SOUNDING OFF: Laguna law has bigger bones to pick

Although summer has passed and tourists have been sent home to their own lovely communities, can dogs enjoy the Laguna’s beautiful beaches again?

It amazes me as a longtime Laguna Beach resident that the city and the beach locals (NIMBY: “Not in my back yard”) spend so much time tracking us dog lovers and reminding us dogs should not be on the beach or off the leash enjoying themselves like all the other tourists and locals. They even know the city law and will gladly remind you of the $450 for having your dog on the beach.

Really rich beach homeowners: Give it a break. Just enjoy your view, and allow us dog lovers to enjoy the beach for an hour or so a day. Focus on the important issues “” traffic, trash, crime and too few law enforcement officers protecting us from getting killed on Coast Highway.

During the summer, grown men in dark blue uniforms patrol the beach looking for dog “criminals” to cite. While this serious situation occurs on the beach, hundreds of pedestrians nearly die dodging speeding cars disobeying the crosswalk signs; taxpaying visitors congest and trash the canyon; and, very important, the city provides a legal “illegal immigrant” safe zone for all out-of-town visitors to view.

I’m sure the city could find someone to tax for a special permit so our dogs can enjoy the same public beaches as everyone can. It’s all about taxes and having the law to enforce getting new money into the city so we can build some other not-needed structure in town. Let’s tax us local dog owners and really search out the locals who bring their illegal dogs to our beach and really fine them largely.

Or us dog lovers can illegally allow our dogs to run free at the legal immigrant station and see if the beach locals and the city send patrol officers to the scene of the crime. I doubt the rich beach people even look over while they drive their fancy cars down the canyon.

Give us a section of beach such as Huntington allows and permit our dogs to enjoy the surf and sand! Can the city give us dog lovers a doggone break?

GARY THORNBERG lives in Laguna Beach.