 |
|
|
|
|
August 3rd, 2010
10:14 AM ET
Panel denies landmark status for Islamic center and mosque site near ground zeroFrom CNN Senior Correspondent Allan Chernoff in New York: New York City's Landmarks Preservation Commission denied landmark status Tuesday for a building at the site of a proposed Islamic center and mosque near ground zero. The commissioners voted unanimously against landmark status for 45-47 Park Place. It and an adjoining building are owned by real estate developer Soho Properties, which intends to build an Islamic center two blocks north of the former site of the World Trade Center. While the public vote was the focus of much debate about the planned Islamic center and mosque, the commission could not have prevented the developers from building such a community center. The commission, by designating the building a landmark, could only have prevented Soho Properties from demolishing the building or significantly altering its exterior. There is a prayer site in the building currently, so Muslims are peacefully praying in the building already. "We will continue going forward with the project. It's a project that will build bridges," said Oz Sultan, spokesman for the Cordoba Initiative, the organization behind the planned center. It says the group is "committed to promoting positive interaction between the Muslim world and the West." Cordoba opposed landmark status for the five-story building because it would like to build a taller, modern building. "It's not minarets," said Sultan, who described a mock-up of the proposed center as consistent with the latest architecture found in New York City. New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and other city leaders support the Islamic center. Opponents, including former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, have argued against a mosque being so close to the scene of the nation's worst terrorist attack. "Peace-seeking Muslims, pls understand, Ground Zero mosque is UNNECESSARY provocation; it stabs hearts. Pls reject it in interest of healing," Palin said last month on her Twitter account. The Anti-Defamation League, an organization that battles anti-Semitism and other forms of bigotry, is asking that the Islamic center and mosque be built farther away from ground zero in consideration of families who lost loved ones during the September 11, 2001, attacks. "Building an Islamic Center in the shadow of the World Trade Center will cause some victims more pain - unnecessarily - and that is not right," the organization said in a written statement. The Landmarks Preservation Commission pointed out prior to its decision that it would have nothing to do with the planned use of the structure. "The purpose of tomorrow's vote is to decide whether the building has a special character or special historical or aesthetic interest or value as part of the development, heritage or cultural characteristics of New York City, New York state or the nation," commission spokeswoman Elisabeth de Bourbon said Monday. Most recently the home of a Burlington Coat Factory retailer, 45-47 Park Place was completed in 1858. The Landmarks Commission described it as "a prominent example of the store and loft structures that dominated the dry goods warehouse districts of Lower Manhattan" during the era. soundoff (1,819 Responses)« Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 Next »
Next entry »Remains of John the Baptist found in Bulgaria?
« Previous entryYour thoughts on today's vote around ground zero mosque
|
  About this blog
The CNN Belief Blog covers the faith angles of the day's biggest stories, from breaking news to politics to entertainment, fostering a global conversation about the role of religion and belief in readers' lives. It's edited by CNN's Daniel Burke with contributions from Eric Marrapodi and CNN's worldwide news gathering team.  |
|
|
|
The family's of 9/11 still have unanswered questions from that tragic day . But judging by the comments i see the attention is shifted very easily . We still have no idea who was responsible nor has anyone been held responsible . I wish people would pull there egos out there ass and for one second think about the past . Make the lie big, make it simple, keep saying it, and eventually they will believe it. We all got played like a fiddle on 9/11 but no body seems to care . It just gone through the cracks because out ego's don't like to waste it on things like "truth" =p. Keep leaving these silly comments it will help you more to forget about 9/11 and who was responsible. While the guilty ones laugh in there elite life. We bitter and rant about something so baseless as a mosque being built there . Its no use trying to use reason and logic these days . Everyone thinks there right , while ignorance runs like swine flu through the nation. I hope one day we can bring those responsible for the attacks to light but i doubt it . It would cripple the american pride what little is left of it , if the truth were known. Keep living your fairy tales, maybe just maybe one day it might come true 😉
Some other things you would ask us not to think about. A bit long but to those who will read, enjoy:
When WW III Started – 1979
This is not very long, but very informative You have to read the catalogue of events in this brief piece. Then, ask yourself how anyone can take the position that all we have to do is bring our troops home from Iraq, reset the snooze alarm, go back to sleep, and no one will ever bother us again. In case you missed it, World War III began in November 1979...
