Sarah Palin endorsed New Jersey Governor Chris Cristie - A supporter of Sharia Law?

Guest post by micmac

How ‘Bout Those Muslims, Sarah?

Just two years after you declared that Muslims “have a place in the Republican Party” in an October 2008 campaign interview, these darn people dare to build a mosque TWO BLOCKS from Ground Zero. What ARE they thinking?

Were they somehow confused by your campaign message? Did you, somehow, unknowingly, embolden these people?

And as if that were not enough, now this:

Are you aware that one of your political endorsements, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, appears to SUPPORT SHARIA LAW?

In May 2010, Christie reappointed NJ Judge Joseph Charles FOR LIFE to the bench, a judge who refused to grant a restraining order for a Muslim woman against her husband for sexual abuse in the Fall of 2009. . . ON THE BASIS OF SHARIA LAW?

Unbelievable, you say? I agree, but read it here.

Sarah, one thing you and I both have in common is a desire that Sharia Law never take hold in this fair country of ours. So, I am trying to do you a favor here, bringing this to your attention.

Surely Christie knew of the judge’s decision prior to reappointing him. I know, it’s late, and you were obviously hoodwinked by Christie -- I mean who knew the guy would not take a stand against Sharia Law creeping into our country, who ever imagined him “pandering to Islam?”

But there it is.

I expect you are fully capable of responding to this travesty, and I look forward to your statement withdrawing your endorsement of Christie for Governor. Go All Mama Grizzly on him, Sarah. Demand that Christie, and the judge who rendered this awful verdict, step down from office.

Sarah Palin, do the Right Thing!

Sarah, one thing that we both share is the penultimate desire that Sharia Law never take hold in this fair country of ours.

But all this time that the nation has been focused on a building located on private American property and all, I noticed something that the Mosquey-Hopey-Changey-Thingey controversy appeared to distract from something that I would assume would be dear to your heart. Something that you would wish me to draw your attention to.

Should you run for President and all.

A rallying cry against the creeping influence of Sharia Law in this country.

I know you don’t like this, Sarah. And I don’t, either.

I am a member of one of your pro-Palin websites, and gotta tell ya, these folks don’t like Muslims, of any stripe, and they are very noisy about it. I try to stick up for moderate Muslims there, but your supporters just ain’t buying into the notion that this sort of human being even exists.

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Note by Patrick:

I wonder how one of Sarah Palin's "employers", Saudi Prince Alwaleed, views the current "NYC mosque controversy." My feeling is that he might not be too happy. Also, I wonder how many of the faithful Fox News viewers actually know that a representative of one of the most extreme muslim countries has a substantial influence on Fox?

Gosh, why are things always so darn complicated? ;-) Who is the Fox, who is the Grizzly, who is the Caribou, who is the Salmon? Sometimes you never know...

In the end, it's all about oil, of course - the great uniter.

Background about Prince Alwaleed and his involvement with News Corp., the parent company of Fox News, as reported on prwatch.org:

"Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal now owns a 7 percent stake in Rupert Murdoch's News Corp., the parent company of Fox News, making him the company's largest shareholder outside of Murdoch's own family.

Alwaleed is best known for going to Ground Zero after the 9/11 World Trade Center attacks and personally handing then-mayor Rudolph Giuliani a check for $10 million to help finance relief efforts. Afterwards, Alwaleed released a statement blaming the attacks not on the Saudi airline hijackers, but on U.S. policies in the middle east. As a result, Giuliani returned the prince's donation, gaining him praise from Fox News for doing so.

Now that Alwaleed has a controlling ownership in News Corp., he is gaining influence over Fox News. In 2005, just months after Alwaleed acquired his first 5.4 percent stake in News Corp., Fox News covered riots in Paris under a banner saying "Muslim riots." Alwaleed allegedly called Murdoch and had him change the banner to say "Civil riots." Investigative journalist Joseph Trento also reported that a comment he recently made on a Fox Network morning news show, Fox and Friends, about Saudi Arabian money still financing Al Qaeda, was edited out of the show. Trento also reports that Alwaleed "has personally donated huge amounts of money to the families of Palestinian suicide bombers."

In a rare interview with Fox News' Neil Cavuto in January, Alwaleed explained his personal reasons for seeking influence in American politics: the U.S. buys Saudi Arabia's oil, and the bulk of his country's gross domestic product (GDP) comes from oil. Fox News reliably broadcasts misinformation on clean energy, and aggressively fights efforts to move America away from being dependent on a fossil fuels."

Meanwhile, the mosque controversy causes some disruption in the GOP - as reported on Fox yesterday.

"Salon" published an excellent article on Monday, explaining in detail how the mosque controversy started and what had happened until Sarah Palin released her "twitter-rants." It turns out that Pamela Geller, a "right-wing, viciously anti-Muslim, conspiracy-mongering blogger" (Salon), started the whole thing, and then others, including Sarah Palin, jumped on it. Crazy minds think alike.

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On another topic:

Pro-choice organization "Emily's List" presented a clever response to Sarah Palin's Mama Grizzly video - see also the article in "Forbes":

Please also read the article by Stephanie Schriock, President of Emily's List, in Huffington Post: "Sarah Doesn't Speak for Me".

In the meantime, Sarah Palin herself also observed that some "sistas" don't really like her too much. So Sarah today thought to herself: If I am the Queen, I can just declare that feminism shall have no relevance any more for now and in eternity, can't I?

Here we go:

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ATTENTION - DISQUS PROBLEM -

"BLOCKED FROM COMMENTING"

A lot of people now report that they are "blocked from commenting" on disqus.

Seems to me that pretty much everyone is blocked now...

This is a glitch in disqus! We haven't banned anyone for a long time!

Please send me an email if this happens, and I will put your email address on the "whitelist", that usually solves the problem.

Although I do hope that I will solve itself in a short while.

Sorry for the inconvenience.

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Sarah Palin's twitter madness: Lessons in fear mongering and being disrespectful - Get on twitter, everyone, and tell Sarah what YOU think! - UPDATE!

Sarah Palin's meltdown can be watched in real time - thanks to twitter. Yesterday, she went again on the Islam-bashing trail, as there is hardly another topic with which it's easier to whip up the right-wing masses. We have an enemy again! It's the Muslims! The ones who brought you 9/11! They look dark, foreign and suspicious! Almost like our President! Don't trust them!

So yesterday Sarah started the new madness with this tweet:

...which resulted in a "twitter explosion" - people weren't accepting the hate mongering and thousands of tweets were sent off against the ex-Governor who simply "loves to hate."

