Radio talk-show host and Rocky Mountain News columnist Mike Rosen has done us a favor by not writing about the actual world in which we find ourselves. (We need all the distractions we can get.)

His most recent column is an attack on a horse — the big, blue fiberglass sculpture that proudly greets visitors to Denver International Airport (“Keep ‘Mustang’ at DIA? Neigh,” Feb. 13).

“Neigh”?

Whoa, pardner! It’s just a horse, after all, not a Boulder liberal or the silly dictates of political correctness that he usually (and quite correctly) attacks. It’s Mustang, a powerful and colorful sculpture that serves as an artistic welcome, reminding visitors that they are in the West.

It’s not timid. It’s big — some 9,000 pounds and 32 feet tall. It’s also, fortunately, not an overtly abstract piece. It’s a horse — and everyone knows it.

Yes, the sculpture has generated admirers and critics. “Demonic” to some, “fabulous” to others. Not surprising, because that’s what riveting public art is supposed to do: make a statement, grab the public’s attention and generate debate with no shortage of opinion.

I am perplexed, however, by the passionate hatred of the “Bye Bye Blue Mustang” group. Rosen writes about Mustang’s “menacing red lights from the scary steed’s beady eye sockets ... glaring at me through the darkness.” I’ve known Rosen for years, and I can’t believe that he is afraid of anything, much less a horse statue with glowing red eyes.

The irony is Denver already has a popular (albeit smaller) horse adorning the top of the scoreboard at Invesco Field at Mile High. That bronco is also rearing up, but has never generated a whimper of protest. (Perhaps it’s because the snorting steed’s head serves as a logo on the home team’s football helmet.)

New Mexico artist Luis Jimenez sculpted Mustang. It was an important symbol to his personal history and ancestry, a reminder that the Spanish explorer Hernando Cortes introduced the mustang to our continent in 1519. Like the white buffalo to Native Americans, the blue mustang is revered in Southwest culture.

Initially, Mustang was supposed to be located on a pull-out off Peña Boulevard so people could walk up a path to the sculpture and gaze at it on foot. The landscaping was to include a series of signs talking about the horse’s role in the westward expansion, furthering our communications and progress as a nation. Sadly, the landscaping idea was scrapped for safety reasons following 9/11.

Rosen wrote, “Listen, there’s nothing new about this argument between enlightened artists and the rest of us uncultured cretins.” He is incorrect to assume that the selection of Mustang was made exclusively by those who consider themselves “enlightened artists.” Certainly, artists and art professionals had a say, but other community members were involved as well. This was not, as he has implied, an elite group inflicting their wishes on a city.

Mike is lobbying to replace Mustang and supports Pegasus, a sculpture from Deane Knox’s gallery. While I believe it would be an excellent addition to the DIA collection, the airport is also a fitting spiritual home for the mighty muscular Mustang. It’s a powerful and engaging symbol of where we live, the West, with its majestic mountains, sweeping vistas, blazing sunsets and spirit of independence and romance. The lure of Denver, Colorado, USA.

Charlie Brown represents District 6 on the Denver City Council.