Daniel Pearl's father, Judea, a professor at UCLA and the president of a foundation named in Daniel's memory, weighs in on the Ground Zero mosque controversy. Professor Pearl stands with the vast majority of Americans who oppose the mosque for reasons having nothing to do with the denial of religious freedom. In a sense, Pearl blames America for the status of so-called "moderate" Muslims in this country:
[We] have not helped Muslims in the confidence-building process. Treating homegrown terror acts as isolated incidents of psychological disturbances while denying their ideological roots has given American Muslim leaders the illusion that they can achieve public acceptance without engaging in serious introspection and responsibility sharing for allowing victimhood, anger and entitlement to spawn such acts.
Yes, America is to blame for the plight of Muslims, asserts Pearl, but not in the way that the pro-Mosque grievance-mongers would have you think. By bending over backwards to appease Muslim sensibilities we have encouraged American Muslims to think that they are owed respect and legitimacy without being held accountable for their words and deeds, or their silence in the face of the words and deeds of their more extreme co-religionists.
I believe when it comes to "moral authority," Mr. Pearl has more of it in spades than do those on the other side of the Mosque divide. He should be listened to.
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There is no "moral authority" for bigotry and hate'
ReplyDeleteThe simple fact is that if this were a cultural center containing ANY other house of worship - church, synagogue, or temple, no-one, not even you, would be carrying on like this.
Thankfully, public opinion doesn't trump the Constitution otherwise many of us would be would be at risk.
Be a true a true Patriot and no matter how odiousness you find it, stand up for freedom, don't oppose it!
And, lastly, this is a local, New York City matter. The city council and the mayor have followed the law and so should you. So butt out!