This past Saturday night I was a guest at a friend's birthday barbecue in deepest New Jersey.
As cocktails mixed, the sun set and midnight approached, conversation cut to the so-called “Ground Zero Mosque” that is neither at Ground Zero nor is a mosque.
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How I love grown-up parties.
Discussion soon turned to rage about 9/11, Muslims, and terrorism before someone (it was, maybe thankfully, dark) claimed the proposed Cordoba Institute in lower Manhattan is part of a global takeover by Islamic extremists.
This claim came from someone who appeared to be an otherwise functioning human being and, smoking a cigar, relatively successful in life if you excused his confessed admiration for right wing cable television superstar Glenn Beck, an influential guy who claims President Obama is racist.
So I confess.
I was surprised a seemingly intelligent person really believed in a planned Islamic takeover of the United States but, then, perhaps I live in a bubble.
Or maybe it's me who is dumb (this is possible).
As it turns out, according to a report last week, one in four Americans wrongly believe that President Obama, a Christian, is Muslim.
One in four.
That figure rises to one in three when Republicans are apparently surveyed, a result that is either way off target or many Americans are very stupid.
There is, however, another point of view more frightening than stupidity.
“The all-too-familiar scent of plain, old-fashioned racism hovers over the affair,” wrote Ramzi Kassem, of the City University of New York School of Law, in Sunday's Daily News.
“That some are dissatisfied by Obama's policies cannot alone account for what the polls reflect,” he added. “Many past Presidents, perhaps all, sank in popularity during their tenure, but the result was not a widely held belief that the chief executive lied about his core identity.”
According to Kassem, race is being replaced by religion – specifically Islam – as a hate target.
“The Muslim male, as he exists in America's collective psyche, is today's ultimate 'other,' a menacing adversary with whom we are locked in existential struggle.
“What could be decried as hateful if directed at other communities is common currency today for politicians and pundits commenting on Islam. Islamophobia remains socially acceptable where other forms of bigotry have been suppressed.”
Protests on Sunday outside the proposed cultural centre certainly hinted at an agenda beyond honouring the memory of those who died during 9/11, as many claim the main issue to be.
This video, shot at the protests, reveals a very ugly side to supposed “patriotism” where a black man is harassed for apparently walking past the building.
“All y'all dumb motherfuckers don't even know my opinion on shit',” he tells protestors.
A shout of “He musta voted for Obama,” can be heard from the crowd.
Dumb? Racist? Stupid?
Nuts.
Frighteningly so.
