Dog Owners Stand Up to Abuse of Power In Sioux City, Iowa

First Blue Dog State Feist Award Ever!

Dog Owners Stand Up to Abuse of Power in Sioux City, Iowa Just say no to intimidation Rick and Deborah Borg, pit bull-owning residents of Sioux City, Iowa, spoke out against Sioux City's breed ban and testified against it during city council meetings. They encouraged their friends to do likewise.

In other words, they took part in the democratic process.

City officials, apparently, mailed threatening letters, drafted a "hit list" that sent Animal Control officers to some dog owners' homes to check if the dogs had been licensed and took other actions against residents that testified against the proposal.

Unequal enforcement of the law is a bad, bad thing

By its own admission, Sioux City's dog licensing compliance rate is only 10 - 15%. Unlicensed dogs are NOT a "pit bull" thing in Sioux City.

Wise public servants struggle against the mere appearance of retaliatory tactics and negative profiling of segments of their own constituencies.

Letter to Des Moisnes

The Borgs wrote to William Angrick, ombudsman for the State of Iowa:

"We would like to have your agency investigate this matter and a report be issued including any recommended remedial action."

Good. Let's hope the Borg letter touches off all kinds of remedial action.

May I have the envelope, please?

Meanwhile, Blue Dog State offers its first ever Feist Award to Rick and Deborah Borg. Go forth and take no shit, Rick and Deborah.

Running a close second for the award, by the way: just about the entire State of Montana. Rep. Robyn Driscoll's fear-based and uneducated proposal to ban "pit bulls" from the State of Montana met with the overwhelming scorn it deserved during a hearing at the state capital.

In attempting to defend her proposal, Driscoll dragged out that miserable piece of Humane Society of the United States mythology: "The vast majority of people that are attracted to pit bulls are attracted to the macho reputation of the animal as a living weapon."

Driscoll's proposal required the death of any dog accused of being an unregistered pit bull in the State of Montana.

And Driscoll thinks pit bulls are living weapons???

Heh.

What does she see when she looks in the mirror? _______________________________________________

[original post date of following article: November 24, 2008]

Persecution of Pit Bull Owners Public servants retaliate against breed ban opponents Participation in the democratic process lands dog owners on the shit list Fear and loathing in Sioux City, Iowa Earlier this year Sioux City, Iowa joined the list of pathetic U. S. municipalities that allow hysteria and political pandering to drive public policy. Sioux City showed that negative profiling is alive and well in the heartland when it moved to ban "pit bulls". Mocha, the pup pictured above, isn't welcome anymore. Incredibly, if members of Mocha's family went to a town council meeting and testified against the breed ban -- exercised their right to freedom of speech, in other words -- they unwittingly made themselves a target for special, selective attention from the city clerk's office, and animal control. Sioux City? Not pet-friendly.

Sioux City already required cat licensing, and it has a limit law in place that allows residents a maximum of two dogs per household. Anti-pet and anti-pet owner ordinances are traditional, it seems. Owners of Sioux City dogs accused of criminal pit bull resemblance, and unable to prove that their dog is NOT a pit bull, have ten calendar days to find a way to get their dogs out of the city. That's assuming the dog owner can afford the impoundment fees and other costs associated with seizure, impoundment and prosecution on charges of looking like a pit bull. Because the first thing the city does is take the dog away from his or her owner. If owners don't have the cash, or don't have a place outside the city limits to stash the dog, then Sioux City will kill him. Or her. Heartless in the heartland: "pit bulls" are born guilty Alleged pit bulls are presumed guilty of the crime of being a "pit bull." The burden of proof lands on the dog owner -- who must somehow "prove" to the city manager's satisfaction that their dog is not a "pit bull." Good luck with that, owners of short-haired, medium-to-large, mixed breed or otherwise unpedigreed dogs. Cause you're fresh out of "proof." It doesn't exist. Putting the squeeze on veterinarians The AVMA veterinarian's oath doesn't include becoming a tool in the extermination of innocent dogs. Local vets balked at making breed determinations that will cause the deaths of their patients, and they're beginning to bail on the city's licensing program. We want to take care of the animals --we don't want to I.D. the ones that are supposed to be banned," said [Dr. David] Ray. Lesson learned: Vets involved in law enforcement are gonna have trouble sleeping at night when collaborating with animal control becomes unethical. Push came to shove pretty quickly in Sioux City.

