I am going to be flamed by some here for this, but the Ground Zero Mosque doesn't bother me all that much - at least, as I understyand what is proposed. Do I really wish the Islamic group planning to build the mosque would not build it there? Do I hope they change their minds? I sure do, but I don't think any legal steps should be taken to stop them.
Why do I wish they would not build it? Because of a pure good manners and sensitivity to a hallowed place. If the LDS Church proposed building a large and impressive temple, visible from the site of the Mountain Meadows Massacre, that would be just as offensive and insensitive.
Bu in this case it's interesting to me that the mosque apparently won't even be visible from Ground Zero:
I don't know if that's true, but it's something that makes me wonder. Anyway, I think our church would be sensitive to such things, and I don't like the idea of campaigns to stop the construction of religious buildings based on the religion involved. What's sauce for the Muslims would be sauce for the Mormons.
Why do I wish they would not build it? Because of a pure good manners and sensitivity to a hallowed place. If the LDS Church proposed building a large and impressive temple, visible from the site of the Mountain Meadows Massacre, that would be just as offensive and insensitive.
Bu in this case it's interesting to me that the mosque apparently won't even be visible from Ground Zero:
[T]he proposed mosque would not be located “at” Ground Zero, but two blocks north of it.... some of the concern over this mosque, especially among people who do not live in New York City, is based on a misunderstanding of the geography of Lower Manhattan. This is an area that had significant high-rise development before New York imposed setback requirements and floor-area ratio maximums (limits on how many square feet of building you can put on a lot). As a result, the area is denser and more canyon-like than Midtown.
This means you can be two blocks away from something without any sense that you’re near it. City Hall is four blocks from Ground Zero, but you’d never stand there and think “I’m right near Ground Zero.” There is even a strip club three blocks south of Ground Zero, but nobody seems to have noticed that it is sullying the memory of the place.
In most cities, including Washington, 13 stories constitute a very tall building. But in the environment of Lower Manhattan, Cordoba House will be just another structure—which is not exactly consistent with the view that it is a Towering Monument to Jihad. In short, people are overestimating the extent to which this building will interact with, or be noticeable from, the World Trade Center site.
This means you can be two blocks away from something without any sense that you’re near it. City Hall is four blocks from Ground Zero, but you’d never stand there and think “I’m right near Ground Zero.” There is even a strip club three blocks south of Ground Zero, but nobody seems to have noticed that it is sullying the memory of the place.
In most cities, including Washington, 13 stories constitute a very tall building. But in the environment of Lower Manhattan, Cordoba House will be just another structure—which is not exactly consistent with the view that it is a Towering Monument to Jihad. In short, people are overestimating the extent to which this building will interact with, or be noticeable from, the World Trade Center site.
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