LGVMA's GOOD NEWS!
originally printed in January 1999 issue
LGVMA Letter Appears in JAVMA
During the third week in November, LGVMA President Tim Withers was contacted by the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association informing us of a relatively negative letter they had received regarding the LGVMA, written by Dr. John Parker of Novi, Michigan. In a move which would have been unimaginable even five years earlier, the JAVMA Editor offered us the opportunity to respond in the same issue.
Dr. Withers' response was written with the advise and consent of the members of the Board of Directors. Dr. Withers said, "we felt this was an important opportunity to increase visibility within the AVMA. We all know there are certain AVMA members whose minds we will never change, but there are also other members who will support us once they know we exist. Perhaps most important are those members who need us even if they don't know it yet."
The Board wants to encourage everyone to write responses to Dr. Parker's letter. Needless to say, please keep the tone of any follow-up letters professional and respectful; Dr. Parker is entitled to his opinion just as each of us is entitled to ours.
Dr. Withers concluded, "we feel this incident shows how much progress the LGVMA has made in the past five years. Now we just need to keep up the struggle.....slow and steady."
(Editor's Note: The full text of the letter to the JAVMA Editor as well as the official LGVMA response were printed in the January 1, 1999, issue of JAVMA, pages 25 and 26. They are also available by clicking here.)
Letters containing defamatory, libelous, or malicious statements will not be published, nor will letters representing attacks on or attempts to demean veterinary societies, their committees or agencies, or persons serving on such committees or agencies.
Reprinted from the JAVMA
Readers are invited to submit letters to the editor. Letters must be double-spaced typed and should not exceed 500 words (longer letters will be condensed as needed). All letters are subject to editing. Those pertaining to anything published in the JAVMA should be received within one month of the date of publication. Submission via fax or e-mail (847-925-1329; jaudin@avma.org) is encouraged; authors should give their daytime telephone number, fax number, and e-mail addresses, if available.