Will Sioux City vets betray their clients' faith and trust? Or will they disengage themselves from breed profiling?

City clerk collects names, addresses

Elected officials in Sioux City have been going around, taking names.

The names and addresses of residents who testified before the city council against the breed ban were databanked by the city clerk's office. 28 households received an intimidating letter from the city clerk threatening them with a $750 fine for failure to license their dogs.

Only people who testified against the breed ban got a letter, even though--by its own admission--Sioux City's license compliance rate is a dismal 10 - 15%.

Chilling effect on the democratic process?

Ya think???

Sioux City's elected officials apparently thought that abuse of power is okay if the victims are just pit bull owners. Maybe they thought no one would care what happens to drug dealers and gangbangers like Mocha's owners.

But trying to shut down opposition through selective enforcement of the law is a recipe for tyranny.

The Iowa State Constitution includes a Bill of Rights. Section 20 reads. . .

The people have the right freely to assemble together to counsel for the common good; to make known their opinions to their representatives and to petition for a redress of grievances.

So what the hell happened in Sioux City? What were Mayor Mike Hobart and City Manager Paul Eckert thinking?

Rights and liberties in Sioux City

In Iowa, cities with a population in excess of 29,000 people -- like Sioux City -- are required to maintain an independent local civil and human rights agency.

The Sioux City municipal code includes a human rights section, and the Sioux City Commission on Human Rights in on 6th Street.

Dog lovers in Sioux City need to have a conversation with the Human Rights Commission.

Abuse of power, retaliation, intimidation. . .is the daily dose for pit bull owners.

But that don't make it right. I'm not okay with any of this, and I'm betting plenty of Sioux City residents aren't either.

HSUS Sics Private Security Firm on Dog Owners

HSUS Sics Private Security Firm on Dog Owners Florida's "humane" war on pit bull owners is the best money can buy. Wayne Pacelle kicks the killing machine up a notch Old news: HSUS rules the world when it comes to "training" the public on how to spot a dog fighter. Here's John Goodwin, HSUS Dogfight Czar, running through his paces. Lowering the bar on probable cause The strategy here is to convince the public, including judges who sign warrants, that the presence of multiple pit bulls, springpoles and other so-called fighting paraphernalia, etc., is probable cause for search warrants. HSUS needs to make it easier to search the property of pit bull owners and breeders and kill rescue their dogs. Mouthing off on the internet: grounds for search and seizure ? Then there's words like "game." Debates on innumerable pit bull b-boards rage on (and on and on) about "gameness", what it means, how to identify it, whether its really dead. . . Whatever. What's in a word? But regardless of your choice of language, get this straight, pit bull owners: Czar Goodwin is no philosopher, and no breed historian. His expertise is store bought and paper thin. He don't give a shit about what you meant, or how much of what you said was bullshit. Goodwin is no constitutional scholar, and HSUS isn't much on freedom of speech. Use of the wrong words could get you in all kinds of trouble, now that HSUS' John Goodwin is calling the shots. Florida's Attorney General rises to HSUS bait In late December, Bill McCollum -- a Republican, an ex Naval officer and staunch conservative who ran for Attorney General with a "making Florida a safer place to live, work, and raise a family" campaign slogan -- announced his support for the expansion of HSUS's $5000 reward for phoned-in dogfight allegations. "Easy and anonymous" route to neighborhood safety That's what McCollum says he's after. So how come I don't feel any safer? I have a problem when private corporations like the Humane Society of the United States -- ones with zero public responsibility -- get into the law enforcement biz. Out of control private warriors operating in the Middle East are a national disgrace. Do we really want private contractors operating in the domestic sector, too? Commercial law enforcement HSUS promotes financial incentives for raiding the homes and kennels of pit bull breeders. Outfits like In the Line of Duty -- heavily dependent on HSUS doctrine -- make dogfight raids seem like a lucrative image enhancement tool. Best Friend's general counsel, Russ Mead, makes asset forfeiture in dogfight prosecutions sound like a no-brainer. Does Best Friends Animal Society see the country as a Walmart, ripe for pick-and-don't-pay, too? HSUS subcontracts out the wet work Dude, we've already got privatized law enforcement, triggered by anonymous tips and driven by profit motive. Not cool. But when HSUS hired Norred & Associates, a private security firm that specializes in "fighting corporate enemies" and turned them loose on the citizens of Florida (and Georgia) things got beyond weird. When Floridians dial that HSUS dogfight tip hotline number, the one that Attorney General McCollum thinks is such a great thing, they won't get the Attorney General's office. They won't get a public servant at all. Persons wishing to make anonymous accusations of felonious activity will be connected to an individual employed by a for-profit, private security company employed by the Humane Society of the United States. The for-profit private security company employed by HSUS will take the ball from there. And guess whose instructions they'll be following. Anybody else feel a headache coming on ? Cause I'm getting a ringing in my ears that won't quit. It sounds like alarm bells, or maybe air raid sirens. None of this is good. Not for dogs, not for dog owners. Not for democracy. Pit bull owners are the coalmine canaries of the animal owning world. Right now, they've got nowhere to run and nowhere to hide. Pit bull owners are prime examples of what happens when a society that thinks its governed by laws is hoodwinked by lawless extremists like the Humane Society of the United States.

