Also, engine trouble causes small plane to crash near Rome, and men impersonating soldiers scam women on dating, social networking sites.
From The Associated Press:
NEW YORK — Ignoring jeers and cries of "Shame on you," a city commission on Tuesday denied landmark status to a building near the World Trade Center site that can now be demolished to make way for an Islamic community center and mosque.
The Landmarks Preservation Commission said in voting 9-0 that the 152-year-old building isn't distinctive enough to qualify as a landmark. "This is not a building of special aesthetic character," said Commissioner Diana Chapin, echoing the remarks of her colleagues.
The proposed mosque has emerged as a national political issue, with prominent Republicans from Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin to former House Speaker Newt Gingrich lining up against it. The Anti-Defamation League, the nation's most prominent Jewish civil rights group, also opposes it.
» Read the story: Panel's landmark denial frees NYC mosque site
» Mosque near 9/11 site likely to go ahead despite rightwing fury [The Guardian]
» Mosque Debate Isn’t Going Away [The Wall Street Journal]
» Yes, I Know That Churches Cannot Be Built in Saudi Arabia [The Huffington Post]
» The Moderate Muslims Behind the "Ground Zero Mosque" [Time magazine]
In other news:
» Engine trouble cited in small-plane crash in Rome [Utica Observer-Dispatch]
» Oswego County to spray for EEE-carrying mosquitoes [WSYR-TV Channel 9]
» Lyme town government nets big savings by sharing with school [Watertown Daily Times]
» Albany cops to drain lake in hunt for missing woman [Albany Times Union]
» City of Oswego plans to demolish old buildings [centralny.ynn.com]
» Army Impersonators Scam Women on Dating, Social-Networking Sites [ExecutiveGov.com]