Letters to the Editor
opinionated
Published Letters: 9
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Kids know how to forward voxmail
[Read the article: This little piggy]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]1) Why does no one consider the fact that an angry fifth- or sixth-grade girl is perfectly capable of forwarding a voice mail herself? It's not exactly rocket science.
2) I feel sorry for anyone who had such a lousy upbringing that they can listen to that recording and think that it's nothing out of the ordinary.
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Criminal liability
[Read the article: Pit bulls are innocent]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Dogs that were bred for fighting are not appropriate pets. These dogs were bred for specific qualities that make them unsuitable for being around other dogs and kids.
But breed-specific legislation is impractical.
The solution is to make all pet owners criminally liable for the actions of their pets. In the case of the Dianne Whipple mauling in San Francisco, I believe that the prosecution had to prove that the owners were aware that that their dogs posed an imminent danger to others. I think this standard is too high. The law should be changed so that all dogs are automatically presumed to be dangerous, so if a dog (whatever breed) kills or injures someone, the owner is automatically criminally liable as if that owner had attacked the victim him/herself. If it is really the owners, and not the dogs, who are the problem, then dog owners should have no objection to this.
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Criminal liability
[Read the article: Pit bulls are innocent]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]AKASmith-
I am talking about lowering the threshold for an owner's criminal liability for his dog, so obviously I am talking about the court system.
You said, "For dogs under a year, it is impossible to know what their temperament will turn out to be."
I say, "Tough." You chose to get the dog. You're responsible for its actions from the moment you acquire it. If your a 10-month-old dog mauls a baby to death, you get tried for manslaughter or murder 2.
And if your dog attacks someone who comes into your yard this should fall under exactly the same laws that prevent you from booby-trapping your house. If the next door neighbor kid comes into your yard to collect the ball that got tossed over the fence and gets mauled - you're criminally liable.
If your dog mauls the postman- you're criminally liable. If someone opens your gate and lets your dog out - you're criminally liable.
The bottom line is that if you choose to have a dangerous dog (defined as any dog capable of inflicting serious injury) of any breed, then you should be responsible for anything that dog does.
And finally, I am not talking about "judgments" and civil liability (money). I am talking about criminal liability and throwing dog owners in jail. No more of this bullshit, "I had no idea Fluffy would do that."
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Criminal liability
[Read the article: Pit bulls are innocent]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]AKASmith-
I think that you're going to find that the courts generally frown on the use of lethal force to protect your property, so when your dog mauls that kid in your backyard, you're going to be criminally liable.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defense_of_property
As an owner of a dangerous dog, this is probably an issue that you should read up on.
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No lawyers!
[Read the article: I let my friends stay with me and now they're evicting me!]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]What rotten advice. Leave the lawyers out of it. Bring in the lawyers and everything goes to hell (I speak from experience). If LW doesn't want to move, he shouldn't move. The roomies have no right to kick LW out. I'll bet LW can easily outlast a pair of tired new parents. LW should do everything normal single people do - have parties, turn up the stereo, leave a mess in the kitchen (staying well within what is legal) - and if the new parents don't like it, they can leave.
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Forget the lawyers
[Read the article: I let my friends stay with me and now they're evicting me!]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Like I said before, LW doesn't "HAVE" to do anything. The letter writer doesn't "HAVE" to move out. The LW doesn't "HAVE" to evict the other roommates. If LW doesn't DO anything, then LW doesn't "HAVE" to get a lawyer and flush hundreds of dollars down the drain.
LW should just go on living his/her life and let the roomies deal with the consequences when they're not happy about the living situation. The chances are pretty good the roomies will give up and move out.
LW has a financial decision to make - is a month or two of misery worth hanging onto the apartment? If it's a great rent-controlled apartment, staying put might well be LW's best option. LW should figure out exactly how much moving would cost -- rent differential, moving costs, utilities hook up charges, etc. and weigh that against how much unpleasantness he/she is willing to go through. And if moving would put a huge financial strain on the LW, he/she definitely ignore the roomies and stay put. People make the worst financial decisions when they're under pressure.
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Overbearing control freaks
[Read the article: Ellen, the dog bullies and me]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]BCB wrote:
In addition I microchip every dog I rescue and the chip is permanently registered to me.
and
Sure Ellen was in material breach of their agreement, but instead of further traumatizing the dog by taking it away from people who obviously loved and cared for it,
and
It's shameful and it makes it more difficult for people like me who rescue dogs, spend literally thousands in vet bills and training to rehabilitate them, to place them in good homes because there is the perception we are all overbearing control freaks.
BCB - I think that it's great that you are rescuing and fostering dogs, but you ARE a shockingly dishonest overbearing control freak if you are registering dogs you no longer own to yourself. You need to let go of these dogs once they're adopted out.
To make matters worse, you are only concerned about "traumatizing the dog" and not concerned at all about the hurt done to the girls.
BCB, you are part of the problem.