The Willow Glen Resident

Letters

Eating meat is bad for humans, animals

I'm responding to Deborah Taylor-Hollis' Jan. 21 column, "Barbecue argument reeks of false pretense." How ignorant and oblivious of you.

Humans, who enslave, castrate, experiment and filet other animals have had an understandable penchant for pretending animals do not feel pain. A sharp distinction between humans and "animals" is essential if we are to bend them to our will, wear them and eat them without any disquieting tinges of guilt or regret.

It is unseemly of us, who often behave so unfeelingly toward other animals, to contend that only humans can suffer. The behavior of other animals renders such pretensions specious. They are just too much like us. When you eat meat, you are inadvertently starving people to death, destroying the environment and contributing to high health-care costs and bad health.

The biggest threat and also the biggest killer in the U.S. is not allergies but heart disease, followed by stroke and cancer. Heart disease, stroke and 40 percent of the known cancers are directly linked to diet and the consumption of animal products. These diseases are 100 percent preventable.

In fact, diseases that can be commonly prevented, consistently improved and sometimes cured by observing a low-fat diet free of animal products include heart disease, hypertension, stroke, osteoporosis, arthritis, liver and kidney disease and diabetes and breast, colon, prostate, ovarian and cervical cancer.

Seventy percent of all diseases in the U.S. are diet-related. Scientists tell us humans are primates, plant-eaters, herbivores; not carnivores or omnivores like the agribusinesses (meat, poultry, dairy and egg industries) claim. Whom do you believe, the scientific community or the agribusinesses?

Perhaps it is time for you, Ms. Hollis, to visit a factory farm or a slaughterhouse and experience the horror humans do to defenseless and innocent creatures.

Alfredo Kuba
Mountain View

Let's help our area and quit grousing

I moved to Willow Glen from Los Gatos nine years ago and have never enjoyed an area as much as this one. My husband and I live a block off of Lincoln Avenue and have watched the recent events with mixed reactions.

I remember Los Gatos going through some of the same problems: parking, late-night bars and balloon bouquets on the sidewalk that violated some ordinance. Most of these problems seemed insignificant to the ones we were facing: financial struggles; drugs and alcohol readily available to the kids; kids driving and drinking and dying; our children's friends who were abused, abandoned or who ran away; and sickness and death within our family.

The recent incidents in Willow Glen have us shaking our heads:

1) Barbecue smoke that's suddenly offensive? We are fortunate to live close to La Villa, and although we do not partake of their barbecue every week, we do not mind the barbecue smoke wafting over our house. Isn't that part of life in California? (I am a Minnesota native.) Better than the nauseating cloud from our previous neighbor's gas barbecue.

2) No Christmas decorations because last year's were too shabby? Doesn't everyone realize Christmas comes the same time every year? Wasn't there time to do something about this, if indeed they were considered too bad to put up?

3) Founder's Day--what's left of it! We enjoyed immensely the two-day celebration with crafts, booths, etc. We even enjoyed listening to the music from our front porch. Music that did, indeed, stop at 10 p.m. as promised.

What we don't enjoy is the thought that hundreds of people now flock to Willow Glen for Dancin' on the Avenue, and there will be more as the word gets out. Add alcohol to a large crowd, and you have potential problems with vandalism and other things. Some restrictions should be put in place now before this affair has to be canceled.

4) Concerns over late-night noise from Billiards & Brew and the parking problem. We have been in Billiards & Brew and think it's a fabulous addition to Willow Glen and will help revitalize Lincoln Avenue.

Obviously this establishment has been planned with care because it's a most comfortable place and beautifully decorated. We think Billiards & Brew should be given the benefit of the doubt. If it starts to attract the "wrong crowd" and late-night noise should become a problem, then restrictions should be put in place.

We know that parking can be a problem. We live on a dead-end street with parking restricted to one side. All the residents move their cars around to accommodate everyone else when possible. If someone has to, he or she parks around the corner. Gosh, what an earthshaking problem! (My 84-year-old mother, who is handicapped, still doesn't mind walking a half-block if she has to.)

As far as late-night noise--I agree with Randi Fredricks' comment that those buying a house next to a fertilizer factory shouldn't complain about the smell of manure (The Resident, Dec. 24). Kathy Shanley's response (Jan. 21) was to mention the fact that many of the Meredith Avenue residents have lived there for 20 years, long before Billiards & Brew was built.

You mean these people never considered that there would be progress on Lincoln Avenue, including the building of new retail and restaurants? How about a cigar shop?

But the comment that really got to us was Shanley's quote: "For Mr. Stamos to accuse the residents of blindsiding him is nonsense. Besides, what difference does it make if we did blindside him? We have no obligation to him." Where's the obligation to try to work out a reasonable compromise so this business and more in the future will be attracted to Willow Glen? Everyone is not going to be happy about every new business that opens here. But what about some support for the area where you have lived for more than 20 years?

5) The moving of the Christmas tree from outside to inside the Garden City building. This might make sense in a cold-weather climate, but California? Then there's the concern over the hanging baskets, trash at the school and, not too long ago, the sculpture that was put up at a neighborhood park.

Our problems have changed a little. Our children are now responsible adults. But we still have financial struggles, sickness and death within our family. My biggest complaint about Willow Glen is the leaf blowers that show up every week.

We would encourage the residents of Willow Glen to put things in perspective. Helping your community where and when you can means bringing a positive attitude to a problem, not complaints that only cause people to harbor bitter feelings.

Gerry & Gerry Strong
Iris Court

Quit complaining about deli smoke

When I was a kid my dad used to bring home food from La Villa Delicatessen. Nothing compared to it. It is quite amusing to read about veggies complaining about the smoke and smell of the barbecue. Get a life!

Steve Burton
Camino

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