VACATION

I'm taking
a week off.
I'll be back
with new posts

on August 15

ISLAMIC CENTER

The Islamic Center was approved yesterday by the New York City's Landmarks Commission.

Whew! I am glad, very glad!

The people who objected (among them were Newt Gingrich, Sarah Palin, and Rick Lazio, whom jumped on that bandwagon to help their own bandwagons), are already announcing lawyers, lawsuits -- suing the Landmark's Commission, NYC, and Mayor Bloomberg.

Oh boy, here we go--rallies, protest marches, fundraisers, postponements, delays.

The only objections that made sense to me were put forth by the Anti Defamation League. The ADL said, "The Islamic Center may have every right to build at this site, and may even have chosen the site to send a positive message about Islam." They explained it was ultimately -- "Not a question of rights, but a question of what is right ... building an Islamic Center in the shadow of the World Trade Center will cause some victims more pain unnecessarily -- and that is not right."

I can't accept "that is not right!"

I think the Islamic Center is wonderful idea. The huge plans -- a mosque, 500 seat auditorium, sport facilities, pool, restaurants, school, book stores, art exhibits -- benefitting the neighborhood, tourists, the city of New York -- locating it across the street from where the World Trade Center, is a powerful way of showing the world that Islam is not the enemy, that Muslims are people to respect, trust, enjoy as friends, as brothers and sisters.

The pain that 9/11 victims feel, cannot be assuaged. The dead are dead. What must be assuaged is anger, and blaming Islam, blaming Muslims,

I can't help remembering what President Roosevelt did to the Japanese with Presidential order 9066 -- interning, putting into fenced-in camps, Americans of Japanese ancestry -- some 120,000, and those who were not interned, became blighted people. They and their children continued to suffer, as American citizens who'd been labeled as enemies.

I wrote about banning the burqa, and our relationship with Islam yesterday. I'm feeling it more-so, stronger, louder, today. The Islamic Center could be the beginning of our connecting with Islam -- and hope -- a world where we can all live and survive together.

We need to embrace them, They need to embrace us.

BANNING THE VEIL

France just passed a law banning the full-face "burqa."

There are 5 million Muslims in France, and though only about 2,000 wear the full-face Islamic veil, some of the French law-makers said the burqa is oppressive to women. Others said, "The burqa is antithetical to French culture." The assembly's majority leader said, "How can you establish a relationship with a person who hides a smile or a glance, refuses to exist in the eyes of others?"

The reasons why they passed the law seem picayune to me. But France now bans the burqa along with Turkey, Netherlands, Switzerland, Austria, and four states in Germany; in Massachusetts when the burqa was banned in three colleges, students protested and the ban was lifted.

Many states have laws about wearing swimsuits when you're not on the beach. There are no laws restricting Victoria's Secret ads for thongs, cleavage, and eye-popping, sexy sleep-wear, and lots of girls wear micro-mini skirts, and other risque fashions.

And some of the countries banning the veils permit topless beaches, string bikinis, and their streets are crowded with women and girls wearing flashy, revealing, latest-style American clothes.

So, why are laws being passed about the burqa -- is it oppressing the women who wear them? Muslim women say they wear them to honor their husbands. And people who are bothered by not being able to see a veiled person's eyes -- is it because the veil and voluminous garments hide everything about the woman -- make her appear to be someone from the days when women were chattel?

I think women in burqas are frightening people because terrorists have disguised themselves, gained entry to crowded places, and committed suicide, killing hundreds of others.

Perhaps the countries that are banning the burqa are scared, the same as we are. And focusing on laws that can be passed on the basis of -- "Hey, people don't dress like that around here" makes the law-makers feel better about not being able to pass laws on the life and death issues -- nuclear weapons, and Jihad -- terrorists who are fighting a holy war, a life and death battle between Islam and Christianity.

It's getting more so, and making many of us wonder how can we live with these people.

I think banning the burqa is wrong -- it's creating antagonism, and hatred between them and us.

It would make more sense to have an international summit for the heads of various countries to talk about religious beliefs.

We need to speak with one another about what our different religious beliefs are, talk about why we worship and pray and do what we do, and why they worship and pray and do what they do.

I get frightened -- feel the hair standing up at the back of my neck -- when I read that Jihad is one of the 10 rules of Islam. What are the rules, and why is Jihad a rule -- we need to talk with Muslims about that.

LEFT FOOT

A few days ago, I was shocked to discover that my left foot sickles. Look closely at the picture. The left foot turns in slightly.

Every day. I warm up my muscles and dance to stirring, exciting symphonic music. It's not hugely strenuous choreography but the movements fit the music. It's fun! It's what keeps me vital, and gives me joy, pep -- energy to tackle everything else in my life.

My choreography requires the left foot and right foot to be un-sickled.

Turn off your pity. Toss away your questions. A sickled foot's a foolish, unimportant minor thing.

Over my left shoulder, my list of blog ideas is clipped to my clipboard -- I need to work on ten new rules for Wall Street, or the horrendous oil spills in Nigeria. But under my chair -- oh dear, my left foot is turned over, toes bent, instep bulging as it's being stretched. It's a lousy stretch. It hurts and reminds me that the sickled, turned-in-ness of the foot was solvable twenty years ago -- there's nothing I can do to fix the foot, unless I do what I did when I was first learning to dance, stretching-stretching all day long.

Why didn't I notice the sickle? Okay, I did, sort of vaguely notice it. Why did I let so much time pass without stretching it?

Other work, other projects that took physical effort were more important. There's no way to maintain a professional dancer's technique without rehearsing at least four hours a day. I maintained overall body flexibility, and didn't want to bother about the foot.

So -- forget the sickle! Do what you can do! This big deal of a turned-in foot is the same as a woman dieting to fit the clothes she wore at age 16 -- it's stupid, time-wasting vanity.

Okay, my dancing "hobby" requires the left and the right foot to be turned out, NOT sickled. The reason I noticed the poor left foot was my turns -- they were wobbly -- I've simplified the choreography, but I can't do a smooth double turn any anymore.

Who cares? I care! If I'm wobbling I am not going to do my dance any more. I'll just do some exercises like an average "older woman."

Yuck -- I hate exercise -- hate calisthenics -- I love dancing.

What would Lance Armstrong do? He'd exercise and keep working on the foot. He'd ignore the fact that it's not possible for me spend time in the studio exercising for more than 40 to 50 minutes a day.

I'm not a Lance Armstrong -- a super athlete -- who defied his doctors, beat cancer, who has a huge motivation to win and win again. I'm a writer -- retired dancer who refuses to give up dancing -- who's been writing about be yourself, admiring Hillary, telling people in India be what you are.

So? Well ...?

Damn hell son-of-a-bitch dammit -- I'm going to stretch that dumb, sickled, turned-in, stupid, stiff old foot and keep dancing!