I have a suggestion for all those people who are so exercised about the Islamic Cultural Center two blocks from Ground Zero.
Instead of bitching and moaning and getting all hateful about how the sanctity of the site is being violated, try doing something positive.
How about finding a Christian congregation that wants to build a church two blocks from Ground Zero? How about locating a Jewish congregation that wants to place a synagogue in the same vicinity? What about an ashram? Or a Buddhist temple?
My point, if it's not obvious by now, is this - if this site is truly sacred, then it should reflect the beliefs of those who died there. And that means a proliferation of worship centers, cultural centers, and similar places. If this site is sacred because of the deaths that occurred there, then we need to honor the highest ideals held by the noble departed. We need to have a concentration of places where those ideals are expressed in their natural form - places where the living can go and pray in whatever way is right for them on behalf of the people who are no longer with us.
I haven't heard anyone propose this idea. All I've heard is hardening of positions, and the potential for more disagreement, more hateful language, more acrimony. I'm sick of the bullshit about this issue. I'm sick of hearing people who ought to know better blow their credibility when they say stupid things. And I want someone, anyone, to take positive action on this. It's time for American values to rise above the noise.
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