Sir, - With all due respect to Father Joe McVeigh (September 11th), his comments on the ugly scenes in Ardoyle are way out of line. May I suggest he is too far removed from parenthood to understand how a normal-thinking parent puts his children before his principles or his politics?
To say he "admires the courage and determination of those who ran the gauntlet" is, to my mind, grossly misguided. That any sane parent can put their child through the anguish we have witnessed in the past few weeks is incredible.
We know there are no easy answers to the problems facing Northern Ireland; we know that violence incites violence; that giving in to the bully perpetuates bullying; but how can we condone "standing up to the bully" when the cost is such a gross abuse of those we are meant to cherish? - Yours, etc.,
Suzanne Murray, Mount Albany, Blackrock, Co Dublin.