Showing posts with label ground zero mosque. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ground zero mosque. Show all posts

Sunday, September 12, 2010

Imam Rauf: Palin 'disingenuous' about Ground Zero mosque

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News item:
The imam behind a mosque project near Ground Zero said in an interview aired Sunday that "certain politicians" were exploiting the controversy.

Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf told ABC's "This Week" that former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's assertion that that mosque was an unnecessary provocation was "disingenuous."
So the Ground Zero Imam blames Sarah Palin for Islamophobia? There just one small problem with that. This is the same imam who warns that if he doesn't get his way and if the victory mosque he wants to build on hallowed ground is moved even just a few blocks away, radical Muslims are sure to erupt in violence:
"This will put our people--our soldiers, our troops, our embassies, our citizens--under attack in the Muslim world, and we have expanded and given and fueled terrorism."
So excuse us for asking, but who is exploiting the controversy again? Sounds like the good imam is responsible for more than his own share of exploitation here. And the way he veils his threat about his radical friends going all medieval if the mosque isn't built exactly where he wants it built is what's disingenuous.

Radical Muslims and their enablers like this imam are the ones responsible for Islamophobia, not Sarah Palin or others who have said go ahead and build your mosque, but don't build it so close to Ground Zero.

Related: Be sure to read Doug Giles' "Imam Rauf to the USA: 'Silence! I Kill You?'" at Townhall.com.

- JP

Saturday, August 21, 2010

Right v. Rectitude: The ground zero mosque and the Restoring Honor rally

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Ken Connor, Chairman of the Center for a Just Society, comments on the incongruity of the left's support for the ground zero mosque on constitution grounds while it opposes the right of Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin to rally at the Lincoln Memorial:
The growing opposition to plans for a Muslim cultural center and mosque near Ground Zero have prompted some on the Left to speak out in defense of religious freedom in America. On August 16th, pundit Keith Olbermann took opponents of the project to task in his “Special Comment” segment...

[...]

It is easier for demagogues like Olbermann to condemn the opponents of 45 Park Place as First Amendment-hating xenophobes than to recognize the legitimate “right v. rectitude” question at the heart of the controversy. What’s ironic, however, is how quick the Left is to dispense with the Constitution when those invoking it happen to fall on the politically incorrect side of the ideological divide.

When news broke that Glenn Beck would be hosting a “Restoring Honor” rally on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, that Sarah Palin was slated to speak and that the rally would take place on the 47th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s famous “I Have A Dream” speech, the cry of outrage from the Left was immediate. Keith Olbermann was so distressed by the news that he invited uber-liberal talk radio personality Bill Press to weigh in on the matter:
"Unbelievable isn’t it? [When] I first heard about this – from you, by the way – you know I was just outraged that the park service would even consider giving Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin a permit to hold a political rally on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, that sacred shrine, on this historic date. . . . Clearly – I don’t care what he says – he chose that site, on that day, to kind of supplant Dr. Martin Luther King’s ‘I Have A Dream’ speech with his message, whatever it is."
So, not only is Mr. Press outraged by Beck’s presumption and insensitivity, he openly suggests that the government should prevent him from doing so! In one fell swoop Mr. Press commits a constitutional double-whammy, assaulting not only Beck’s right to speech but his right to assemble. And how did Olbermann respond? Did he “speak out” against this diatribe with solemn recitations of Holocaust poetry and a condemnation of Press’s “stoking of enmity” against Beck and Palin? Why, of course not. Instead of defending Beck’s constitutional rights, Olbermann chooses instead to focus on rectitude, even going so far to suggest that Beck rally will be a “racist desecration” of Dr. King’s memory.

So, as far as the Left is concerned, when it comes to the Ground Zero mosque controversy, the principle of constitutional right rules the day, but when it comes to Glenn Beck, MLK and the Lincoln Memorial, rectitude is the driving factor. The only thing these seemingly disparate arguments have in common is that they flow not from a position of principle, but one of rhetorical expediency. In one case it suits Olbermann and his liberal brethren to invoke the hallowed liberties enshrined in our constitution, in the other it suits them to ignore them.
What is it about leftists that prevents them from recognizing their own hypocrisy? In a word, arrogance.