US Navy Captain Ouimette is the Executive Officer at Naval Air Station, Pensacola , Florida . Here is a copy of the speech he gave last month. It is an accurate account of why we are in so much trouble today and why this action is so necessary.
AMERICA NEEDS TO WAKE UP!
That's what we think we heard on the 11th of September 2001 (When more than 3,000 Americans were killed) and maybe it was, but I think it should have been 'Get Out of Bed!' In fact, the alarm clock has been buzzing since 1979 and we have continued to hit the snooze button and roll over for a few more minutes of peaceful sleep since then.
It was a cool fall day in November 1979 in a country going through a religious and political upheaval when a group of Iranian students attacked and seized the American Embassy in Tehran . This seizure was an outright attack on American soil; it was an attack that held the world's most powerful country hostage and paralyzed a Presidency The attack on this sovereign U. S. Embassy set the stage for events to follow for the next 25 years.
America was still reeling from the aftermath of the Vietnam experience and had a serious threat from the Soviet Union when then, President Carter, had to do something. He chose to conduct a clandestine raid in the desert. The ill-fated mission ended in ruin, but stood as a symbol of America 's inability to deal with terrorism
America 's military had been decimated and down sized since the end of the Vietnam War. A poorly trained, poorly equipped and poorly organized military was called on to execute a complex mission that was doomed from the start.
Shortly after the Tehran experience, Americans began to be kidnapped and killed throughout the Middle East . America could do little to protect her citizens living and working abroad. The attacks against US soil continued.
In April of 1983 a large vehicle packed with high explosives was driven into the US Embassy compound in Beirut When it explodes, it kills 63 people. The alarm went off again and America hit the Snooze Button once more.
Then just six short months later in 1983 a large truck heavily laden down with over 25 00 pounds of TNT smashed through the main gate of the US Marine Corps headquarters in Beirut and 241 US servicemen are killed. America mourns her dead and hit the Snooze Button once more.
Two months later in December 1983, another truck loaded with explosives is driven into the US Embassy in Kuwait , and America continues her slumber.
The following year, in September 1984, another van was driven into the gate of the US Embassy in Beirut and America slept.
Soon the terrorism spreads to Europe . In April 1985 a bomb explodes in a restaurant frequented by US soldiers in Madrid
Then in August 1985 a Volkswagen loaded with explosives is driven into the main gate of the US Air Force Base at Rheine-Main, 22 are killed and the snooze alarm is buzzing louder and louder as US interests are continually attacked.
Fifty-nine days later in 1985 a cruise ship, the Achille Lauro is hijacked and we watched as an American in a wheelchair is singled out of the passenger list and executed.
The terrorists then shift their tactics to bombing civilian airliners when they bomb TWA Flight 840 in April of 1986 that killed 4 and the most tragic bombing, Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie , Scotland in 1988, killing 259.
The wake up alarm is getting louder and louder.
The terrorists decide to bring the fight to America . In January 1993, two CIA agents are shot and killed as they enter CIA headquarters in Langley , Virginia
The following month, February 1993 , a group of terrorists are arrested after a rented van packed with explosives is driven into the underground parking garage of the World Trade Center in New York City . Six people are killed and over 1000 are injured. Still this is a crime and not an act of war? The Snooze alarm is depressed again.
Then in November 1995 a car bomb explodes at a US military complex in Riyadh Saudi Arabia killing seven service men and women.
