Letters to the Editor 12-20-12

Dog House
Editor: The Healdsburg Animal Shelter would like to thank the Healdsburg Dog House for their efforts serving as an off-site adoption center for our Shelter cats and kittens! We value their service and dedication. We would not be as successful an organization without their help and heartfelt care for the homeless animals of Healdsburg. The Dog House’s generosity in temporarily housing these animals has resulted in placing over 100 felines this year into happy homes! Dog House staff does an excellent job educating the public about each individual animal’s needs and personality and provide excellent care while these animals are at the Dog House.
Let’s not forget to mention, that our partnership with the Dog House has resulted in the adoption of 105 kittens this season, not to mention a number of special needs adult cats! An incredible feat; a tender act of kindness; a selfless gift to animals; and a solid relationship based on the mutual agreement of doing what’s in the animal’s best interest as well as the community’s. We further appreciate their offering a discount to HAS adopters to help gear up the animals for success as well as providing complimentary grooming when a Shelter animal is in need. HAS has been very fortunate to be the recipient of many donations and fundraising events over the years to benefit the Shelter animals.
Again, thank you for all your time spent helping these animals and supporting the staff of the Healdsburg Animal Shelter. We are proud to have you on our team! We look forward to working with you in 2013!
Jamie Winters
Healdsburg Animal Shelter staff
Bring back the parade
Editor: My husband and I were crushed AGAIN this year, because there was no Healdsburg Christmas parade; an event we always looked forward to. It was small, but fun, with children from the schools, and always the dogs in their best Christmas finery; one year a cable car, sometimes the boy scouts, usually a fire truck, and always Santa at the end.
Please bring the Christmas parade back next year.
Jody and Frank Wilson
Healdsburg
What is wrong?
Editor: Every week there is at least one shooting with semi-automatic weapons. The worst just happened a few days ago in Connecticut. This is a result of the love for guns, love of violent video games and violent movies. Another reason is also that this country is not willing to pay enough taxes to take care of the mentally ill.
Innocent people get killed in schools, movie theaters, in hospitals, at work, at any normal place you can think of. This is sick. Is owning a gun the only way for Americans to feel powerful?
America is by far the most violent country of all industrialized nations. In many cases crime is ten fold per capita compared to European countries. And guess what, you gun lovers, although there are strict gun laws in Europe, nobody takes your hunting rifle away. There is a lot of hunting of game in Europe. Although it wouldn’t be my choice, I can accept it.
I don’t call this freedom when you have to be afraid of a shooting when you drop off your kids at school or at a movie theater. I don’t call it freedom when you go hiking in a national park and because recent laws allow guns there you now have to be afraid that some crazy person walks around with a semi-automatic weapon.
More guns is not the answer to this problem, like many NRA members and the gun lobby advocate. We are living in the 21st century and not in the Wild West anymore.
Let’s get a movement going to get rid of guns, the same way we changed our attitude about smoking. America was a leader in the  anti-smoking movement. Europe finally followed that lead. Let’s follow the humane European model and do the right thing: “No Guns.”
It is time to speak up. People, organizations like churches, politicians etc. who don’t speak up against this cycle of violence passively enable the horrible crimes. Speak up, Congress, and don’t care whether you will be reelected again next time. President Obama, we need you to lead this movement.  
Christian Foley-Beining
Healdsburg