It seems that Sarah was somewhat dismayed by the negative reaction. So the Quitter Queen, who hates nothing more than other people objecting to her ("OBEY!"), sent off a series of "take that, libruls" tweets today. As usual, her stupidity knows no bounds - however, she also included a nasty, ugly and utterly disrespectful tone against President Obama, which seems to get worse by the day. If that's not inciting hatred, then I don't know what it is:

She also published a facebook post:

Mr. President, should they or should they not build a mosque steps away from where radical Islamists killed 3000 people? Please tell us your position. We all know that they have the right to do it, but should they? And, no, this is not above your pay grade. If those who wish to build this Ground Zero mosque are sincerely interested in encouraging positive "cross-cultural engagement" and dialogue to show a moderate and tolerant face of Islam, then why haven't they recognized that the decision to build a mosque at this particular location is doing just the opposite? Mr. President, why aren't you encouraging the mosque developers to accept Governor Paterson's generous offer of assistance in finding a new location for the mosque on state land if they move it away from Ground Zero? Why haven't they jumped at this offer? Why are they apparently so set on building a mosque steps from what you have described, in agreement with me, as "hallowed ground"? I believe these are legitimate questions to ask.

- Sarah Palin

"Not above your pay grade?" Is this how you "talk" to the President of the USA these days? Interesting...because your President is just upholding the constitution!

So why do we even have worry about this loose canon, who is clearly out of her tiny mind?

Because she has powerful friends - that's why.

As we all know, Rupert Murdoch stands firmly behind her. Apart from that, I would like to mention that for example just recently, the RNC "employed" Sarah Palin to write a long "begging letter" for them. I know that there will come the time when the RNC won't even admit that they ever heard of Sarah Palin, but we won't forget. Thankfully, the website "blacktalkradio" published a scanned copy of the letter which was sent out to Republicans all over the country several days ago. Attached to the letter was a survey, which apparently just matches Sarah Palin's limited intellectual capabilities:

Take notice of what Sarah Palin writes in the second paragraph of the letter: If you agree with Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi, than "put this down" - the survey "isn't for you."

So Sarah Palin doesn't even pretend to be interested to hear from anyone who disagrees with her!

What kind of President would Sarah Palin make? I think some famous dictators in history had exactly the same approach. We know how that ended!

Please also listen to the broadcast on "blacktalkradio" about this topic, it's very good!

So, what to do now?

Everyone, let's get on twitter and let the Quitter Queen know what you think about her and her hateful and ignorant tweets!

Opening a twitter account is easy. Everyone can do it! Please click here for video tutorial, explaining the most important functions of twitter.

A very helpful tool for everyone who would like to get serious with twitter is tweetdeck.

Please click here for a tutorial which explains the functions of tweetdeck. I know that several Gators are already successfully using tweetdeck.

What you then should do is to connect with all the other Gators, follow them and collect new followers. This way, a very powerful twitter chain can be created which ultimately will be able to spread around new messages wide and quickly.

If you for example go to the Palingates twitter, you find immediately lots of other people to follow - and they have other friends. And don't forget to follow Palingates! ;-)

Important: Please retweet the twitter messages of your friends that you like! All you have to do is to click on the "retweet" button next to the tweet.

In order for your tweets to show up in searches, make sure that you include terms for example like "@sarahpalinusa" (meaning: message for sarahpalinusa) or "#palin" (meaning: the hash tag indicates that the message deals with Sarah Palin).

We also would like more people to publish twitter messages which contain links to Palingates. If you want to share the blog post, there is a very easy way: Our new fancy wibaya-toolbar has a function to share the posts over twitter. You need to be logged in to twitter before you do that.

If you click on "twitter" in the wibaya toolbar at the bottom of the page, the following window opens:

On the left hand side, the wibaya toolbar has already included a shortened link to the blog post you are reading at this moment. You then just have to type the message and send the tweet off!

If you want to include links in twitter, you will usually be required to shorten them in order to fit them into 140 characters. For that, I would recommend tinyurl.com - at this website, you paste the original link (which can be very long, it doesn't matter) and receive a short "tinyurl" link which you then copy and paste in your tweet.

If somebody isn't sure how to copy and paste - here is a video tutorial.

We should all make sure that twitter doesn't belong to the bigots and hate mongers, especially now where it has turned into Grandma Palin's favorite propaganda tool.

It's easy, and it's fun! As a bonus, you can also send private messages on twitter, which is an efficient way to get in touch with each other.

Now, please don't forget to tweet this blog post! ;-)

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UPDATE:

Our reader SALLY_M had some brilliant advice:

There is a service called "twitter100".

That's incredibly helpful for everyone who wants to build up a network. You can search for users and see the latest tweets from their followers, for example:

http://twitter100.com/palingates

You have to wait several seconds for the page to load!

Try it! Works great!

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UPDATE 2:

Existing mosque alert!

Our reader PaulaCD just let us know in the comments that there is already a mosque existing close to Ground Zero - just four blocks away! It's run by the non-profit organization Masjid Manhattan.

So what's the big deal with building the new "mosque", which actually will be a multi-functional Islamic Community Center with prayer room? This new "mosque" will be two blocks away - is this really any significant difference?

On the website of Masjid Manhattan, it says:

Masjid Manhattan, established in 1970, is a not-for-profit organization currently located in the heart of downtown Manhattan, near City Hall and the World Trade Center. Wa'al-hamdulillah, our Masjid, has become one of the most famous and most visited Masajid in New York City. Additionally, it has become "The Castle of Da'wah" for non-Muslims bringing many of them, through its Da'wah program, into Islam.
Since its opening, the Masjid has been offering various services to the Muslim community. Some of these services are:

• Five (5) Congregational Salahs (Jammah) every day, seven days a week. Hundreds of brothers and sisters gather here to worship Allah (SWT).
• Congregational Friday Sermons (Ju'mmah) where more than 1,000 brothers and sisters, who come from all over Manhattan and the Tri-state area, gather in unity to praise Allah (SWT).
• Daily Iftar and Taraweeah prayer during the month of Ramadan.
• Islamic education on: Tajweed Al-Quran, Tafseer Al-Quran, Hadith, Fiqh, Sirah and Arabic language.
• Hajh seminars and trip arrangements for Hajh.
• Da'wah program.

Here is a website with further info about Masjid Manhattan, and here is a small picture:

This is the location of Masjid Manhattan on the map:

See in comparison the location of the planned, controversial "Ground Zero mosque":

This makes it even more obvious that the current "mosque-controversy" is just a big show, a despicable manufactured controversy, designed to whip-up the right-wing base.

This manufactured controversy can easily damage the relations to American Muslims on a long-term basis, and we should not let this happen.

In addition, I would like to add an excellent comment by our reader maelewis:

Last week, The Daily Show and Jon Stewart did a wonderful segment about that mosque. They began by showing all of the food carts that sell food on every street corner in New York City, including close to the site of the former World Trade Center. The food carts are called Hallal stands, meaning Kosher for Muslims, who will not eat pork, and require meat to be slaughtered in a traditional way. The cab drivers who drive past Ground Zero are of every nationality, including Muslim cab drivers. The entire sketch was developed in a humorous way, rather than using a preaching tone. I hope that it is still there on the Comedy Channel website.

