Rat lungworm
and dogs
State of Hawaii, shame on you! It is unbelievable to me that the state requires such strict guidelines for dogs to come into the state as far as rabies is concerned, but they have a killer they don’t communicate about to any of the people moving to Hawaii. To me, that is inexcusable.
Rat lungworm will kill your dog. Symptoms? Treatment? A test to determine that your dog has it?
What is the prognosis if they get it? Where is all of this information when you are having the FAVN test done and jumping through all of those hoops? Seriously, state of Hawaii, what is your answer to that?
Yes, I am angry. I lost my dog last summer to a nasty disease that was never determined because we did not do a spinal tap or have a CT scan done. For the CT scan we would have had to flown her to Oahu, and near the end, it was not an option. We had mega-testing done, medications, X-rays, ultrasounds, you name it. All inconclusive.
With 94 percent of the rats tested on the Hilo side of Kona being infected with this disease, I would say that is a huge problem. Even larger would be all of the slugs that are eating the diseased rat poop and carrying the disease.
What about testing the slugs? What about the trail they leave? What about the dogs that come into contact with the slug slime? What about the feral cats that eat the diseased rats? Do they become carriers of the disease?
Just a few questions I think need to be answered.
Joanie Cooper-Pence
Kalaoa
Zappa was a satirist
“Who Are the Brain Police?”
Frank Zappa wrote and recorded that song. Were he still with us, he could add Jonathan Cook to a lengthy list. Me, my wife and Cook — the letter writer who was “shocked” (Tribune-Herald, Your Views, Dec. 15) — all attended UH-Hilo Jazz Orchestra’s Zappa show Dec. 9.
There is, as I see it, two issues to consider: Frank Zappa and the university.
Frank Zappa was a prolific composer and performer, widely recognized as a satirist. He skewered American culture, with hypocrisy, shallowness, conformity and consumerism being major themes of his savage wit. Subjects included Jews, conservative Christians, the NRA, makers of violent toys, Nixon, Reagan, Valley girls, hippies and Jesse Jackson.
Frank was an atheist and wrote “Jesus Thinks You’re a Jerk” where he mentions Tammy Faye Bakker, Jim Bakker, Pat Robertson and other televangelists. Hypocrisy is what it is about. No mention of the Bible. This song was not performed.
UH-Hilo is the other issue. Their mission statement in Hawaiian translates as, “One learns from many sources.” I find it repulsive that anyone perceives our public school system as a platform for any religion, sect or cult. Exactly the opposite should be the case.
If one wishes to attend a religious institution, there are many. School is where ideas are explored, created and challenged. Then Mr. Cook spends two paragraphs implying monetary penalties if the school doesn’t teach from one source, His own.
I suggest Jonathan Cook avoid movies, books, the internet, concerts and art. They might not meet your rigid standards and sometimes can provoke one to think.
Incidentally, my wife and I were in the fourth row and listened raptly. Neither of us can recall anything remotely like a “public mockery of Christians” or any mention of “Jesus freaks.”
Peter Easterling
Pahoa