Related: Warner Todd Huston, a Texas for Sarah Palin contributor, weighs in at Gateway Pundit.

- JP

Thursday, August 19, 2010

Quote of the Day (August 19, 2010)

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Suki at SukiProject:
"Today is one of the first days in over a year that I did not bother looking at the [Reason] site... and I see I didn't miss a damn thing, unless you call Radley Balko managing to mention the Ground Zero Mosque... without bashing Sarah Palin an improvement. That is another staple of Reason; if the Cordoba Mosque is to be mentioned, Sarah Palin must be bashed. If there are Cosmotarian Sacred Scrolls, this must be one of the top edicts and Radley must be drinking virgin martinis for this infraction... So, Libertarian Magazine of Record, give me a reason to keep reading you instead of Slate, The Nation, The New Republic, or the World Socialist Web Site. They have the same attitude you do when real property is owned by a group of people who worship anything besides Ayn Rand. "
- JP

Palin Pans Pelosi

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A tweet from the guv today:
"Pelosi's investigation of Harry Reid&Howard Dean&others who oppose Ground Zero Mosque will be enlightening,we're sure.(Note to AP: GZM term)"
Keep the roaches on the run, governor!

Related: At AP, It’s Officially Not the ‘Ground Zero Mosque’

- JP

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

More Quote of the Day Honorable Mention, Part 95

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Special "Damn the mosque-itos, full speed ahead!" Edition...

Ghettoputer at The Gormogons:
"'Puter agrees with Sarah Palin here, where she states that not everything that is legal is a good idea. That is, sure you can build the mosque there, but doing so is an immature publicity stunt designed solely to antagonize those who are more than willing to show tolerance. Tolerance is a two way street, bub."
David Vance at A Tangled Web:
"Palin Leads, Obama Follows..."
bc3b at Be John Galt:
"After Team Obama forced Palin from office, they discovered what a tenacious foe she could be. Since resigning as governor, Sarah Palin has been a constant thorn in Obama’s side, constantly baiting the President into saying stupid things and doing even dumber things. She was one of the people who brought attention to the Ground Zero mosque through her tweets and Facebook."
Peter Daou via Twitter:
"Is it me or is @SarahPalinUSA now considered the President in Exile?"
Manny at J's Cafe Nette:
"So Obama is all over the place and drowning in the controversy. Through all this Sarah Palin has been magnificent. Recall that it was Ms. Palin who made the issue national with her Twitter comment to Muslims to not build the mosque on sacred ground... In politics, Sarah can throw fastballs like Nolan Ryan. Obama is standing at the plate watching them go by."
Penraker:
"Say what you will about Palin, but she grasps the situation far better than Obama."
Kyle Wingfield at The AJC:
"Sarah Palin has drawn fire for her opposition to the mosque, but from the beginning her statements were not about rights or legalities... So, why did the president on Friday speak as if constitutional rights were the real subject of the debate? ... But it sounds to me more like another instance of Obama trying to refute an argument that isn’t being made. He employed a straw man without even pointing to the straw man..."
cutelildrow at Live Journal:
"She has bigger stones than Obama, that's for sure."
Blithe Spirit:
"Obama the orator has become the TelePrompter-in-Chief, though some still cling to his reputation as orator. Meanwhile, Sarah Palin is a speaker who can manage with reminders that fit on her hand... In other words she does the leadership thing in what she says, which, come presidential choice time in a year or so, will matter for her and us more than ever."
Bob Franken at The Hill's Pundits Blog:
"And of course we heard from the REAL Republican leader, Sarah Palin."
DaTechguy:
"A clear, lucid statement from one of the leading contenders if not THE leading contender for the Republican Nomination in 2012. A person who was on a National Ticket just 2 years ago. Normally Sarah Palin means views and hits so naturally they would be injecting her whenever possible… but this statement would win votes, so we can’t have that. Instead they are going after Newt Gingrich... Let’s cut to the chase. Newt Gingrich is no more going to be the Republican nominee in 2012 that I am. These people know this, but pretend otherwise."
Mark Halperin on MSNBC, via The Daily Caller:
"Palin is correct in this case, this is not above his pay grade."
The Editor at Family Security Matters:
"On Saturday Sarah Palin, who had previously condemned the choice of location for the 'Park51 Mosque' used her Facebook page to ask some direct questions of the president... Less than 24 hours after the message first went online, 16,900 people confirmed that they 'liked' the statement."
John Salmon at Rene's Apple:
"I'm not a big fan of Sarah Palin. But she's unquestionably correct on the mosque issue."
Greg Pollowitz at NRO's Media Blog:
"Keith Olbermann is angry at Sarah Palin’s new name for the Ground Zero mosque, n.k.a. the 9/11 mosque... I wonder, by what definition could we call this the '9/11 mosque?' Maybe if the organizers of the project chose this site specifically because it was damaged during 9/11? Would that count? ... Sounds like a 9/11 mosque to me."
- JP

