LETTER- 'Boycat' the store

I was appalled to read the story of the nasty neighbor who shot an innocent, friendly cat for the non-offense of the cat allegedly perching on a car on his property ["Claws and effect," cover story, May 18, 2006]. I'm a cat and car lover, but it makes absolutely no sense to kill a living, sentient creature because of the minor damage it might do to an inanimate object. Presumably, the guy's best cars are kept in the garage anyway. I'm especially saddened by the trauma faced by the two young Wintersteiger children over the loss of their beloved companion Carmen. 

My wife and I have two wonderful sibling male and female cats that we rescued from the SPCA a little over two years ago. They are "tuxedo" cats that look a lot like Carmen. We very rarely let them go outdoors, and even then they're closely supervised. We've been concerned with mundane things like fleas, ticks, wild animal encounters, and their getting lost. Having someone shoot them isn't something we'd considered! 

But nasty neighbors are something we've also been forced to endure in our own otherwise pleasant small subdivision only a few miles from Bentivar.

My suggestion regarding The Import Car Store is to boycott (or more like "boycat") the place. I'd be more than willing to join a protest demonstration at its prominent location. Let's hope prosecutor Jim Camblos gives that guy the harshest possible sentence.

Michael Ciccone
Charlottesville

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