I might add that there is another mosque, ten blocks away. How far is too far, or how close is too close? The Pentagon was also attacked on September 11. They have had a mosque in there; Moslems serve in our armed forces, and Moslems died in the attack on September 11. One Moslem was a policeman who rushed in with an emergency aid kit, trying to rescue people. Some worked in investment offices, others worked as janitors,or as waiters in the Windows on the World Restaurant at the top of one of the Twin Towers.

New York is a very heterogenous city. In a city block, one can hear different languages spoken, and see people in different forms of national dress. There is a section of Manhattan west of Fifth Avenue, from the 30's south through the 20's. This was once the vibrant garment district. In a couple of blocks, there are Korean wholesale costume jewelry stores, wedding suppiers with signs in Spanish and English, Japanese beads, Indian fabric stores. A few blocks to the north at 47th street, very religious Jews sell expensive jewelry. Everyone goes about their business. I was in that area a month after September 11. There were handwritten signs in windows with messages of love and support beautiful expressed. People walking into a shop asked carefully if the people knew anyone who had been involved in the attack. People openly hugged in the street. I can state that Sarah Palin has absolutely no concept of what it is like to be a New Yorker, to live in New York and deal with people of all backgrounds, cultures, languages and customs on an ordinary day.

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Websites which linked to this post:

Midnight Review

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Sarah Palin's "fear-mongering", "inflammatory statements" and "hateful rhetoric" in NY Mosque controversy openly condemned by 40 religious leaders

It's not the best week for Sarah Palin - again!

After the "Homer video" PR-disaster (video viewed by 953,657 people so far!) and the "Jack Kingston 'get your butt out of my state' controversy", the Queen has to deal with more unruly subjects:

More than 40 prominent Christian, Jewish and Muslim leaders and religion scholars issued a statement today condemning the "xenophobia and religious bigotry" fueling the increasingly strident opposition to a proposed Islamic center and mosque near Ground Zero. These leaders from New York City and across the country are specifically challenging the divisive rhetoric of Newt Gingrich and Sarah Palin, who have strongly opposed a center that will promote interfaith relations, combat extremism, and offer community programs for Americans of all religious backgrounds.

This is excellent news. Finally, it seems that voices of reason become stronger and stronger - and that the old intimidation tactics don't work any more. Because you know what will happen now: The smears are going to start. The cultist brown shirt Palinbots are probably already busy typing the usual insults. What about: "Religious far leftist hacks" as a new term? Just wait for it!

For the background, please read EyeOnYou's excellent guest post about the New York mosque controversy.

The infamous tweet which started it all:

The complete press release can be found here. In addition, the statement on its own can be downloaded as a PDF-document here.

The statement has the following wording:

Interfaith Leaders Stand with Cordoba House, Denounce Hateful Rhetoric

As Catholic, evangelical, mainline Protestant, Jewish and Muslim leaders and scholars committed to religious freedom and inter-religious cooperation, we are deeply troubled by the xenophobia and religious bigotry that has characterized some of the opposition to a proposed Islamic center and mosque near where the World Trade Center towers once stood.

Newt Gingrich, the former Speaker of the House, is the most recent prominent opponent to cast this debate in a way that demonizes all Muslims and exploits fear to divide Americans. "It is a sign of their contempt for Americans and their confidence in our historic ignorance that they would deliberately insult us this way," Gingrich said in a statement. Sarah Palin called plans for the center a "provocation." Fox News has aired a steady stream of irresponsible commentary and biased coverage that reduces what should be a civil debate into starkly combative terms.

The profound tragedy of Sept. 11, 2001 revealed the horror that can unfold when a small minority of violent extremists manipulates religious language for political gain and falsely claims to represent one of the world's great religions. We have witnessed this sinful corruption of religion across faith traditions throughout history and must condemn it without equivocation whenever or wherever it occurs. However, we fail to honor those murdered on that awful day - including Muslim Americans killed in the Twin Towers and Pentagon - by betraying our nation's historic commitment to religious liberty, fueling ugly stereotypes about Islam and demeaning the vast majority of Muslims committed to peace. The proposed mosque would be part of Cordoba House, a center open to all Americans that will provide Islamic, interfaith and secular programs. The project aims to support "integration, tolerance of difference and community cohesion through arts and culture," according to the Cordoba Initiative, which promotes improved "Muslim-West relations." These are exactly the kind of efforts that foster dialogue, break down barriers and begin to build a world where religiously inspired violent extremism is less likely.

Mr. Gingrich, Ms. Palin and other prominent voices privileged to have the ear of the media would make a more lasting contribution to our nation if they stopped issuing inflammatory statements and instead helped inspire a civil dialogue between Christians, Jews and Muslims committed to a future guided by the principles of compassion, justice and peace. Fear-mongering and hateful rhetoric only undermine treasured values at the heart of diverse faith traditions and our nation's highest ideals.

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Sarah "twit" Palin is not known to be a fan of compassion, justice and peace:

From the press release:

"Christians who believe in the values of religious freedom and interfaith cooperation welcome plans for Cordoba House, a center of culture and dialogue that will honor our nation's highest ideals," said the Rev. Peg Chemberlin, President of the National Council of Churches. "We are deeply saddened by those who denigrate a religion which in so many ways is a religion of compassion and peace by associating all Muslims with violent extremism. That's like equating all Christians to Timothy McVeigh's actions. This center will reflect not only the best of Islam, but the enduring hope that Christians, Jews and Muslims can together find common ground in addressing the most urgent challenges of our time."

"Back in the fall of 2001, when President George W. Bush assured the American people that the War on Terror was not a war against Islam, it would have been hard to imagine a more picture perfect example of Muslim Americans exercising their civic responsibilities than by building a thirteen-story YMCA-style community center," said Rev. Chloe Breyer, Executive Director of the Interfaith Center of New York. "Cordoba House is exactly the kind of initiative that we need here in New York - it will serve people of all faith traditions and enrich the city, cultivating a society that lives up to our highest ideals, not our worse fears."

"I'm proud to join so many leaders from diverse faith traditions who recognize that fear-mongering and scapegoating 'the other' has no rightful place in a nation that strives to be a beacon of hope for all those seeking opportunity or escaping persecution," said Simon Greer, President and CEO of Jewish Funds for Justice. "At a time when Americans deserve real solutions to profound challenges, I am hopeful that the shrill voices of division will be drowned out by a chorus of citizens dedicated to working across lines of race and faith to serve the common good."

