Working from and
quoting Dave 's article in the Lookout Ron Jones mentioned in the last SAGE
that the HPS had been censored by the Safety Committee. Barbara Reber then sent
me a note saying that the DPS had also been censured at the April safety
committee meeting. Wynne Benti-Zdon, like yours truly a dog person, then had
some conversations with Bob Hicks about the meaning of "censure" and it appears
that "censure" is too strong a word to describe what went on. Rather than get
involved with making folks "wrong" the intent of the letter sent out by Bob is
to "clarify" the SC rules regarding dogs. Following is Wynne's discussion of the matter. Setting the Record Straight |
"Animals are prohibited
unless a specific exception is included in the trip write-up." This rule, like all the other rules of conduct in the schedule, was approved by the Executive Committee of the Angeles Chapter. It is a fairly simple rule that essentially says, if you, as a leader or participant, are going to bring an animal on a trip, be it a mule, horse, canine, bird or iguana. the presence of animals on the trip must be pre-advertised in the published trip writeup. For more than a decade, a similar ruling has been in effect at the national level, the only difference being an exception for seeing eye dogs in the national policy. For the past decade or more, trips with canines and other animals have been led without incident by various groups in the chapter. Any canine trip can be listed exclusively with any section sponsoring that trip. The trip can also be jointly or exclusively listed with the K9 Committee, which was formed to give leaders the option of leading canine-friendly hikes, and to give Sierra Club members and their dogs an opportunity to attend hikes where they and their dogs are welcome. There are two other things I would like to clarify in Ron Jones' "Notes from the Safety Chair" as it appeared in the July 1994 Desert Sage. Both the HPS and DPS Chairs (the K9 Committee was copied) received the same letter from the Safety Committee Chair and the letter was not a "censure," as referred to by David in his article. It was a reminder and reinstatement of the Angeles Chapter Policy which appears on page 22 of the schedule. No names or specific trips were mentioned on either side; no formal complaints filed against any leaders or participants. The special note at the end of Ron's column (quoting David's letter) needs to be clarified. The policy does not exclude certain activities like carcamps or meetings. If a carcamp or a meeting specifies in the published trip advertisement that dogs or any other animals are welcome, then the carcamp or meeting falls within the legal guidelines as approved by the Executive Committee. It is not up to one individual, be it the chair, the safety chair or the "self-appointed" spokespersons of any group, section or committee to change |