Support Arlington Dog Owners on May 3 or May 5

Arlington is still trying to get through the limited unleashed dog walking, Article 36, that was described here in a series of videos.  This was no-voted by the Selectmen. and will be coming  up on either May 3 or May 5.  Lexington dog owners are encouraged to show up, but you have to keep quiet and sit in the balcony.  Here is a letter from Sue Doctrow:

Date: April 29, 2010 7:48:50 AM EDT

To: arlingtondogowners@gmail.com
Subject: Article 36 Likely Up for TM vote next week and A-DOG Members' Letters to the Advocate

Dear Members,

We believe that our Substitute Motion on Article 36 will come up for a TM vote this coming Monday (May 3) or Wednesday (May 5). There is a good chance it will be on Monday. Some of you have asked about attending Town Meeting to support us. Please do! It is held from 8 to 11 pm in Town Hall (in the main auditorium). Only TM members are allowed on the floor to avoid confusion about who is voting. But, others sit in the balcony and can see and hear everything.

As a warning, the Moderator does not allow cheering, booing or signs being held in the balcony. But, you can stand outside as TM members enter and ask them to support positive action on Article 36. (You can even hold a sign in favor of off-leash recreation out there, even if you can't use it inside).

It is a little difficult to predict the pace of TM, but it has been moving quickly so far. Still, it is possible that you will come on Monday and it will not yet be voted. That's okay. It's important to demonstrate support for off leash recreation so if TM members see you as they enter that would certainly be helpful!

On another note, CONGRATULATIONS for our great showing in the Letters to the Editor in the Arlington Advocate today! It looks like there are six letters in support of off-leash recreation (out of ten total), and none opposed. I have pasted the letters in this link for your convenience:

Arlington Dog Owners Page
Wicked Local Opinions Page (Advocate)

When you write to your TM Members to ask them to support Article 36, be sure to include the link so they can read these letters! Not a bad idea to send the link to other Town officials you might write, as well.

all the best,


Sue Doctrow

Cats, Not Dogs Linked to Wildlife Population Collapse

We've heard that sometime in the distant past, Willard's Woods had lots more wildlife, especially lovely songbirds, than it does now. Unleashed dogs are presented as the probable culprits in this. Who wouldn't wish for idyllic scenes like this, just minutes away from the town center?

But as we stated some time ago, Willard's Woods was a burgeoning chicken farm, not an eagle rookery. As you can see, properly supervised dogs are not a threat to either chickens or children.

In fact, cats are the real problem.  Feral cats and cats from abutters.

According to the American Bird Conservancy:

Exact numbers are unknown, but scientists estimate that nationwide, cats kill hundreds of millions of birds, and more than a billion small mammals, such as rabbits, squirrels, and chipmunks, each year. Cats kill common species such as Cardinal, Blue Jay, and House Wren, as well as rare and endangered species such as Piping Plover, Florida Scrub-Jay, and California Least Tern.

• Well-fed Cats Do Kill Birds.
• Cats With Bells on Their Collars Do Kill Birds.
• Most Birds That Seem to Escape Don’t Survive
• Cat Colonies Are a Problem for Birds and Other Wildlife

Ultimately, cats are not ultimately responsible for killing our native wildlife—people are. The only way to prevent domestic cat predation on wildlife is for owners to keep their cats indoors!

Bacon on the table

On Saturday 4/24/2010, two people were in Willard's Woods at the picnic table at the top of hill near the North Road parking lot.  They were reported to have had bacon on the the table and were trying to induce dogs to steal it off the table, video tape them and prove that the dogs were running wild in the woods.  If you saw them, let us know.  Thanks.

Newt Gingrich's Dog Writing Tips

We expect that new letters will have to be written about dogs in Willard's Woods, very soon. Recently mentioned in Doonesbury, Newt Gingrich's 1996 memo on writing can be valuable for dog missives.  Use the positive ones in describing dogs and dog lovers and the negative ones to describe opponents.

Language: A Key Mechanism of Control

[Newt Gingrich's 1996 GOPAC memo]
As you know, one of the key points in the GOPAC tapes is that "language matters." In the video "We are a Majority," Language is listed as a key mechanism of control used by a majority party, along with Agenda, Rules, Attitude and Learning. As the tapes have been used in training sessions across the country and mailed to candidates we have heard a plaintive plea: "I wish I could speak like Newt."

That takes years of practice. But, we believe that you could have a significant impact on your campaign and the way you communicate if we help a little. That is why we have created this list of words and phrases.

This list is prepared so that you might have a directory of words to use in writing literature and mail, in preparing speeches, and in producing electronic media. The words and phrases are powerful. Read them. Memorize as many as possible. And remember that like any tool, these words will not help if they are not used.

