Nobody Home

I think it's time for some leadership on the issues facing our county over the welfare of dogs in commercial breeding operations.

Obviously, there are heavily vested interests on both sides of this issue and, from the looks of it, they're digging in for what is going to be a nasty squabble that's not going to be resolved anytime soon.

Every time powerful interests have a go at each other, there is a side effect known as "collateral damage." In this case it'll be the image of Lancaster County and its citizens, who are going to bear the burden for the carnage that's about to ensue.

With this in mind, I've contacted the local parties that I thought would have a stake in avoiding such an outcome. Identifying myself as someone with recent and close ties to the plain community, I contacted the Chamber of Commerce, the tourist bureau, the Humane League, my state representative and the county commissioners, and asked if there was anyone taking a proactive approach to solving the "puppy mill" issue and expressed an interest in participating in a solution.

Their response was, regarding an active program, no one was doing anything. And none of them gave me any specific details that would indicate that they're about to change that.

Why is it acceptable, for those who are supposed to be looking out for the interests of Lancaster County, to sit on their hands at a time like this?