Loose dogs make walks dangerous
11/23/2007I'd like to thank all those dog owners who respect my dog and me by keeping their dog on a leash or confined behind a fence.
While taking my dog on his daily leisurely walks this past month I have had five dogs dart out of their yards, resulting in two dog fights and three near misses. I have avoided many more due to my keen sense of danger and quick reflexes.
When I cruise alone, I never feel threatened by a roaming animal as I like to think of myself as an amateur "dog whisperer" and can handle most situations. I am the biggest dog lover of all, as most who know me will attest, but my precious little canine is not so fond of his kind, especially when he feels threatened by a charging fur ball no matter large or small, friend or foe. Your sweet fido may not bite but mine will. Hence the dog fight begins.
It is not only the safety of my dog and myself that concerns me but I never want to see another get the squeeze from mine, not to mention the chance that one might run into the street and get hit by a car. It breaks my heart to hear of such cases when it is so easily prevented.
I realize not everyone is a dog lover like me, and many people are downright scared of even the most docile breeds. I can respect their opinions, so I always keep my dog on a leash.
Let's all band together so everyone can be safe and have a chance to take a nice leisurely walk in our beautiful city.
Judi Reese
Wildwood Boulevard
Steamboat needs help to stay afloat
Historic preservation is a topic receiving much discussion in our area these days. The knot in my stomach just got a little bit tighter.
The historic steam riverboat Delta Queen, which has carried overnight passengers for 81 years, is being threatened with a shutdown. Congress is being prevented from voting on an exemption renewal for the riverboat from the 1966 Safety at Sea Act. This act was to protect overnight passengers from the danger of fire on wooden vessels. The Delta Queen has received nine exemptions over the years because it's river-bound and has elaborate fire protection and warning systems.
The problem is that Rep. James Oberstar (D., Minn.), chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, and Sen. Daniel Inouye (D., Hawaii), chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, are refusing to give the House and Senate an opportunity to vote for the exemption renewal.
Mr. Oberstar actually supported the exemption in a committee vote last year when Republicans controlled Congress. Mr. Oberstar talks of safety but there are undercurrents here of lobbyists. The bottom line is that we might lose the chance to travel on the historic Delta Queen because of special-interest politics.
Cincinnati-based Rep. Steve Chabot, a Republican, is pushing a stand-alone bill granting a 10-year exemption. Without committee support, the discharge petition he introduced will need 218 co-sponsors, a majority of the House, just to get it to a vote.
We need to publicize this situation. With enough attention, Congress will have no choice but to grant the exemption. The Delta Queen steams today because of the preservation efforts of previous generations. Now it's our turn. Long live the Delta Queen!
More information is available at www.save-the-delta-queen.org.
David Beck
Maumee
'No Outlet' makes drive to shops longer
Who made the decision to close Jerome Road south off Monclova Road leading into the Shops at Fallen Timbers and post a "No Outlet" sign?
People living in the Crystal Ridge, Clearwater, and Waterside areas have to drive extra miles to visit the shopping center because of this inconvenience.
Also, the walking/bicycle trail overpass bridge crossing Anthony Wayne Trail at the south end of Jerome Road is affected.
Louise Myers
Maumee
Writer should give Toledo another look
I'm hoping I'm one of the multitude who has written to The Blade regarding the Nov. 10 writer from Atlanta telling us what a lousy city we live in.
It's obvious he hasn't taken the trouble of investigating all of the wonderful places one can enjoy here that cost little or nothing. When was the last time the writer visited our fair city? Right now, we're enjoying the fall foliage as we welcome winter. Need I remind him that people are healthier and thereby live longer where there is a change of seasons?
Entertainment? The restored Valentine, the Stranahan Theater, and our fabulous art museum, which presents concerts, etc., year round. The list is endless. Sports? Football, baseball, golf, fishing, and more.
Toledo is well known for being very easy to travel around. We are very close to bigger cities if one wants to enjoy their attractions. We have a winning baseball team in a beautiful stadium that brings in fans from far and near. That our universities attract students from far and near is a well-known fact.
Sure, we're in the process of expanding, restoring, just like many other cities in the country. There is evidence that many who left our fair city are back and glad of it.
"I'm strong for Toledo - T-O-L-E-D-O. Where the girls are the fairest, the boys are the squarest, of any old town that I know. I'm strong for Toledo, down where the Maumee flows. In all kinds of weather, we all stick together - in TOLEDO HIO! in T-O-L-E-D-O.
My family and I lived in California for five years. We decided Toledo was far and above Los Angeles and San Francisco. We moved back and never regretted it once.
Doris E. Meek
Craigwood Road
Support for soldiers in U.S. is pathetic
How we support our soldiers is pathetic. We cut taxes during war. We can't even bother to pay for the war ourselves. Let our grandchildren or our great grandchildren pay; just don't ask most Americans to pay for or sacrifice anything.
Don't even let us see the flag-draped coffins coming home. Out of sight, out of mind. The current administration counts on that philosophy. Keep the testosterone flowing and the patriotic quivers in our hearts. But let's not do anything, really, to recognize our soldiers. Wave the flag and let someone else's loved ones fall on the battlefield.
Twenty-five percent of the homeless in this country are veterans, including veterans from the Iraq war. The Veterans Administration is funded by the domestic budget, the place where all good Republicans want to cut spending, and they do.
Are the lobbyists lobbying for our soldiers or the flag? No. Who lobbies for our soldiers? Even we, the American citizens, don't bother.
We ask our soldiers to destroy others, and in the process they destroy themselves. But do we care? No. Just slap another yellow, magnetic ribbon on your SUV.
Former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfield, said, "Soldiers are fungible," that is, they are easily replaced. President Bush said, as he first sent our soldiers off to war, "Bring it on." He dared the other side to attack our soldiers. Who is he, really?
But the primary question is: Who are we?
Jane Lynam
Greenhills Road
No more changes to flag presentation
Steve Muro of the National Cemetery Administration programs office should remember the following couplet before trying to do any more editing of memorial flag presentations:
"God and soldier, we adore,
in time of strife and not before.
The danger gone, and all things righted,
God is forgotten and the soldier is slighted."
Mr. Muro's wrongheaded decision to be politically correct certainly fits that thought.
Larry Hawkins
Seaside, Calif.