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Click here The Mail Tribune welcomes letters on any topic of general public relevance and interest. Please include a daytime phone number and address for verification. We cannot print letters, even e-mail letters, without verification. We're interested in the comments of all our on-line readers, but we can only publish letters from residents within our Southern Oregon and Northern California circulation area. Sorry, we cannot publish poetry. Writers are limited to one letter every 30 days. Address your letters of 250 word or less (150 words for thank you or election letters) to: Letters to the editor Fax (541) 776-4376. Or send your letter e-mail to: |
Nice
turn of events
Sometimes what we plan doesn't happen but what occurs turns out to be very nice. I have a two-page typewritten newspaper called the "The Shima Daily News." It is dated Aug. 6, 1945 and was written the day before. It contains several paragraphs of news and comments about topics of interest before the world experienced the first atomic bomb explosion of Hiroshima the following day, August 6.I thought that the readers of the Mail Tribune would find this very interesting, therefore, I contacted the MT. A reporter came to my house and I showed this paper to her. She also asked me several questions about some of my experiences during WWII. When she left I reminded her that the IE Shima Daily News was the important thing and not my experiences.When I looked at the Mail Tribune of August 6 1999, I was shocked. There was no mention of the historic newspaper. The article was just about me. Then things changed. I received several long phone calls from local people who had served on the IE Shima or on Navy ships near by. We shared mutual interests on various events on or near the island. In some cases we agreed to get together and look at each other's mementos.Although things didn't go as I had planned, it turned out great. By the way, the article implied that the aircrafts on IE Shima were all B-17's and PBY's. These were the planes assigned to my squadron. There were hundreds of B24's, P51's, P47's and other aircraft on the island. --Harry T. Litts, Medford Pet problem For as long as I can remember, pet overpopulation has been been a problem. How long are we going to look the other way and expect others to take care of the problem? The other day I picked up a kitten that had been shot. The kitten, which probably shouldn't have been born in the first place, spent at least two days suffering and was then euthanized. How can you justify the suffering of that kitten, and the ultimate death, vs. having its mother spayed?A newspaper story shared how a couple of stray dogs chased someone's pet cat into their own garage and killed it. Why were those dogs on the loose? Were they someone's pets or were they discarded? The shelters have too few staff and are overcrowded. More people are bringing in unwanted pets than are adopting them. How much longer are we going to say it's okay to destroy these animals? Have we become so callous that it just doesn't matter, because after all it's not our problem?It is our problem. I am a pet owner. All of my animals are spayed and neutered. I have never owned an animal that became pregnant. I have taken in strays and paid to have them spayed and neutered and then found them homes. Were they my responsibility? No. But it was a solution. Fact: We have a problem. Fact: There is a solution. Fact: The solution is simple. Fact: The solution is to spay and neuter. -- Lori Quick, Central Point Hate is back It has been over three years since I last was moved to write a letter to the Mail Tribune, but the front page coverage on Aug. 9 of the OCA's latest plan to place still another hate-filled message on the statewide ballot next year drove me to my word processor. We as Oregonians should by now be sick and tired of the failed, evil policies of Lon Mabon and the OCA. It is totally uncalled for and only serves to give Oregon a nationwide black eye once again. Long ago scientific evidence disapproved the OCA's antiquated homosexual beliefs. We need to sweep this OCA hate and evil under the rug and forget about their evil intents. It's time to simply say no to the OCA and its waste of tax dollars each time a ballot sponsored by them is voted on statewide. Enough is enough, say no to the OCA.-- Ernest C. Burchard, Talent |
