Cosmic retribution for drunken drivers

An article by Josh Stockinger about the death of a Batavia man and his dog has prompted this letter.

I realize this is, by now, old news but submit it because I believe it is important to revisit what took place July 29, 2009.

I know neither party in this case, but I do know the sister-in- law of Mr. Long. When she told me of the event my blood ran cold; I used to pick up injured animals, hit by cars, for the SPCA in Arizona. The founder of our SPCA in Arizona was out late one night picking up a dog that had been hit by a car; she had a police escort to enable her to safely remove the animal from the roadway. As she and one of the officers were loading the dog into her vehicle a drunk ran into the three of them, her legs were severed and both officers were injured. They all lived, except for the dog, but her life was cut short; she died a few years later from complications of the "accident."

These are not "accidents." An accident is something that cannot be foreseen; these are acts of "murder." These drunks killed the innocent victims with a loaded weapon of their choice. They were "loaded," chose to pick a vehicle as their method of delivery, and then fired themselves and the weapon at Mr. Long and my friend in the SPCA.

It gives me great pleasure to know that this individual, and hopefully many others who engage in this criminal act, will finally have the cosmic retribution they so rightly deserve. If nothing else, it will prevent them from going out and committing the same crime again. This time it was Mr. Long, next time it may be someone you love that will never come home.

We lose four times more lives each year to these local terrorists than we lost in 9-11, and yet we do little about it; the piper plays at each funeral service and then there is silence, except for the tears of those left behind.

J.R. King

Phoenix, Ariz.