Park 51- 7 – advertised review

Well I have had time to think it through. I think that these are hard questions and I don’t guarantee that I will still hold these views a year from now. We’ll see.
a) I still think Park 51 can be a good thing. If one really gets a bunch of interfaith folks to participate in it.
b) I will give Imam Rauf the benefit of the doubt and assume that he is not making the remarks in Park 51 – 6 as a threat. (The remark was that if such and such happened, then “The headlines in the Muslim world will be that Islam is under attack.” ) However, it is so near to being a threat (see Park 51 – 8) that I don’t think it should be used as an argument. Even if Rauf is not the one who moves them to action (and it is not clear that he is not the one) his remarks would certainly be considered by the “Muslim radicals”
c) I do not think that those who worry about the possibility of Park 51 becoming some kind of “point of triumph” in celebration of the “Muslim Victory” on 9-11 are out of bounds. That is, I think that it is a valid position. Given a) I obviously disagree (I don’t think it likely.) but it is not irrational and it is not an indication of Islamaphobia.
d) Islamaphobia is likely to become the next ridiculously overused word. I expect it will continue to be used to attack anyone who “disagrees with any Muslim position”. Notice that the media has not coined an expression for Christianophobia or Americaphobia.
e) I think that the position that Park 51 ought not be built close to the former site of the WTC is reasonable position with which I disagree. I think we all agree that as a matter of law all religions are and should be treated equally. But when you are talking about the site of a horrible crime and the perpetrators committed the crime in the name of religion X, then, as a matter of civility, religion X should not claim the same access to the site of the crime as other religions could. Now, before you conclude that I’m equating the criminals with the religion that they were acting in the name of (which I’m not) I ask you to read about the convent at Auschwitz and then read this paragraph again.
f) Pastor bookburner (Why should we give him fame?) was going to burn the Quran to show that Islam was a violent religion. We implored him not to do it because it would surely “cause” death and destruction. Does that mean he won the argument? (Also see the last two comments to Liberty's Response on Sept 9.)