Proposed (and Approved) Mosque at Ground Zero in NYC

It's not that far away, and the proposed building is 13 stories high- high enough to see ground zero.

I ask, why would you want to build it so close to that site?

If this had been something Christians had done, even extremists, and someone tried to build a church in the same place, there'd be mass outcry, and bring to mind the question of why good, peace loving Christians would want to see the site of what their crooked members had done. I'd be ashamed to call myself Christian because of what these idiots had done, and I most certainly would not want to be able to LOOK at that site of destruction while I PRAY.

JessiBunny:

I think its stupid that they're building it there because Islamic people attacked the Trade center. Its another case of trying TOO hard to make everything right. All this is going to do is piss people off and they should know it.

I actually think it's a good idea. You have to think about the predjudice that Muslims had to endure during and after 9/11. In building a mosque near (not on) Ground Zero, it's a way of re-bridging a connection and that there's no shame because not all Islamic people are the same. They're not all going to try aand bomb everything in their sights.

Muslims pray in the direction of Mecca which is east from the U.S. And the proposed building site is south from the WTC. So they really won't be looking at it while they prayed. [/sarcasm]

As an example of extremists doing things in bad taste at a later date, would it be acceptable if, say, Neo-nazi's decided to build a center for neo-nazism in Volgograd. (It used to be stalingrad.) Or if the KKK decided they wanted a center in a predominantly black neighbourhood?
These examples don't quite fit, because it's not Al-Quida building in NY... but people have put a label that says all muslims are like that... and why would you aggravate them by building near there?

Another thing to ask- why is it acceptable for a mosque to be built anywhere in the US, but a synagogue or church is nowhere to be found in Saudi Arabia?

"The Government does not provide
legal protection for freedom of religion, and such protection does not
exist in practice. Islam is the official religion, and the law
requires that all citizens be Muslims. The Government prohibits the
public practice of non-Muslim religions. The Government recognizes the
right of non-Muslims to worship in private; however, it does not
always respect this right in practice, and does not define this right
in law."
^Saudi Arabian law.

Why do we accept the double standard, even if the US IS the land of religious tolerance?

^ Can I just point out that we're not Saudi Arabia. We're the U.S and we have religious tolerance, whether or not other countries don't.

lovecraft:

Another thing to ask- why is it acceptable for a mosque to be built anywhere in the US, but a synagogue or church is nowhere to be found in Saudi Arabia?

Why do we accept the double standard, even if the US IS the land of religious tolerance?

Because this IS AMERICA. What Saudi Arabia or any other country does doesn't and shouldn't effect the U.S. Constitution.

If we did, we would have universal health care right now.

^I know that. But let's just say that Islam becomes the majority religion in the US. Who's to say a law like that couldn't be passed? Who's to say, that in the name of religious tolerance, hate crimes become acceptable, like a Muslim attacking a christian. That's what their religion tells them to do... Convert, kill, or make a slave of, EVERYONE not a muslim.

And we're really supporting this religion becoming part of US culture?

lovecraft

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Another thing to ask- why is it acceptable for a mosque to be built anywhere in the US, but a synagogue or church is nowhere to be found in Saudi Arabia?

Probably because there aren't people of that many religions in Saudi Arabia? It's as if I complained about there being more Chinese people in China than where I live. Also, they're different countries, and you're complaining about something that'll happen in the U.S., so why the comparison?

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Why do we accept the double standard, even if the US IS the land of religious tolerance?

What double standard? Is the U.S. forbidding Christians of building churches? (And seriously. U.S. is the land of religious tolerance? I kind of feel bad for people who truly believe the U.S. is the land of the free, no offense.)

Again this is America. It's a democracy. And we have separation of Church and state.

What's wrong with being Muslim?

lovecraft:

I know that. But let's just say that Islam becomes the majority religion in the US. Who's to say a law like that couldn't be passed? Who's to say, that in the name of religious tolerance, hate crimes become acceptable, like a Muslim attacking a christian. That's what their religion tells them to do... Convert, kill, or make a slave of, EVERYONE not a muslim.

And we're really supporting this religion becoming part of US culture?

