The last part about Winograd getting vilified by the pro AB 1634 crowd is really telling. I have been puzzling over the disdain that this crowd expresses toward the “irresponsible public”… which apparently means just about everybody except a small number of rescue/shelter workers and those who nod in agreement with their punitive positions. I think Winograd is right that these people need to view themselves as special while marginalizing the rest of us, in order to value themselves.

Something that Winograd and Avanzino have in common is a belief in the basic goodness and compassion of the general public, a belief that is unaffected by the fact that a minority of the public is irresponsible. It’s been clearly demonstrated that harnessing the fundamental good that is widespread in every community is the key to saving lives, yet this is something that the mandatory spay/neuter crowd just cannot understand as they are so full of anger, pessimism, and disdain toward their communities.