TO THE EDITOR:
In response to “Islam is a tool, used for Muslim extremist actions,” (Sept. 14) I believe the author has misinterpreted the beliefs of many who are opposed to building the mosque near Ground Zero.
The majority of those who are opposed have repeatedly stated that they do not directly correlate the actions of the Muslim extremists who attacked the World Trade Center with everyone who is Muslim.
This is a leap of logic that many people have made about the beliefs of those who are on the opposing side.
One of the central arguments is that constructing a mosque so close to Ground Zero is disrespectful to 9/11 victims. The attacks occurred only several years ago, so there are still many people who are still suffering.
This leads us to wonder about whether the people of New York are ready for this building to be constructed.
Many polls report that a majority of people living in the state do not believe that the mosque should be built. So does that mean that a majority of people in New York are intolerant of Islam and correlate anyone who practices the religion with the terrorists who committed the crime on 9/11? Probably not.
They just aren’t ready at this moment in time to fully appreciate the building of a mosque so close to the site, along with many other Americans who are opposed.
Michael Kronk
Freshman
Economics
