The Purpose of Religion

Belief in God is a unique ability of you humans that separates you from the rest of us creatures in the world. But you so often distort it, politicize it, and use it for devious purposes. Look at the recently killed Bin Laden. He committed mass murder in the name of religion. Bin Laden was not killed in the name of any religion. He was killed because he killed other people.
Killing people "for God" makes no sense. After all why do humans believe in God? One must assume that long ago back in prehistoric times when humans developed language and the ability to record oral history, they were now able to realize that life is temporary. This realization must have been frightening then as it is now. So, religion must have been then, as it still is, an attempt to deal with the inevitable tragic fate of all living creatures, including humans. Although this concept does not pin down the nature of God with any certainty, it does give a reason to think about Him. But to believe that one is supposed to kill people who disagree with one's fixed religious ideas, goes contrary to the purpose of religion, and is immoral as well as crazy. If I were a human and had a religion, I would not squander it on evil as Mr. Bin Laden did.

Wisconsin Teachers

Hi Humans,
Hooray for the Wisconsin teachers. Considering the time spent in getting educated and correcting homework, not to mention the administrative stuff of questionable value that teachers have to endure, the salary is not so big. So, government makes up for the low salary with generous benefits up to now. Now, some people think that teachers are getting away with something. Well it is true that the money is scarce, but why not conserve with less testing. Over testing takes time away from teaching. Also, how about less unnecessary statistics keeping. Statistics are mainly for people high up in any organization who don't really know what is going on at the ground level, so they insist on rigorous statistics to fool themseves into believing that they have their fingers on the pulse. But someone has to waste valuable time in recording those numbers.
Either raise teacher salaries or keep the benefits. Otherwise, people will not want to go into teaching, and government will have to spend money to entice people into teaching anyway.
But what do I know? I'm just a dog.
Chloe

Teachers and Taxes

Hi Humans,
There are many humans who want the best education for their children, but also insist on keeping taxes low, even if it means cutting funds to education. Right now with the bad economy, public schools can keep teachers in spite of low wages, reducing benefits, and increasingly difficult work conditions because there are limited alternatives. But when the economy improves and other occupations open up to draw away those teachers, what will happen? Will the public accept further decline of the educational system? Or will they be willing to divert money from other areas to education? Or will they actually accept more taxes?
Chloe

Indoor toilets for Dogs?

Hi Humans,
It sometimes can be very cold (by California standards) and windy here in L.A. during the winter. I can't imagine what it would be like to live in a really cold winter climate. You humans take your indoor toilets for granted, but we dogs have to do our business outside, even if it's raining or cold or windy, whatever. If one of your inventors could invent an indoor flushing doggie toilet, that would really be appreciated. After all, you figured out how to fly to the moon! But, oh well, in the great scheme of human indeavors an indoor flushing doggie toilet must not rank as a very high priority. Maybe some day?
Chloe

Violent Radicalism

Hi American Humans,
There has been a disturbing trend in American Human politics for each party to be dominated by the exremes. Now let's say it like it is. This radicalism has been particularly virulent and even violent in the Right wing of the Republican party. This Pailinism has resulted in the recent tragedy in Tucson, Arizona. When you continuously demonize your opponents and talk about them with violent language like putting them in the "cross hairs," you can expect that some crazy person out there might actually take you seriously and literally. A generation ago during the Vietnam War the Left seemed to attract radicals, but nowadays the Republican party seems to have the edge in attracting radical crazy people.
Chloe

Sport

Hi Humans,
The recent tragedy in Tucson again brings us to consider the wisdom of allowing everyone to buy guns and bullets so easily in the U.S.A. Remember the purpose of a gun is to kill or injure another creature, human or otherwise. Gun people say it is their right to own one or more guns and that it is for sport. They believe that the freedom to own a gun (for sport) outweighs the possibility that this freedom can result in injury or death to someone because it allows that freedom to any lunatic who exercises that freedom.
So let's make an analogy. In most communities in the U.S. A. it is illegal for humans to expose their private parts in public. Now I am not proposing that you humans become exhibitionists (although we dogs do it routinely), but let us compare. The reason you humans don't expose yourelves is that it hurts the sensibilites of a significant part of the community. So let us continue with the analogy. Suppose some female humans decided to make a sport in which they would expose their breasts in public in order to compare which one had the best breasts in quality and quantity. Male humans might do the same in comparing their genitalia. Many of the very same people who support guns as a sport would be appalled by making a sport out of comparing breasts or genitalia. If you were to ask one of us dogs what is more immoral, shooting other creatures or exposition, isn't it obvious what the answer would be? So who is the smarter animal, the human or the dog?
Chloe