To the editor,
At a time when our nation’s animal shelters are bursting at the seams, the much-needed Brooklyn Animal Foster Network has been banned by the city (“Better off dead? Ban on Slope group could mean death for pound dogs,” March 15). This is especially tragic because the Network worked tirelessly to find homes for hard-to-place dogs.
The city is eight years behind on a commitment to build two new shelters and the crisis for shelter animals is only getting worse.
Animal Care and Control Director Charlene Pedrolie should reinstate this fine organization immediately. Failure to do so means certain death for these creatures.
Is that what she wants as her legacy?
Wayne Johnson, Brooklyn Heights
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To the editor,
I would like to thank all of the self-centered individuals who lodged complaints against Laurie Bleier, executive director of the Brooklyn Animal Foster Network. Because of your bruised feelings and egos, dozens of innocent dogs will suffer death, as Bleier’s group will be denied access to them for rescue and adoption.
Sure, Bleier is direct and maybe abrasive — but she has to be. She must pre-screen anyone who wants to adopt the dogs and cats in her care. When you give your adopted dog away, you are violating your contract with her group. There are no pre-screenings of those to whom you hand off your adopted dog. In fact, the Michael Vicks of the world use this very tactic to get dogs for abuse and death.
I adopted a pit bull mix from Laurie’s group. The puppy is lovable and is part of our family. Laurie told me at first that she was not going to give me the dog because I seemed to be a bit flippant. But rather than filing a lawsuit against her, I sucked it up and told her that I was glad she relented.
Bleier should be commended for her selfless work in saving hundreds of dogs, many of whom will die for the sake of those who complain. Rich Pontone, Park Slope
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To the editor,
It is tragic that the city chose to cut off Bleier’s group simply because the new head of the Center for Animal Care and Control can’t get along with Bleier.
The animals whose lives are now compromised need Bleier and CACC to get along.
Karen Dattilol, Carroll Gardens
Ratner’s lies
To the editor,
Forest City Ratner will not correct misrepresentations on its Atlantic Yards website unless hounded to be truthful (“Another Ratner lie! Gehry was NOT ‘born in Brooklyn,’” March 15).
The Gehry misrepresentation is a case in point.
The Web site also still misrepresents that the mega-development will be “primarily situated over the MTA/LIRR’s Vanderbilt Rail Yards.” In fact, only 40 percent of the mega-development is over the rail yards.
Lost in this misrepresentation is any acknowledgment that additional acreage is being taken through gratuitous eminent domain abuse that allows Ratner to seize control of what will be.
FCR leaves misrepresentations on its Web site because it benefits them when press-release-reading “journalists” promulgate the inaccurate stories.
Witness the way the New York Times has misreported and then failed to make its own corrections.
Michael D.D. White, Brooklyn Heights
Stop delegat-ing
To the editor,
In 1983, the Democratic Party amended its delegate structure to allow “Superdelegates” to override regular party members’ primary votes.
George McGovern, who was one of the designers of the system, said that this was to avoid putting a candidate forward who had no chance of beating the Republican nominee. Others see a darker purpose: election rigging by party insiders (“Hil’s Bklyn superdelegates to rescue,” March 1).
Most people who voted in Ed Towns’s and Yvette Clarke’s districts — where Obama won decisively — are unaware that both lawmakers have pledged to vote for Hillary Clinton, effectively zeroing out their constituent’s votes at the upcoming Democratic National Convention.
Do these two representatives feel they personally have the right to cancel out all of our votes by voting against our choice? Many of us pledged to never vote for Hillary again after she voted for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of innocent Iraqis when she voted for the Iraq war in order to maintain her viability as a Democratic presidential candidate.
Gov. Spitzer resigned after hiring prostitutes — but nobody was killed by his bad judgment. Hillary’s decision led to the death of hundreds of thousands, yet not only is she still in office, but she is being helped in her presidential campaign by Clarke and Towns, who say they are against the war.
This is a moral issue. I encourage Towns and Clarke to change their votes to support Obama. If they do not change their positions, then I would also encourage Brooklynites to work against them in their next primaries.
We cannot have “representatives” who represent against us. Our vote for Obama is clear, and so is their willingness to erase that vote. Why not give them a call or send an e-mail and remind them whom they work for. Hint: it’s not Hillary.
Steve De Sève, Brooklyn Heights
Honor Ratner?
To the editor,
I am outraged that the honored guest at the Brooklyn Museum’s annual ball is Bruce Ratner (“B’klyn Museum honors Ratner,” March 15).
The Museum, in the past, has denied its facilities to events that were deemed “too political” or “too conroversial.” Yet, although Ratner’s Atlantic Yards project has totally split the Brooklyn community, he gets the Augustus Graham Medal, “the Museum’s highest honor.”
Could it possibly be that the Museum is setting aside its rule about controversy because Ratner pours money into the Museum’s coffers? Or am I being too cynical?
Clem Labine, Park Slope
