Dear Mayor Michael Bloomberg,

You didn't have to speak out in defense of the mosque, but you did. Not only was this the right message for non-Muslims to hear, that we must extend the same freedoms to others that we wish to have extended to ourselves, but it is also the right message to send to the Muslim world: that we are not as intolerant and hateful as we seem.

There are extremists out there who call themselves Muslim that want us to be hateful and spiteful towards Muslims. Who want you to reject the Mosque. By painting the US as intolerant of Islam they are able to gain new recruits willing to commit acts of suicidal terror. But when you defended the Mosque, you sent a clear message of tolerance and openness. You made it that much harder for terrorists to recruit and for the hate to multiply. By defending the Mosque, you defended our country against terrorism.

It takes bravery to break this cycle of hate. Thank you for being brave.

bjorn

Correction: it seems that the "Mosque" is actually a community center. There is a small Mosque about four blocks from ground zero that's been there for years that has no association with the current controversy.