Entire world must unite to take on plastic

Dear readers: After reading several research reports on a host of petrochemical products — from plastic water bottles and grocery bags to styrofoam cups and packing materials — it is evident that they are pervasive and a top environmental and public health issue.

Plastics disintegrate into microparticles, now present in many drinking water sources, and further into nanoparticles that can pass though the gut wall and possibly cross the blood-brain barrier.

Many anthropogenic diseases, from obesity and dysbiosis to multiple sclerosis and cancer, may well be exacerbated by these kinds of petroleum products, along with the micro- and nanoparticles in the air we breathe from other sources, including coal-fired power plants, gasoline-driven vehicle exhaust and the incineration of plastic-containing garbage.

To these we should add indoor microfiber particle “dust” from synthetic carpet and upholstery materials. These also contain endocrine-disrupting flameretardant chemicals, which contribute to the epidemic of thyroid cancer/hyperthyroidism in cats sharing our home environments.

We must quickly create and expand alternative products based on ecofriendly biochemical processes such as contained biofermentation and biosynthesis, bioremediation, sustainable biofuels and other alternative energy sources, and natural clothing and other materials that are recyclable and biodegrade into nontoxic components.

Dear Dr. Fox: The recent letter in reference to euthanizing shelter pit bulls who have been abused and called a “dangerous tossing of the dice” is heartbreaking.

Humans are the ones who have caused the abuse, yet we don’t euthanize them, do we? This man speaks of these dogs like they are disposable.

Pit bulls have gained a reputation for responding unkindly when faced with fearful or anxiety-ridden situations. As humans, don’t we do the same thing sometimes? Just like animals, we react when things happen that we don’t like or understand. When coupled with an abusive past, people may respond in a dangerous manner, rendering us “worthless” and on our way to either life in prison or a death sentence. But should all dogs, just because they have displayed dangerous behavior, be euthanized?

Dangerous people exist, just as dangerous dogs do, but that’s not the problem. We abuse each other and animals then get angry when they respond. Our world is crumbling all around us, and still we blame others and seek death as an option to unwanted or undesirable behavior. If death is the “best option,” then why do we still have so many shelter animals and people spending their lives in jail? — R.R., Farmingdale, New Jersey

Dear R.R.: Many readers will take to heart what you have written, and most, I am sure, will agree that there are no easy solutions.

We do indeed wrestle with trying to live up to the principles of justice, compassion and reverence for life. And I agree with you that many dogs, not just pit bulls, are aggressive around people and other dogs because of human influences — improper rearing, breeding, neglect and abuse.

But is it more or less humane to incarcerate such dogs for their entire lives because they cannot be rehabilitated, often for lack of trained staff and potentially life-threatening risks to them?

I consider the “no-kill” animal shelter movement, which justifies releasing unadoptable cats into our communities after neutering, and incarcerating unadoptable dogs for as long as they live, contrary to the ethics of compassion. No-kill shelters fill up, and then where do stray and surrendered dogs and cats go? They are often abandoned to fend for themselves, but, given room at shelters, could have been easily and safely adopted.

The pro-life movement is all very well, but its consequences should not cause more suffering just to make its advocates feel good. Some veterinarians and assistants working in shelters where euthanasia is practiced on a case-by-case basis have been lambasted as “animal killers,” much like Planned Parenthood centers have been threatened by anti-abortionist pro-lifers. I can sympathize with those who oppose capital punishment and who point to the evidence of notinfrequent wrongful incarceration; but as a culture, we do need to evolve and embrace a broader sensibility.