This was actually based on a conversation I had with someone about the proposed Mosque to be built a few blocks from Ground Zero in New York. Unfortunately, as the media tends to do, they keep referring to the proposed center as the Mosque AT Ground Zero. When I asked the person if they would be OK if the Mosque were built a few blocks away, she said yes. I said, “well that’s the plan anyway”. Then she backtracked and came up with more reasons why it shouldn’t be built. To which I replied, “How far is far enough?”.
Matt Sledge of the Huffington Post did a nice article that showcased that you can’t see the proposed site from Ground Zero and even if you came via the subway, you would have to go out of your way to see the Mosque. So for all the arguments against it, which I am open to discussing, can we at least agree that the Mosque will not be AT Ground Zero?
For those concerned about the impact of a sixteen story Mosque that close to ground zero, I have a simple solution. Build a seventeen story Synagogue and an eighteen story Church right next door.
Nice touch with both of them wearing red, white and blue.
In the end, aren’t we all Americans?
dear lord i hope not… lol
Clarification…don’t we all WANT to be Americans? haha
a clear resounding…. NO! haha
That’s just the alcohol talking.
Not until people quit referring to themselves as Something-Americans.
I’m a Dunbo-American and proud of it.
I guess if I started referring to myself as a Redneck American then I could feel special and elite too instead of being just a part of this great big fantastic melting pot.
You are special and elite Bo..just in your ownway.
I’m not
I’m not eever
Are you French Dixie??
looking for a second wife hey bearman? haha
No..the first is MORE than enough.
This is great! A game of peek-a-boo between Ground Zero and a Friendly Neighborhood Mosque!
You’d have to strain that neck quite a bit for that view.
Well if it isn’t at ground zero let’s just hope it’s facing Mecca! Somehow, being 2 blocks or friggin 2 miles away it was always going to be controversial. 9/11 changed the world forever with trust being the first to go 🙁
So true.
maybe people wouldnt have been too upset if they had said it included a bagel stand and good kebab shop haha
Great minds think alike Susi Spice I was gonna mention a good kebab shop.
How about a bagel kebab?
Sounds kosher
Or Halal
Or a kebab bagel
Nice topical strip. Good job!
I’m able to pull them off sometimes..haha
Yeah I like this one a lot too
It makes me angry that people are such a bunch o’ racists. Great illustration of the way so many are these days. They might as well say, “We don’t take too kindly to your kind ’round here ‘cept when I need to saddle me a taxi.”
Honestly I don’t lump every single person against this as a racist. That would be at least 68% of people based on polls. I think some are, some are misinformed, some are against it for other reasons (ie. I heard some questionable quotes from the Imam behind it regarding 9/11 but would have to know more.)
I am not really a racist but sometimes I do hold grudges against people who want to kill me and erase everything I believe. I’m just kind of funny that way but I am equal opportunity about it. If that’s the way you feel I don’t care what your race or ethnic background is I just find it hard to be your friend.
this is sad. the way people make jokes out of it. and i agree with Lisa.
I make jokes as a means to show others a different view.
What? You make jokes Bearman? Blaahhahahahahahahahaa
I never said I was funny.
But green hair is almost always funny! 😉
Unless you are the girl who just dyed her hair before jumping into the swimming pool.
I’m also with Lisa on this one. This resurgence of the “redneck” mentality is really getting out of hand. To paraphrase Rand, “There can be no such thing as the ‘right’ to deny the rights of others.”
I haven’t heard anyone step up yet to offer to buy the property and to give the group an alternative location.
They bought the property. It’s theres to do with as they see fit (within any legal limitations)
Sorry, fellas. Starbucks is already going to set up twenty sites on Ground Zero.
As long as they don’t promote it as “Fresh Ground”
Groan!
Building a church and a synagogue aswell would just be more of the same … stupid religions which people are willing to kill and die for
how bout a gaybar is built next door to the mosque … a gay bar for muslims at that!
or make it a floor of the musque, they all seperate into gender groups anyway
tolerance, understanding, acceptance … and man love! it’s every (american) muslims right afterall.
hope the old school muslims don’t want to kill em or get em shut down though, that community can be a bit kill-ey when it comes to man on man love :s
Well there are plenty of people who aren’t religious who are willing to kill and die for their ideals so I wouldn’t lay it all on those subscribing to a religious belief.
The whole thing is silly. And there’s this little matter of the Constitution. Nice toon BTW.
What is the Constitution? bwahah
But seriously, though….what is it?
(Love the cartoon, B!)
I don’t think you have those kind of things in your socialist country..haha j/k
I understand the controversy, but if the mosque is going up a couple of blocks away for GZ, then the argument is moot.
I always wanted to use that word. It’s not just for “Jessie’s Girl” anymore. 😀
Blahahahaha George, Rick friggin Springfield….Australia’s best export…whoops along with Air Supply 🙂
What about Yahoo Serious?? Oh yeah…we sent him back.
who?///??
You don’t know who Yahoo Serious is….Young Einstein?
Sheez Susi Spice, you missed out on a whole lotta shite
Susi…I made more money than Crocodile Dundee in Australia.
Actually I met Yahoo on his press tour as a youngen
oohhhh i remember now!!!
u met him? wat was he like?
Funny enough…not so Serious.
What about Flat Tony, he went to America, Canada, England & Japan.
You should make a Rock Band Poster for Flat Tony’s world tour.
The New Yorker had a little piece about this. Apparently the only people who are upset are people who don’t live in Manhattan …
Well I am wondering where it all is. I can’t have everyone agreeing with me…that isn’t any fun.
The Muslim community has had a major PR problem since 9-11, any place they can build a cultural/community center/mosque that might lessen the uneducated ignorance most have toward them hurts who exactly?
