European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - September 23, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Sunday september 23, 1990 the stars and stripes a Page 11 Iahn Landers dear Ann Landers a Long time ago you ran a letter from a boy whose dog had died. He wanted to know if dogs of to heaven. It would be a big help he said if he were sure that when he died his dog would be up there waiting for him. As i recall you consulted several clergymen. Most said animals do not have souls and therefore they would not go to heaven. One kind congregational minister replied that he Wasny to sure but he did no to see anything wrong with telling the youngster that he would probably see his dog m heaven because everything up there is  Days ago i read a column on that very subject by Rev. Dale Turner who writes for a Seattle paper. I am sending a condensed version in the Hope that you will print it. A a Seattle Reader dear Seattle thanks for a real heart warmer. I loved it. Here it is a looking Back across the years i see How important dogs have been in my life. I had been an ordained minister Only a few weeks when i received a Call from an 8-year-old boy. His dog had been killed by a car. A or. Turner a the lad sobbed a do you do funerals for dogs a a i did no to know quite How to respond but i recalled the scriptures affirmation of gods knowing when a a fairy tales about Justice in Alabama even a Sparrow Falls. I replied a Why not a and i conducted a Little ceremony for the boys pet. He was very pleased and then asked a is my dog going to heaven a i Wasny to prepared for that question but my love for animals got me through it. In a sure i made the child feel better. A several years later i had my own personal experience that provided the answer i had never been sure of. Our wonderful Dachshund Gretta died and we were eager to bring another dog into our Home. We went to the Pound to get the Dachshund whose photo had appeared in the paper. By the time we arrived it had been claimed. Another Puppy sensing our Mission poked her nose through the wire Fence. The look in her eyes seemed to say a please pick  we did. And we named her  a whenever i came Home pick was there to Greet me. Id say a pick you be got it made. Other animals work for their keep. A Canary sings cows give milk chickens Lay eggs but you done to have to do anything but hang  a after 14 years pick became very sick and there was nothing to be done except put her out of her misery. With a heavy heart i drove her to the vet who did what had to be done. I then went Back to my study and wept for hours. A a few Days later a parishioner who knew of my grief sent me this poem. It healed my sorrow. Perhaps it will help others. Id like to share  i explained to St. Peter cd rather stay Here outside the Pearly Gate. I wont be a nuisance i wont even bark ill be very patient and wait. Ill be Here chewing on a celestial Bone no matter How Long you May be. Id miss you so much if i went in alone it  be heaven for me. Creators Syndicate Are you an alabamian do you drive an automobile does someone you know and love share the Road with others does it bother you when an incapacitated person operates a car do you ride a motorcycle do you believe in Justice do you think that bad things Only happen to others if you can answer just one of these questions with a a yes a i am writing to you. Please lend an ear while i Tell you a Story. Its a fairy tale about Justice. Once upon a time in Birmingham ala., there was a 34-year-old single Parent. He worked in a factory putting in 80-hour weeks to try to take care of his son. He owned a motorcycle that he Rode to work almost every Day. One evening he left his shop around the same time As another Parent left a nightclub in his automobile. They met in an intersection. The Man on the motorcycle had stopped for a red Light. The Man in the car sideswiped the Man on the motorcycle and drove away. The Impact crushed the riders leg Between the motorcycles Cylinder head and the cards fender reducing his right foot to a bag of mangled muscle and fragments of Bone. Two Young men saw the Accident. They followed the car until it stopped and then called the police. The Man in the car said he knew he ran into someone but was sure that the Guy was not Hurt. The Man on the motorcycle is my brother. The Man who hit him was drunk. This was his third arrest for driving while drunk. He was using a License that was supposed to be valid Only from his Home to work and Back again. Head been in a bar. His insurance was Only Good if he drove while sober. He was Able to stay on the Road because someone thought it would be unfair to keep him from driving to work. A year has come and gone since the Accident. All that time my brother has been a prisoner of his leg. His world has been a hell of hospitals doctors skin grafts Bone reconstruction canes antibiotics unemployment crutches casts morphine stitches pins plates screws and never ending excruciating pain. As for the Drinken Driver he a still on the Street. They released him on bail. Its been a year but he has yet to even be tried. After putting my brother in the Hospital he went on like nothing happened. The bail was so Loose that he