From Julia Pheifer
Poor, poor citizens (and beagles) of Rome, soon to be subjected to the dark skies policy (19 November, p 4). It’s probably not politically correct to say so, but I don’t appreciate Tucson’s dark skies, and I would venture to say that my beagle, Ike, doesn’t either.
We live in midtown Tucson and when we first came here, I thought that the reason blocks of my neighbourhood were pitch black was because this is a poor city that can’t afford to power street lamps. We moved here from Alexandria, Virginia, where I walked Ike in the dark winter evenings and at bedtime without a second thought, because there was a street lamp on every corner and a bright supermarket parking lot to put our minds at ease. In Tucson I am not at ease with after-dark walks because I can’t see the faces, or any other aspect, of people around me. Poor Ike — he just gets a quick sniff of the perimeter before bed now.
Tucson, Arizona, US
