Here is a visual to go with the article under consideration:
While I take many issues with the BSL movement, I find this "takedown" unfair. Colleen as a Nazi... Really? Go for the Godwin Fail much? Look, you can take anything or anyone and do a Reductio Ad Hitlerum on it, but that does not necessarily make any sense. Hitler sat in chairs, so anyone who ever sat in a chair must be a Nazi, correct? Hitler slept in a bed, so all of you bed sleepers must belong to an evil Gestapo, and oven babies day and night! Mick Heil!
That said, the BSL movement does deserve some critique. A constructive critique. As I have noted many times, BSL is a perfectly legitimate arrangement. Pre-emption laws are stupid and hypocritical. Look, if I can't own chickens or goats, why the HELL do my neighbors get to keep a backyard full of 150 pound game bred fight dogs? OH, that would be because they are DOGS and everyone has to kiss their ass day and night.
So, what is wrong with the BSL movement? Quite frankly, your movement is a mess. The 2 cent version is, it lacks integrity. I say this generally and not categorically. Personally, I think that Colleen is the very best that the BSL movement has to offer.
I am going to write a series of articles on this, but leave off with a discussion document for now.
SO, how is the BSL movement a mess? Here is the short list of reasons. Longer explanations to follow.
1) The movement is DOGmatic and unflexible. Most of you will not consider any reforms other than a ban. You ignore all statistics that might indicate that a ban does NOT improve public safety.
2) You ally yourselves with PETA and other radical groups. Great way to alienate the 99% of the population that is not completely crazy. For starters, the Pit Bulls Awareness Day symposium on October 24 has aligned itself with PETA. Why not grab an endorsement from ISIS while you are at it?
3) You refuse to acknowledge the connection to the greater dog culture. Look, pit bulls are dogs and thus under the protection of The 10 Commandments. What are you going to do about THAT?
4) You conflate the means with the end. The GOAL should be enhanced public health and safety. Instead, it seems that a pit bull ban has become an end onto itself. ALL dog bites are serious, folks!
5) Focus entirely on a handful of spectacular events, while ignoring or excusing away the overall social harm related to dogs. Being mauled to death has lottery odds. You want to know what the NUMBER ONE page on this site is? This one. Barking is a scourge that destroys the health and quality of life of millions. Nary a peep from the BSL folks... how about we ban the top 5 barkers by breed? What do you think of that?
Enjoy your evening and feel free to comment. I will follow up with articles on all 5 above.
Ban the top 5 barkers by breed?!?!!! I could live with that!
ReplyDeleteBut,does that solve the Barking Question?
DeleteNo, because barking is SUCH wonderful music! And that's why we MUST listen to it!
DeleteNot much of an article. Certainly nothing I would consider close to a "brutal takedown" of anything. That just read like every other response from dog people after a pit bull attack.The only glaring omissions are nanny dogs, the ATTS, and some wild claim about being provoked. Same old, same old.
ReplyDeleteAll dogs and owners need to be held to the same level of accountability, regardless of breed. Right now all BSL is doing is allowing pit bull owners the ability to play the persecuted victim - which is why I believe many people choose to own the damn things in the first place.
Good observations - it WAS pretty lame, wasn't it?
DeleteDogsbite.org most likely gets worse on a daily basis. I know I've had people say far worse to me for saying slightly negative things about dogs and, or dog owners.
DeleteThe difference is, the Ethics Alarms site is "mainstream". Its a high traffic site and the host is a middling celebrity. He is "inner party". He travels all over the country teaching legal ethics. He gets interviewed on radio and TV from time to time, and I mean REAL radio and TV not some obscure internet outlet. This was not a rant from some proletarian dog worshiper.
DeleteEither I'm missing something or you're giving that website and its owner far, far too much credit. He certainly thinks highly of himself, but he doesn't seem to carry any importance or influence of note.
DeleteI have been following this individual for years. While not as important as, say, President Obama or Warren Buffet, his opinion matters. This is not some proletarian dog nut.
DeleteNow, the raging pitbull defense may bring him down. That remains to be seen.
The only thing that will work is to enforce or beef up current AC laws and penalties for loose, barking and biting dogs.
ReplyDeleteWhen a dog is retuned to it's owner after mauling or killing a human or pet because it had n prior record it's the same as saying we all get one free murder.
