New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has decided not to include clergy in the city's official ceremony marking the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks ... and religious folks are hopping mad. Bloomberg's focus is, as it should be, on those most directly affected by the tragic events that occurred 10 years ago this week. He has planned an event that is consistent with past commemorations. Yet now, all of a sudden, the number "10" gets thrown into the mix, and everybody wants a piece of the action. Stop for a moment and think how that sounds. One of the most disrespectful things someone can do is demand to be included in somebody else's funeral, wake or remembrance ceremony. I've got news for the clergy who are bellyaching about this: This ceremony is not about you. It's not about your god. It's about the victims' families. If you want to mark this day yourselves, you have every right to organize your own event elsewhere and invite whomever you want. We do have freedom of speech and assembly in this country, so go ahead and use it. Hey, if there are 62,000 signatures out there demanding that clergy be included, maybe there are 62,000 people willing to attend just such an event. http://www.theprovocation.net/2011/09/clergys-bellyaching-about-911-event.html
"It's about the victims' families." OK. Did Bush or Obama OR BLOOMBERG lose a family member on 9/11? If not, why are they going to be there?
I find it odd and extremely disturbing that clergy would be excluded from an event to commemorate the death of 3,000 people. I would assume there would be prayers at such an event, for survivors tend to be comforted by prayers. That's why most funerals are led by clergy, and have prayer. I must assume that Bloomburg is hostile to religion, and thus unfit to hold the office he holds.