A few months later in June of 1996, another truck bomb explodes only 35 yards from the US military compound in Dhahran , Saudi Arabia . It destroys the Khobar Towers , a US Air Force barracks, killing 19 and injuring over 500. The terrorists are getting braver and smarter as they see that America does not respond decisively.
They move to coordinate their attacks in a simultaneous attack on two US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania . These attacks were planned with precision. They kill 224. America responds with cruise missile attacks and goes back to sleep.
The USS Cole was docked in the port of Aden, Yemen for refueling on 12 October 2000 , when a small craft pulled along side the ship and exploded killing 17 US Navy Sailors. Attacking a US War Ship is an act of war, but we sent the FBI to investigate the crime and went back to sleep.
And of course you know the events of 11 September 2001. Most Americans think this was the first attack against US soil or in America . How wrong they are. America has been under a constant attack since 1979 and we chose to hit the snooze alarm and roll over and go back to sleep.
In the news lately we have seen lots of finger pointing from every high official in government over what they knew and what they didn't know. But if you've read the papers and paid a little attention I think you can see exactly what they knew. You don't have to be in the FBI or CIA or on the National Security Council to see the pattern that has been developing since 1979.
I think we have been in a war for the past 25 years and it will continue until we as a people decide enough is enough. America needs to 'Get out of Bed' and act decisively now. America has been changed forever. We have to be ready to pay the price and make the sacrifice to ensure our way of life continues. We cannot afford to keep hitting the snooze button again and again and roll over and go back to sleep.
After the attack on Pearl Harbor , Admiral Yamamoto said '... it seems all we have done is awakened a sleeping giant.' This is the message we need to disseminate to terrorists around the world.
This is not a political thing to be hashed over in an election year, this is an AMERICAN thing. This is about our Freedom and the Freedom of our children in years to come.
If you believe in this please forward it to as many people as you can especially to the young people and all those who dozed off in history class and who seem so quick to protest such a necessary military action. If you don't believe it, just delete it and go back to sleep.
If you want to "bridge the gap" then do something that might actually do that. Show some friggin' taste and sensitivity and build the damn thing somewhere else.
To continue with this metaphor, if you want to bridge the gap Islam and the rest of the world, maybe Islam should wait patiently on their side of the gap rather than build a "bridge" and barge their way onto this side of the "gap".
Can you dig that?
New York might as well ask to be attacked again! What dumb ignorant people!
I don't care whether they put a mosque there or not. My objection is to the repulsive 15-story glass box they want to replace the 1858 building with. When will New York learn? There a many sites in this city where the old facade is kept and the modern glass tower rises above it (the Henry Miller Theatre, on W. 43rd St., for example). That's what they should do here.
This is the only sane argument I've read so far...
It's funny how Christians flip out because they think Muslims want to kill everyone that doesn't follow Islam. Besides the fact that Christians have done this for centuries (Holocaust, Crusades, Imperialism, etc), Christians also believe that one day God is going to come down and fry everyone that doesn't worship him. God sounds like the biggest terrorist of them all.
Ur a complete and udder idiot...but im sure you've been told that many of times.
You all really need to get over it! I think this is great success for Muslims and an opportunity to re build the relations amongst muslims and non muslims. Lets be happy...for everyone!
Buildings are symbols. Why was WTC selected? What could it have possibly represented? Maybe it represented financial prosperity and capitalism. Maybe it represented something else. One point of view dictated the symbol be torn down. Another point of view (maybe it is the same, and maybe it is not the same) dictated that another symbol be erected. Re-building relationships does not have anything to do with buildings. The article above is about a panel denying landmark status to a building. They are saying that a building from 1850 is not a landmark. A landmark is a symbol. Landmarks are protected from being torn down and replaced with something else that is not the landmark. The real estate in question was purchased for more than $300 million. Why could it not function as a center for healing – a community center for the promotion of understanding – without being replaced? Just what is the muslim victory you are referring to exactly?
This is unreal! They should be able to build a mosque here, especially 2 blocks from Ground Zero, when WE are allowed to build a Synague in Mecca!!!!
