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Rantings of a Sandmonkey

Be forewarned: The writer of this blog is an extremely cynical, snarky, pro-US, secular, libertarian, disgruntled sandmonkey. If this is your cup of tea, please enjoy your stay here. If not, please sod off

Wednesday, June 08, 2005

I have a feeling that this won't fly over well

Michelle Malkin brought to my attention a Wall Street Journal piece written by Debra Burlingame, a sister of a Pilot of an American airlines airplane that terrorists crashed into the Pentagon on 911, on the proposed Ground Zero Memorial, which they are making into a “Blame America First” monument. The gound zero memorial will be divided into 2 buildings, the actual memorial, which will occupy 50,000 square feet and will have all the 911 artifacts and pictures in it, and a proposed “International Freedom Center”, which you need to pass through in order to get to the memorial, and occupies 300,000 square feet. The aim of the international Freedom center is to take visitors in “a journey through the history of freedom...". Wanna know who are the people behind the IFC and being given millions in federal money and the keys to the building? Well, here is a partial list: The driving force behind the IFC is Tom Bernstein, the dynamic co-founder of the Chelsea Piers Sports and Entertainment Complex who made a fortune financing Hollywood movies. But his capital ventures appear to have funded his true calling, the pro bono work he has done his entire adult life -- as an activist lawyer in the human rights movement. He has been a proud member of Human Rights First since it was founded -- as the Lawyers Committee for Human Rights -- 27 years ago, and has served as its president for the last 12. The public has a right to know that it was Mr. Bernstein's organization, joined by the American Civil Liberties Union, that filed a lawsuit three months ago against Donald Rumsfeld on behalf of detainees in Iraq and Afghanistan. It was Human Rights First that filed an amicus brief on behalf of alleged "dirty bomber" Jose Padilla, an American citizen who the Justice Department believes is an al Qaeda recruit. It was Human Rights First that has called for a 9/11-style commission to investigate the alleged torture of detainees, complete with budget authority, subpoena power and the ability to demand that witnesses testify under oath. In fact, the IFC's list of those who are shaping or influencing the content and programming for their Ground Zero exhibit includes a Who's Who of the human rights, Guantanamo-obsessed world: Michael Posner, executive director at Human Rights First who is leading the world-wide "Stop Torture Now" campaign focused entirely on the U.S. military. He has stated that Mr. Rumsfeld's refusal to resign in the wake of the Abu Ghraib scandal is "irresponsible and dishonorable." Anthony Romero, executive director of the ACLU, who is pushing IFC organizers for exhibits that showcase how civil liberties in this country have been curtailed since September 11. Eric Foner, radical-left history professor at Columbia University who, even as the bodies were being pulled out of a smoldering Ground Zero, wrote, "I'm not sure which is more frightening: the horror that engulfed New York City or the apocalyptic rhetoric emanating daily from the White House." This is the same man who participated in a "teach-in" at Columbia to protest the Iraq war, during which a colleague exhorted students with, "The only true heroes are those who find ways to defeat the U.S. military," and called for "a million Mogadishus." The IFC website has posted Mr. Foner's statement warning that future discussions should not be "overwhelmed" by the IFC's location at the World Trade Center site itself. • George Soros, billionaire founder of Open Society Institute, the nonprofit foundation that helps fund Human Rights First and is an early contributor to the IFC. Mr. Soros has stated that the pictures of Abu Ghraib "hit us the same way as the terrorist attack itself." Now, this is the part where I am supposed to comment and state my opinion, except that I won’t this time. I will leave it up to you guys to tell me what you think of this!

13 Comments:

At 6/08/2005 09:38:00 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Stopped reading once I discovered that the word Michelle was followed by Malkin.

 
At 6/08/2005 11:08:00 AM, Blogger programmer craig said...

Thanks info, Jeff!

Sandmonkey, I don't really know what to make of this. My recollections of 9/11 are videos of people falling to the ground after throwing themselevs out of the buildings, because they were burning to death... the buildings themselves falling... the recordings people left on their loved ones answering machines, saying goodbye... Palestininas dancing in the street celebrating (one thing I will never forget), IRANIANS!! holding a cndle light vigil... people in the streets shocked and panicked. All the horror.

But is that what should be memorialized? I'm not even sure a memorial is appropriate. I just don't know. But I damn sure don't want a memorial that says "Look what they did, because we deserved it!" - that's disgusting.

 
At 6/08/2005 12:17:00 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Here's my opinion as a New Yorker. The whole site is a tacky tourist attraction right now. People from all over the world walk around, take pictures, and buy Twin Towers trinkets. Enough with the memorials, please. All that does is commemorate bin ladin's greatest attack. Time to get over it. Build the WTC and let it get back to its business.

 
At 6/08/2005 12:22:00 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I think it is incredibly sad that a memorial has become politicized. A memorial should be a place of quiet reflection. It's not a place to bus children in for educational school trips. I also feel those promoting the museum are being underhanded. A review of their website and a quick glance of newspaper articles written seem deliberately vague as to the subject matter to be covered. This concept was not properly vetted at its inception.

 
At 6/08/2005 03:33:00 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I can't think of anything more appropriate for this memorial than for it to be funded by a man who has made human rights his greatest concern. September 11th was among the world's greatest human rights violations, and I don't see why this man's stance on Gitmo or torture should change anything.

 
At 6/08/2005 04:53:00 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

What Jeff said. Malkin thinks anybody who disagrees with Bush Administration policies is a terrorist. If she saw you in the airport she'd think you were a terrorist too.

 
At 6/08/2005 11:02:00 PM, Blogger programmer craig said...

Well, Joanne, I guess Michele Malkin considers herself to be a terrorist then, since she vehemently opposes the Bush administration's policy on illegal immigration :)

Maybe we should send her to Gitmo, eh?

 
At 6/08/2005 11:12:00 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

The greatest monument for all of us, would be to rebuild *NEW* Towers stronger, better, and taller.

I picked this idea up long before the Trump advertized it.

BTW can't stand the replacement at all.

Ricardo

 
At 6/09/2005 06:08:00 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Call me a poltroon, but I think both individuals and companies might be apprehensive about moving into the new WTC.

 
At 6/09/2005 07:44:00 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I hate traveling to the US.

Now the US government wants the flight passenger details of any Canadian plane traveling over the US to get from one Canadian city to another Canadian city. That mean's 90% of the flights will have to be rerouted at a greater expense.

 
At 6/09/2005 03:12:00 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

"I hate traveling to the US."

Thats an easy one.

Stay Home!

Ricardo

 
At 6/09/2005 11:52:00 PM, Blogger Highlander said...

SM, thanks for asking about me , now I'm trying to catch up what I missed .......too much

 
At 6/10/2005 10:41:00 AM, Blogger programmer craig said...

Highlander, SM posts so much on his blog, I think it's impossible to keep up :p

 

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