Rabbi Marc Schneier, President of The Foundation for Ethnic Understanding in New York, said: "A fundamental tenet of the Torah teaches us to 'Love thy neighbor as thyself' (Leviticus 19:18). Far more challenging is the dictum, 'Love the stranger, for you too were strangers in the land of Egypt' (Deuteronomy 10:19). 'Love thy neighbor' is mentioned only once in the Bible while 'Love the stranger' is repeated 36 times. This added emphasis highlights how challenging and important it is to love someone different than yourself. Our great nation's history as a beacon of tolerance and religious freedom further encourages us to embrace the strangers in our midst of different faiths and backgrounds. The Cordoba House embodies these proud and sacred traditions."

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This is an incredibly important statement. I doubt very much that Sarah Palin will understand it, as she herself was brought up in a very extreme religious environment and is not known to be a supporter of the "love thy neighbor" concept.

The statement was issued by "Faith in Public Life." From the website:

"Following the 2004 election, in which faith was often deployed in service of a narrow and partisan agenda, a diverse group of 40 religious leaders came together to advance a positive alternative: an inclusive and unifying faith movement advancing the common good in the public square. This group, including leaders such as Jim Wallis, Rabbi David Saperstein, Melissa Rogers, Rev. Jim Forbes, Ricken Patel and Sr. Catherine Pinkerton, envisioned a more robust and effective faith movement with the savvy, flexibility and nimbleness to thrive in a new political and media environment.

Faith in Public Life (FPL) was founded to fuel this burgeoning faith movement with cutting edge strategies and capacity-building resources. The founders gave FPL a movement-focused mission, rather than organizational or issue-focused one, and the specific mandate to lift up religious voices speaking for justice and the common good, build bridges and facilitate strategic alliances, and find new ways forward on historically divisive issues."

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Sarah Palin clearly is the expert on divisive issues:

Let's hope that this excellently worded statement by "Faith in Public Life" will receive a lot of public attention.

Please sign the "Faithful America" petition against anti-Muslim propaganda and for religious freedom and tolerance HERE.

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The Dangerous Nature Of Sarah Palin's Lies and Hateful Rhetoric: New York City "Mosque" Controversy

Guest post by EyeOnYou -

crossposted at standupforournation.blogspot.com

Sarah Palin has been discussed lately due to her tweets, with her comments on the Mosque/Community Center being set up 2 blocks away from Ground Zero.

She has taken this a step further now with a post on her facebook page which shows that she is deliberately fanning the flames of religious intolerance as well as deliberately misinforming her adoring fans about the truth of what is going on.

This is the post Sarah Palin made:

An Intolerable Mistake on Hallowed Ground

Earlier today, Mayor Bloomberg responded to my comments about the planned mosque at Ground Zero by suggesting that a decision not to allow the building of a mosque at that sacred place would somehow violate American principles of tolerance and openness.

No one is disputing that America stands for – and should stand for – religious tolerance. It is a foundation of our republic. This is not an issue of religious tolerance but of common moral sense. To build a mosque at Ground Zero is a stab in the heart of the families of the innocent victims of those horrific attacks. Just days after 9/11, the spiritual leader of the organization that wants to build the mosque, Imam Faisal Abdul Rauf, suggested that blame be placed on the innocents when he stated that the “United States’ policies were an accessory to the crime that happened” and that “in the most direct sense, Osama bin Laden is made in the USA.” Rauf refuses to recognize that Hamas is a terrorist organization dedicated to the destruction of our ally, Israel, and refuses to provide information about the sources of funding for the $100 million mosque. Rauf also plays a key role in a group behind the flotilla designed to provoke Israel in its justifiable blockade of Gaza. These are just a few of the points Americans are realizing as New York considers the proposed mosque just a stone’s throw away from 9/11’s sacred ground.

I agree with the sister of one of the 9/11 victims (and a New York resident) who said: “This is a place which is 600 feet from where almost 3,000 people were torn to pieces by Islamic extremists. I think that it is incredibly insensitive and audacious really for them to build a mosque, not only on that site, but to do it specifically so that they could be in proximity to where that atrocity happened.”

Many Americans, myself included, feel it would be an intolerable and tragic mistake to allow such a project sponsored by such an individual to go forward on such hallowed ground. This is nothing close to “religious intolerance,” it’s just common decency.

- Sarah Palin

First of all, lets dispel some of the misinformation. Cordoba House is NOT, I repeat NOT "at Ground Zero" as Sarah and her ghostwriter would have you believe. This is a map showing the location of the structure in relation to Ground Zero:

This next picture is from Google Maps and I have placed a red box around the area that the Cordoba House is going to be located and you can see it in relation to where Ground Zero actually is.

Now lets address this "building a mosque" claim.

This is not a building being erected, but a renovation of a building that is already in place. This building will be named "Cordoba House" and will include many many more things than just a prayer center, which by the way is already in place and being used regularly:

Cordoba House is a Muslim-led project which will build a world-class facility that promotes tolerance, reflecting the rich diversity of New York City. The center will be community-driven, serving as a platform for inter-community gatherings and cooperation at all levels, providing a space for all New Yorkers to enjoy.

This proposed project is about promoting integration, tolerance of difference and community cohesion through arts and culture. Cordoba House will provide a place where individuals, regardless of their backgrounds, will find a center of learning, art and culture; and most importantly, a center guided by Islamic values in their truest form - compassion, generosity, and respect for all.

The site will contain tremendous amounts of resources that otherwise would not exist in Lower Manhattan; a 500-seat auditorium, swimming pool, art exhibition spaces, bookstores, restaurants - all these services would form a cultural nexus for a region of New York City that, as it continues to grow, requires the sort of hub that Cordoba House will provide.

"Downtown express" wrote:

No one in this community has any illusions about the dangers we face in this world. We lived through the attacks of 9/11 and years of rebuilding. Many of us responded that day and afterwards – including dozens of members of Imam Rauf’s congregation. Our neighbors at Sufi Books (now Dergah Al-Farah), which has been on West Broadway since 1983, responded immediately and passionately in our neighborhood’s and our country’s defense – by helping to save lives at the site of the attack and by immediately condemning the terrorists and their cause. Rauf recently described his mission as to “embolden the vast majority of Muslims who hate terrorism to stand up to the radical rhetoric” and to “interweave America’s Muslim population into the mainstream society.”

When Ms. Grillo leads tours as a docent for the 9/11 Tribute Center, she asks visitors from all over the world to focus on the word “tolerance.” What better place to teach tolerance than near the site where hate tried to kill it?

Now just for a bit of a refresher, lets revisit the 1st Amendment to the Constitution shall we? You know that pesky document that Sarah Palin keeps demanding we stick to when she feels she has another rant coming on?

The First Amendment (Amendment I) to the United States Constitution is part of the Bill of Rights. The amendment prohibits the making of any law "respecting an establishment of religion", impeding the free exercise of religion, infringing on the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering with the right to peaceably assemble or prohibiting the petitioning for a governmental redress of grievances.

