Pearl Harbor vs. Ground Zero: Time For a Fact Check

....building a mosque near ground zero is like building a Buddhist temple near Pearl Harbor to honor Kamikazes....




Quick fact check:



At the time of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Japanese Americans made up over 1/3 of the population of Hawaii. Many Japanese Americans lost their lives in the Pearl Harbor attack, while others enlisted in the army as soon as the ban was lifted on Japanese American enlistment. The Buddhist religion has for many years been an integral part of the State...there are over 35 Buddhist temples in Hawaii. Kamikaze attacks did not become part of the war until later in 1944 when it was realized that accidental crashes caused more damage as Japanese planes were outdated and were losing fire fights. It was so easy then to say all "Japs" were really spies and a danger to national security, pretending that their religion was a symbol of the war against us, even though many Japanese Americans worshipped the same way. Reagan issued a Presidential order of apology and in 1988, through the Civil Liberties Act, ordered reparations to Japanese Americans.



This analogy is crap and loaded with factual error. The only ties it has to what we witness today is that both viewpoints are driven by the lack of facts and the quickness to stereotype and punish a peaceful American population by the deeds of radicals and nationalists.



Quick fact check:



The building that would be built would replace the old Burlington Coat Factory and is two city blocks from Ground Zero, it is not being built on the site. The building is a cultural center with one room dedicated to prayer...no minarets, no muezzin calls to prayer on loud intercoms ringing out on Park Place. It will contain a 500-seat auditorium, theater, performing arts center, fitness center, swimming pool, basketball court, childcare area, bookstore, culinary school, art studio, and food court. It would not be even visible from the Ground Zero site. The name “Cordoba” was not picked because it was a city conquered by Muslims. It was chosen because during the 11th and 12th centuries it was an example of freedom of religion, peace, and intellectual growth between all peoples. Muslim Americans fight and die for this country, pay taxes, and are integral parts of our society. Soldiers of all faiths fight and die to uphold the ideals of our country, it is not a slap in their face to allow religious freedom, it is a slap in the face to ask them to risk their lives for freedom and democracy oversees, when we fail to enforce it at home.

Aren't you tired of being wrong?

Do you ever get tired of being wrong? You fought against Lincoln and his desire to defend the Union’s fight for solidarity and defense of the black man against slavery. You fought for deregulation that raised monopolies and erected Hoovervilles. You fought against civil rights and the equal pay for women. You supported McCarthyism and the persecution of people that fought for union rights. Today you fight against healthcare and don’t trust a black man who wants to see America rise again as the greatest nation on Earth. Do you ever get tired of being wrong? Do you ever get tired of fighting against human rights and true patriotism? This is not about Republican vs. Democrat. This is about being a Progressive vs. being stuck in old traditions that may be short-sided and immoral.


Do not pick and choose lines from the bible or lines from our founding fathers to support your unpatriotic, racist, and small minded motives. Become a real American. Fight for your people and the progressive path of your country. The moments when we have felt most proud to be Americans where fought for by those you called Nazis…Socialists…Communists…

They were none of those. They loved their Country and they fought for it.

Catch up red America…Become true patriots… fight for what is right…do not fight against progress and what really makes Americans great.

The founding fathers were a very diverse group of men. Because of this they erected a Constitution that enabled progress and change. They did not wish to be restrained with laws the forced a nation to succumb to a non-progressive end. They gave us room to evolve as the nation evolved in hopes of continued greatness and growth. Do not stymie out great nation with your inability to adapt, your inability to accept change and not fear it. You must think bigger, you must educate yourself far beyond the gotcha news and latest scandal. Become historians, philosophers, and truly learn what it really means to be an American.

Baking cookies and watching Maddow

I am sitting here baking cookies and watching Rachel Maddow (as every good liberal housewife does), and I can't help but think about the reliability of the news we receive. As students we are always told that when researching it is always important to make sure your information is from a reliable source. So I looked up the sources of the news many Americans receive. I enjoy watching Rachel Maddow and Chris Mathews, while many others enjoy the likes of Sean Hannity and Glen Beck. So I decided to do a side-by-side comparison to see if I was really getting my news from a more reliable, informed source.



Rachel Maddow received the Rhodes Scholarship and began her postgraduate study in 1995 at Lincoln College, Oxford. In 2001, she completed her Doctor of Philosophy degree in politics from the University of Oxford....

One smart cookie...okay so far so good.



Okay how about Glen Beck?

"Beck was admitted to a special program for non-traditional students at Yale University while he was working for a New Haven-area radio station, having received at least one of his recommendations from Senator Joe Lieberman. During this time Beck took a single theology class, dropping out around the time of his divorce." (wikipedia)

hmmm...not so good



Chris Mathews?

Chris was a 1967 graduate of the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts. He did graduate work in economics at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and served in the Peace corp.

Rock on Chris.



Sean Hannity?

Hannity graduated in 1980 from St. Pius X Preparatory Seminary high school. After high school Hannity dropped out of New York University and Adelphi University.

oopsy...


I've known a lot of really smart people that have never gone to College, but when I look to others for the best knowledge of philosophy, economics, history, and politics, I like to trust the experts first.

Tea Baggers and Tea Bagging

What Tea Bagging and Tea Baggers have in common:

Either way you are looking at a group of sweaty, hairy, stinking masses, surrounded by dickheads and assholes, that get in your face. Both are aimed at agendas very far off their target which will result in women calling you a moron. They think the package they have to offer is quite large and appealing but when forced to look at it up close, we discover that it has been grossly overestimated in size. You can find several sites on the internet dedicated to each in which the phrase "dirty sanchez" may appear.  (you may have to google that one.)

But most of all, Glenn Beck is a fan of both.

