Giuliani: Debate Over Mosque Is Great, Healthy

Hizzoner opposes the Cordoba House, but likes the discussion
By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 9, 2010 1:45 PM CDT
Giuliani: Debate Over Mosque Is Great, Healthy
The former mayor of New York, Rudy Giuliani talks with reporters in this file photo.   (AP Photo/Cheryl Senter)

Rudy Giuliani weighs in on the Cordoba House controversy in the New York Daily News today, saying he opposes the building—which he repeatedly, erroneously states is "at Ground Zero"—but thinks the debate over it “is testimony to our values as a free society. There are few places in the world where Muslims and those of other faiths can debate and feel mutual respect and understanding.”

Giuliani insists he doesn’t lump all Muslims together with the terrorists. “At the same time, sensitivity is a two-way street,” he writes. “The vast majority with legitimate concerns—including me—should not automatically be lumped in with the small minority who have expressed more strident opinions” about Islam. He says the debate over the mosque proves we can disagree “respectfully” and hence “is not a sign of weakness or intolerance. It is a sign of resilience and strength.” (More Rudy Giuliani stories.)

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