Seems to me that Sarah Palin and those opposed to this Community Center are trying to impede the free exercise of religion by demanding that this place not be allowed to go forward, and they are also interfering with the right to peaceably assemble by demanding that this community center be moved to a different location simply because they dislike the specific religious beliefs of those who are going to be using the prayer center.

It has been nearly 9 years since the September 11 Attack on this country. How long is long enough to begin healing? How far enough away would it be acceptable to establish this community center in order to make people like Sarah Palin happy? Does Sarah Palin and her facebook ghostwriter know how many Muslims were killed on September 11th? Do they even care?

Americans were killed along with people from Australia, Bermuda, Canada, China, El Salvador, Germany, Grenada, Ireland, Israel, Japan, Sweden and the United Kingdom. People of various ages ranging from 2 up to 85 years old. This was a world tragedy not just an American one. Yes, it happened on American soil, and yes it was directed at American, but we were not the only ones who lost people on that tragic day. People from all backgrounds were killed on that day.

There is so much involved in this subject that we could go on for days discussing it, but the main thrust of this post is supposed to be about getting the facts out there, and showing the dangerous attitude of the people who are supporting the misinformation that Sarah Palin and those like her are distributing in the name of politics or personal bigotry.

How are people reacting to her facebook note? Good question, and I have some answers. It isn't pretty. Not pretty at all and it shows how she stirs anger and is quite happy to do it as we've seen from the many incidents where she has sought to divide people in this country.

Here is a screenshot of the comments made. At this moment there are 2,884 comments and a majority of them are like the ones shown in the screenshot.

Here are a few more that I copied earlier:

Steve Walther
Absolutely unbelievable. Thats nothing less than outright provocation.21 minutes ago

Camille Troy
Mayor Bloomberg is very accomplished. He may not be my favorite Mayor but you cannot argue w/ success. His religious faith is glorified by showing tolerance to others IMO.19 minutes ago

Rich Fitzgerald
symbolism is a huge part of islamic extremist thinking. building it at ground zero is a symbol of their success in beating the infidel..
wake up liberals !!19 minutes ago
Christine Lesko
Mayor Bloomberg , Are you reading these? For no amout of money should the city allow this to happen. This is 9-11 all over again.18 minutes ago

Leslie Miller
this in NOT tolerance and openness in the manner in which brings peace. the peace is false and those who are allowed to build such things are hoping we keep on being tolerant and open so as to destroy America.17 minutes ago

David Swift
The goal of the muslim world to to destroy the world. They can't do it they can't do it by war, so they WILL do it with the ballot box.17 minutes ago

Theodore Hoak
Sarah, You tell it like it is, and Patriotic Americans support you. This is a definite in your face America attempt, especially since their plans also include opening this on the 10th anniversary of 9/11. How any Real American can support this is beyond me. Haven't enough Americans fought and died for this country to show the Liberal ...See More17 minutes ago

Kimi Perkins O'Dell
It just shows you the intolerance of extreme Muslims. Not putting them all in one basket, mind you, as there are some peace loving Muslims I know personally. Is the world so small that there is NO other location to build their mosque? They feel it necessary to minimize the event, forget the anquish and the pain and overlook what was one event ... See More17 minutes ago

Pattie Coker Holt
he must be a liberal. get him out of office16 minutes ago

John Davis
they should never build this anyway near ground zero period. to many lives lost. scared ground for christian's16 minutes ago

Steven Thomas
Bloomberg a BLOOMING IDIOT!!!! Can't he see those radicals want to take over this country!!! When will they wake up!!!!16 minutes ago

Cathy Ashby
Perhaps we should also allow a floating sushi bar over the USS Arizona in Pearl Harbor16 minutes ago

Mark Adams
New York City is one of the most liberal areas in the country. However, even a majority of New York City voters agree with Governor Palin on the mosque
New York City voters oppose 52 - 31 percent a proposal by a Muslim group to build a mosque and cultural center two blocks from Ground Zero, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today. Another 17 percent are undecided.
http://www.quinnipiac.edu/x1302.xml?ReleaseID=147315 minutes ago

David Bower
It is nothing less than a monument to their victory.15 minutes ago · 1 person

Cindy Bevington Olmstead
Whatever happened to old-fashioned consideration and respect? If this religion is truly anti-violence, why don't they say, hey, a terrible thing connected with our religion happened here, and we don't want to rub salt in the wound, so out of respect for those who died, we will NOT build a mosque, but rather will find a place that doesn't cause irritation? Now THAT would show that their religion truly does respect others and denounce violence.15 minutes ago · 1 person

Jenny Maria Moiser Heinzen
You don't see the U.S.A putting up statues of Busch in Iraq to replace the Saddam Hussein ones that were torn down....15 minutes ago

Liberty Force
Patriots, It is time to take back our country! Join us at Liberty Force.
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=12058120131801014 minutes ago · 1 person

Mary Roosa
The most disturbing thing is that nobody is listening to the families of 9/11 victims! It is just common decency and "political correctness" is killing us!14 minutes ago

Camille Troy
LOL A Guiliani - Bloomberg showdown? You mean Mister "NOUN+VERB 9/11" Guiliani? As I said :
election year ? CHECK!
politicizing 9/11? CHECK!... See More14 minutes ago

Nancy Taul Howey
I wonder what he would have said if some one had suggested building a Baptist church there?13 minutes ago

Rafael Gomez
Sarah, come on! You cant really be serious (or disingenuous). There were many Muslims who died on 9/11 too. Moreover, the terrorist attacks on 9/11 are not a reflection of Islam anymore than the dropping of the Atom Bomb was a reflection of Baptist love towards the Japanese :)13 minutes ago

Judie Tracy
wow...13 minutes ago

Theresa Woltmann- Silvestri
Politicians have NO common decency!!!! Its all about THEM.12 minutes ago

Don LaBanca
If the city of New York, specifically Mayor Bloomberg, had any balls, they'd take the site of the proposed mosque by eminent domain and put an end to this crap once and for all. NO mosque, NO way, NO how, Not NOW not EVER12 minutes ago

Mary Manley
This tells who we are as a nation. I think that we need to look at this with common sense. What has tolerance and openness led to?12 minutes ago

Karin Berryman
How disgusting for those who died and their families. The suicide bombers may have had the excuse of being brainwashed, but what is Bloomberg's?12 minutes ago

Dan Combs
This Is a country founded partly on religious tolerance; the founding fathers wanted everyone to be able to chose their own form of Christiamity, not be forced to worship at a state church. The Muslim religion did not enter into the picture. Similarly, Americans should not have to tolerate the religion of another tried and tested, violent culture... See More12 minutes ago

Camille Troy
Forget 9/11??? If you bring up Saddam Hussein and Iraq I'll wager you don't KNOW anything to FORGET! Sheesh!12 minutes ago

Doug Mataconis
That sound you here is the death of the First Amendment, property rights, and religious tolerance.
Nice job there12 minutes ago

