Letters to the Editor 12-27-12

Misrepresented
Editor:  A letter from a disgruntled ex-employee of the Healdsburg Animal Shelter was recently published that completely misrepresented the policies and protocols of the Shelter as established by our Shelter Advisory Board, and its allegations are simply untrue.
With regard to how the Shelter handles an FIV+ cat, due to the highly communicable nature of this disease, they must be isolated from contact with other felines. We do everything possible to adopt these animals as well as place them with appropriate rescues. Neither of the FIV+ cats in our care have been euthanized and in fact one was recently adopted.
With regard to feral cats, our policy is clearly stated on our website, established again by our Shelter Advisory Board.
Our community can be assured that no board member is involved in euthanasia decisions on the rare occasion when this must be considered. Our protocol insures that this difficult decision is made by a team of animal welfare professionals and qualified Shelter staff after multiple evaluations of the animal in question. As we have gone on record several times to both the City Council and through our public forums, allow me to reiterate that as a Shelter that accepts stray animals, rare cases of euthanasia will arise. Our policies insure these animals are given every opportunity to be adopted or rescued first before any further decisions are made.
Our primary obligation to this community is to release spayed/neutered animals of sound mind and body for adoption. Please be assured this obligation will be met in every case.
William Anderson
Chair, Board of Directors
Gun worship
Editor: Thanks to Christian Foley-Beining for last week’s letter on some actions to curb the insane worship of guns and violence in this country.
I have another couple of suggestions.
First, don’t try responding to the gun-worshipers; it’s a religion, and they are fundamentalists. Don’t waste breath or ink.
Build on the good work that long-time gun-control groups have been doing: write a check to the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence (BradyCampaign.org) or to California’s Courage Campaign (CourageCampaign.org), which is working closely with Sen. Diane Feinstein on her proposals. Then in a week, write another check.
Commit to writing a (real paper) letter every week to stiffen President Obama’s backbone, with copies to Joe Biden, Diane Feinstein, Barbara Boxer, and Jared Huffman. Comment on progress (or lack thereof), demand they speak out, and press them to tell you exactly what they’ve done.
You don’t have time? OK, go back to the sports page or turn on TV.  
Oh my God, another massacre…
Dave Henderson
Healdsburg
How high-powered?
Editor: You are trampling on facts for the sake of sensationalism.
I refer to your statement about “high powered automatic weapons that can shoot hundreds of bullets in seconds” in reference to “Our nation of laws guarantee our right to self-defense and to bear arms.”
Please note that automatic weapons (those that fire continuously after the trigger is depressed and until it is released) in the hands of the civilian population are banned in the state of California, much less in the United States of America.  That is a law in place already.
Please note that semi-automatic weapons (those that require a separate pull of the trigger for each round that is fired) are legal.  That includes hand guns, shotguns, and rifles (target and hunting).
The rate of fire that you refer to — “hundreds of bullets in seconds” — how many seconds? Five? Ten? Hundreds? “Hundreds” in ten seconds (meaning at least 200 as a minimum, for the plural of “hundred”) is a rate of 1,200 rounds per minute — a rate that is far beyond even military crew-served weapons.
Yes, I believe that the deterioration of the social fabric of America is responsible for the insanity culminating in Newtown. Fix the gutted mental health system as well as the penal system that releases unstable and/or felonious individuals back onto the streets.
Until we all magically transform into a race that does not condone violence upon anyone, there is the need to prepare for defense of one’s self and one’s family. The time needed to respond against persons intent on bodily harm is far shorter than the time required to call 911 and await for the after-the-fact response of law enforcement.
Jeff McDonald
Windsor