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Originally Posted by whell
No one is disputing that. Even the pollsters have found that those who oppose the mosque being built agree that the Cordoba folks have a constitutional right to pursue their faith, and build a mosque anywhere they want. However, there's also the free speech part of the 1st Amendment that suggests that folks have a right to voice opposition, question motives, inquire about funding, etc.
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Conversely, nobody is disputing the rights of mosque opponents to voice their opinion. What is at issue here is government reacting/pandering to these unconstitutional demands. What is unseemly here is that politicians who swore an oath to uphold the constitution are deliberately using the mosque as a wedge issue when the constitution expressly forbids any governmental actions against it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by whell
For the sake of discussion, let's suppose that the press discovered that the funding for building the mosque / community center largely was sourced from the Middle East. Saudi Arabia, for instance. Many of the 9/11 hijackers were Saudi. Or maybe traced to Hamas? This might suggest that the stated purpose of the mosque as an "outreach center" was a sham, and instead an "in your face" to the people of this country, and the families of the workers, fire fighters and others who died on 9/11. What then?
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For the sake of discussion, let's just suppose that a particular media company is acting as a proxy for a political party in creating a wedge issue that is, on its face, unconstitutional. Shouldn't they be called out as bigoted, underhanded SOB's who are willing to shred the constitution for their own political benefit?
As to your question, Saudi Arabia is an ally in our fight against Al Qaeda (believe it or not). Hell, Dubya even pranced around hand-in-hand with its leader like a smitten schoolboy. And if Saudi is willing to fund a cultural center with the goal of improved relations between the Muslim world and the US, what of it?
As for Hamas, didn't we (the Bush administration) openly support the election that put Hamas into power in Gaza?
As for the "in your face"gesture, isn't the Imam who is responsible for the cultural center plans the same fellow who travelled the Middle East at the behest of Dubya preaching a message of moderation to the Muslim world?
In the words of "My Cousin Vinny," your argument does not hold water.
