Of course they should.
But that doesn't keep idiots like me from asking the question in a poll.
If there was a poll that asked "Should Muslims Be Allowed to Turn Right at Red Lights?" I'm sure there would be a solid percentage that would say "No." But does that mean that politicians should use such polls to make policy?
Look, Americans don't like Muslims, that's all these polls prove.
You could ask whether Muslims should be allowed to pick their noses and the answer would be "No." Nose picking is gross. People are against it. Especially when it is engaged in by people they don't like.
Perhaps Rick Lazio could come out against Muslim nose-picking in his bid to become Governor of New York.
But if we're going to rescind the right to pick one's nose to groups of people we don't like, why have a Constitution in the first place? Constitutions establish laws that apply to everybody. The controversy about the mosque near ground zero is actually quite non-controversial - if you accept the fact that we have a Constitution in this country. If you don't, then maybe there's something to talk about. But if you like living in America, this whole kerfluffle evaporates like a wispy cloud on a summer afternoon. These kinds of problems were anticipated by our forefathers, who were so committed to religious freedom that they included it in the very first amendment. Period. Done deal. It's simply settled law.
So the discussion becomes one about "sensitivity."
There is nothing about sensitivity in the Constitution.
It might be nice if Democrats had the sense to call people who want to restrict First Amendment rights what they are: Un-American. But that kind of rhetoric seems to be the preserve of Republicans. Only they have the nerve to question their opponents' patriotism.
What is it about our Two Party System that requires one of them to be Unashamed Assholes and the other to be Nervous Nellies? I don't seem to recall anything in the Constitution requiring that.