What Color Is Animal Rights Extremism?

What Color Is Animal Rights Extremism? Fresh bruise P U R P L E Not just liberal folly anymore: Pacelle's HSUS won't be fenced in by party politics

What goes around always comes around. Dog owners living in little houses on the prairie, off the grid, and otherwise at home on the range are getting a bitter taste of what their blue state brethren already know only too well: hometown animal whackjobs working from the HSUS playbook.

Purple haze of extremist proposals drifts over blood red communities

In late 2008 Torrance County, New Mexico -- a county carried handily by John McCain -- began consideration of an animal control ordinance allowing animal control officers to enter homes without a search warrant.

Limit laws, tethering restrictions, a licensing differential making it 3 times more costly to comply if you own an intact dog. . .22 pages of restrictions and requirements for animal owners. The document cites the Humane Society of the United States, and requires that strayed dogs be neutered prior to return to their owners.

Cottonwood, Arizona -- located in Yavapai County -- began consideration of a mandatory spay-neuter proposal for dogs and cats not long ago.

This just in: a councilman, and ex-cop, in Grand Island, Nebraska, is calling for mandatory microchipping. Someone sold him on the need to modernize. . .but forgot to mention the privacy issues.

Looks like the entire freaking State of Montana may need to mull over a statewide ban of "pit bulls" in 2009. Texas, too.

Bad times in the badlands

Tea, South Dakota -- in Lincoln County -- is looking at anti-tethering and breed specific mandatory spay-neuter proposals as possible "improvements" over the pit bull ban it enacted twelve years ago. In other words, a more humane approach to negative profiling and a kinder path to extinction could be available shortly for certain dog owners in Tea. That should make everyone feel so much better.

All, in all, I'd say things aren't looking so good out there in the land of the free and the home of the brave. Not for dog and animal owners, they aren't. And, trust me, I'm not gloating.

But I know who is.

Monomaniacs don't do that red state/blue state shit

Wayne's got his eyes on the prize.

HSUS just blows on by the annoying details. HSUS can claim to support private property rights in Virginia, and seek to dismantle those same rights in Torrance County, New Mexico.

Anybody have a problem with that? Cause HSUS doesn't.

Animal extremism is not conservative, its not liberal. Its not right-wing, its not new-age, its not feminist, its not gangsta. Wayne doesn't give a crap about anything but furthering HSUS's messed up agenda.

Everything else is just background noise.

No more Obama drama

We're dealing with a one-horned flying purple people eater from hell.

Animal extremism is an assault on civil rights and civil liberties. It makes a mockery of the U. S. Constitution. Animal extremists aren't troubled by the rule of law. They consider themselves above it.

No Democrat, no Republican, no liberal, no conservative -- no one who treasures liberty and the pursuit of happiness -- could stomach the HSUS agenda, or its tactics.

So have at it, folks. 2009 is open for business. Should be a hum-dinger.