So today I got a press release from something called Faith in Public Life. It begins:
As hateful rhetoric and fear-mongering about the Park51 Islamic Center in lower Manhattan creates a growing climate of hate and violence toward American Muslims, prominent religious leaders and national security experts will join together … to denounce growing Islamophobia and to urge the development of the New York community center-as a means of both protecting our nation and of upholding our American values of freedom, resilience, tolerance, and cooperation.
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At this point, I have to ask myself: am I hate-monger? Is my mom a fear-monger? Does 70 percent of America provide a combination of hate and fear-mongering?
I mean – when you’re talking about people who have problems with the mosque – those are the people, you’re talking about.
So again I ask the folks who smugly dismiss mosque opponents: Do you believe that every single person against the mosque is a bigot?
Because that’s a massive number, and it includes me, my mom, many friends (from both sides of the political spectrum), also blacks, whites, Hispanics, Jews…even Muslims.
(But oddly, no Griffin lovers)
So – again, are they all hateful bigots?
Or…do you think some might have a legitimate reason for their opinion?
You know it’s true. In fact, you KNOW there’s a legit reason for being pissed – but you ignore it.
And I want to know why – cuz maybe you can convince me I’m wrong.
See, we all agree with the right to pray wherever. If you want to build the mosque, fine. But I can still say it’s a jerky thing to do. Like I said, annoying someone is legal. But it still makes you annoying.
But if your response is, “Greg, you just don’t like Muslims,” then screw you. Instead of clinging to this bigotry meme in order to skirt debate, just meet me on a field of common sense – and who knows, you might win.
And if you don’t, you’re a racist, homophobic islamophobic arachnophobe.