Who said anything about it becoming part of U.S. culture? You say it as if the government was forcing everyone to be Muslims. And, well, the Christians at one point also killed people who disagreed with their religion, but people embraced it to the point where it's one of the strongest religions in the world today.

"Their religion tells them to convert, kill, or make a slave of, EVERYONE not a muslim"

That sounds a-okay to me, I suppose. I'm just gonna go shoot my neighbour, because he REALLY doesn't want to be a muslim, and slavery is illegal.
[/sarcasm]

Pierrot- it's illegal for a religion of anything but Sunni Islam to build a temple in Saudi Arabia.

Aladdin was Muslim.

The Bible also says homosexuals should be killed yet there are thousands of Christians that support gay rights.

lovecraft:

^I know that. But let's just say that Islam becomes the majority religion in the US. Who's to say a law like that couldn't be passed? Who's to say, that in the name of religious tolerance, hate crimes become acceptable, like a Muslim attacking a christian. That's what their religion tells them to do... Convert, kill, or make a slave of, EVERYONE not a muslim.

And we're really supporting this religion becoming part of US culture?

Because not all Muslims are evil and hating people. Where does it say that they have to "convert, kill or make slave of"? The Bible says some pretty bad things too. Are we skipping that? And hate crimes and intolerance still happens here.

lovecraft:

^I know that. But let's just say that Islam becomes the majority religion in the US. Who's to say a law like that couldn't be passed? Who's to say, that in the name of religious tolerance, hate crimes become acceptable, like a Muslim attacking a christian. That's what their religion tells them to do... Convert, kill, or make a slave of, EVERYONE not a muslim.

And we're really supporting this religion becoming part of US culture?

That's a bit fear-mongering, don't you think?

US converted to Islam? If atheism has barely made a dent in the US I hardly think Islam will.

I think you're creating your own misery. That will never happen. What is the point in dreaming up some far-fetched idea that has the slimmest chance of happening (on par with Glenn Beck being found to be as right wing as Karl Marx's left nipple) in order to poo-poo a relatively tiny idea?

After all, in that argument, one could say that allowing women to vote will merely mean they will vote out all the men and eventually make men's life a living hell by making them second-class citizens.

lovecraft:

"Their religion tells them to convert, kill, or make a slave of, EVERYONE not a muslim"

That sounds a-okay to me, I suppose. I'm just gonna go shoot my neighbour, because he REALLY doesn't want to be a muslim, and slavery is illegal.
[/sarcasm]

Pierrot- it's illegal for a religion of anything but Sunni Islam to build a temple in Saudi Arabia.

Lovecraft, again, it's another country. -shrugs- It'd be a double standard if the U.S. government controlled Saudi Arabia. But - they don't.

And how can you say you're religiously tolerant and then go ahead and make generalizations about Muslims? They're not all out to kill you. (And you ignore the fact that Christians in the past have also killed people for not being of their religion.)

^Is atheism not part of US culture?

I'm not saying this will happen, or that it's even likely to happen. But Islam becoming a part of US culture IS happening.

lovecraft:

^Is atheism not part of US culture?

I'm not saying this will happen, or that it's even likely to happen. But Islam becoming a part of US culture IS happening.

IS THERE SOMETHING WRONG WITH THAT?

lovecraft:

^Is atheism not part of US culture?

I'm not saying this will happen, or that it's even likely to happen. But Islam becoming a part of US culture IS happening.

In all honesty, is there U.S. culture? Isn't it more like a mix of everything?

lovecraft Well, yeah. But "U.S culture" is made up of different cultures from everywhere.

What I'm wondering is where you saw that Muslims were to convert, kill, or make a slave of everyone who was non-Islamic.

"And how can you say you're religiously tolerant and then go ahead and make generalizations about Muslims? They're not all out to kill you."

Never said I was religiously tolerant. In point of fact, I'm religiously intolerant. The US is supposed to be religiously tolerant, but they take it too far at times, the mosque being built near ground zero an excellent example of this.

And yes, a MODERN, but still violent, still causing wars, still part of wars, still containing extremists who will do just about anything to further their cause, religion, is not something I want to be part of US culture. Ever.