Torre Argentina Cat Shelter Possible Eviction

If I don't vote there, I don't sign petitions there.

I agree. It's a local matter and we have no part in it. If you want to help the cat sanctuary send them a donation. Donna

I love the cats and made several "friends" that were brave enough to come to the fence. And I highly doubt the cats do more damage to the ruins than the traffic roaring by on the cobblestone streets or that we tourists do on a daily basis at sites open to the public.

This makes me so sad. I also agree it is a local issue. However, this is one of my favorite spots to visit when in Rome. It is so great to see several cats laying around in ancient ruins in the middle of a big city. I try to visit this site at least twice every time I am in Rome. The fact that it id also s major transportation hub and near the Pantheon helps me meet that goal.

This is very sad. We loved the cat shelter. We also made friends with several of the cats. A few even came outside the gates. I suppose the cats would stay if the shelter left. After all there are cats all over the other ruins too. But they would be at higher risk.

The shelter at the Protestant Cemetery is much smaller-maybe some of the cats could be accommodated there-very sad.

These threats of eviction have been going on for several years. The cats have been at Largo Argentina for as long as I can remember and seem to do no harm. Hopefully the current threat will pass, just as the same threat did a few years ago.

You are certainly entitled to your opinion but I think when visitors to your city start having a say in how it's run you may feel differently. It doesn't matter how often you "visit" Rome, you don't live there and have to contend with their issues on a day to day basis. Seeing a site once or twice on a one week visit is a lot different than having to deal with something every day. I'm sure if the people who actually live in Rome want to save the cat sanctuary then it will be saved. If there are enough Romans who think this is a wonderful place and enjoy having the cats around then there won't be an issue but it's up to them to solve a problem in their city and not for us to interfere.

Many years ago, I worked in the NY State Senate for a Queens County lawmaker. At the time capital punishment was a big issue. Year after year the Assembly and Senate would pass capital punishment bills, Governor Cuomo always vetoed it. During my time in Albany I never once received a single letter or phone call for or against the issue from anyone in my bosses district. On the other hand we received boxes of mail from folks opposed to CP from Italy. That was just my office, every other legislator received similar correspondence; it amounted to a lot of mail.
Should these Italians have mined their own business? Dunno, but I can tell ya that after a while all this mail went unread and straight into the garbage can. Why waste your time dealing with people who don't vote.

To be fair, there are times when issues have an international or global reaction and deserve it. Say when the Taliban authorities destroyed the buddhas (shortly before 9/11). Or issues of human rights or injustice. And in our globally connected world, people will hear about things and find easy ways to voice their thoughts. Whether a cat sanctuary in Rome falls into that category is debatable, and I personally don't feel compelled to sign a petition, but animals are a major issue for some people. Now whether an American signing a petition, over a local Roman issue, does any good beyond making them feel better about themselves is another thing...