Wayne Pacelle Blinks

Pitbull Puppy Slaughter Campaign puts HSUS on the defensive Did Wayne blink ? Or wince ? Whole lotta butt covering going on at HSUS Turns out the Humane Society of the United States can't throw its weight behind the slaughter of defenseless, un-weaned puppies without hearing from its own constituency. The furor over HSUS's merciless extermination plan for the Wildside Kennels dogs caught some very tender parts of Dogfight Czar John Goodwin--and his boss Wayne Pacelle--in a vise. And then, guess what happened ? Its magic! HSUS's new policy: evaluate dogs before they're killed! Amazing! Five days after the day Wilkes County, NC, bowed to HSUS pressure and killed every single dog seized from Wildside Kennels -- including 60 or more puppies (some born after the seize) -- and 4.99 days after HSUS's shit hit the fan, Wayne Pacelle announces . . .

"an interim policy recommending all dogs be evaluated as individuals. . .[HSUS] is calling a meeting of leading animal welfare organizations concerning dogs victimized by dog fighting."

Wayne was going to do the right thing. Of course he was! Wayne was setting up a conference and everything!

Nevermind what Dogfight Czar Goodwin said : "the dogs have been bred for fighting and it would very difficult and expensive to re-train the dogs, even the puppies. . ."

Nevermind what HSUS's North Carolina Regional Representative, Amanda Arrington, said : "these particular dogs have been bred for aggression." The proper audience response is. . .

Shock and awe

So get with the program. And assume the position.

The magic wand has been waved. Pixie dust is in the air.

Or maybe not.

Will Pit Bull owners and advocates buy into the reformation of HSUS?

I don't know about you, but I'm not about to forget the thousands of helpless dogs that died, and still die each year, because HSUS says they must.

Every shelter dog deserves a fair evaluation. Yes, Biscuit is right.

Does HSUS think their "experts" are up to the task? Cause HSUS brought in an "expert" to look at Pat Patrick's dogs, and we all know how that went.

Kick HSUS the hell out

The Humane Society of the United States needs to get out of the pit bull "rescue" biz.

They have no credibility. They are not "stakeholders" and have no place among the "national stakeholder organizations that deal with pit bulls" that Pacelle says he invited to his little conference. History cannot be rewritten.

Core values won't go away after a kissy-kissy weekend in Vegas.

Wayne Pacelle wants my dog dead.

He wants your dog dead.

Pacelle hired a convicted ALF terrorist, and made the freak his "issues expert" on dogfighting.

He's offering a $5000 bounty for report-a-neighbor "dogfighting" tips.

It doesn't get more irresponsible, more hate-driven, more pathological than that.

Tell ya what, Wayne

Invite Floyd Boudreaux to speak at your little conference. Floyd would likely be the only one in the room with any true expertise on the evaluation, care and handling of high drive, real deal "pit bulls."

Acknowledge the AADR, or the ADBA, or crap, even the UKC, as a "national pit bull stakeholder." Invite them to your Vegas shindig.

Maybe then folks might, just might, believe you aren't still shitting them.

HSUS Kills Puppies

HSUS Kills Puppies
Die, die, die says Dogfight Czar John Goodwin

Newborn puppies are too dangerous to live

127 dogs, including 60 puppies, were killed by Wilkes County, North Carolina this week after their owner plead guilty to dogfighting charges.

His dogs, including 60 puppies -- including newborns like this one -- are all dead.

Newborn puppies are too expensive to save
 
The world's largest, wealthiest "animal protection" organization -- one with over $113 million in assets and a reported income of over $100 million -- stood by while dogs are slaughtered. HSUS advocated it, in fact.

Why?

Goodwin sez. . .

"it would very difficult and expensive to re-train the dogs, even the puppies. . ."

Blogosphere's on fire

This is going to leave a mark, Pacelle.

Some of my favorites--

Caveat has an excellent summary-- Time to Take the "Humane" out of HSUS

Lassie, Get Help: Worse than Vick Yes, indeed.

Yes, Biscuit's got HSUS cold: Pants on Fire

Even HSUS's usual apologists aren't happy. Wayne's trying to change the subject, but the stink of HSUS's role in slaughtering innocent dogs is everywhere.

Steal this widget !

Frog Dog Blog knows fraud when she sees it. Got a blog? Website? E-list? Put this widget up, courtesy Frog Dog Blog.
No more dead dogs

Sickened by extraordinarily wealthy multinational "animal protection" organizations that advocate the death of tiny puppies? Got a problem with donations to save animals that instead fund killing sprees?

Me, too.

Help get the truth out. Put up the widget, get yourself a blog, newsletter, whatever.

Be a part of the solution.

