Here in our Northwest Denver neighborhood, the city of Denver has provided an off-leash dog enclosure on a "trial" basis. The "trial" is to run for one year and, at the end of that one year period, the Department of Parks and Recreation will determine whether or not there is justification to maintain the enclosure.
I have been supporting the enclosure via editorials to the North Denver Tribune, one of our two neighborhood tabloids. In response to one of my missives, a soccer mom advised that, given the choice, she would surely opt to get rid of the off-leash dog enclosure if it meant another soccer field could be constructed where her daughter could participate in team sports which, everyone knows, provides the basis for responsible citizenship.
My response to the soccer mom's sentiments follows.
Now, wait a minute!
Creating a polemic which pits dogs against kids with regard to the Berkeley Park off-leash dog park is not only manipulative, but just plain ridiculous. It’s like suggesting that since puppies don’t grow up to be productive citizens, pay taxes and cut their grass once a week, they certainly don’t deserve a space in a public park to run free.
Soccer moms – without exception that I have experienced – never miss an opportunity to wax pontifically when it comes to their children’s right to become productive citizens by participating in team sports. (A sincere wish there were more soccer moms – and dads, too – out there who would take great pains to see that their children’s lives are fulfilling and meaningful; imbued with culture and exercise, good works and the cultivation of lofty dreams for their futures.)
I have no children. I have a dog named Melissa Marie who I love immensely.
I have no problem paying taxes that support other people’s children’s right to an education; or the privilege of having the city build yet another soccer field in a public park; or providing health care to children less fortunate than most of yours. There is no argument that in a free, democratic society our children are our future; our hope. I agree. I have no problem with this.
But, let me tell you that I have no problem in espousing that part of my tax dollar must go to supporting and maintaining an environment where dogs can run free and dog owners can congregate and interact to the benefit of the total community. Off-leash dog enclosures in public parks are much, much more than simply spaces where dogs can run free. They are marketplaces for human contact and interaction amongst neighbors who might otherwise never have spoken a word to one another. Off-leash dog enclosures are uplifting to the community; are supportive of a community spirit and a sublime benefit to the essential concern and interest in the well-being of our neighborhood.
I’ve been a swimmer all of my life. I don’t consider swimming to be a team sport. When your head dips below the water and your senses are muffled by the rush of water over your body, there is nothing team about swimming. Competitive swimming, for me, was a very personal battle against myself; against my last time; against my last effort.
I am not a great fan of sending six-year-olds out onto grass fields to teach them to hit their opponent with all their strength and to do it for the team.
I guess the most team oriented activity I ever participated in was – throughout my childhood and into college – music. I was a heck of a trombone player. Now, there’s a team activity – concert band and orchestra; one in which you don’t have to destroy or cripple your opponent. Soccer moms please take note.
Back to off-leash dog parks. Councilman Garcia tells us that, "I understand that the dog park is something new and different from traditional park uses in Denver and therefore is controversial to many." Where’s the controversy? There are off-leash dog parks in most every major city in America. Multi-use issues with regard to urban parks naturally, without exception take into consideration off-leash dog parks. Period. No controversy.
I suspect Councilman Garcia is wiping his brow and sighing with the comfort of knowing that the fate of the off-leash dog enclosure at Berkeley Park will be left to the bureaucrats rather than the politicians. How convenient.
There has got to be a plan for Berkeley Park that incorporates an off-leash dog enclosure with whatever else city planners or their consultants envision for the park. It’s axiomatic that dogs and parks just fit together; just complement one another. Kids, too.
Please, do not believe there is any merit in espousing a polemic that pits dogs against kids. The polemic should be about dogs and kids and the natural bond, the natural, lovely, God-sent relationship between dogs and kids.
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