Racist is as racist does

I think everyone expected that a black president would bring the issue of race to the forefront of national debate. Recently Jimmy Carter referred to Joe Wilson's outburst as a symbol of the racist feelings still harbored by many white Americans that still believe a black man is not fit to lead. Wilson's son responds his dad doesn't have a "single racist bone in his body." I agree that perhaps this was a coincidence, as he may not have been showing racism against the black president, only disagreeing with his policies. His outburst was perhaps simple stupidity.

Rep. Lynn Jenkins claimed to be unaware of the racist connotation when saying Republicans needed a "great white hope", although she voted for a measure urging the president to pardon heavyweight champion boxer Jack Johnson that included the very phrase she claimed to not have known about. Again, it's maybe just stupidity.

In town halls all over America people have shown their racist roots while Congressmen look on and do or say nothing. Conservative networks aired an angry black woman being escorted out of a town hall meeting to obviously portray the anger and civil disobedience of those on the left as well. Other news showed just why she was so distraught. She had brought a poster to the town hall to display. After boos from the audience, she rolled the poster up and put it away. A reporter approached her and asked to see what she had been displaying that caused such a raucous. After unrolling her poster for the reporter, an enraged man stormed in and ripped the poster from her hands tearing it in to pieces, all in front of a cheering crowd. The poster had no hateful rhetoric, no political agenda...it was a poster of Rosa Parks.

When we look upon these leaders, we can either say they were racist or just dumb. And though you cannot be racist without being dumb, calling all racists simply dumb is an offense to stupid people everywhere. So what is it Lynn, Joe, all the others? Are you really dumb or just racist?


Or are your arguments so weak that instead of winning the masses with your ideas and policies, you have chosen to rally them around race and nationality?





58% of Republicans still believe Obama was not born in the U.S

1 in 10 Americans still believe Obama is a Muslim (1 in 4 Texans)

Got humor ?

The releasing of the "shoe thrower" reminded me how much fun we had at the expense of President Bush. It seems like we had some humor about the President, even if we disagreed with his policies. Today there seems to be far less ability to make fun of a president we don't like, and more pure hatred. So today I post my favorite jokes at Obama's expense, hoping we can all lighten up a bit. Republicans may have the vile spewing of Hannity or Beck, but they could take a cue from Stewart, Colbert, or Maher.... You can reach your audience and send a message without spreading hatred and fear.


"How many watched the Obama speech on Tuesday night? If you didn't see it, I'll give you the short version. We're completely broke, and deeply in debt, but we're going to do a bank rescue, universal healthcare, give everybody a college education, have a bigger war in Afghanistan, cut the deficit in half, and cure cancer. We were this close to universal blow jobs." --Bill Maher
"Barack Obama spent his first day as president-elect putting together his transition team. And if you believe MSNBC, by tomorrow he will have chosen all 12 of his disciples." --Jay Leno


"Both McCain and Senator Barack Obama are trying to woo voters who are outside their natural demographic. In this election, for Senator Obama, that means trying to reach working class, non-Muslim white women who love America." --Jon Stewart


.
We all fell in love with Bushisms...these are the famous Obamaisms so far.


"No, no. I have been practicing...I bowled a 129. It's like -- it was like Special Olympics, or something." --making an off-hand joke during an appearance on "The Tonight Show", March 19, 2009 (Obama later called the head of the Special Olympics to apologize)


"I didn't want to get into a Nancy Reagan thing about doing any séances." --after saying he had spoken with all the living presidents as he prepared to take office, Washington, D.C., Nov. 7, 2008 (Obama later called Nancy Reagan to apologize)


"What I was suggesting -- you're absolutely right that John McCain has not talked about my Muslim faith..." --in an interview with ABC's George Stephanopoulos, who jumped in to correct Obama by saying "your Christian faith," which Obama quickly clarified (Watch video clip)


"On this Memorial Day, as our nation honors its unbroken line of fallen heroes -- and I see many of them in the audience here today -- our sense of patriotism is particularly strong."

I found a lot more...mostly centered on his race, nationality, religion, and birth certificate....they would be a lot funnier if I were racist, a "birther", or any other form of moron.





BUT IF YOU ARE CURIOUS

The Necessity of Religion

I know it would be far more predictable to discuss the evils of religion, but I think that most people are well aware of that argument. I can find where religion plays an important part in society. How good are men really? If a weaker man had the rules and restraints of his religion taken away, what life might he live? It is true that many have done awful thing in the name of religion, but what of the average man? Would he give to charity if not for his tithing? Would he follow the basic guidelines of a moral society if not for the Commandments? 

I say all this as a non-believer, someone who finds no practical use for any religion personally. But I do see others that resemble their ancient ancestors lost in a world they can't explain. They want answers to explain  cosmic questions and needless suffering. They have replaced Sun Gods with more modern deities, but the motive is still much the same.

As I parent I see how much easier it is to be religious. When your children are afraid it is much easier to talk about angels and heaven instead of quantum theories or vast voids of nothingness. Your children will fit in much better with the masses of other children. They will not feel odd when the coach says a prayer before a game, and they will not feel like they could not be president because of their lack of beliefs.

For many it is easier, it is necessary. It guides them along their life giving them a handbook that appears to provide every answer, and if it does not, then they can simply say it is God's will that they do not know. After all, knowledge is what got Adam and Eve in trouble in the first place. The fear of hell and promise of paradise or virgins keeps them in check just in case they do not have enough moral fortitude to make the right decisions on their own. This is why many powerful men have endorsed religion, they understand it is the best way to keep the masses obedient and in fear.

Perhaps some people are better kept under these restraints or given false hopes when they struggle. It is appropriate God called his followers his flock. Some men were meant to be just that..sheep.