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Case of Ground Zero church proves Sarah Palin's critics wrong

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If the Ground Zero mosque issue is all about the Constitution and freedom of religion, as critics of Gov. Palin and others opposed to the Cordoba project insist, then why hasn't St. Nicholas Church been allowed to rebuild? Judson Berger reports:
The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America accused New York officials on Tuesday of turning their backs on the reconstruction of the only church destroyed in the Sept. 11 attacks, while the controversial mosque near Ground Zero moves forward.

The sidelined project is the St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, a tiny, four-story building destroyed in 2001 when one of the World Trade Center towers fell on top of it. Nobody from the church was hurt in the attack, but the congregation has for the past decade been trying to rebuild its house of worship.

While the mosque project cleared red tape earlier this month, negotiations between government officials and the church stalled last year -- and have stayed that way. Though the particulars of the two projects are completely different and on the surface unrelated, the church and its supporters see a disconnect in the way the proposals have been handled.

An archdiocese official said Tuesday that the situation has created "consternation" for those still struggling to jump-start talks over the church.

"We have people that are saying, why isn't our church being rebuilt and why is there ... such concern for people of the mosque?" Father Alex Karloutsos, assistant to the archbishop, told FoxNews.com. He said "religious freedom" would allow a place of worship for any denomination to be built, but accused officials with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey of making no effort to help move the congregation's project along.

"Unfortunately, they have just been silent -- dead silent, actually," said Karloutsos, whose father was ordained at St. Nicholas.

[...]

Karloutsos called the Port Authority's claims "propaganda" and said the church has complied with all conditions. He said the government should honor agreements that date back to 2004, under former New York Gov. George Pataki.

Pataki, speaking with Fox News on Tuesday, agreed that the church should be rebuilt.

"I don't understand it," Pataki said. "Why the Port Authority now has so far put roadblocks in the way of its reconstruction is beyond me. It's not the right thing to do."
In our opinion, the fact that NYC officials are giving the church the runaround while going into full submission mode to those behind the Ground Zero mosque, totally deflates the left's argument. Though none of St. Nicholas' congregation or clergy were killed in the 9/11 sneak attacks, a consecrated house of God was destroyed and the city bureaucrats won't let it be rebuilt. The people of the parish, who have been without a church home for almost a decade, are just more victims of the jihadist attacks.

Sarah Palin is right. The push to build this mosque is insensitive to the victims of 9/11 who all lost someone or something in the attacks.

- JP

Dem Congress critters in NY come out against mosque

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Like Senate majority leader Harry Reid, several Democrat U.S. Congressmen in New York are following Sarah Palin's lead and coming out against the Ground Zero mosque. They include "Jewish money counter" Mike McMahon (NY-13), Steve Israel (NY-02), and Tim Bishop (NY-01).

Israel's GOP opponent John Gomez had challenged the incumbent to take a stand on the issue in a campaign ad. Gomez has been endorsed by Gov. Palin.

- JP

Monday, August 16, 2010

NY Mag: Harry Reid Agrees With Sarah Palin on Mosque

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Senate majority leader Harry Reid, who is in the fight of his political life in Nevada, has adopted Sarah Palin's position on the Ground Zero Mosque, becoming the highest-profile Democrat to call for mosque's planners to move it to some location further away from ground zero:
"The First Amendment protects freedom of religion," Reid's spokesman, Jim Manley, wrote in an e-mail today after Reid's Republican challenger, Sharron Angle, called on him to take a position. "Senator Reid respects that, but thinks that the mosque should be built someplace else." Reid's office did not elaborate on why Reid feels this way, or on how large the mosque-free (or, Islamic-community-center-free) zone surrounding ground zero should be.