Mary Urscheler Moïse
This is NOT religious tolerance! THIS IS RADICAL ISLAM MAKING A HUGE STATEMENT! WAKE UP AMERICA!11 minutes ago · 1 person

Debra Luptak
Thank you Sarah for keeping it "real"...this is absolutely insane that ANY American would even consider this mosque to be built on or near ground zero...what a slap in the face...are we that gullible...wow. My heart breaks for the families of those who innocently died on 9/11 and this is just a stab in the back and will be a constant reminder...May God's will be done here!11 minutes ago

Shelly Young Bird
I totally agree! And I also say, "Palin for President!!"10 minutes ago

Ron Kreitzer
got some dam nerve putting it at ground zero.....just a place for them to plan another 9/11....America is so gullable.....10 minutes ago

Steve Dia
What a huge insult that would be to our country. We Americans had better wake up and very soon or this will no longer be the land of the free. We are in need of a new governing party and ideals.10 minutes ago

Donna Jacobson
Remember people, Bloomberg is the one that literally wrote himself in for mayor for there terms when the term for every other mayor is two.
Also, I lost my cousin, a firefighter, on 9/11 and the last thing I want to see next to the place he gave his life is ANYTHING Muslim.9 minutes ago via Facebook Mobile

Daniel Gokie
Thank you for bringing up the topic.8 minutes ago

Penny Rogers
When are people going to stop this movement.... Please listen to the 9-11 ,family"s. It's disrespectful to them and the United States... It seem's you have to be policalty correct anymore. I would just like to throw up on this administration!!!!!! Enough is enough!!!!!!!8 minutes ago

Camille Troy
Donna Jacobson-
I am deeply sorry for your loss.8 minutes ago

Gloria Legorreta Anderson
This building in NY is just to flaunt in the face of Americans a "victory" of sorts. No different than the building of the Dome of the Rock in Jerasalem where Jews believed, and still believe, the rock to be the very place where Abraham prepared to sacrifice Isaac.8 minutes ago

Lena BattleCat Pullum
I dont care one shit about these damn Muslims and their feelings in regard this Mosque! i am sick to my stomach with these ppl trying to FORCE their religion, their veiws and their so-called ethics down the throats of American society and they R doing it on our own soil! Poor us! Our politicians R kissing the asses of these religious fanatics because they R scared 2 death that they may begin their efforts AGAIN, 2 murder more americans!8 minutes ago · 1 person

Carol Anderson McKinney
Amen sister!! This is a slow and steay infiltration of our country and an insult to the victims, their families, the emergency workers twho gave their lives, the children who are growing up without a mom or dad or grandparent! THINK about them more then appeasing a group of people who would glady wipe us off the face of the map given the chance!7 minutes ago

Edi Saddlemire
HUH ???7 minutes ago

Michael Santa Cruz
?@Mark Adams:
http://weeklystandard.com/articles/mosque-grows-near-brooklyn
The author of that article is a Muslim centrist with obvious expertise on the subject, but if you read very carefully, you will see that the links to radical Islam are fairly spurious. To summarize: Raum served in an nonprofit with the former director of a questionable ... See More6 minutes ago

Kurt Nielsen
That is the Hopey,Changey type pf crap that will end up destroying us....If you "Go with the flow" in a river you will drown eventually..we must STAND against this.......religious freedom is one thing being ...allowing the muslims to use that part of our sacred "Bill of Rights" to spit in our eye and rub our noses in it is another..akin to the ...See More6 minutes ago

Kerry Burak
what a freakin ridiculous idea.. a mosque at ground zero? what they hell are these people thinking? what it does is violates all laws of common sense. not to mention the fact of insulting those that died that day. it has NOTHING to do with First Amendment. If they want to build a mosque.. let them.(i believe in freedom to choose ones own religion). but somewhere else other than ground zero.6 minutes ago

Rich Shull
What a freakin retarded anti american government we have going on. I am ashamed of america. I really think the senators and congress need stop, re-evaluate, take a look at where they think it will honestly go, and correct it.5 minutes ago

Shirley Beckman
What were they thinking?5 minutes ago

Leo Torrez
I would like to see Sarah and Jan Brewer on the ticket! Out with idiots Nobama, and Biden......and take Bloomberg with them...I am christian, my friend is Muslim, my family Catholic and Jewish....WE ALL SAY STOP THE MOSQUE.... SARAH and JAN "because they can!"4 minutes ago via Facebook Mobile

Rita Siller
Someone has got to stop this madness! This was Bloomberg's reply to a recent email asking him to stop the mosque:
Last month, the local community board voted by an overwhelming margin (29-1) to endorse the project.
Time to get rid of him and the entire local community board!4 minutes ago

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Ronald Twyman
It is time we stop leting this Antichrist politics go unchecked and stand up for and return to our religious rights, befor it is to late to save our children!14 minutes ago · 1 person

Luanne Buege
what are they thinking - oh that's right - they forgot how13 minutes ago

Don Evans Rafael:
The killing of other Muslims makes no difference to Islam as long as the intent is towards the "Infidels". "...terrorist attacks on 9/11 are not a reflection of Islam"? What an ignorant statement!13 minutes ago

Karen Jalaba
Where is our government when we need them???????12 minutes ago

Christine Kingsbury
It makes no difference what we do when dealing with these religious fanatics that are a kickback from thousands of years ago. This is an instance where we are damned if we do and we are damned if we don't. They will not appreciate the concession of the American people if we "tolerate" the building of an Islamic Mosque on a piece of land that has ... See More12 minutes ago

Jesse Pettyjohn Jr.
Bloomgerg is an IDIOT,who would have never been elected if he did not have his own money. I live in NJ,I saw those buildings fall.I lost some people I know ,that day.It is not tolerance that should come from us but what should come from us is anger for the nerve of these maggots(Bloomberg included)that they give us another sucker punch.12 minutes ago

Andy Tackett
no the building of one shows the intolerance of the muslims wanting to build there bloomberg is dead wrong and the last pole of new yorkers was at 52% not wanting it there so why does the majority not get heard 12 minutes ago

Terri Murray
I would think so 11 minutes ago

Willis W Mahan
Like Hell!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 11 minutes ago

Karin Berryman
I only saw this outrage 5 mins ago and the other thing is ; What does this kind of thing do for your soldiers, for those battling with tragic memories I would think this would be outright dangerous! Whoever gives the ok for this can be sued in my book!10 minutes ago

Homer Cantrell
Religious tolerance has absolutely nothing to do with Terrorist Organizations wanting to build a trophy mosque at the site of the worst terrorist act commited on OUR land. The Obama Admisistration would do well to tell these people: "NO WAY are you going to build a mosque on that site." However, we all know our secret Muslim so-called President will just sit back and let it happen.10 minutes ago

