A Mosque at Ground Zero
In these dog days of summer the biggest political issue in America suddenly is a mosque in the shadow of Ground Zero in New York City. Over the weekend, President Obama waded into the mosque issue, probably to his political detriment.
The controversy has reversed the usual political roles: property rights conservatives say no to building a mosque on private property so close to Ground Zero; secular liberals, who would fight a Nativity scene on the courthouse lawn or a cross on public land, suddenly embrace the Islamic mosque in the name of religious freedom.
Here are three reasons, secular, religious and historical why this mosque should be moved to some place other than Ground Zero.
Don’t Mess With The 14th Amendment!
Rumblings from the Conservative side of things concern me lately. There is suddenly loose talk about having to do something about the 14th Amendment, like one has just discovered an ant invasion in one’s kitchen after a heavy rain.
First, the whole idea has a snowball’s chance in hell of ever happening.
Second, the 14th Amendment has a long and fascinating (if you are a legal scholar) history, from its post-Civil War 19thC roots through today. It underpins so much of our modern jurisprudence that it is unimaginable to mess with at this point.
Beverly Hills’ Bad Medicine
The Beverly Hills City Council apparently doesn’t realize what it’s got.
It’s
got a city with a reputation. A huge reputation. A worldwide
reputation. The kind of reputation that other towns lust for but can
only dream of.
Beverly Hills is known as the place to get cosmetic surgery.
Getting Political: Sacramento Baseball Team Offers Gubernatorial Bobblehead Election
The race for Governor won’t be decided until November, but those in Sacramento will have a shot to cast their votes early.
The Sacramento River Cats, a minor league baseball team in West Sacramento, will host a "Bobblehead Election" on Friday.
The
Triple-A baseball team will hand out bobbleheads of Republican Meg
Whitman and Democrat Jerry Brown to the first 2,500 fans. The
bobblehead that is given away first will be declared the winner of the
Bobblehead Election.