Eugene weekly., February 19, 2004, Page 5, Image 5

TO THE EDITOR
nia, and several who are blind from
Toxoplasma anterior uveitis. All of these
were well-cared-for indoor cats who had no
opportunity to hunt rodents, and all had been
fed raw meat either as the central dietary in-
gredient or as treats. Dogs can also get this
disease.
Bear in mind that freezing raw meat does
not kill all potential pathogens. Moreover,
when meat is thawed, the bacteria present in
all butchered meat, including organically
raised meat, revive and “synchronize” so that
all are multiplying all at once.
Dr. Donald Strombeck’s book, Home-
Prepared Dog & Cat Diets: The Healthful
Alternative, is a wonderful resource for both
veterinarians and pet owners alike. Any diet
should contain all the required nutrients in the
correct proportions for your pet’s particular
stage in life. Your veterinarian is your best
source of information regarding whether a
particular diet meets these criteria.
There is a healthy middle ground between
“commercial/processed” and “raw.” Buy
fresh meat (organic) and cook it for your pet
in accordance with the guidelines set for
preparation of that type of meat for human
consumption. Your pet can still enjoy the
meat without the disease risk.
Patricia Joy Shea, DVM
Eugene
BURIED IN IT
Your News Brief “The Joys of Co-
Mingling” (2/5) helped crystallize some
thoughts that I have had about Sanipac and its
policies. I have always tried to minimize my
consumption of packaging, to recycle when-
ever possible, drive a car only when ab-
solutely necessary, and generally minimize
my impact on the planet. But Sanipac is mak-
ing it SO difficult. Historically, I have gener-
ated about one-half of a small garbage can
every two weeks. But Sanipac kept leaving
me plastic boxes and rolling cans that I just
did not require. I didn’t like paying the rap-
idly increasing monthly fee for all the service
that I didn’t need. Now, I can distribute my
small amount of trash into four containers. I
have read the rules and tried to put things in
the right containers. But people keep stealing
my blue box and the Sanipac drivers refuse to
take my bottles, because they were in the now
defunct white plastic bag. It just got to be too
much, so now I just put everything (garbage,
bottles, plastic, newspapers) into my old,
small trash can. Sanipac, you figure it out.
The other problem I have is that I have no
place to put all the containers that Sanipac has
bestowed upon me. So they just sit in front of
my garage and clutter up my formerly neat
driveway. I notice that many of my neighbors
have just given up and leave their containers
in the street or on the sidewalk. Sanipac cans
have now become the worst form of pollution
in my neighborhood. Granted, it is visual pol-
lution, but pollution nonetheless.
This is all the result of granny government
trying to “help” us and “The law of unin-
tended consequences.” I’m sure I will get lots
of outraged feedback condemning my uneco-
logical attitude. Sorry, I have tried to be eco-
logical; I’ve just been buried in giant, rolling
plastic containers.
Steve Scarich
Eugene
read Kate Gessert’s propaganda-selected
news of the Israeli-Palistinian conflict (2/5).
Along with Mel Gibson’s out-of-context
Passion and Eugene Weekly constantly ap-
plying a double standard of the poor “un-
washed” masses against the terrible Jews of
the Middle East, I am just waiting for another
horrible incident in this town against the
Jewish synagogue.
There certainly are legitimate grievances
on both sides of this issue. For example, did
you know that one of the Israeli soldiers re-
turned dead in the well-publicized prisoner
exchange, was an Arab-Israeli serving in her
Army?
For those who like to call the Palestinians
the “indigenous” people of the area, you also
forget that King David had a party in
Jerusalem three thousand years ago. There
are local Jewish students in Eugene whose
families have lived next to the Sea of Galilee
for more than 500 years.
Ignorance has always been the friend of
those trying to eliminate the Jews. Ms.
Gessert applies everything Gobels was good
at in the case of the Middle East. Her stories
and hopelessly one-sided editing are incite-
ment to riot against the Jews in the Eugene
area.
Let’s have a real discussion of the prob-
lems of the Middle East. There are plenty of
people on the left of the political spectrum
and peace community who have a good un-
derstanding of the problem and are willing to
debate this volatile issue with understanding.
Ms. Gessert is not one of those people.
Bob Kholos
Eugene
CHANGE OF FOCUS
When I wrote this last “Undercovered”
(2/5), I told the story of the people of Budrus,
West Bank, who have protected their village
from the Separation Wall for the past three
months by working as a unified community.
When I read my article in EW, it was enti-
tled “Uprooted” and illustrated by photos in
which Israeli soldiers were shooting people.
These photographs were sent by American
photographers in Budrus and chosen by EW.
The focus had changed, through no one’s
fault, I think, but through differences in how
people see.
The villagers of Budrus are not uprooted,
although the Israeli army has uprooted some
of their olive trees. Men, women, and chil-
dren of Budrus are so deeply rooted that they
are willing to jump in front of bulldozers and
face beatings and live bullets to defend their
land. While it’s true that Israeli soldiers shoot
at them, it is their persistent protests that are
central.
(See
www.womenspeacepalestine.org)
I think the title and photos included with
this last “Undercovered” reflect common
American attitudes. We are likely to see peo-
ple who are in trouble — often as a result of
U.S. government policy — as helpless vic-
tims. The dilemma we face is how to hear sto-
ries of the sad, wrongful things that are hap-
pening in the world, while celebrating the
courage and resilience of the people they are
happening to. Let us grieve for these people,
and let us rejoice that they exist.
Kate Rogers Gessert
Eugene
UNDERSTANDING NEEDED
GREENS WILL STAY
For those of us who support a two-state
solution in the Middle East, it is painful to
Sybil Fabian’s condescending and
derogatory letter about the Green Party (2/12)
FEBRUARY 19, 2004 5