Monday, June 21, 2010

Will the Mother of All Gaffes Sink the 9/11 Mosque?


Ryan Mauro

Photo showing the proximity of the mosque to Ground Zero

I’m not sure how it will be stopped, but I don’t think the 13-story mosque that Imam Faisal Abdul Rauf planned near Ground Zero is going to happen. What just happened to make me believe this? Imam Raif hung himself with his own words—or lack thereof. On KABC’s Aaron Klein Investigative Radio, Imam Rauf wouldn’t condemn Hamas as a terrorist group, despite their status as a branch of the Muslim Brotherhood that has carried out countless attacks on Israeli civilians. He just crossed the red line, and once word of this gets out, his project is dead in the water.

“I am a peace builder. I will not allow anybody to put me in a position where I am seen by any party in the world as an adversary or as an enemy,” he said.

He refused to even condemn Hamas, just saying that terrorism is a “complex question.” I have trouble believing that New York City is going to allow a mosque to be built near Ground Zero, dominating the skyline once held captive by the World Trade Center, owned by a guy who lacks the moral clarity to go against a group that has long been listed as a terrorist group by the U.S. government.

This mosque plan was done in the name of promoting peace, tolerance and religious understanding. Now we know that is a farce. You can’t promote peace without fighting the peace-wreckers. And if Imam Rauf truly cares about building a better relationship between Muslims and non-Muslims, he should immediately abandon the project because the furor it’s creating only undermines that goal.

Imam Rauf’s refusal to condemn Hamas is a game-changer. No official that wants to keep his career is going to back the 9/11 mosque now. Thanks Imam Rauf!

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