New York – Hamas took credit for an ambush attack that killed four Israelis, including a pregnant woman outside Hebron. The terror group promised more murders and later there was a large celebration of the killings in the West Bank. This unfortunately, is not big news anymore. Terrorism by groups claiming to follow Islam happen almost daily. If Glenn Beck can draw 300,000 marchers to Washington D.C., Muslims should be able to draw 300,000, or 3 million, to march in D.C., or London, or Brisbane, that would condemn terrorists who claim Islam directs them to kill.
Subscribe to our Daily Roundup Email
Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, who is the force behind the proposed mosque near Ground Zero, is the kind of religious leader we want in the Muslim faith. He has done many good things on goodwill visits for the U.S. government. His words at a service for slain reporter/terror victim Daniel Pearl that expressed solidarity with the Jewish people were inspiring. He is a threat to radical Islam. However, Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf also has negatives. Like many moderate Muslims, he takes positions that strike many Americans as extreme. For example, he has refused to condemn Hamas’ terrorism, he has said the U.S. is to blame for killing hundreds of thousands of Iraqis in the 1990s, and he has said that the U.S., through its policies, was an accessory to the terror attacks of Sept. 11.
The problem is that a “moderate Muslim” is not seen as “moderate” by many Americans. I’m not suggesting that the imam should change his personal views on Mideast relations, even if I find them outlandish. But supporters of the mosque need to realize that Americans are not bigots. The truth is Americans have showed much tolerance since the Sept. 11 attacks. What they haven’t seen is a response, or a show of force, of outrage from the Muslim world for the constant stream of terrorist attacks. To Americans, a failure to condemn terrorist for shooting a pregnant woman, or to see a rally of cheering adherents afterward, reflects intolerance and hate. If 300,000 Muslims rally in the West against Hamas and other terrorists who falsely claim Islam, I think many more from other faiths would be there as well. And isn’t that kind of interfaith cooperation what the mosque/cultural center supporters want?
dont forget the dancing in NJ when the trade center went down
By us Yidden, when we hear our fellow Yid using a term like, Shegetz or Shiksa or Peiger or Urrel, We reprimand and scold him, and we tell him, “Is this the way you want to be a light onto the Nations?”
The whole “peace process” is a sham. Even if everything went well and everyone went away happy (which is impossible), it wouldn’t matter because Abbas only represents the Palestinians in the West Bank. Hamas rules in Gaza and you can bet your bottom dollar that they won’t honor any agreement reached by Abbas. So what’s the point?
#2 We do? Nor do I see the point of your comment. We are a chosen people and that creates demands on us that G-d did not demmand of other nations. We are all here in his service and we respect all for that. we use these terms as an identification for gentile. Do you deny that we are the chosen people and are dealt with accordingly both in benefit and R”l the opposite when we fail in our mission?
with friends like Imam Rauf
who needs enemies?
#2 and whats wrong with those terms? there is nothing derogatory of any of them…’urel’ refers to a non jew( see nedorim ‘hamoder min hareilim…’, shegatz refers to a ‘kal’ someone who is lenient in observance of S’U. ‘peiger’ means drop d–‘ now its not nice to say DD, but whats the fuss regarding this subject?
Beck didn’t get anywhere close to 300,000 people at his rally. It was slightly under 100,000, which is still a lot of people.
Poster # 4 (YourKidding); Don’t you see the “Point” in # 2’s comment. He / she is applying moral equivalence and is being sarcastic, to boot. She puts supposed euphemisms used by Jews on the same plane as cheering by the populace of a mass murder. That is the “Chillul Hashem” mentality. Where, in the face of barbarity committed against Jews, we are still guilty. We still come across as hypocritical. Those individuals suffer from a severe inferiority complex and that as Jews we are guilty of grave shortcomings. And maybe some of the things that the anti-Semites are saying about us are true.
The photo of the people celebrating the murder of the four Israelies is just sickening. How in the world do you make peace with those of this limited mentality that accepts random violence against your neighbors as something to celebrate?
To #6 & #8
Please see Sefer Taamei Haminhagim, Page 493, 2nd Paragraph. This attitude permeates our entire social interaction. It is applied to anyone that fits that criterion. It has been going on forever.