No Meeting! They are keeping us at bay...

Today was suppose to be the meeting at City Hall to find out how the Sept. 12th meeting changed or dropped anything from the bylaw. But it seems that our waiting for the day was all in vain. Todays meeting did not take place as this item has been deferred to the October 17, 2005 meeting of ETC when staff will report back on answers to questions raised at the September 12th meeting. So we still sit and wait!
I should be happy that these bylaws didn't pass as of Sept. 19th as was expected, but the wait and not knowing takes away any joy of the delay.
Did we or did we not get through to them?
I believe we did, but if this goes provincially, our voices will be lost to the effect that one city in the province put into it. The province didn't hear the emotions and see the faces of the speakers as they poured out everything we had to offer. It was with all our questions, our facts and our heart felt feelings that made this meeting what it was. We were fighting for our lives and the lives of the dogs with our presentations and speeches. We knew we only had one chance and this was it. We fought with everything in us.
That was the purpose of our Bow Wow Pow Wow, to get out all the facts and our speeches not repeating one another. Every speech was different from all the rest. One used enhansed computer pictures on the wall, showing not only cute pictures, but pictures of pitties in competitions with their awards and titles. Skills that you saw amazed the council members.
I spoke more regarding the service and therapy dogs and for the disabled Londoners that depended on their dogs to keep their independance because of their companion dogs.
Several people announced they would leave London, along with their businesses if this proposal went through.
We saw the reaction of the council members and watched their faces closely. We KNEW we reached them and gave them much more information that they had not considered, but if taken to a provincial level, the passion in our speeches will be lost.
Still, I must remember, valuable accounts were given and these still must be looked at. Perhaps not all will be lost. Perhaps fear is creeping in because we expected to hear 'something' by today. Something that would have given us some encouragement or some ammunition to direct us to which way we should continue to fight...but instead, we nervously wait.
October will bring us the results from our meeting. A week later, the preperation stage will be finalized by October 28th. The provincial law WILL be enforced!
The lull before the storm is not calm, instead it makes us more anxious, but we do have a great fighting force an nobody is giving up. Infact, the fear makes us stronger as our rights are being taken away from us. It no longer a ban of Pit bulls, but taking away the rights and freedom of citizens. The emotional strain the government is placing on decent, law abiding citizens and making them feel like we have somehow been targetted as the scum of the earth.
We watch every movement we make and watch as other owners of dogs break the bylaws more frequently, knowing the eyes are upon us and they have nothing to fear.
The media now switching to another breed trying to stir up the general public again to increase their paper sales. None of our letters sent to the London Free Press, our local paper, has been published. Only one that was sure to have come from a staffer to stir the pot even more to rile up readers, as they did with the pit bull breeds.
You hear nothing more of pit bull attackes. Why? Because it is to show that the breed ban works.
I'm tired and I'm frustrated, but the fight will not end. We will continue with everything we have to make sure we get our amendments to the law. NOTHING will stop us...of that you can be sure!