Jean Pierre Wilding
There should be no problem in banning building it. It amounts to a hate crime, and if anything does not promote unity and is not PC. Even if you believe in that nonsense. God bless America - start praying for a miracle.9 minutes ago via Facebook Mobile

Carolyn Adams
Why not just make Ground Zero a memorial park and let it alone. There are still enough spirits to make it sad but beautiful. Because anything that is chosen would be out of place. Any cemetery is both sad but yet beautiful. Sometimes it is hard to go there but once you do you feel better.9 minutes ago

Patrice Benner-Dick
Sarah, thank you for being the voice of so many Americans who feel the same way but are powerless to be heard.9 minutes ago · 1 person

Bobby Vergis
In the history of Islam, mosques have been built on the sacred ground of countries or cities they have conquered. This is not an issue of religion, but of this imam wanting to make a statement of how muslims have conquered America.
Besides that; the design of their mosque is just a loud obnoxious statememnt in and of itself, just yards from the ... See More9 minutes ago

Ralph Edward Benner
WE ARE TO BLESS AND CURSE NOT. Why? Because God said, Vengeance is mine-I will repay. We are to show LOVE at all times. Why? Because perhaps you will win a friend who once was an enemy. If not, you heap coals of fire on the enemys' head(s) Why?Why?Why? Blessing, Cursing, Loving are all boomerangs-If they do not strike the target they all come home to the sender.9 minutes ago

Esther Zeigler Burns
The problem is the assumption that everyone thinks alike. The Mosque at ground zero will be seen as marker of a heroic victory over the great Satan. I mean, liberals hate themselves to the point they like being debased and debasing their country....Bloomberg must have a closet full of BDSM gear then.8 minutes ago

John Sutherland
Sarah, I'm sure you understand that the progressives and the communists in our midst intend to completely destroy our Judeo/Christian American culture. They mean to bring us down. Don't expect fair fights or honest debates - they lie, cheat, and steal to get their way. But they are America haters 100%. It never occurred to me that success would... See More8 minutes ago

Carol Anderson McKinney
good video explaining what this is all about!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxFzFIDbKpg&feature=player_embedded8 minutes ago · 1 person

Debi Fitts
Amen Sarah....we know what their agenda is.8 minutes ago

Ricky Abel
Bloomberg is a douche7 minutes ago · 1 person

Lisa Horn Brichetto
It really is just about common decency, something so many Americans just don't have anymore. Thank you Sarah for speaking out about this.6 minutes ago

Becky Lew- Hobbs
Sarah - thank you stating what so many of us agree with. Ground zero should be a memorial and not a religious statement.6 minutes ago

Duwayne Rains
Never EVER let this happen America! This is a slap in the face to all Americans! Why do we continue to let the minority rule? To the Mayor and everybody else in NY, get a little backbone and stand up for once!5 minutes ago · 2 people

Rick Gallagher
B.S. A mosque at ground zero is a slap in the face to Americans!5 minutes ago

Cheryl Hannan Nashatka
Therefore, rejoice, O heavens! And you who live in the heavens, rejoice! But terror will come on the earth and the sea, for the devil has come down to you in great anger, knowing that he has little time."
4 minutes ago

Scott Tucker
I agree with Bloomberg.
Shut up. Go home.
Become obscure again.3 minutes ago

Stu Ballenger
If anyone needs a volunteer to fly a plane into it once its built...hit me up..3 minutes ago

Joe Starbuck
Oh, forgot one more thing: did you see the President walking to his plane? He was carrying a book called "Post America" written by a Muslim. Some say, "Maybe he's trying to get more insight to deal with sensitive issues." I'm not buying this angle because too many of his recent decisions have been pro-Muslim and anti-Christian, anti-Constitution. I... See More3 minutes ago

Christy Foster
I can't believe this is happening?? WHY would we allow this to happen?? I am with Duwayne have a little backbone and stand up to these people... Did Americans forget what happened that day and who did it???3 minutes ago

Richie Diaz
Go Sarah. Always willing to step up to the Plate and take a swing, for the American people.2 minutes ago

Lena BattleCat Pullum
THE ANTICHRIST, 4 THOSE WHO BELIEVE THIS, IS AT WORK AND HE HAS THIS NATION AND IT'S POLITICANS SNOWBLIND TO THE FACTS OF LIFE AND THE REALITY OF OUR PRESENT SITUATION! I TRULY BELIEVE THIS IS JUST THE BEGINING OF A MORE SINISTER FUTURE FOR US! GOD HELP US!2 minutes ago

Vicki Conard
Thank you Sarah Palin for bringing this to our attention. Maybe with your contacts you can help stop this. It would be nice to see that you can push through all the red tape and have this dumped out of New York! This is definitely an eye opener.about a minute ago

So as is obvious there is a lot of hate, misinformation and dangerous attitudes among Sarah's followers. The anger displayed toward individuals who have a different belief system than they do is plainly evident and exceptionally frightening. To believe that Muslims are all bad, or that this Community center is some kind of dangerous place or disrespectful slap in the face to those who died is a joke, but sadly one that is becoming more and more popular with a select group of citizens.

How sad that this is what so many feel, when they themselves are likely to cry foul if someone tried to trample on their right to free religious expression.

"What better place to teach tolerance than near the site where hate tried to kill it?"

That comment stands out for me.

Sarah Palin could have taken this opportunity and used it to show herself to be a true Christian, and instead she went down the opposite path. She could have shown herself to be supportive of the Constitution like she professes herself to be, but again that is not the path she wanted to take.

I am not surprised by the behavior she displays and encourages in people, but I am saddened by it. I have been paying close attention to her for what feels like an eternity but in reality is has only been a few years. In those few years, I have watched her lash out, encourage rage and anger in her supporters, lie, deliberately misrepresent, and bilk people out of money, and all of it to feed her own ego, and to become a celebutaunt on the national stage.

She is a dangerous person and one who should not be ignored, as she will do everything in her power to continue to encourage dangerous behavior from as many people as she can. That is what she does and it is who she is. Sadly she has conned a lot of good decent people into believing her, but I am always hopeful that people will finally remove the blinders from their eyes and simply look at the facts which show how shallow, egotistical, and narcissistic her behavior is.

More examples of those fans of Sarah Palin and her viewpoints.

Andrew Sullivan wrote on the Daily Dish:

A disgusting ad celebrated by Conservatives4Palin:

"The audacity of jihad." Real subtle. But you see here the neo-fascist, civilization-war rhetoric that Palin will deploy more and more crudely as she moves toward the White House.

Hate-filled videos like these make conservatives4palin happy:

Despite its name, the National Republican Trust has no formal connection to the Republican Party. It is an independent group with ties to the conservative Web site Newsmax.