Though Reid was more explicit, it's interesting to note that he doesn't necessarily break with President Obama with this statement — like Reid, Obama also supports the right for the Corboda Initiative to build an Islamic community center two blocks from ground zero, but he refuses to say whether he supports the "wisdom" of the project. And, in fact, Reid is taking the same position as Sarah Palin (as well as a majority of Americans, who oppose the mosque while admitting its legality).
- JP

More Quote of the Day Honorable Mention, Part 94

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Special "A rolling stone gathers no mosque" Edition...

DaTechguy:
"Sarah Palin asks President Obama a question he would like to ignore... I would suggest that Democratic Candidates prepare to answer that question too, because each one will be asked it, and not all places in the US vote as Ann Arbor does."
Suzi Parker at Politics Daily:
"Sarah Palin won't back down on the controversial Ground Zero mosque."
MacRanger at Macsmind:
"Sarah brings up the point again that nobody questions the fact of a right under religious freedom to build a Mosque. Of course... that right isn’t absolute, no right is... But these are good questions. Unfortunately Obama won’t answer them. He can’t."
Chalice at Liberty Chalice Blog:
"I am glad to see Sarah is engaged on this issue. The Libs... What the heck are they thinking?"
Papa Mike:
"Since most voters in America are against building a mosque at Ground Zero, it only figures then that our radical far left president would join the 20 percent [who think it's] a good idea. He has a pattern of doing this... And, once again Sarah Palin stands with the rest of America."
Ian Lazaran at Conservatives4 Palin:
"Politico effectively concedes that Governor Palin was the leader on this issue while the others were a day later and a dollar short..."
Lawrence Auster at View from the Right:
"Good job by Sarah Palin. Liberals like Michael Bloomberg... and Barack Obama... always reduce everything to rights. Palin very appropriately moves the issue away from the liberal issue of rights, to the substantive and moral issue of what is right, which the liberals cannot so smoothly answer."
bc3b at Be John Galt:
"Palin’s Facebook post has already generated 26,000 comments, which shows how controversal the 'Ground Zero' mosque and and Obama’s comments are."
JammieWearingFool:
"That's what it's come to on the American left. Anything, no matter how offensive it may be to a majority of the people, must be supported if the Limbaughs and Palins of the world voice opposition to it. So blinded by hatred are the Bloombergs and Obamas that clear thinking and rational common sense go flying out the window..."
Pamela Geller at Atlas Shrugs:
"Brava to Governor Palin for standing up and speaking out against this profoundly insensitive and egregious attack on the American heart."
Dave S at Barracuda Brigade 2012:
"This Mosque is designed, to celebrate the submission of America to Islam. Look at their history, they've done this throughout the centuries. Sarah Palin is right, why do they insist on putting it at Ground Zero? State land has been offered, as a site for it. The only answer, to demonstrate America's submission."
Samuel Gonzalez at The Last Tradition:
"It’s been said that the Left recognizes strong Conservative Republicans better than the Republican Party. That’s why they attack Sarah Palin so much!"
MariaS at Dodo Can Spell:
"Thank God for Sarah Palin and her common sense. Is it any wonder that those who see unicorns and rainbows here, there, everywhere... hate her so much. This woman has her feet firmly planted to Mother Earth and no tremors, no earthquakes can dislodge them or shake her stance and confidence."
Andrew Malcolm at Top of the Ticket:
"9/11 families and GOP's Boehner, Palin react strongly to Obama's support of a Ground Zero mosque..."
Gary P. Jackson at A Time For Choosing:
"Anyone who follows Sarah Palin on Twitter knows she has had her stylish boot up Obama’s backside all day over this insult. On top of taking him to task, Sarah also offered up some recommended reading to help people understand what this is really all about."
Don Surber at the Charleston Daily Mail:
"So he’s walking back his support of the mosque at Ground Zero, without walking it back. What could motivate him? Hmm... Sarah Palin... He hears footsteps."
Bobbi85710 at Mouth in the South:
"I wonder why the backpedal on the Ground Zero mosque started so late in the afternoon by the Bogus POTUS? Legitimate Questions for the President by Sarah Palin on Saturday, August 14, 2010 at 3:01pm... The Backpedal Begins: Obama supports ‘the right’ for ground zero mosque... Pauline Jelinek, Associated Press Writer – Sat Aug 14, 4:21 pm ET... I believe timing explains everything? Rock on Sarah Palin!"
Ted Belman at Israpundit:
"Obama changed his mosque endorsement after Palin called him out on it..."
Adrienne Ross at Motivation Truth:
"Well, perhaps the President doesn't see that we need answers, but Governor Palin certainly does, which is just another reason she's considered to be a leader among possible presidential contenders... Governor Palin's obvious disappointment... in the President's 'unshakable' support of this slap in the face of the 911 victims' families, New Yorkers, and Americans--the majority of whom do not want the mosque there--is understandable."
Bluegrass Pundit:
"As usual, Sarah Palin cuts to the chase."
- JP

