The Cologne Mosque Controversy

The New York Times has a rather lengthy article today about opposition in Cologne to the construction of a large mosque.  The Times article positions the controversy as part of the ongoing debate in Germany concerning the role of Islam in German society. That there should be any controversy at all no doubt comes as a surprise to American readers. I have been following this story primarily through the coverage provided by Omar in his blog TooMuchCookies Network and the recently launched Watchblog Islamophobie.  Both blogs point out that much of the opposition to the mosque in Cologne is being fueled by a right-wing hate group - Pro Cologne - which has attracted support from neo-Nazi groups across Europe. And the New York TImes mentions this group and points out that more citizens in the city are supportive of the mosque than are against it:

"Public opinion about the project seems guardedly supportive, with a majority of residents saying they favor it, though more than a quarter want its size to be reduced."

My only quibble with the TImes article is that it quotes some inflammatory statements from the writer Ralph Giordano and then goes on to cite Henryk Broder - ostensibly a "friend" of Giordano and a noted Islamophobe.

“I don’t want to see women on the street wearing burqas,” said Mr. Giordano, a nattily dressed man with the flowing white hair of an 18th-century German romantic. “I’m insulted by that — not by the women themselves, but by the people who turned them into human penguins.”

Such blunt language troubles other German Jews, who say a victim of religious persecution should not take a swipe at another religious minority. Henryk M. Broder, a Jewish journalist who is a friend of Mr. Giordano’s, said he should have avoided the phrase “human penguins.”

But Mr. Broder said that his underlying message was valid, and that his stature as a writer gave him the standing to say it. “A mosque is more than a church or a synagogue,” he said. “It is a political statement.”

Neither Herr Broder nor Ralph Giordano have anything constructive to say about the challenges integrating Muslims into German society, so why give extensive coverage of their opinions?  Would the New York Times quote David Duke about challenges facing African-Americans in US society?