot. It would be in the best interest of Mr Kahn and Muslims world-wide to not support Al-Qaeda because of human decency, respect for human life and the importance of human rights.
The “radicals” decreed by those who claim to speak for Islam perpetuate great evil by murdering innocents and actively working for the subjugation of women and non-Muslims. Do Muslims across the world actively speak out against those who have hijacked their religion, or do they whine about how non-Muslims are the real problem? Is there a call for an Islamic reformation by moderates, or are there veiled threats issued if we don’t stop our snooping and take what is said as fact? Implied blame for “radicalization” and the results thereof merely deflect criticism away from any behavior wanting to be hidden. It is not the west’s responsibility to assume blame unchallenged, it is Islam and Muslims who must show change, tolerance and a willingness to answer the tough questions. Until that happens, we are left with hollow accusations of intolerance and the bad taste of arrogance.
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