Comparing the WTC site to Mecca... Well done, sir. I admire your courage.
This is the most absurd thing i have ever heard of!
Why not just erect a monument to sensationalize our defeat and spit on the folks who died that day?
What defeat?!? Say something rational or don't say anything. But don't ever say we were defeated.
All of our money is being spent in an irrational way to try to "win" but that doesnt seem to be happening now does it? I will concede that there isnt a loss....unless you count the lives involved. There is nothing rational about the situation. Skirmishes arent going to make any impact on the situation. It either needs to be balls to the walls, or just get out and hope it doesnt happen again someday, which it will.
This is what puts America above anyone else in this pathetic world; absolute tolerance.
As a "community center" I wonder if people of all religious denominations will be welcomed with open arms? Last I knew only Muslims could enter a mosque.
thats not true....i have been to mosque with my muslim friend, they dont have any problem. with it as long as you are in a state in which you could enter a church....ie you should not be half naked, or drunk..etc
Last you knew? Obviously you don't know much because all of the mosques I have been to allow people of all faiths to enter.
9/11 did not effect just New York but the whole country and as such I think the vote should be nation wide. Lets see what the rest of America thinks???? I bet the vote would fail!
What mosque has to do with 911. Looks like u r also one of a blind followers of story tellers.
@John – A vote for what? Whether or not a business can modify and use a piece of property THAT THEY ALREADY OWN as they see fit? Are you serious? I certainly hope that you are not one of those people who runs around screaming about Socialists.
The only question was whether or not they could modify the structure, which already holds a prayer center, as it might be a historical landmark. The committee which decides that designation said it was NOT a historical landmark and thus the company who owns it can modify it and include the prayer center which WE do not have a say in that inclusion. Nor should we have a say about what the organization wants to do with their space as long as it is legal. It's a private company, on private land doing as they see fit. Good Lord will you mouth breathers READ the full article before you start spewing idiotic things.
Well...there goes the neighborhood.
out of those 3,000 innocent people killed, here is a list of those that were MUSLIMS:
Samad Afridi
Ashraf Ahmad
Shabbir Ahmad (45 years old; Windows on the World; leaves wife and 3 children)
Umar Ahmad
Azam Ahsan
Ahmed Ali
Tariq Amanullah (40 years old; Fiduciary Trust Co.; ICNA website team member; leaves wife and 2 children)
Touri Bolourchi (69 years old; United Airlines #175; a retired nurse from Tehran)
Salauddin Ahmad Chaudhury
Abdul K. Chowdhury (30 years old; Cantor Fitzgerald)
Mohammad S. Chowdhury (39 years old; Windows on the World; leaves wife and child born 2 days after the attack)
Jamal Legesse Desantis
Ramzi Attallah Douani (35 years old; Marsh & McLennan)
SaleemUllah Farooqi
Syed Fatha (54 years old; Pitney Bowes)
Osman Gani
Mohammad Hamdani (50 years old)
Salman Hamdani (NYPD Cadet)
Aisha Harris (21 years old; General Telecom)
Shakila Hoque (Marsh & McLennan)
Nabid Hossain
Shahzad Hussain
Talat Hussain
Mohammad Shah Jahan (Marsh & McLennan)
Yasmeen Jamal
Mohammed Jawarta (MAS security)
Arslan Khan Khakwani
Asim Khan
Ataullah Khan
Ayub Khan
Qasim Ali Khan
Sarah Khan (32 years old; Cantor Fitzgerald)
Taimour Khan (29 years old; Karr Futures)
Yasmeen Khan
Zahida Khan
Badruddin Lakhani
Omar Malick
Nurul Hoque Miah (36 years old)
Mubarak Mohammad (23 years old)
Boyie Mohammed (Carr Futures)
Raza Mujtaba
Omar Namoos
Mujeb Qazi
Tarranum Rahim
Ehtesham U. Raja (28 years old)
Ameenia Rasool (33 years old)
Naveed Rehman
Yusuf Saad
Rahma Salie & unborn child (28 years old; American Airlines #11; wife of Michael Theodoridis; 7 months pregnant)
Shoman Samad
Asad Samir
Khalid Shahid (25 years old; Cantor Fitzgerald; engaged to be married in November)
Mohammed Shajahan (44 years old; Marsh & McLennan)
Naseema Simjee (Franklin Resources Inc.'s Fiduciary Trust)
Jamil Swaati
Sanober Syed
Robert Elias Talhami (40 years old; Cantor Fitzgerald)
Michael Theodoridis (32 years old; American Airlines #11; husband of Rahma Salie)
W. Wahid
All the families of those people are hopefully taking a stand against extremists, because they definitely won't listen to infidels, but maybe some other Muslims can get through to some of them.
