Justice Dept Forces Town to Pay $3.25 Million in Settlement with Local Mosque

While the title of this post may enrage some, it is a fact that many in this country have been going out of their way to provide special treatment to those of the Islamic faith.  While I deeply believe that we should treat all religions equally, there is definitely a point at which you draw the line when it comes to giving any religion special treatment.

Following 9/11 we have seen a rise in radical Islamic inspired attacks around the world.  In correlation with this we have also seen a growing number of mosques tied to the radical preachings of Islam.  As a result it is easy to see how one may be skeptical about having a mosque in their back yard.  Nonetheless I still feel we should push through the preconceived notions and try and get along with people of all faiths.

Where I draw the line is when the Justice Department steps in and decides that a town must pay a mosque millions of dollars in a settlement simply because they were disputing the building of a mosque in their town due to zoning restrictions.

According to AP,

A New Jersey town will pay an Islamic group $3.25 million to settle a lawsuit over its denial of a permit to build a mosque, the Department of Justice announced Tuesday.

Under the settlement, the group will be allowed to build the mosque and the town agreed to limit the zoning restrictions placed on houses of worship.

The Islamic Society of Basking Ridge sued Bernards Township, an upscale town in central New Jersey, last year, claiming it changed its zoning ordinances in order to deny the group’s plans. The Justice Department also sued the town last year, alleging it treated the group differently than other religious groups.

The $3.25 million is to settle the Islamic Society’s lawsuit against the town, split into $1.75 million for attorneys’ fees and costs and $1.5 million for damages.

Do towns not have the right to revise zoning ordinances?  Do we not elect our local representatives to carry out these tasks according to what the residents of the town want?  Had this been any other faith such as a church or synagogue you know damn well they would not have received the same treatment, and they damn sure wouldn’t have received a multi-million dollar settlement simply because the town decided against the building of their house of worship.  It’s one thing if the Muslim group wants to dispute whether or not they should be allowed to build their mosque, it’s an entirely different thing to award them a settlement like this simply because the town decided to fight back.  This is what I mean when I speak about catering to people of the Muslim faith, we as a society have become so obsessed with political correctness that many literally bend over backwards in an attempt to avoid offending them.

If we truly believed in equality then we should all be equal when it comes to issues such as this and one faith in particular shouldn’t be receiving millions of dollars simply because they have become a protected class.