Toilet-papering protectors missed the point

In response to the letters written by Mr. Dolder and Ms. Stancampiano regarding the toilet papering of the Fols property, I find it extremely unfortunate that "grown adults" would mitigate the issue as simply a childhood prank. They've missed the entire point.

This is not a question of some "harmless" prank, but an issue of respect for the property of others- a virtue that seems to be becoming obsolete in our community.

Respect for the property of others is essential to a civilized society. Defacing or defiling the property of others is a violation of this most basic of precepts.

The degree of the violation is irrelevant as is the age of the perpetrator. It's just plain wrong.

Certainly, these pranks are decades old, but they were just as wrong then as they are now.

It's up to the adult community to instill, in our youth, the basic concept of respect for others and to punish those who would reject or ignore it. Those adults who condone this type of sophomoric activity are failing in this aspect their civic and social responsibilities.

Many of those who've had their homes toilet papered discover the prank after the sprinklers have gone off, leaving them with the frustrating, timeconsuming task of picking the wet paper off of their properties. The clowns who are responsible also fail to respect the time of others.

As a business owner, I wonder if Mr. Dolder would feel the same way if he missed a meeting with an important client, or a flight, because some thoughtless kid let the air out of his tires the night before. No big thing- just a prank. Right?

It was only some kids getting mischief out of their systems. Right? No one was hurt. Right? Just what would this "harmless prank" cost Mr. Dolder in time and money?

It is ironic that a society that places such importance on respect for one's color, nationality, sexual orientation and religious beliefs should so lessen the respect for the property of others.

Failure to teach our youth fundamental respect for fellow residents only serves to hasten the deterioration of our society and, indeed, our own community. Oscar Zuniga Simi Valley