P.O. 9652 Chapel Hill, N.C.27515-9652 --
919-942-2503
How Many Pets Must Die?
N.C. legislature has opportunity to eliminate a senseless
slaughter
From James T. Crouse, a Raleigh lawyer who served on the
commission appointed by the legislature to study the pet
overpopulation problem in North Carolina:
The North Carolina legislature has the opportunity this session
to make a statement about itself and our state by passing the
Animal Protection Act, a step toward ending the senseless
creation and destruction of millions of dogs and cats.
I listened to hours of testimony before our committee that
revealed the horrors of the current situation and offered ideas
on how to deal with it. The subcommittee I co-chaired developed
the idea for the increase in the pet food fee to finance low-cost
spay-neuter options and improve shelter conditions across the
state.
We worked hard to create a bill that isn't all things to all
people, but moves us giant steps forward and could, if
implemented effectively, eliminate the problem. I also listened for alternate solutions and heard none -- at least none that were realistic. Absent from the debate were those voices who now criticize the bill -- the Pet Food Institute and the hunters' groups that suddenly rail against not only our product but also the process. (It must be noted that not all hunters oppose this bill). Not only were these now-critical groups absent during our weeks of work, but they were also absent all the years while the problem grew. It seems to me that if they really cared about the problem they would have been there way before now.
Those of us who toiled are now accused of having "agendas." What
are they? I've seen no evidence of any hidden agendas, but if
they are there, they should be brought into the light by those
who say they exist. Otherwise the complaints of "agendas" are
nothing more than 1950's scare tactics, which I had hoped we
outgrew long ago.
Now the opportunity for progress is in our legislators' hands.
Will they take steps to remove our state's name from the group that leads the nation in killing unwanted dogs and cats -- 727
per day, 30 per hour -- or will they let this opportunity pass?
It all comes down to whether we take seriously our God-given
responsibility to have dominion over the animals and do what is
right, or we shrink from that responsibility and let the
senseless impregnating, birthing and killing continue. Will future generations say that in this hour in history a group of decent and caring North Carolinians finally fixed a situation that was horribly broken, or will they say we turned our backs because we were overly concerned about two cents more for a can of dog food?
It is good to recall the words of the song that reminded us 30
years ago that in this world the beasts (and the children) have
no voice and they have no choice. It is, men and women of North
Carolina, up to us.
-- FOR THE RECORD OFFERS COMMENTARIES FROM VARIOUS SOURCES. THE VIEWS ARE THE WRITER'S, AND NOT NECESSARILY THOSE OF THE OBSERVER EDITORIAL BOARD. --
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