Here is part of what he said:
HATCH: Let’s be honest about it, in the First Amendment, religious freedom, religious expression, that really express matters to the Constitution. So, if the Muslims own that property, that private property, and they want to build a mosque there, they should have the right to do so. The only question is are they being insensitive to those who suffered the loss of loved ones? We know there are Muslims killed on 9/11 too and we know it's a great religion. . . But as far as their right to build that mosque, they have that right.It's about time a prominent Mormon politician does the right thing on this issue, and amazingly it was Sen. Hatch. Mitt Romney and Harry Reid both gave spineless answers giving in to the fearmongering of anti-Islamists trying to destroy true religious freedom in America. So, though it horrifies me to say it, thank you Sen. Hatch for doing the right thing. For a few moments I'm going to be proud you are my Senator. Let's just sit quietly and enjoy it for a while.
I just think what's made this county great is we have religion freedom. That’s not the only thing, but it’s one of the most important things in the Constitution. [...]
There’s a question of whether it’s too close to the 9/11 area, but it's a few blocks away, it isn't right there. . . And there’s a huge, I think, lack of support throughout the country for Islam to build that mosque there, but that should not make a difference if they decide to do it. I'd be the first to stand up for their rights.
Update: For anyone who wishes to add their voice in defense of the proposed mosque in Manhattan, consider joining the Facebook group "Mormons Who Support a Mosque Near Ground Zero."
Posts
8 comments:
In some ways, this is a continuation of what Hatch has said previously and what Harry Reid has said--namely, that while they have a right to build the mosque in that location, they should not. Still, I appreciate his stronger words here in defense of our religious freedom.
For anyone who wishes to add their voice in defense of the proposed mosque in Manhattan, consider joining "Mormons Who Support a Mosque Near Ground Zero." http://www.facebook.com/#!/group.php?gid=145427868822520
Yeah, I thought it was much stronger than what Reid and others had said about having the right to build it, but they shouldn't. Hatch said he would be the first to stand up and support their decision to build in the current location. Every prominent Mormon should be saying the same thing.
Thanks for reminding me to put that link up, I would encourage everyone who reads this to join the facebook group.
I am still pretty baffled that so many people oppose the mosque; I often wonder if there really are very few people who see the world as I do. Thanks for putting this up even though you hate the Hatch.
Having worked in housing architecture, developers sometimes have to work YEARS to get permission to build on their own land.
Like any major developer, the group behind the community center will have to not only raise money, they will also have to convince the residents that they will be good neighbors. On some projects it only takes one resident to stop a project. On others one resident or community group can force a design change or "mitigation."
So far they seem to have gotten all the political support they need (the planning commission voted unanimously to permit the project to go forward). Now this was only one vote, and the planning commissioners could change their minds at any time. Will the planners listen to the groups of concerned citizens? Will the news media have any effect? Only time will tell.
This community center has a long way to go before design or construction.
I don't really hate Hatch, I just don't find myself agreeing with him very much. He has a weird way, though, of being ultra-partisan and inflammatory on some issues and then suddenly moderate on something else. He's very frustrating.
Architect, you're right that this process has a long way to go. I suspect that by the time they get around to actually building the thing no one will really even notice. Thanks for your insider's perspective.
I am LDS (Mormon) so I wanted to hear Glenn Beck's speech.
I looked it up on the Internet and listened to the first part.
WOW!!! What a great speech. It had all the elements of
for a great speech. It was positive , up lifting and motivating.
In my opinion it rivaled great speeches such as Abraham Lincoln's
Gettysburg address and Martin Luther King's I have a dream speech.
Then the words of President Ronald Reagan came to my
mind, “TRUST BUT VERIFY.”
So I said to myself, “I am gong to trust that Glenn Beck is serious about what he said in his speech. I am going to trust that he
is going to live up to the gospel principles that he talked about in his speech that were taught by Jesus Christ and the LDS church and
then I am going to verify by listening to his radio show .”
So that is what I did.
What I heard when I tune into his radio show was
A couple of audio cuts of 2 extreme left college professors
talking about their off beat ideas. Beck was doing the same
old stuff promoting fear by presenting the extreme as the norm.
Then I heard Beck ridiculing President Obama for using
the teleprompter. He was still in the character assassination
mode.
The words of Jesus Christ about false prophets came to my
mind, “False prophets are wolves in sheep clothing .
You will know them by their fruits.” (Mathew 7 around verse 14)
The fruits of Beck's rhetoric are , unfounded fear, pride,
divisiveness and ignorance all based on a distorted
interpretation of scriptures and doctrines.
The conclusion is Glenn Beck failed Jesus Christ's and President Ronald Reagan's test for recognizing TRUTH!
I always thought Hatch was a weenie. Now I only consider him half a weenie. He could have made a bold statement, but he only made half a bold statement. Isn't there a Mormon anywhere who will stand up to the hatred and bigotry? Why should anyone stand up for us?
Post a Comment