Islamic Mosque Near Ground Zero

We must not fool ourselves in the true intent of this "religious" mosque. If it is built at this location, at some point it should come down. As an American senior student of Islam, I have concluded that just as in Germany, Italy, Japan, the Balkans, Somalia, Pakistan, India, Iran, etc., most of the citizenry did not nor do they want war. Nor do they want the destruction of certain ethnic groups. But the radical elements, though much smaller in numbers, seize power through forcing their ideology on the largely unsuspecting and sometimes fearful inhabitants of these countries.

Among the dozens of books I have read is a book of "real" fiction; "American Taliban" by by Pearl Abraham that is best described in the cover as 'provocative, unsettling' in describing how a typical upper-middle class family became snared by the forces of history, politics and faith and whose son finds his destination in Islam destructive web.

As liberal Columnist Leonard Pitts writes on November 12, 2009, "Not fair to judge U.S. Muslims by Nidal Hasan, the Ft. Hood Killer", it is not fair to believe that all Muslims believe in the writings in the Quran such as 'O ye who believed! Take not the Jews and Christians as friends. They are friends to one another. He among you who taketh them for friends is (one) of them. Lo! Allah guideth not wrongdoers.' Pickthall translation, Quran 5:51 and "Fight against such of those who have been given the Scripture as believe not in Allah nor the Last Day, and forbid not that what Allah has forbidden by his messenger, and follow not the religion of truth, until they pay the tribute readily, being brought low' (9.29).

Islam preaches an intolerance of non-believers. My grandson, who is in the Armed Forces and has served in the Middle East says most Muslims will smile at you but beneath the surface, they do not like non-believers. Of course, not liking and killing non-believers is a gap bridged by millions of radicals of Islamic faith.

All countries have native born radicals. We moderates do not tolerate them and take action to remove them from our street without nearly enough success. We rail against their cowardly actions.

I have blogged "What's Happening in the Muslim World," 2/01/08 and "Geert Wilders Trial", 2/19/10. I refer you to hundreds of articles such as about the terrorist Yousesf who is quoted as saying, "The problem is not in Muslims," "The problem is with their God. He is their biggest enemy. It has been 1400 years they have been lied to."

On July 10, 2007, R. James Woolsey, then Co-chair of the Committee on Present Danger, Director of Intelligence from 1993-5 and Nina Shea, then director of the Center for Religious Freedom of the Hudson Institute, wrote in the WSJ, "What about Muslim Moderates?' Yes, what about them? We hear from them far to seldom and without much conviction despite the liberal press in this county. Yes, what about the Muslim Brotherhood whose motto is "Allah is our objective, the Prophet is our leader, the Koran is our law, jihad is our way, dying in the way of Allah is our highest hope."