Wednesday, March 21, 2001
|
Wednesday, March 21, 2001 |
|
Needed for cart path pets: Uniformed police, not another city ordinance How sad that a reader needs to carry a stick to protect himself from unleashed dogs. Unfortunately, another ordinance, which won't be enforced any more than the current one, is not the answer. As a dog owner, I walk my dog on the pathway, sometimes on and sometimes off his leash depending on the circumstances. I also feel the need to carry a stick, but not because of fear of unleashed dogs. My dog and I have been run off the pathway by recklessly operated golf cars, my dog has been run into by an unsupervised 3-year-old riding a tricycle, and I have witnessed under-aged drivers operating golf cars on a daily basis. In my 3 years of walking on the paths, I have never seen one police officer out enforcing the existing rules. Why create a new, more restrictive rule, which will affect responsible pet owners, when the current ordinance, if enforced, is sufficient? It has been my experience, practicing law for more than 25 years, that a great number of people will not obey any rule unless there is a realistic threat of being caught and punished. It is time to get PTC's finest out of their patrol cars, and put a few in golf cars, on mountain bikes, or on roller blades to ride up and down the pathways. It would be interesting to see how many people with dogs not under voice control would be cited. It might also go a long way to making the pathways safer for people who would rather walk than ride a golf car, and might remind parents that children under a certain age require mature supervision. James K. Wolski Peachtree City
|
||