Chris... I agree. This is I think one of the very few times I have a disagreement in general view from Pat, while I also see eye to eye with Pat regarding the foul news that Muslim objectors to the appropriateness of the mosque have been harassed. Our agreement with Pat for rebroadcast is that we don't edit or alter his pieces. We all can make of them what we will.

For what it's worth The Center For Inquiry in the USA sums up my point of view nicely, here...

CFI maintains that an Islamic center, including a mosque, near Ground Zero, in and of itself, is no different than a church, temple, or synagogue. It is undeniable that the 9/11 terrorists were inspired by their understanding of Islam, and that currently there are far more Islamic terrorists in the world than terrorists of other faiths, but those facts are not relevant to the location of the Islamic center, absent evidence that terrorists are involved in this endeavor, and there is no such evidence.
CFI’s unequivocal support for the legal right of Muslims to place a community center near Ground Zero does not imply that CFI views the new center as an event to be celebrated. To the contrary, CFI is committed to the position that reason and science, not faith, are needed to address and resolve humanity’s problems. All religions share a fundamental flaw: they reflect a mistaken understanding of reality. On balance, CFI does not consider houses of worship to be beneficial to humanity, whether they are built at Ground Zero or elsewhere.

Methinks the gentleman doth protest too much. Ya ok religion is a crock but atheistic zealotry is kinda ugly too.