Guest guest Posted May 17, 2005 Report Share Posted May 17, 2005 ***************************Advertisement*************************** TechCentral http://star-techcentral.com ***************************************************************** This message was forwarded to you by yitzeling. Comment from sender: This article is from The Star Online (http://thestar.com.my) URL: http://thestar.com.my/lifestyle/story.asp?file=/2005/5/17/features/10936206 & sec=\ features ________________________ Tuesday May 17, 2005 Try a different tack Dogs have always co-existed with humans. Whether you like it or not, your neighbour probably owns one, or you could meet a pack of strays. Even blockbusters have a special role for dogs to play. Not to mention what dogs mean to the military, police, fire, Customs and other enforcement personnel. And do remember how dogs make the day for people with special needs, the disabled, and even a regular kid like me. A big issue has arisen over the recent dog attack incidents. This is not new. Through the movies and other real-life cases, we are aware that dogs have the ability to injure or threaten humans. When I see a Dobermann or a Rottweiler running loose, I would rather take the longer route for safety’s sake. When I see a pack of stray dogs, I do the same. This is due to the bad publicity given to the two breeds. As for strays, they are known to be ferocious when in a pack. The recent mechanism created by humans appears to ignore the rights of dogs to co-exist with humans. The fundamental rights of other humans seem to be ignored too. Let's not forget the main issue here: dogs running loose and harming humans. How will stopping terrace house owners from keeping dogs, and allowing those staying on corner lots and bungalows to keep dogs, solve the problem of dogs running wild? How will getting permission from neighbours prevent this problem? And lastly, how does keeping dogs become so disastrous as to inflict damage on our multi-racial society? There are many terrace house owners who keep dogs. The dogs are living happily in a place of their own. With the new ruling, where should the dogs go? Should all these dogs be sent to the SPCA and wait their turn to be put down? Nobody likes to be growled at or worse, taste the bite of a canine. But getting terrace house owners to abandon their dogs is not the solution. Wouldn’t it be better to enforce a ruling that your dog belongs in your home, not outside? How do we determine how responsible a dog owner is? By the size of his house or compound? Laws and regulations are meant to protect responsible, law-abiding citizens, not curtail their rights. Getting the permission of neighbours is not going to solve the problem either. A neighbour could disagree due to personal preferences. When it comes to personal preferences, the list is endless. Many things can annoy a neighbour: the noise from the family chatting or laughter from family sitcoms. Some cannot tolerate music from stereo systems. Loud car engines and noisy exhaust pipes, even cigarette smoke can irritate your neightbour. When we live together as a community, we understand that there are bound to be disagreements or discomfort caused by the neighbour across the fence. Perhaps the one thing that holds us together is tolerance. There can never be a perfect neighbour, unless you choose to shut yourself in your house. A neighbourhood with dogs serves as a deterrent to thieves and burglars. We do not need statistics of dogs helping to catch thieves in a neighbourhood as the purpose of having a deterrent is to ensure that no thieves are found loitering. The barking of dogs will surely wake you up at night. Or would you prefer to be woken up by a burglar with a knife at your throat? A member of an anti-dog association went so far as to claim that “keeping dogs is bad for unity in our multi-racial society.” Unfortunately, there are people who are willing to go to extremes and bring in unrelated factors to serve their own agenda. From history, we find that tolerance and understanding are the keys to resolving issues in a multi-racial society, not pointing fingers at an object of distaste and then associating it with another race. By respecting the beliefs and customs of another race, we not only learn more about the likes and dislikes of one another but it also unites us as Malaysians. Unity is not about being the same; it is about cooperating and learning to live together. I believe lawmakers will always be in a dilemma when it comes to creating new laws. But it is always good to take it one step at a time and in the current situation, it is the irresponsible dog owners who pose a problem. So why not just go with efficient enforcement? By all means, have complaint centres and heavy penalties to deter irresponsible pet ownership. But don't slap a blanket ruling that punishes all dog owners – the good and the bad. Lim Wing Hooi Petaling Jaya<p> ________________________ Your one-stop information portal: The Star Online http://thestar.com.my http://biz.thestar.com.my http://classifieds.thestar.com.my http://cards.thestar.com.my http://search.thestar.com.my http://star-motoring.com http://star-space.com http://star-jobs.com http://star-ecentral.com http://star-techcentral.com 1995-2004 Star Publications (Malaysia) Bhd. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of Star Publications is prohibited. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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