While the list could be the size of the latest "College Edition" dictionary, we have attempted to keep it small enough to be readily useful yet large enough to be broadly functional. The list is divided into two sections: Optimistic Positive Governing words and phrases to help describe your vision for the future of your community (your message) and Contrasting words to help you clearly define the policies and record of your opponent and the Democratic party.

Please let us know if you have any other suggestions or additions. We would also like to know how you use the list. Call us at GOPAC or write with your suggestions and comments. We may include them in the next tape mailing so that others can benefit from your knowledge and experience.

Optimistic Positive Governing Words

Use the list below to help define your campaign and your vision of public service. These words can help give extra power to your message. In addition, these words help develop the positive side of the contrast you should create with your opponent, giving your community something to vote for!

active(ly)
activist
building
candid(ly)
care(ing)
challenge
change
children
choice/choose
citizen
commitment
common sense
compete
confident
conflict
control
courage
crusade
debate
dream
duty
eliminate good-time in prison
empower(ment)
fair
family
freedom
hard work
help
humane
incentive
initiative
lead
learn
legacy
liberty
light
listen
mobilize
moral
movement
opportunity
passionate
peace
pioneer
precious
premise
preserve
principle(d)
pristine
pro- (issue): flag, children, environment, reform
prosperity
protect
proud/pride
provide
reform
rights
share
strength
success
tough
truth
unique
vision
we/us/our

Contrasting Words

Often we search hard for words to define our opponents. Sometimes we are hesitant to use contrast. Remember that creating a difference helps you. These are powerful words that can create a clear and easily understood contrast. Apply these to the opponent, their record, proposals and their party.

abuse of power
anti- (issue): flag, family, child, jobs
betray
bizarre
bosses
bureaucracy
cheat
coercion
"compassion" is not enough
collapse(ing)
consequences
corrupt
corruption
criminal rights
crisis
cynicism
decay
deeper
destroy
destructive
devour
disgrace
endanger
excuses
failure (fail)
greed
hypocrisy
ideological
impose
incompetent
insecure
insensitive
intolerant
liberal
lie
limit(s)
machine
mandate(s)
obsolete
pathetic
patronage
permissive attitude
pessimistic
punish (poor ...)
radical
red tape
self-serving
selfish
sensationalists
shallow
shame
sick
spend(ing)
stagnation
status quo
steal
taxes
they/them
threaten
traitors
unionized
urgent (cy)
waste
welfare

FOWW in Patriots' Day Parade - Video Version

Unleash Scooby - Patriots' Day 2010

The Friends of Willard's Woods (FOWW) position in the Lexington Patriots' Day parade was number 80 out of about 85.  I actually didn't see much of the parade - it is kind of like being an extra in a giant historical epic movie. Behind us was  a group of World War II reënactors.  They had their own tanks - in some parades they have fired giant blanks (to the distress of parade authorities), but did not in this parade. This is a demonstration of concealing the contents of a can using a rubber glove, probably an attempt to avoid a  reënactment of some past brush with open container law.

Also behind us was a revolutionary group.  This might be a moment from an alternative history novel where armies from different times mix.

The dog is stuffed but the child is real..

These girls are the passengers in our float car.  The masks are pictures of their dogs.  No actual dogs were in the parade. 

The float car is ready to go.  This reminds me of William Wegman but this is People dressed as Dogs v. Dogs dressed as People.

Prior to the parade, FOWW sought a volunteer for the dog costume.  The costume turned out to be for Scooby from the cartoon series - there were many fans of Scooby in the parade audience. Scooby in the costume is about 7 feet tall.  Scooby started working the crowd immediately with high-fives and continued as we marched.

Early on, Scooby sat down with a family along the parade route.

Scooby delighted his fans with hugs.

Technology Transfer Key to Abutters' Concerns

Not all technology involves electronics and computers. We recently toured Sutherland Woods Conservation Area. This area has a big playground in the front with a woods in the back bordering on Route 2. I think Willard's Woods is a much better place to take dogs, but we did learn about some technology of interest to the neighbors of Willard's Woods complaining about dogs in their yards. The Conservation Commission has already deployed it successfully at Sutherland. Here is a snap of my dog narrowly avoiding a nasty leap to his death above the escarpment on Route 2 because of a fence:

The fence used at Sutherland is called a cyclone or chain link fence.  Not very rustic, so we would encourage this far more aesthetic handmade fence in use at Puolonka, Finland:

Fences are not a perfect solution, but it is fairly easy to keep dogs inside Willard's Woods.  Deer could still pass freely, bringing their bounty of ticks: