Print edition: 
Citizens shouldn't own tigers, bears
The shooting of the escaped wild animals in Ohio was a tragedy. Though I understand that the police there did what they needed to do for the safety of people and domestic animals living nearby, the bodies of slain lions and tigers were a heartbreaking sight. And it was something that most likely could have been prevented had there been stricter laws about the ownership of exotic animals.
In my opinion, private citizens have no business owning animals like big cats, bears and chimps. Owning these animals is like having a stockpile of your very own nuclear weapons — you have no idea when they will go off.
Some people buy exotic pets when they are small, cute and manageable. But often, when these animals are fully grown, their owners become terrified of them. These unfortunate creatures may wind up spending the rest of their lives on the end of a chain or cooped up in small enclosures.
Even for those exotic animal owners who do take decent care of them, just the animals' presence poses a threat to people and domestic animals living around them.
The only places that should be allowed to keep animals like this are zoos and sanctuaries that have the experience, funds and space to accommodate the animals' needs.
JODY MOSIER
Towanda
Libya's rough road
Now that Libya's Moammar Gadhafi is dead, I congratulate the people he has oppressed for 42 years for getting it done. But like Winston Churchill once said, the problems of victory are more agreeable than those of defeat, but they are no less difficult.
Rebuilding Europe after World War II was a cakewalk compared with what lies ahead for countries like Libya and others involved in the Arab Spring. Germany, Italy and Japan, as bombed out as they were, had the civic institutions in place to rebuild a nation. And because they were in place, the help offered by the West via the Marshall Plan could be implemented with some order.
But most of the Middle East has no such institutions in place, and if they are in place they are in disarray, because they were more rubber stamp than independent bodies.
Libya and countries like it also must get past their tribalism and religious differences. They need to protect minority religions, which, ironically, did better under dictators.
All of these differences were used by despots such as Gadhafi to control people. If the Libyans and others don't work at mitigating what divides them now, another dictator will rise up with an iron fist to bring order when the inevitable civil war breaks out.
KATHLEEN BUTLER
Wichita
Need market
The Obama jobs bill stresses more jobs in the public sector and education. I am no economist, but it seems to me that more public-sector jobs will not create a market for products and private-sector services. Without a market for goods and services, there can be no private-sector job growth.
The federal government cannot create that market, and more public-sector employees will not make any significant increase in that market. A blanket tax-rate increase on corporations and the wealthy will only finance more public-sector employees.
I haven't seen anything from the other side of the aisle that addresses market creation, either. Looks to me like we need to establish an export market for goods and services first. That might mean the federal government could assist in that effort by lowering the cost of those services through some kind of tax reduction that would make U.S. companies more competitive in the export market.
Just reducing tax rates for corporations will have little effect on private-sector job growth. Without customers to sell to, what intelligent business person would invest significant funds in new equipment and personnel? Maybe linking lower corporate rates to U.S. job creation would assist in our competitiveness in the world marketplace without having to relocate offshore.
JOHN ERICKSON
Wichita
Who's brainless?
Regarding "Brainless mob" (Oct. 19 Letters to the Editor): Who exactly is "brainless" when it comes to the Occupy Wall Street movement? I suspect this "mob" looks a lot like the ragtag bunch, minus a few tattoos, that "occupied" the American Revolution nearly 250 years ago.
"Brainless" might actually best describe the millions of Americans today who are in denial over the abuse of power and money in our failing country, because they have been deceived into believing they themselves are benefactors of these "free markets."
It appears to me that the current protests put the spotlight on wanton greed and unregulated capitalism, seeking to bring attention to the resulting injustice that is being inflicted on our society. For many thoughtful Americans, it is brainless to sit silent as the wealthiest and most powerful prostitute the political system for their own personal and corporate gain, while the disenfranchised endure increasing hardship.
RICHARD KILGOUR
Wichita
Friend or foe?
We daily see and hear President Obama criticize, hound, jab fingers at and beleaguer the folks on Wall Street for being unethical, purely money-minded, not paying their fair share, and maybe even being thieves.
Then we see that Wall Street is one of the largest financial supporters of Obama in his bid for re-election ("Obama flush with cash from finance, banking sector," Oct. 20 Eagle).
So which is the president — Wall Street's friend or foe?
The same question must be ask by Wall Street: "Is Obama our friend?"
FRANK SCHNEWEIS
Wichita
