A letter in the May 21, 2009, Times-Union stated the "new" disease had crossed the border from Mexico. This disease, Rickettsia richetsii, also known as Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, is not new. I had diagnosed this tick-borne disease 20 years ago while living in Kansas. It has been recognized in the United States as far back as 1896, and it has been reported in all lower 48 states except Maine and Vermont.
The bacteria is commonly found in vertebrates, which includes deer, dogs, raccoons and so on. Because these creatures do not have to have a visa or passport to cross the border, we are helpless to stop the movement of Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever from Mexico or Canada, or vice versa. Humans are infected by tick bites, though I am aware of rare case of an individual who contracted it after removing several ticks from his dog. You will not catch it any other way.
The Times-Union has stated that its policy towards letters to the editor was to allow all comers. This is purportedly to allow your readers to see what our neighbors are thinking, without filters. Certainly, I have found this, at times, amusing. It also has allow certain individuals to espouse particularly ignorant and bizarre opinions.
You may hope that your readers are intelligent enough not to obtain medical information from your letters. I would not be so sanguine. There are those who believe anything they read and hear. Ignorance and misinformation are not harmless. It can endanger people. And if you print it, it makes you look ridiculous.
