Christopher Hitchens criticizes the opposition to the Ground Zero Mosque. I don't particularly disagree with his qualms, but one thing I hadn't realized is that the group which wants to build the mosque is called the Cordoba Initiative.

I notice that even the choice of the name Cordoba has offended some Christian opponents of the scheme. This wonderful city in Andalusia, after the Muslim conquest of southern Spain, was indeed one of the centers of the lost Islamic caliphate that today's jihadists have sworn in blood to restore.. . .

We need not automatically assume the good faith of those who have borrowed this noble name for a project in lower Manhattan.

Indeed. The name may not mean much to Americans, but all Muslims will know its significance.