Pit bulls and fighting BREED dogs should be treated differently because they ARE different. All dogs bite-most don't KILL. Pit bulls ROUTINELY kill people-on the average every 14 days in the US. The problem with any OTHER arrangement is another victim is created. Every DAY in the US on average three people will be so severely mauled in a pit bull attack they will be disfigured or disabled for LIFE.
ReplyDeleteYes, a lot needs to be done about barking, biting, crap, and other dog problems. BUT there is no need for fighting BREED dogs to be permitted as PET animals any more than a tiger or bear. Every trait that was BRED INTO these dogs-explosive,
disproportionate and unprovoked aggression, gameness, and their uniquely
damaging hold and shake attack style-makes them defective, destructive, and
deadly; they are the opposite of the traits BRED into PET dogs. Comparing the two is like comparing a shark attack to a catfish nip.
BUT... BUT.... Catfish bite more than sharks do! They are Nanny Sharks!
Delete(There actually is such a thing as a nurse shark, but I don't think I would use it for nursing).
Ka D you are 100% on target.
DeleteNote that I am not trying to defend pit bulls, but to critique the Anti-PB / Anti-PB Lobby / whatever you want to call it.
DeleteI do not particularly care for pit bulls, either (except for LUNCH! YUM)
I totally agree with you, Ka D. Pit bulls are monsters, not dogs. I do see that that BSL may not be perfect, enforcement seems to be a sticky and imperfect issue.
ReplyDeleteI do not love dogs either (due mostly to bad dogs and their owners), and I agree that our culture considers dogs to be above the law. Add pit bulls and you get a perfect storm.
Pit bulls are monsters in dog's clothing. After a person has been attacked they cannot forget the quality of the attack. It is not a normal dog attack. Perhaps it is like a wild animal attack, although I've never experienced such a thing. Let me just say that it is apparent from the victim's end that that dog is trying to kill them. Its not a 'anxiety' or some kind of fear response. It isn't even defending territory. Its pure love of killing.
I honestly don't care if its BSL or if another means to the end is used, but pit bulls are a danger above and beyond the dangers of normal dogs. Something needs to be done.
I do feel fortunate to live in a country (England) where pit bulls are a banned breed. Yes, there are still some around, and too many exemptions are granted, but I cannot remember when I last saw a pit bull. The Metropolitan Police has a status dog unit (well named) and don't take any pittie or pibble nonsense. If a dog is suspected of being a pit bull, it's hauled off to have its genes inspected and if the owner doesn't apply for an exemption ("But when we bought our dear little dog we thought it was a spaniel!") and if an exemption isn't granted then it gets the needle.
ReplyDeleteif an exemption isn't granted then it gets the needle.
DeleteThat is wonderfully awful.
A musical even
Delete(A dog breed is exactly like a human race.) - references to Nazis and anti Semitism. LOL.
ReplyDeleteOk humans are the product of their origins. Before people traveled widely their stature and skin color were largely influenced by the environment lived in. Short version of human anthropology there.
Dogs on the other hand are a 100% human manipulated species with the different breeds selected for their ability to hunt, track, guard, herd and fight. Which is why pit bulls look like meat grinders. They are.
Perhaps the author should have wasted his froth and spittle over anyone who don't like his pibble on the disparity shown between dog gods and cats. Now there's some discrimination you can sink your teeth into
The comments play out the common theme. These people are not animal lovers , They are dog worshipers and want everyone to kau tau to the mutt.
It really is a spot on replay of the tongue in cheek 10 commandments for dogs. Only these folk take it to heart. Live it. Breathe it. These folk dribble kook aid out their backsides as they walk they're so full of it.
The heavy implication there is that a dog is a person. If pit bulls had evolved on their own, would it really make that much of a difference? A DOG IS NOT A PERSON!
DeleteThis is where animal rights have gone astray.
DeleteThe animal rights movement has gone off the rails.
DeleteThe Ten Commandments are not a joke. Many people actually believe every word of that.
DeleteSome people half-joke that Orwell's "1984" was not a warning, but a how-to manual for tyrants.
AU. further explained about the 10, We can read that and see the sickness in thinking like that. Dog worshipers and in fact many sane looking people believe that dogs are somehow elevated beings.
DeleteAs for the greater dog culture, believe me, you will find allies among the BSL proponents. More than a few of them are former dog lovers like me. I've also found quite a bit of support for my viewpoint, which is that the pit bull problem is a symptom of a larger problem. And that problem is the out of control worship of dogs.