Gomez: Hey Steve, about that mosque...

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Taking a cue from Sarah Palin who endorsed him, Congressional candidate John Gomez in NY-02 asks a question:



h/t: Smitty

- JP

Gates of Vienna: Less Than Zero

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We came across this excellent post on the GZM (Ground Zero Mosque - yes, it has its own acronym now) at Gates of Vienna and plucked a few excerpts as as an appetizer:
Does anyone else remember the deep blue perfection of that early Autumn day? How fathomless the September sky? How temperate the sun had become after the heat of August? Only the gum trees and sycamore had turned color; the Michaelmas daisies were in full bloom, sprawled under the fig tree. Those images would shortly be pierced by the horror of falling bodies and buildings, of determined heroism in the face of certain death .

Who would have believed then the hell hole created by Islam would still be there nine years later? Who could have conceived that Islam would be blatantly performing yet another “We Won” victory dance, a deceitful, time-worn choreography they have sadistically named “Cordoba”? This time we will experience the devastation in slow-motion, but it will be every bit as lethal as the original cataclysm on September 11th 2001.

Thus, we have Ground Zero now and appallingly close to it, there will be erected — despite our requests not to build — the disturbing “Less than Zero” edifice. Just in case we don't comprehend the depths of "Cordoba" they have been careful to plan this for September 11th, 2011. Yet another 9/11 of destruction. We must be softened up before we can be coaxed into going quietly. They are masters at this.

[...]

Ah, yes, the Tea Parties. No wonder it’s so vital to smash them. And how about Sarah Palin? There’s a woman who refuses to dance to any of their tunes and declines to show her cards.

No wonder average folks are so energized by Ms. Palin’s zest and zeal. No wonder the Political Class hates her. Hates her so much they needed to have one of their own move in next door to the Palin house and report the quotidian events of her life to anyone who’ll pay to listen.

Come to think of it, there are some parallels between the Zero Mosque builders (first they have to tear the building down) and the Sarah Palin Stalkers (first they have to destroy her). Both of them use the tactic of moving in for the kill.
Many, including some on the right, haven't connected the dots which reveal the outline of what we are up against. There exists an Axis of Radicalism, a fleeting alliance of the radical left with radical Islam. Its foundation rests on little more than the fact that that both parties share a common goal -- the destruction of America as we know her -- and the old saw that "the enemy of my enemy is my friend."

The radical left, having reached its zenith by getting one of its own elected POTUS, seems not to know or to care that it is in cahoots with a crocodile. The knowledge that the croc will eat the leftists last either escapes them entirely or they have buried it deep within their collective subconscious. If the secularism of the left seems incompatible with the radical theology of the jihadists, just try to understand that their shared hatred of the American brand of liberty outweighs such seemingly insurmountable differences.

Actually, this perverse partnership is nothing new. David Horowitz wrote about it six years ago in Unholy Alliance: How the Left Supports Terrorists at Home, and that book should be considered required reading. The full Gates of Vienna post is also a must-read here.