Just another example of Muslims killing other Muslims!! The Shiites and Sunnis do this to each other 24/7 in Iraq in that countries civil war with over 100,000 civilians killed to date. And all the name of Allah and the horror that is the koran.
Just another example of Muslims killing other Muslims!! The Shiites and Sunnis do this to each other 24/7 in Iraq in that country's civil war with over 100,000 civilians killed to date. And all the name of Allah and the horror that is the koran.
Yeah.. they were the "Necessary Sacrifeces". Who cares who they were right? They would put bombs on their children and make tell them of promise lands.. If they can do that to their own blood, why wouldn't they sacrifice people that they do not even know?
why are they all named mohammed? lame, try Bruce, it's catchier and less "ethnic".
Are you retarded, Mohsin? Those muslims were martyrs that are now in heaven boning 70 virgins, right?
Who cares if they died? They would see themselves as heroes.
You forgot to include your 19 jihadi brothers who destroyed those buildings in this list 🙂
Goodness, you make US look sooo bad! That was not funny or cute, way to go! Seems like you only care about the REAL Americans that died on 9/11...the ones that only look like you. I don't wish any hate on anyone, but people like you need to be on that list!
Because the the deeds of a relative few, rimjim, you want to spit on the American right of freedom of religion? The radicals would LOVE that! It would be another huge victory for them; the fact that a small number of them can bring America to its knees again by deleting one of it's core values.
Islam is a political movement. Read the Koran and the Haddiths as well as the political history of Christianity. It has always been about control of the people. However, Islam preaches violence and lying in order to achieve their ends. These people need to be stopped and that Islamic building needs to be moved (if we allow this at all).
Don,
This mosque is built as an outreach to Americans. The true outreach should include place for every religion in this center. Not only mosque. As long as we are ignorant they conquer us inch by inch.
http://www.jihadwatch.org/2010/06/pat-condell-on-ground-zero-mosque-is-it-possible-to-be-astonished-but-not-surprised.html
This is a tragic loss of life, and clearly should not have happened. Unfortunately, a group of radical Muslims decided their fate. Horrific loss of innocent individuals lives to prove a point that none of these individuals had a damn thing to do with.
Who cares? I'm sure the terrorist regret the deaths of their Muslim brothers however the muslims that died that day are simply collateral damage to their ultimate goal – killing Infidel Americans.
so whats your point Mohsin? would this be reason enough to builg a mosque? i dont think so............
your moslems that were killed are your "martyrs" our people killed were victims. Gabriel beat and choked Mohammed to write your Koran. you were born in violence and live in violence. You want to build on our sacred ground then let us build a church in mecca!
Why should I care about the feelings of Muslims when they refuse to stand up against the "radicals" that are destroying their own religon? You can't have all the freedom and understanding you're seeking when you refuse to understand and denounce these acts of violence that your Islamic brothers carry out. I would be much more understanding of your concerns, thoughts, and feelings if you would take a more firm stance against the people who you say don't follow your teachings, but watch silently never speaking out against. You silence condones these activities. Either stand up and unite against these terroristic mindsets or continue to get lumped in with them.