ReplyDeleteThis is not to say that I've had nothing but positive dealings with the pro-BSL people. I've noticed that quite a few of them have a mentality that goes like this: "My Fifi is wonderful, but ewwww, those pit bulls are icky!"
ReplyDeleteIf I ever try to point out that Fifi's behavior might be infringing on the rights of others (say, Fifi is a robo-barker that disturbs the local peace), then I get the cold shoulder.
YQN - Indeed, that is precisely the point. If everyone agrees that Fido, in his total awesomeness, gets to take all rights from everyone then it logically follows that its perfectly OK for him to randomly kill people.
DeleteThe problem as I see it with other strategies, being a former pit bull attack victim, is that killing the dog and fining or jail time for the owner post mauling still leaves the victim mauled or killed. I feel its crazy to even have to state the obvious:
DeleteWe need to stop dogs from killing people. We need to rid our society of dangerous dogs such as pit bulls. No amount of money or euthanized dogs can bring back what a person loses in a severe dog attack. Pit bull owners tend to be more irresponsible that owners of other breeds. I do admit that might be debatable in some cases! However, pit bull ownership is irresponsibility with a dangerous weapon.
There are always irresponsible people. There need to be laws preventing their ability to acquire these dogs. I suppose we can all worry about how far it will go, but really...there are laws against owning a water buffalo, a tiger, or a backyard full of crocodiles. There are laws against all kinds of potential dangers to the public.
I also want dog ownership to be in its rightful place in our society, with dogs not being demigods. I have lost my love for dogs, and think I will now always have a fear of the larger ones.
I notice that when I work in Italy, I come back liking dogs, just a bit. This is because in the places I go, dogs are treated like dogs. They do come to cafes, but they are well behaved and off to the side. No one is offended if someone has an allergy, people don't use them as avatars. They are not even allowed in parks for the most part. Dogs are not paraded around, they are not treated like spoiled brats. They are always on leash, and most of them are small, but not spoiled.
I get frustrated with the anti-pitbull crowd when they refuse to acknowledge the relationship between pitbull culture and DOG culture as a whole. One is simply the extreme logical outcome of the other. Many dog owners hate pitbulls because pits are the #1 predator of other dogs such as their beloved Fifi (RIP), yet their dog-loving selves cannot deal with the fact that pitbulls are also dogs. They just pretend they aren't, by calling them "undogs", "not real dogs", etc. Ridiculous.
ReplyDeleteIndeed.... pit nuttery is simply dog worship gone full retard.
DeleteI am not a fan of "undogs", only because it has an Orewellian feel to it. Think "ungood". I occasionally use "not real dogs" because they aren't and here is why. Dogs are one of the most social mammals on the face of the earth and yet this is a breed that becomes homicidal at the sight of a member of its own species. My preference is for mutant or frankenmauler. To refer to pit bulls as if they are not real dogs or lesser dogs is no different than neuroscientists looking at the brain scan of a psychopath and asking is this person from Mars?"
DeleteWhen a Hitler/Fascist analogy is accurate and fair, it's accurate and fair. Who the hell is Godwin to make rules of debate? It just gives lazy debaters a cheap shot. BSL is canine genocide, and exactly as unethical and irrational in canine terms as genocide is inhuman terms. I make the comparison, and will keep making it, to illustrate exactly how brutal, cruel and unthinking advocates of killing all pit bull breeds because of the damaged dogs created by human abuse. Nor do you appear to understand what an "ad hominem" attack is. That would be saying her arguments are wrong because she is a fascist. I didn't do that, and don't do that. I said, and am correct, that she is a fascist because her position is fascistic and her logic is genocidal. See the difference?
ReplyDeleteAt this point, I'm up for trying anything other than nothing. That said, one advantage of banning behavior before BSL is it impacts all breeds appropriately, i.e. we also want to help prevent rottweiller or akita maulings & deaths (even if they are far more rare.) As for the post immediately above, I think many man-made breeds should be allowed to go extinct. How is creating a confused, perpetually frustrated, violent dog that has no way outside of a ring to fulfill it's innate drives not a form of animal abuse? How is purposefully breeding a dog certain to have arthritis or chronic respiratory disease not animal abuse? No, I don't care how cute some people think pugs are; they're suffering, by definition. We need far fewer dogs, everywhere, and far fewer dysfunctional, cruel dog breeds.
ReplyDelete