- JP

Sunday, August 15, 2010

NY Sun Editorial: Palin's Point

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Another fine editorial in Sunday's edition of The New York Sun. Excerpts:
President Obama, with his back-to-back statements on the proposed mosque at Ground Zero, has managed to get himself in a position where Sarah Palin has both the high ground and the practical route to progress. At the Iftar dinner at the White House, the president endorsed the constitutional rights of all religions in America to build houses of worship where they want to on private property. He spoke with his trademark eloquence, but he was off the point. So, as he toured the Gulf Coast, he took a powder, explaining that he was not commenting on what he called “the wisdom of making a decision to put a mosque there.” That was off point, too, enough so that the former Alaska governor finally took to her Facebook page...

[...]

Not only does Mrs. Palin manage, in a polite but firm way, to speak more forthrightly than the president and to draw finer distinctions than the president but she also manages to articulate a practical line more in keeping with a harmonious outcome. That outcome is by no means certain, but the Daily News did report on Friday that the sponsors of the mosque at Ground Zero, Park51, are “not slamming the door” on Governor Paterson’s idea of building the mosque and community center somewhere else.

[...]

Clearly there are a lot of questions to be sorted out in this affair. But one of them turns out to be this: How did one of the most intellectual presidents in history, a constitutional law professor with a government-provided staff of legal experts and policy geniuses and an ability, rarely if ever matched, to speak in lofty tones, manage to get himself in a position where he will end up following the lead of an ex-governor who has been constantly set down by the left as but a one-time beauty queen without brains and who has been watching the whole fracas from a lake-side camp at Alaska?
Read the unabridged editorial here.

h/t: Benyamin Korn

- JP

Saturday, August 14, 2010

Sarah Palin: Legitimate Questions for the President

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Gov Palin has some questions for President Obama, and she posted them on Facebook Saturday:
Legitimate Questions for the President

Mr. President, should they or should they not build a mosque steps away from where radical Islamists killed 3000 people? Please tell us your position. We all know that they have the right to do it, but should they? And, no, this is not above your pay grade. If those who wish to build this Ground Zero mosque are sincerely interested in encouraging positive "cross-cultural engagement" and dialogue to show a moderate and tolerant face of Islam, then why haven't they recognized that the decision to build a mosque at this particular location is doing just the opposite? Mr. President, why aren't you encouraging the mosque developers to accept Governor Paterson's generous offer of assistance in finding a new location for the mosque on state land if they move it away from Ground Zero? Why haven't they jumped at this offer? Why are they apparently so set on building a mosque steps from what you have described, in agreement with me, as "hallowed ground"? I believe these are legitimate questions to ask.

- Sarah Palin
- JP

Thursday, August 5, 2010

How do you stop a blow-torch that's named Sarah?

- by ehvogel
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I don't know how the title came to mind, but it's reminiscent of this.

At any rate, consider this:
Obama appears before the AFL-CIO and we get this Facebook post, skewering Obama for his hypocrisy. Did the media take notice? You betcha!

Obama continues to pursue his lawsuit against Arizona, trying to stop the state from enforcing federal immigration law. Sarah Palin responds here and the lamestream media has a conniption fit over it, ignoring its own leftist's comments.

An ill-considered plan has been put forth to build a mosque in the shadow of the World Trade Center, ground zero on 9-11. Sarah responds and ignites a national debate, here, here and here.
In many ways, Sarah is responding to national events with a voice that echoes mine. Every new Facebook post elicits a fist-pump and a resounding "YES"!

I don't remember anyone in my lifetime that was so willing to speak out against things that rubbed them wrong and ended up speaking my opinion. I certainly hope she continues to act as an outspoken, verbal blow-torch that voices my opinion on a whole host of national issues.

- ev

Tx4P contributor ehvogel resides in North Texas where he presides over Generational Dysfunction.

