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Letters: There are many ways to help out stray animals If you love cats or dogs, Ashland is a good place to live. It's not ideal - we certainly have our sad share of stray cats and dogs hiding in the shadows of our homes and awareness. But, unlike many communities in Oregon, at least we have hope, because hundreds of Ashlanders give time, talent, and treasure to help homeless pets. Friends of the Animal Shelter (FOTAS) cast aside their gender, ethnicity, politics, age and social status to work hand-in-hand toward a common goal: that wonderful day, achievable in our lifetimes, when there are no unwanted or discarded pets in Ashland. If you want to join us, there are three ways to help. Volunteer to help the cats and dogs living at the animal shelter. Our local shelter is one of the most progressive in Oregon, so working there is a pleasure, not a chore. If you cannot volunteer, donate to FOTAS and thus help fund the efforts of people who can. If you own a business, you can donate goods or services for our annual silent auction, coming up next month. Adopt, don't buy, your next pet. From pure bred to pure mutt, our shelter either has what you want or will have it in the near future. You can see photos of adoptable pets at www.fotas.org Please call 774-6646 or e-mail [email protected] to volunteer or donate. Every hour and every dollar you can give will work miracles for our furry friends. Robert Casserly, Program Manager, Friends of the Animal Shelter Program focuses on civil liberties The League of Women Voters of Ashland is hosting a civil liberties forum from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 18, at Calvin Hall, 1st Presbyterian Church, Walker & Siskiyou. Three local panelists will discuss the USA Patriot Act and answer questions about what is happening locally and nationally with regard to your civil liberties. Panelists include Ashland Municipal Judge Allen Drescher, Ashland Police Department Lt. Michael Bianca and Attorney Ralph Temple, former legal director of the Washington, D.C., American Civil Liberties Union. The USA Patriot Act is a 342-page document which President Bush signed into law on Oct. 26, 2001, in reaction to 9/11. Patriot II, an enhanced version of the act, is being proposed in Congress. If you would like to know more about the pros and cons of the Patriot Act and government actions surrounding First Amendment rights, visit: safeandfree.org (American Civil Liberties Union Web site) and lifeandliberty.gov (U.S. Justice Department Web site). Please join us for this educational forum. Everyone is welcome! Vanya Sloan, Ashland, League of Women Voters New regulations mean bin Laden is having his way "And thus began America's latest war." (Your editorial Sept. 11.) The media continue to refer to America's post-9/11 depredations in Afghanistan and Iraq as "wars." This serves only to frighten and confuse the American people and to serve as a cover and a diversion for the vile and mendacious actions the Bush administration is perpetrating at home and abroad. If we are at war, why do we cut taxes on the rich? But, of course, it all has nothing to do with war, even if against an essentially defenseless people or state. It has everything to do with the military-industrial-Congressional complex which every day makes a further mockery of our so-called "democracy." Terrorist acts can never topple a strong state but they can provoke or, rather, justify a reaction that leads to fascism and a corporate police state, expecially if those in power prefer to rule in that manner. And that result is precisely what Osama bin Laden wanted. He has won. Gerald Cavanaugh, Ashland LINKS: DAILY TIDINGS: Main | News | Sports | Obituaries | Opinion | Columnists | AP News | Subscribe | Archives | Weather | Classifieds | Contact Us | Privacy REVELS: Main | Calendar | Dining | Movies | T.V. OTHER: Road Cams Copyright 2003 Ashland Daily Tidings 541.482.3456. 1661 Siskiyou Blvd., Ashland, OR 97520. Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. - Advertisers -