We must take action. Now!

I have written many blog posts encouraging our readers and supporters to get active, to take action in making the world a better place for all living beings.

We can't wait.

There is a lot going on in our local community. Our local school board has a majority of folks who seem to not want to invest in our schools and look to be part of a seemingly national movement to privatize public schools.

We have an anti-gay and in my opinion anti-poor and anti-woman guy running for US Senate against a guy who has been incredibly supportive of the LGBTQ communities and whom I truly believe understands poverty. I will be voting for Mark Udall in November.

Hundreds of pit bulls continue to be killed in the city of Denver (one city east of us) each year without little public outrage.

These are just three of the issues I am passionate about in my community.

What are your three? And what can you and your friends do about it? Right now.

As you might have guessed, especially if you have read past posts, I am going to ask that you register to vote, that you vote, and that you personally make a connection with those who represent you on city council, in the state house, and at the US Capitol.

If you don't have children, that is not a free pass to not care about your local school board. Want to look at extremism in America, check out your school board.

Taking action can mean voting. It can mean writing a letter to the editor. It can mean deciding to go vegan. It can mean calling your state representative and giving them a piece of your mind.

It means saying enough is enough.

Nothing will ever change if good people don't demand it.

Believe me, those who profit from animal cruelty are taking action. Those who want to deny marriage equality are taking action. Those who don't give a shit about the poor and those living in poverty are taking action.

They are counting on us not not to do so.

No way.

Join us. Take action. We have the power.

Thanks for reading.

Another dead pit bull

If you live in the Denver area you might have heard of the part pit bull dog named Chloe who was shot five times by a Commerce City police person last week. A neighbor videotaped the shooting and from any aspect it looks like the shooting/killing was completely unnecessary.

The story was incredibly sad.

Pit bulls have a bad name in Colorado, not unlike many places around the country. In Denver, there is a ban on pit bulls. What this means is that hundreds of pit bulls have been killed in Denver and shelters outside of Denver are packed with pit bulls. And of course you can purchase pit bull puppies online on Craigs List.

In Lakewood, where Mike and I live, and just 1.5 miles from the Denver dead zone for pit bulls, they are safe. Our city council has talked about a ban and decided that the city and our citizens would be better off without a ban.

To be clear, I do not know a lot about BSL, or Breed Specific Legislation. I am not even sure if I have the correct words for BSL. I try to read what both sides have written regarding bans. For me, I get to see what happens because of a ban. I see many dogs killed for one reason only, that they are a pit bull, or one of the similar breeds. And then I see shelters around cities with a ban have many pit bulls for adoption, in some shelters pit bulls are more than half of available dogs for adoption. There is no way that all of them can survive in the shelter, so inevitably they are put down.

My history with pit bulls comes from Geronimo, our past next door neighbor. His head was bigger than all of our dogs except for Miguel. Geronimo LOVED playing with all of our dogs and would run the fence with them every day. He was a gentle lover. When our neighbor moved, I totally missed Geronimo.

I am one of those who believes that a companion dog acts a certain way because of how he or she is treated. I also believe that even if any companion dog is one who is uncomfortable around strangers, that their human companions can keep them and the strangers safe.

I look forward to the day when in Denver being a pit bull does not mean that their family has to move or a death sentence for the dog. How many more dogs will have to die before the powers that be realize that killing dogs is not the answer?

Meanwhile, I mourn with Chloe's family and anyone who loved her. Perhaps once she got out of her house that day she had no chance. And perhaps those of us who love pit bulls or who love dogs in general can change what is happening to a breed who gets a bad rap.

I don't have the answers. I'm just sick of seeing all of these beautiful dogs being killed.

Thanks for reading!