Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Orwell Called: He Wants His Storyline Back

St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church was destroyed on 9/11. For nine years, they’ve been trying to get a permit to rebuild, and Fr. Constantine J. Simones Waterford is righteously angry. Why would he be angry, you ask?

A permit has already been issued to build a 13-story Islamic community center near Ground Zero, that’s why. Muslims killed 3,000 Americans September 11, 2001, right across the street from where the Islamic center is to be built.

Last Friday, President Obama addressed this issue, and here’s what he said:

But let me be clear: as a citizen, and as President, I believe that Muslims have the same right to practice their religion as anyone else in this country. That includes the right to build a place of worship and a community center on private property in lower Manhattan, in accordance with local laws and ordinances. This is America, and our commitment to religious freedom must be unshakable. The principle that people of all faiths are welcome in this country, and will not be treated differently by their government, is essential to who we are. The writ of our Founders must endure.

Are “people of all faiths” being treated equally here? How come the mosque gets fast-tracked, and the Orthodox church (which has been there since 1916) gets the red tape?

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