"At least he abandoned the tactic he used with me of trying to minimize the amount of opposition in this country to the blame-America tenets of the IFC's patrons," writes Michelle Malkin re Dick Tofel's lame attempt to turn back the advancing Burlingame Brigades in an Opinion Journal response to Debra Burlingame's "The Great Ground Zero Heist," blogged here yesterday. Tofel is president of the International Freedom Center, but his choice of words and historical quotations suggests he doesn't quite get this freedom thing, let alone the "Shining City upon a Hill" that is the American idea. For example:
[The IFC] will serve as a complement to the Memorial, bringing a universal "narrative of hope" to a place where hope is imperative.
Hope is imperative? No, sir. Imperative has to do with command and control. But, of course, that is the hidden agenda of IFC. Hope may spring eternal, but it can never be forced.
While acknowledging that "out of the tragedy of September 11 came a renewed civic spirit," Mr. Tofel goes on to assert that "the International Freedom Center will work to sustain that," even as it "will rise above the politics of the moment." Good luck. Does he really expect us to believe his p.c. anti-America-lite operation is likely to sustain our civic spirit, let alone rise above the politics of the moment? He unwittingly gives himself away in the wrap-up to his defense with a quotation from Lincoln's Gettysburg Address that suggests moral equivalence between a tragic civil war and a gratuitous terrorist attack on civilians:
It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us -- that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion -- that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain -- that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom.
This nation does not require a new birth of freedom at this time. At least not those of its citizens whose first thought post 9/11 was nothing like "Why do they hate us?" but something more along the lines of "Let's roll!"
Speaking of "Let's roll," we found this bit of what sounds like insider info from iahawk in Roger L. Simon's comments:
The City of NY, and Mayor Bloomberg have no say over the project. It is within the domain of the Port Authority of NY/NJ - a bistate public authority controlled by the governors of both NY and NJ. In this instance, Gov. Pataki has the overridding say on how the site is developed.
The [Lower Manhattan Development Corporation] has additional say in the matter, but they too are an extension of the Governor's powers over the site. The mayor and local groups have seats on that particular board, but can't dominate the outcome.
Get Governor Pataki on the phone. Or better yet, send him an email. If you haven't already, check out Lime Shurbet's Take Back The Memorial page of names, numbers and links to the powers that be in this primal battle between the forces of darkness and light for the soul of Ground Zero.
It appears to me that "why don't they love us liberals" suffered from lack of mother love.
Posted by: goomp | June 09, 2005 at 05:47 PM