Ground Zero and Starting Over

In 1803 in a letter to Edward Dawes, a mayor of Wilmington, Delaware at the time, Jefferson wrote "I never will, by any word or act, bow to the shrine of intolerance, or admit the right of inquiry into the religious opinions of others. On the contrary, we are bound, you, I, and everyone, to make common cause, even with error itself, to maintain the common right of freedom of conscience. We ought with one heart and one hand hew down the daring and dangerous efforts of those who would seduce the public opinion to substitute itself into . . . tyranny over religious faith."

I have read and reread this statement made by Jefferson, who, as most know, penned the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights. This ideology is of equal importance today as it was when America declared emancipation from England and signed the Declaration of Independence into law, which matriculated to the writing and enactment of the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights; Freedom of Religion.

The very principal of our First Amendment supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance; the concept is generally recognized also to include the freedom to change religion or simply choose not to follow any religion at all. Additionally, the amendment also provides Americans the freedom to leave or discontinue membership in a religion or religious group.

The proposed mosque near Ground Zero has had very polarizing effects on our country. The "progressives" believe that disallowing the construction of said mosque infringes on our first and most integral of our amendment rights. While the extreme right side, aka "The Tea Party" believe that construction of the mosque spits on the holy site of the fallen twin towers.

I wonder how many of the Fox-watching protesters of the “ground zero mosque” know that Fox’s profits are flowing to a Saudi billionaire, bin Talal, who not only sympathizes with President Obama but also has a seven percent share in News Corp, the owner of Fox News. As summed up recently by Jon Stewart, the protesters who want “to cut off funding to the ‘terror mosque’ ” are aiding that funding by watching Fox New.

In the past, Democratic Presidents such as Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Great Depression and John F. Kennedy and The Civil Rights Movement, have faced tough economic and social pressure and civil unrest, and they fought back fiercely toward their attackers for what they believed in and were able to establish and maintain a united sentiment.

The GOP has proven themselves to be masterful puppeteers equipped with the ability to manipulate and spin even the most innocent of comments and situations. The Democratic party needs to be more aggressive, organized and proactive acting with the intensity and vigor that has been demonstrated in the party's past.