A month ago I angered many people here by suggesting the following:
"Quickly approve a YMCA, a Jewish center and the Islamic center on or near the same site. This will be a great win for moderates, and an actual defeat for extremists of all religions. Being an occasional agnostic/atheist myself I would like there to be an actual cultural center as well."
I did not mean that the center should be moved. I saw this as an opportunity.
Hearing Imam Faisel Rauf on Larry King Live this week, I hear him crying out for a solution of this sort exactly! A multi faith center! A "New York Dolls" strip club losing to a cultural center. A smoke shop losing to a new YMCA. A Liquer store becoming less popular than a Jewish community center, or at least an interfaith Chapel inside the Cordoba house.
Imam Faisel Rauf on Larry King Live this week
The Muslim world will look with amazement and see that this is not only a country where we are talking about freedom of religion but (and that's what they think) not everyone is promiscuous here. More importantly, they will not see this as a win for Islam, but as a win for a moderate and peaceful god. (As someone with very strong Atheist tendencies I recognize the psychological needs of people that grew up very religious - which is the case in the Muslim world).
Your objections to my suggestion was that freedom of religion requires us to accept the center as is. Most of the readers of that diary thought that all around ground zero all that should be built is a memorial.(most votes in that poll).
The Imam was smarter than you and me, saying that Muslims around the world will look and see what we are doing, and that if we move the center this promises to endanger American lives. He is absolutely right. But it is crucial that this will play out as a win for moderates of all religions, and especially modesty over strip club.
We have been losing the Muslim world in the last 21 years because after the collapse of the Soviet Union all that Muslims learned about us is our excess and our lack of morality through the two Bushies evangelical crowd - those that support an immoral imposition of their own religion over the whole world.
In Israel the crazy right winger Evangelical Jew killed the peace making prime minister because "why shouldn't Jews take over the whole land and kick the Muslims out".
Guess what, the Muslims are good students. Why not have THEIR religion first? Hence Hammas, Hizzbullah, Al Qaeda etc.
Show them that we are interested in co-existence. Show them that we will build together, maybe even in the same place. Show them that interfaith dialogue is not an ironic oxymoron phrase.
The Imam still does not have money. A campaign to buy part of the Cordoba house so that an interfaith chapel be built for all religions there may be the best solution at this time.