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| Mosque proposal on Staten Island turns into chaos |
| 2010-06-10 |
| A heated meeting ended in chaos on Staten Island on Wednesday night. The subject: a Muslim group looking to open a mosque at the site of a former convent. It was stormy outside and stormy inside. The Q & A turned into mayhem. An overflow crowd grew until the gates around this meeting hall had to be secured by police. The hundreds inside were witnessing a spectacle. There was passion and loud interruptions. This crowd was neither passive nor patient, loudly demanding answers about the mosque planned for an old convent on Greeley Avenue. Many objected to the idea of an Islamic house of worship in the neighborhood, admitting they are afraid of the property's new owners, the Muslim American Society or MAS. "Just not for the neighborhood, just not for the neighborhood, I'm afraid," one woman said. "I'd like to know why the MAS is on the watch list for terrorism," another woman said. "Will you here and now denounce Hamas and Hezbollah as jihad terrorist organizations?" asked Robert Spencer, founder of "Jihad Watch." MAS representatives denied any links to extremist groups and said the mosque would promote peace and understanding. "Muslim American Society is an independent organization, American organization, that has no links with the Muslim brotherhood," a MAS representative said. Some residents said they were angry the sale was secretly brokered by a parish priest who recently resigned. Two hours into a meeting full of shouting and interruptions it was clear order could not be restored. "The meeting is over. Everyone please go home," screamed one of the moderators. |
| Posted by:ryuge |
| #5 Could one argue such Mosques are a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act? |
| Posted by: swksvolFF 2010-06-10 12:07 |
| #4 Personally, I think this should not be about American religious freedom or tolerance When the Founding Fathers introduced the First Amendment they were thinking in religions who _basically_ eve,n iof with some lapses supported the idea of live and let live, plus the idea of "Give to Caesar wjhat is from Cesar) not one who decalres itself at war with the rest of the world and who petends to regulate with what hand you clean yourself. Had they thought about the Aztecs, had they thought about Islam and known what Jefferson knew after reading the Koran (hat is why he started the Barbary Wars) the First Amendment would have very different wording. |
| Posted by: JFM 2010-06-10 11:00 |
| #3 After 911 we should not only be saying "NO" but "HELL NO!" These people are our enemy. |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2010-06-10 10:22 |
| #2 Personally, I think this should not be about American religious freedom or tolerance. It ought to be about investigating subersive islamic organizations dedicated to subverting our American laws, government, way of life, and institutions--in other words using our freedoms to takeover from within. |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2010-06-10 10:19 |
| #1 For 1700 years it has been Islam's pattern of intolerance by erecting Mosques on Christian or Jewish sites. And then defending them to the death. That pattern has started in the United State of America. |
| Posted by: Harcourt Angoger7112 2010-06-10 08:49 |