Vail Daily letter: Not at Ground Zero

Building a mosque so close to Ground Zero is much more than salt in a wound. At best it’s extraordinarily insensitive; at worst it’s highly provocative.

Its supporters seem incapable of distinguishing between what is legal and what is wise. Of course it’s legal and as owners of private property this group is well within their rights to build a mosque at the site, but their political ineptness is astounding. And for anyone to contend that building a mosque at this site is an outreach is preposterous. If the developers of this mosque were really sincere about “reaching out” to other faiths, they would have either sought a compromise regarding its location or would have included a Christian chapel and a Jewish synagogue in the design. If this mosque is built near Ground Zero no Middle Eastern Islamic theocracy is going to recognize it as a symbol of American tolerance because that would mean admitting that freedom of religion is something to be aspired to.

L. S. Butch Mazzuca