re: #138 Gus 802

You’re forgetting a couple of things. For one, both Feisal Abdul Rauf and his wife, Daisy Kahn, are both American citizens. The other being that thing called the Patriot Act and the IRS which they have to file when doing the financial groundwork. It’s not like they’re going to freelance this whole operation like some mob outfit during the days of prohibition. Everything will be subject to public and governmental scrutiny.

I’m not implying these two are doing anything illegal. But if in fact this is a community center for New York Muslims is this money
being funded by New Yorkers? And if it’s coming from elsewhere and it’s an extraordinary amount of money, what is the sales pitch? Why is better to spend $100 million here for a 13 story building when you maybe could build 100 mosques or community centers throughout the US. So yes, I’m not ignoring the fact that some may see this “community center” as something more than a place for new stork Muslims to recreate. I haven’t made up my mind on the efficacy of this community center and an tryin to look at all the facts available.

And I do note the sensitivity here. But sensitivity has two meanings. One, the proclivity to take offense, and the other the courtesy to avoid giving offense. If one is going to fault others for an excess of the former, it is usually not right to do so in a way that shows one’s own deficiency of the latter.