Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer had strong words for Mark Williams, the chairman of Tea Party Express, in a press conference today in support of the Cordoba House in Lower Manhattan.
A group called the Cordoba Initiative plans to build a cultural center and mosque at 45 Park Place, blocks from the World Trade Center site. Their plan, which technically requires no approval to be built because it's an "as of right" project, has attracted much attention and some anger.
On his blog, Williams wrote, "The monument would consist of a Mosque for the worship of the terrorists' monkey-god." That post is now only available to people who have purchased a copy of Williams' book.
Stringer said Williams is a "thug," and that his anti-Muslim blog post "disgraces the memories of the people who lost their lives" on September 11. He called on Tea Party Express to end its relationship with Williams because of its chairman's "incendiary, bigoted statements."
Despite criticism from the likes of Stringer and Mayor Bloomberg, Williams has refused to apologize for his words.
Stringer was joined by several other New York elected officials who likely have little to fear from Tea Party-backed electoral challengers, including City Comptroller John Liu, State Sen. Daniel Squadron, and Councilwoman Margaret Chin.
The leader of the Cordoba House project, Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, compared it to the 92nd Street Y, a cultural institution on the Upper East Side. Rauf said he was "surprised by the lies, surprised by the bigotry" that have erupted since the area's community board gave its ceremonial seal of approval to the project.
But Rauf also said that the media attention the project has attracted was necessary to "amplify" the voice of moderate Muslims. "We want the media, and we need to be here," near Ground Zero, he said.
Stringer said he was committed to making sure the Cordoba House is built.
Dan Collins: FDNY in Black and White
In the name of constitutional purity, they propose a great undoing. Not just the undoing of Obamaism. Undo Medicare and Social Security. Undo the expansive American global commitments that proceeded from World War II and the Cold War. Undo progressive-era economic regulations. Undo the executive power grab that preserved the union. Undo it all — until America is left with a government appropriate to an isolated, 18th-century farming republic.
The teabaggers and Rand Paul”s proposals is for time travel, not a policy agenda. The federal government could not shed these accumulated responsibilities without massive suffering and global instability — a decidedly radical, unconservative approach to governing.
Make no mistake they are radicals. But this is exactly where the right is today — and not just the teabaggers.
Look at Paul Ryan’s plan to scrap Social Security and Medicare. Jim DeMint at CPAC, suggested that the federal income tax is unconstitutional. Mike Huckabee, calling for the United States to withdraw from the UN. Look at Steve King’s efforts to repeal labor laws like Davis-Bacon. Consider the right’s decidedly unconstitutional zeal for torture. And remember, the John Birch Society was one of the sponsors of CPAC this year.
These aren’t fringe players in the Republican Party — they’re its leaders. And it’s a scandal that the national media still treat these people like they’re perfectly reasonable, responsible members of the opposition.
Dear Tea Partier,
You know, most of the time, hate and fear usually comes from ignorance about those you're afraid of. Perhaps if you actually met some Muslims and got to know them, you'd see that they are just people, same as us with the same hopes and desires for a happy life for themselves and their families. You know, I had the opportunity to live and work in Malaysia in the 1990s and I met many wonderful Muslim people. Apart from their dress and religious customs, they were no different from me. They were for the most part, devote family men and woman who just wanted the best for their children.
Open you eyes and your heart and let the fear out. You'll be so much happier in the long run.
Peace
In the video, Pearl's body is shown naked from the waist up, with his throat slit at about 1 minute and 55 seconds into the video, by which time he would have bled to death. A man then decapitates Pearl, but before he decapitates him Daniel Pearl says Shema Israel.
Oops, guess it is not all peace and light out there, eh?
As long as you keep hate in your heart, you leave no room for real joy. I hope you find real peace and understanding one of these days my brother. You really need it!
Or suffocate, from shoving their foot down their throat.
They are like anaerobic bacteria; the air and the light will kill them.
Let them talk, they are very instructive to the American people.
A "teachable moment" about bigotry.
I wish I had more than 250 words to explain the simple, literal definition of "dhimmi" and their (financial) role in the Islamic state, but I don't. So I'll just say that EVERYONE pays "taxes" in an Islamic state--just like anywhere else--and those taxes go toward community works and state expenses, like they do here in the U.S. in the form of roads, etc. (So, dragn1, you shouldn't be too appalled--you've been doing the exact same thing for years if you're a U.S. or anywhere else citizen.) And, truth be told, since you're so concerned--"dhimmis" pay considerably LESS in the Islamic state than Muslims do.
But yeah, you're on the Internet and know better after a few random Google searches. So keep on pushing that "the dhimmis means the taxes!" idea that's become so popular with people of no understanding, despite the wealth of information available about the topic.