Saturday, April 23, 2011

Neither a mega-, nor super-mosque

Some people enjoy their ignorance, their prejudice, and are more than happy to avoid dealing with reality, if reality contradicts their assumptions.

Take the Park 51 Islamic community center in Lower Manhatten.

How many mosques do YOU know that house things such as an olympic size swimming pool, a 500 seat auditorium for social events, a culinary school + restaurant, a library, a bookstore, a theater, a performing arts center, a childcare center, and a memorial to September 11, 2001?

If you're a rational person, you wouldn't call that a "mega-mosque" or even a "super-mosque" now would you? Unfortunately, people swallowed what Pamela 'Shrieking Harpy' Geller wrote without question, and accepted it as Truth, end of discussion.

People like this cannot be reasoned with, at least not until they are willing to embrace the reality of the situation.

What's the reality here?

- It's a 13 story building with the above mentioned amenities.

- The man who proposed it is a Sufi, not a crazed radical fundamentalist Muslim

- It will be open to the public (save for the Muslim prayer space), and of course public scrutiny

- The entire building is not a mosque

- It will not be located at ground zero

I say build it. I want to go to that culinary school restaurant.

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