Dear Editor:

At the August 17 Gratiot County Board of Commissioners (GCBOC) meeting Help Furry Friends, (HFF) was asked to provide a written proposal identifying issues and projects that could be considered and developed by an animal shelter advisory committee. This proposal will be presented to the GCBOC Finance Committee on Sept. 15. The committee meets at 5 p.m. in the Commissioners’ Room at the Gratiot County Courthouse. Public is welcome to attend these meetings and HFF asks residents able to attend to please do so. If unable to attend please view the details of the proposal on the Gratiot County web site and respond to your commissioner.

Proposed Mission Statement: The mission of the Gratiot County Animal Control (GCAC) advisory committee is to advise the GCBOC in matters regarding the improvement of animal control services to the citizens of Gratiot County.

HFF suggests the committee be comprised of 5-9 individuals, the GCAC director and community members from the following areas, veterinarian office, boarding kennel, and educator, HFF volunteer, commissioner, members at large from the community with an interest in the topics. This would be a working committee and would not receive compensation for participation.

Help Furry Friends believes that the Gratiot County Board of Commissioners working with Gratiot County Animal Control and an advisory committee would be able to plan for the future and not just react to changing circumstances. We all want the same thing, the best Animal Control Department in the area. We can achieve that if we work together.

Marie Green, Alma
Help Furry Friends

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To the Editor:

A Jobs Strategy That Both Parties Can Agree On

We’re nearly three years into the recession -- and our economy still shows few signs of life. The Department of Labor just announced that the country shed 131,000 jobs in July. Unemployment now stands at 9.5 percent.

It’s not surprising that Democrats and Republicans agree that something must be done -- soon -- to stem the loss of jobs. Neither side, though, has offered a creative or comprehensive jobs strategy to turn the economy around. There is one strategy that could create jobs and generate support from both sides of the aisle: Biotech Innovation.

“Over the long run, few issues are as important to a nation’s long-term economic security and global standing as being a leader in moving life sciences forward,” says Lawrence Summers, director of the White House’s National Economic Council.

He’s right. Innovation in biotechnology is the engine that could get our economy back on track. Yet neither party has forcefully championed this idea, even though it’s one of the few ideas that would elicit bipartisan support.

Enacting policies that will help this industry thrive is a painless way to create the jobs Americans desperately need. It’s also a strategy on which lawmakers on both sides of the aisle can cooperate.

So what can lawmakers do to foster innovation?

Lawmakers should also enact a payroll tax holiday. This would encourage private-sector employers in the biotech community to make new hires and retain current employees.

In future years, our country’s thriving industry of innovation could find itself increasingly competing for investment dollars headed to Asia.

Biotechnology is the future of the American economy. Other industries are innovating, too, of course. But biotech is a rare bright spot in this gloomy recession. Passing consensus-driven, bipartisan policies to boost what might be our fastest growing sector will create jobs and save lives.

Douglas E. Shoen

(Douglas E. Schoen was a campaign consultant for more than 30 years and is the author of “Declaring Independence: The Beginning of the End of the Two-Party System.”)