THERE IS NO REASON TO HAVE THIS SHRINE TO TERRORISM ANYWHERE NEAR GROUND ZERO. And one other thing, for the people who keep saying this is only about New York, try to find a second active brain cell. 9/11 impacted ALL Americans.
Hey MOHSIN...What's you're point? Muslims all over the world strap on explosive vests and kill one anther every day, just watch the news.
Are we to feel "blessed" or have some sort of affinity with that handful of muslims that died on 9/11 in NYC? Give me a break – As we all know it was caluclated "collateral damage" by the muslims who committed this war crime against humanity yet claim they did it it "god's name". Remind me not to believe in god....
Ask those terrorists, all these muslims went straight to heaven...
They gave their 1ives to further the cause of the t*talitarian ideology just like the nineteen who sacrificed their 1ives to take *ver the planes and complete the deed. This new m*sque will be a tribute for those who sacrificed their 1ives to bring d*wn America.
A news report from today's Yediot Achronot:
"Arab American National Museum in Michigan launches campaign to raise money for statue of veteran White House correspondent who ended career by saying Jews should 'get the hell out of Palestine'"
I would ask to consider if the Japanese would allow a U.S. Cultural center to be built a block away from Ground Zero museums in Nagasaki or Hiroshima? Should Timothy McVey be buried a block away from the Federal Building in Oklahoma City? Granted, these two incidents are extreme ends of the arguement, but common sense needs to prevail. A Friendship Center, no matter how good the intention, will become a constant reminder of the death and devestation committed by Islamic Extremists. It's just a bad idea. Build further away so that the healing the Friendship Center hopes to bring can truly be achieved. Why insist on this location?
The leaders of this country had better wake up before it's too late. Absolutely no reason for this to happen. Gutless.
Aaaaaaand do what? Legally, there is nothing they can do. And if they did, they'd be setting a precedent allowing the Federal government to dictate where ANY church of ANY religion may or may not be built in the US. Good luck with that.
Imam Feisal has brought this on himself. He should not have tried to build such a large center near Ground Zero. There is still time for him to cancel his project.
Someone should build a Christian Church on one side and a Jewish Synagogue on the other side. And across the street they should open up a barbecue restaurant specializing in Pork dishes with smoke stacks coming out the top.
They should have the right to build that Mosque anywhere they want if they are truly US citizens. They should also take the time to be sensitive to what its construction means to the people around it. Muslims in the US spend plenty of time whining about people being sensitive to their beliefs but won't extend the same sensitivity to their communities. As a Liberterian, I think the government should keep its nose out of it. As a fair-minded human, I think the Muslims should listen to their own demands and be sensitive to the community they live in just as they demand sensitivity from it...
BTW, I would donate to both the church and the synagogue and pick up some ribs from the BBQ shack if they built one there! lol
Idiot that makes no sense
A church already exists 15 steps from ground zero. It's closer than the mosque.
@LearnToRead said – "A church already exists 15 steps from ground zero. It's closer than the mosque."
Question for you, where is the church then? That's right, it's rubble since the WTC FELL on it and crushed it. That church 15 steps from ground zero STILL has not been rebuilt because of obstructions from the Port Authority. The same Port Authority thats assisting in the rush to build this mosk that has "nothing" to do with 9/11. But is still to be dedicated on September 11th 2011. Sure nothing to do with 9/11.
Construction finished in September of 2006.
Great, JUST GREAT!!!
This is a kick in the face to the families of those murdered on 9/11 and you know as well as I do that al queda is gonna see this as a victory.
What about the Muslims in the towers when they collpased? I guess their lives mean nothing? Their families aren't grieving? Since when are all Americans just White Christians?
I wonder how much explosives you could hide in a building that size and how big the blast radius would be?
Just think of the opportunities they would have to do something like that with all of the construction going on.