Another article leads us to further information about this group and its founder:

Scott Wheeler is at it again. As before, the following fundraising email has not been edited:

Dear National Republican Trust Supporter:

How do you feel about leather-clad, baton-wielding New Black Panthers "patrolling" your local polling place? Or the planting of a monstrous 13-story mosque at Ground Zero? What about NASA's Muslim outreach...the NAACP's race-fueled assault on the Tea Party...and Jeremiah Wright's enduring influence over Barrack Obama? Worrisome, yes. Outrageous, even. But random, isolated incidents? Not a chance.

We are developing an investigation that will demonstrate these events are calculated elements of a grand and poisonous strategy to divide, dispirit, and diminish The Left's political adversaries. In other words, you and me.
Big Media just rendered their verdict on our campaign by refusing to run our Mosque Ad.

IF YOU HAVE NOT WATCHED OUR POWERFUL TELEVISION AD THAT
WILL KILL THE GROUND ZERO MOSQUE. PLEASE WATCH IT HERE!
NBC and CBS refuse to run this ad. They think they have a monopoly on your news consumption. Let's prove them wrong.

They don't mind running the radical left wing Moveon.org ads, but they won't run this one. You might have heard about Big Media's shameful actions last night on the O'Reilly Factor.

You can help us blow through their barrier with the truth! If we can raise enough money, we will post this ad on the Drudge Report, the most widely viewed website in the world. From there, it will go viral, reaching millions of Americans, and killing the plans to erect this disgraceful mosque!

GO HERE TO JOIN THE FIGHT, AND SIGNAL TO BIG MEDIA
THEIR NEWS MONOPOLY HAS ENDED!

Please forward this message to all of your friends and family!
Together, we'll make sure every American is aware of this despicable plot.
We can defeat the censors and kill the mosque, if all those reading this email will donate. This must be a team effort. We all must pitch in. Anyone who donates $100 dollars or more we will receive an autographed copy of Shadow Government: What Obama Doesn't Want You to Know About His Czars.

This disgraceful Mosque project cannot go forward. We owe it to the 3,000 Americans slaughtered on 9/11 to ensure this project of hate is stopped immediately.

We can do it, but we desperately need your help with this campaign. The media may refuse to cover this project, and even work to silence our voice, but together, we can expose this outrage and broadcast it into the living rooms of every proud American.

Please consider an investment of $250, $100, $50 or $25. And Please know that no contribution is too small. Together, we suffered on that horrific September day; united, we will fight to honor and protect our fallen by stopping this disgusting effort.

This Ad campaign and our ongoing investigation will ensure that we are victorious. We will kill the Ground Zero Mosque.

We cannot let these terrorists build a shrine on the ground where they cowardly attacked innocent Americans on 9/11. GO HERE TO JOIN THE FIGHT!

Yours for America,
Scott Wheeler,
Executive Director
[Link: www.GOPTrust.com...]

Note Wheelers ranting about a conspiracy trying to bury the truth and silence him and his talk of exposing it. That's how totalitarians talk.

Now I had previously put up photographs of the site of this Community Center (and make no mistake that is what it is) showing it in relation to where Ground Zero is, but for a better understanding of what the location looks like and to show that this isn't going to be a Mosque like the above video is trying to imply it will be, you must remember that this is not a new building going up. It is a building in place that is simply being renovated to use for the Community Center. This center will have bookstores, restaurants, a swimming pool, and many other things.

This is a picture of the street where this Community Center will be located:

Not quite the way it is pictured in the video, is it?

This is what is in the video and what these people would have you believe that this Community Center will look like:

If they are going to continue to claim that this "Mosque is being built at Ground Zero", which we have now proven to be two separate and distinct lies, (it is a building that is being renovated & it is not at Ground Zero) then you have to ask yourself, what else are they willing to lie about? The answer to that is ..whatever they want to lie about in order to scare people and use that fear to bring in support both emotional and financial.

They certainly aren't going to tell people that this center is housing much more than a prayer room (which is already being used) because that would seem much more reasonable and not so frightening to people who are already leery of those who are "different".

What is so frightening and damaging to the community about restaurants, bookstores, swimming pools, art exhibitions and worship groups? Nothing about those things are frightening at all to reasonable people so that is why they aren't mentioned, and that is why this is being labeled a Mosque instead of a Community Center.

I had been trying to write a conclusion to this piece and had rewritten it several times when I noticed someone had linked to this article by Jeffrey Goldberg at the Atlantic who wrote a wonderful piece titled "Why Sarah Palin Endangers American National Security (and Israel's, as Well)":

On the second point, the danger she poses to America -- and specifically, to American national security -- Palin has this week argued vociferously against the building of a mosque near the site of Ground Zero in lower Manhattan. She calls the idea of a mosque there a provocation. But it is her opposition to the building of a mosque that is provocative. The organization that hopes to build the mosque, the Cordoba Initiative, is a moderate Muslim group, striving for better relations between the Muslim and non-Muslim worlds. It is in the direct interest of American national security to strengthen those groups that argue against Islamism. Palin's opposition to the mosque -- and by extension, to the enfranchisement of moderate Muslims -- is a gift to Islamists, proof to their potential followers that America is as intolerant of Islam as Europe is, proof that it is America, not Islam, that wants to see our civilizations clash. We as a society should embrace those Muslims who want to live the American dream; their lives, as free, devout and proud Muslims in a diverse country, are a refutation of the radical notion that the West is forever aligned against the interests of Muslim believers. Opposing the building of mosques by anti-jihadist Muslim groups in this country is perhaps the best way to radicalize American Muslims not otherwise prone to radicalization.

It is true that this country is home to a non-insignificant number of already-radicalized Muslims. There's no point in denying that. But there's a war on -- a clash within a civilization -- and we can affect the outcome of this war by embracing those Muslims who are ready and willing to live in our multi-confessional country, while fighting those who violently oppose American values. Sarah Palin, from what I see so far, views Islam as a monolith, and because of this view, she argues for policies that could do severe damage to American national security. This is a complicated war we're in, and Sarah Palin is, by the evidence at hand, dangerously simple-minded.

Jeffery Goldberg @ The Atlantic
(H/T to drpatois for the link)

I agree with his conclusion as it was what I was trying to put into word. She is more than just simple-minded, she is willing to take on any cause if she thinks it will keep her in the news, and she doesn't care about what the issue is, nor does she care to understand the issue. For Sarah it has always been about making noise and riling up her supporters in whatever way she can.

There is no doubt that there are people in the world who want to do harm to others and they will always find a reason to do so in their own warped minds, but we should not be playing into their hands and into their deliberately misinformed viewpoints by ensuring that their supporters are seeing us act out in the ways that these terrorists claim we will and do. Sarah Palin and those who blindly follow her are dangerous to this country for the simple reason that they seek to divide us, which weakens us in many different ways, on many different fronts.

We will never completely eradicate terrorism. There will always be those who seek power through intimidation and fear, but we can fight it, and we only lose to them if we allow ourselves to change who we are and what we do out of fear and intimidation.

.