was Able to move to Florida. Last week after countless operations failed therapy and endless pain my brother a foot finally turned Black. On tuesday morning my brother will go Back for one More operation. A doctor will remove the skin and tissue from around the Bones Halfway Between the foot and the knee. Hell then use a saw to Cut through the Bone. After an hour or so Only a stump will remain. The surgeon will close the wound and fit dressings and a cast. My brother is one year into a lifetime sentence. His crime being in the wrong place at the wrong time. The Man who did it is still running around free and looking for someone else to kill or maim. Am i angry you bet i am you should be too driving is a privilege not a right. An automobile is not an appliance like a toaster or a blender. It is a very dangerous piece of machinery. The most hazardous environment most of us enter is the Roadway. The trickiest live fire Range is kid stuff by comparison. When a person climbs into his car and starts the engine he is no longer an individual. He becomes part of the transportation system. His right to free movement becomes subordinate to his responsibilities to the rest of us who must share that system. Primary among these responsibilities is that of making his equipment and himself Safe. If he cannot or will not do so we must take action to protect ourselves. One Drunken driving conviction should be enough to mean he will never drive again. Causing injury with a car should mean mandatory jail time. An appropriate punishment in this Case would have been to let my brother drive his car Over the drunks leg. Maybe that a the sort of extreme we need to get drunks off the Road. Being fair did no to work. You should be angry if you Are an alabamian. The Laws that allowed this travesty of Justice Are your Laws you should be angry if you come from Florida. The drunk who hit my brother is stalking your roads with your loved ones you should be angry if you drive a car. That Guy and others like him could be aiming his Hood ornament at your wife and children right now. You should be angry if you ride a motorcycle. That creep did no to care enough to find out if he Hurt someone. You should be angry if you care about Justice. For the Sake of fairness to a Drunken Driver my brother will spend the rest of his life without a whole leg. Meanwhile a criminal walks away unhurt and so far unpunished. Whoever you Are you should be angry. You should Start to care if you think that it can to happen to you. You should Start today before it does happen to you. The trial is not yet set. In the interest of fairness i asked the editor to withhold my name. I would not want to let the creep get away because i stated my opinion and biased someone. Just remember but for the Luck of the draw the victim could have been you. A name and location withheld a Giveaway protested president Bush wants to erase Egypt a $7 billion military debt As a a Symbol of  Israel wants its $4.6 billion debt also erased. I owe $700 in 1989 Federal tax that i would like to have erased. I support president Bush and will also stand up to iraqi aggression. If our representatives and senators can vote to erase Over $11.6 billion in spite of the trillion Dollar deficit then what will my measly $700 Hurt write your congressperson and help Stop this Giveaway. Remember the $500 million savings and loan fiasco that we the taxpayers already have to pay for a Paul Schnaars Stuttgart West Germany pen please publish our names in the pen pal column. A Rellda m. Salindo 20 a Mary Balingit 29 Tula pos Enrique Villanueva Seq Ulmor Philippines 6230 please add my name to the pen pal column. I am 22 years old. A Baneer All Al . Hospital . Box 807,-k.k.m.c. Hat aral Batin 31991 saudia Arabia i am 20 years old and my interests include l out with friends movies Reading aerobics and Lively music. A fall Bradley 5 Denver Road Westvale Kirkby Merseyside l32 4tq, England please publish my name in your pen pal column. I am 19 years old. A Marle Cecylle Bonne port Glaud Mahe Republic of Seychelles please publish my name in your pen pal column. A Agatha Blake Spanish town Homestead 36 mans Zeld ave., Jamaica i am a born again Christian and i would like pen pals Between 20 and 28 years of age. A Joy Abrea upper Banner barong hog pasig metro Manila Philippines i am 15 years old and i would like to have pen pals. A Veronus Campbell Orange Field District Orange Field . St. Catherine Jamaica european edition circulation 170,000 col. Gene e. Townsend Usan commander editor in chief it. Col Gayle w. Fix Usa Deputy commander editor in chief Marie Kominicki Bob Wicker Deane b. Mcdermott production manager managing editor circulation manager this newspaper is an authorized unofficial publication for members of the military services overseas. Contents of the stars and stripes Are not necessarily the official views of or endorsed by the . Government the department of defense or the . European command. The appearance of advertising in Thea publication including inserts or supplements does not constitute endorsement by the department of defense or the stars and stripes of the products or services advertised. 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