[Updated with video below] An unidentified man began ripping pages of the Koran and burning them today at a protest of the proposed Islamic community center and mosque near Ground Zero. "If they can burn American flags, I can burn the Koran. America should never be afraid to give their opinion," the Daily News reports he shouted.
According to Maggie Haberman, he also screamed, "I'm Mapplethorping the Quran!" Animal adds that the man was quickly taken by the NYPD and escorted away from the protest, trailed by a group of reporters.
The News attributes the unidentified man's behavior to Pastor Terry Jones, who earlier this week threatened to hold a Koran-burning on Sept. 11. But didn't the man hear, Jones called off the burning this morning on The Today Show! Doesn't he watch NBC on Saturday mornings?
Update: You can see video of the scene, including the man tearing the pages and the resulting media crush, courtesy of Animal's Bucky Turco.