Maybe they could convert some of those catholic churches the pope had to close after all those priests were caught with their hands in the alter boys proverbial and literal underpants! o.O
Every religion has it’s true believers, hypocrites and extremists so I won’t single out. Hell even non religious can fall into the last two categories.
Especially non religious because they have a great disdain for those with religion of any kind.
Only an outspoken minority IMO.
I love this one Bearman; topical, relevant and dead on. The place used to be a Burlingtom for Christ’s sake. The funny thing is that 70% of the people who feel so strongly about (pretty much anything in politics or public opinion) this don’t even have their facts straight and 9 times out of 10 can only parrot what they heard some spray tanned idiot on Fox News saying.
Truest me, I purposefully scanned the dial and it was apparent beyond Fox news.
Boss, you have caught so many facets of the “issue” in one frame with the words and colours combining and then earned a suitably mixed response from your readers. Anything to make folk stop, think and not just accept being spoonfed by others. I could rant on, but not…
Rant away….the space is free. haha Thanks
great cartoon and wonderful forum for discussion. Why is it that the intelligent people aren’t getting more press on this issue? I’m in favor of it. Thank you
Because no on listens to me except you all.
Did someone just speak?
Huh? where?
By the way Bearman. You really did your job today. I did find out that most people don’t know any more about true rednecks than I know about Muslims.
I know nothing about true rednecks.
The term comes from men who make their living working hard in the sun…it made their necks red so true rednecks are just good old American working men.
from what i understand the congregation has had a mosque there for years. so, they’re building a new one. big deal. america…get over it!
We’re americans…we get over nothing.
Technically, it’s not a mosque, it’s a cultural center. Like a YMCA but for Muslims.
But there will be a mosque a part of the structure.
haha—great toon Mr. Bearman, awesome…
My favorite part of the post was actually the last line of what you wrote—>> “Build a seventeen story Synagogue and an eighteen story Church right next door…”
Love it 🙂
I was going to draw that but I hate drawing buildings.
u hate drawing buildings? if its too hard for you i can show you how to make a rectangle and a box…its fairly easy…even for you bearman hehe.
Good. Can you draw me a cityscape, farm scape, small town, and residential so I can just slap my cartoons in front of them. Thanks
I think they should just put up a McDonald’s there and everyone buy a Happy Meal
I am sure the food court will be amazing.
Not so funny how the people saying this administration is violating the Constitution are the same ones saying the center shouldn’t be built there, when it’s that same Constitution that gives them the okay to build there. Evidently the Constitution only works if it supports their position, and doesn’t if it denies their position. That, in my book, isn’t the America I know and love.
The America you know and love are Hypocrites. (self included) How do you think I come up with half of my cartoons. I just point it out.
And do a much better job of it that I ever could.
They deserve to build their mosque – good cartoon though
THanks Corve.
I hear that they have hired Ito’s Construction Company to build it.
They told him “Build us a Mosque Ito“
That joke is so bad it is hilarious.
Maybe I’m too dense, but I don’t see what the big deal is about. The complaint seems to be that it’s insensitive to those affected by 9-11, but maybe I’m not understanding the definition of “insensitive” because I just don’t see it.
Insensitive is shoving an old lady using a walker while she’s trying to cross the street in busy traffic because she’s too slow (and before you respond… no, I haven’t, but that doesn’t mean it hasn’t crossed my mind). I would clearly be insensitive to her frail condition and apparent physical needs. But this thing about building a mosque… *shrugs*
Somehow that image of someone with a walker reminded me of a time working at the movie theater. This sweet looking old man was walking out of the theater and towards the door.
I was at the concession stand so could see him walking clearly. About half way to the door he stopped, shuffled his feet, and then shook his leg.
Out from his pants rolled a large TURD!!!! And then he kept on walking.
I quickly volunteered to clean the bathrooms (someone no one likes to do) simply so I wouldn’t have to clean the lobby. Poor soul who jumped at that job.
Old people can get away with stuff. I bet if I tried that I would get in trouble. I don’t reckon he did it on purpose. It was probably just a fart gone wrong. Never trust a fart
That’s called a large Shart.
I kan do poopys ennywair lyk that & my hyoomans pik it up for me. But I orlways do myn owtsyd. The old man obvyusly wosent howse traynd
Always??? Somehow I am thinking when Daddy spends too much time at McDonalds, you might lose it.
If everyone got what they actually “deserved”, most of us would be in trouble. A little compassion for the human condition can go a long way to making the world a more agreeable place in which to live.
Well drawn in so many ways, Bearman.
I never get what I deserve. Sometimes that is a good thing…sometimes not so much.
Top shelf funny! Ha,ha,ha!
Thanks MJ
I guess I’m for the 16-storey Mosque if there’s gonna be an 18-storey church.
Please make a check out to my name for $1000 and we’ll start this thing. Really. You can trust me that some will go to charity.
I’m pretty sure 100% of whatever money I give you will go towards making for yourself a 20-storey house 😛
oooh…I was only going to make it 19 stories but you have inspired me.
1. had no idea this was going on cus i haven’t turned on my tv in about 4 months.
2. perfectly content that i have no idea it was going on cus i might be mad.
3. i’m a bad blogging friend. my apologies
No problem. You rely on my for your news and I like that. That way I can mold your opinion.
Good cartoon. Nice to have an occasional injection of clarity.
http://www.blackwatertown.wordpress.com
You know this does really bother me. If we let this happen the mosque will become a place that resemble victory to the terrorist. What if we went over there and started putting up christian churches and jewish synagogues.
I appreciate the sentiment but the difference is “over there” they don’t claim to have freedom of religion.
oops! I didn’t even think about that. Too funny. I have been in my own little bubble lately I need to read up on the news or watch it more.