Monday, August 2, 2010

NY Sun Editorial: Cordoba’s Opportunity

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The NY Sun's Seth Lipsky has authored an editorial in Monday's edition regarding the controversy over the Ground Zero mega-mosque. Mr Lipsky suggests that the Cordoba Initiative has an historic opportunity to demonstrate respect, understanding, and forbearance, a move which would diffuse a contentious situation :
The battle over a proposed $100 million mosque and Islamic center at Ground Zero could well be at a turning point, the New York Times reported over the weekend. Its assessment was made after the national director of the Anti-Defamation League, Abraham Foxman, came out in opposition to situating the site adjacent to the epicenter of the attacks on September 11, 2001. We telephoned Mr. Foxman to offer congratulations. It had to have been a hard call for him, with so many supporters of the project suggesting that the sole reason for opposing it had to be bigotry.

That suggestion has struck us from the start as a libel. There may be some bigots in opposition to the project, but they would be a small percentage, in our guess. We thought Mr. Foxman put it exactly right in suggesting that the fact that the Cordoba Initiative may win the right to build at the site where extremists acting in the name of Islam slew so many innocent people doesn’t make building such a center there the right thing to do. We mentioned to him that we’d been impressed with the way Sarah Palin articulated her early opposition to the project.

“She’s got seichel,” we remarked to Mr. Foxman. It was a reference to the Yiddish word that has no single-word English translation but means a combination of intelligence, wisdom, and common sense. Mrs. Palin’s short messages on Twitter were crafted as a call not on the government to prohibit the project but on the moderate Muslims themselves to — in her now classic formulation — “refudiate” the plan. Her call was for forbearance out of understanding of the special nature of the Ground Zero site in the city’s and the nation’s memory...
Read the rest of today's NY sun editorial here.

h/t: Benyamin Korn

- JP

Saturday, July 24, 2010

Mike Gallagher on Gov. Palin's Ground Zero Facebook Post

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Dallas-based syndicated talk radio host Mike Gallagher sounds off:



h/t: Kingsjester

- JP

The Jazz Patriot: Media obsfucates substance on mosque issue

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When Sarah Palin re-coined the word “refudiate” on Fox News' "Hannity" program, the lamestream media quickly launched its missiles of mass distraction, a tactic designed to divert attention away from the substance of what she said. This is part of a long-term strategy which they have successfully employed for the better part of the past two years. they do it every time.

The essence of her commentary about the construction of a mosque near ground zero in New York, an act she condemned as deplorable, was lost in the media-generated roar over the word "refudiate." This is a shame, because what she had to say about the ground zero mega-mosque was important, and the opinion she expressed on the issue is one shared by a majority of both New Yorkers and voters nationwide.

On his blog The Jazz Patriot, Tom Wholley, a retired Navy Senior chief, weighs in:
I couldn't agree with [Gov. Palin] more, despite commentary from Muslim clerics responding to criticism from the families of many of the 9/11 victims that it will bring people together. Are you kidding me? It’s just the Muslim community rubbing 9/11 into the faces of the “infidels” as they have been doing for centuries. During an earlier period in history, Muslims built one of the most sacred places in all of Islam, the Dome of the Rock, on top of the old Jewish Temple in Jerusalem while the Jews had been driven out of the land and we’re living in exile, so it’s not like they haven’t done something like this before.

Despite the substantive nature of her comments, the writers of propaganda at the former mainstream news outlets and the late night comedians have been having a field day “refudiating Sarah” and ignoring the abominable nature of the plans they are making for that sacred area of turf in the heart of Manhattan where two of the most magnificent buildings in the history of the world once stood and 3, 000 innocent civilians were killed by radical Islamic terrorists on September 11, 2001.
You can bet your bottom dollar (which is about all that Obamanomics has left us with) that the next time and every time Sarah Palin says something of substance on the issues of the day, the journos will not report on the common sense of her commentary or even on the issue itself. They will instead reactivate Operation Shiny Object to bury the steak and drench the mediascape with the sizzle.

Read Tom Wholley's full post at The Jazz Patriot.

Related: 9/11 Families for a Safe & Strong America thanked Gov. Palin for standing with them on this issue.

- JP

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Quote of the Day (July 20, 2010)

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ZIP at Weasel Zippers:
"Unreal: Aide to NYC Mayor Bloomberg Calls Sarah Palin a Racist For Opposing Ground Zero Mosque... Racism is just a word, devoid of any real meaning these days, that liberals throw out when someone says something they disagree with. Also, Islam is not a race..."
- JP