Racism and intolerance at Westminster: PETA puts on KKK robes

Racism and intolerance at Westminster PETA puts on KKK robes Who's under the sheet and pointy hat? Ingrid Newkirk Those zany kids at PETA planned to embarrass exhibitors and spectators at the Westminster Kennel Club dog show by dressing up in KKK robes. The crowds are supposed to appreciate a provocative, gratuitous comparison between the American Kennel Club and the Ku Klux Klan. But PETA blundered. Ingrid exposed her own intolerant, racist and violent agenda. PETA, the animal rights extremist organization that operates a death camp for pet animals, characterizes certain dog owners as "pimps and drug dealers" and heartily congratulated Lancaster, California, on its racially-motivated anti-gang law, is no champion of pet ownership. Does that robe and hood fit, Ingrid? Then wear it. Bring me your tired, your poor Residents of New York City -- one of the most racially and ethnically diverse cities in the country -- will likely take one look at those robes and hoods and draw their own conclusions. New Yorkers are gonna have a problem with the repugnant sight of white supremacists on the streets of Manhattan. A city that routinely elects gay, Catholic, Jewish, ethnic minority and/or non-white public servants isn't going to be cool with the Klan in Midtown Manhattan. NAACP has a problem with PETA So does the Southern Poverty Law Center. And the Jewish community. PETA's exploitation of racial tragedies and human suffering has a long, sordid history. Back in 2005, PETA encountered intense criticism to their depictions of black people in chains.

“PETA operates by getting publicity any way they can,” said John White, an NAACP spokesman. “They're comparing chickens to black people?” Mark Potok, director of the Intelligence Project with the Southern Poverty Law Center, in Montgomery, Ala., called the exhibit “disgusting.” “Black people in America have had quite enough of being compared to animals without PETA joining in,” he said. PETA officials apologized earlier this year for a campaign that compared the suffering of Jews during the Holocaust with that of factory animals.

Nothing funny about the Klu Klux Klan PETA's own support groups have problems with this latest animal extremist assault. The Superbowl masturbation-with-food video was bad enough, but even Eccentric Vegan displayed more common sense, and more sensitivity, when it came to use of Klan imagery.

"This is not “unfortunate moments in human history” as some anti-PETA spokepeople call the KKK, this is real life, current racism, hate, murder. No one should dress as a Klansman, not even as part of a protest. It’s too confusing, it’s too provocative, it’s too racist. It’s not funny, it’s not safe, it’s not OK."

What would Al Sharpton say ? I have to wonder what New York's Rev. Al Sharpton would have to say at this point. PETA successfully recruited Sharpton, who made a video urging black people to boycott Kentucky Fried Chicken. . .even though Sharpton has no problem with eating fried chicken at all. Is Rev. Sharpton happy to see hoods and robes on 7th Avenue? I'm just saying. . . What would President Obama say ?

How about our president, whose intricate and thoughtful "race speech" included . . .

". . .for all those who scratched and clawed their way to get a piece of the American Dream, there were many who didn't make it - those who were ultimately defeated, in one way or another, by discrimination. . . .For the men and women of Reverend Wright's generation, the memories of humiliation and doubt and fear have not gone away; nor has the anger and the bitterness of those years."

What would President Obama say about animal extremist whackjobs, dressed as Klu Klux Klan members, wandering the streets of New York?

I'm thinking President Obama will have a problem with it, too.

Write President Obama a letter.

The sooner, the better.

There are lots of good reasons to despise PETA's hate-filled Ku Klux Klan campaign. Really, a lot of them. Keep in mind that PETA serves as the advance guard, the shock troops, in the extremist war against pet owners. These pathetic people draped in sheets are expendable. They're cannon fodder. PETA only wants to get the [your choice: racist/intolerant/bigoted/animal rights] ball rolling. Plant the seed. Start the conversation. This won't end with Westminster. So write Barack a letter. Ask him what he thinks of a group that puts on KKK robes and tries to draw a parallel between a dog show and a racist secret society that brought violence, death and destruction to untold numbers of people in the past. . .and continues to do so today. Cause I don't think President Obama will like it. Not at all.

Profiling dog lovers in Lancaster, California

Profiling dog lovers in Lancaster PETA's Ingrid Newkirk does her happy dance California's SB 861 slices off human testicles, too Mayor Parris wants certain dogs, and certain dog owners, gone by sundown. Basing himself on HSUS's "pit bulls are the preferred dog of gang-bangers, drug dealers. . ." fake factoid, Parris and the City of Lancaster are proud of their new breed specific mandatory spay neuter ordinance. They see it as an anti-gang tool. Dog law? Or covert racism? Sucking up to his audience's worst fears, Parris says he has no problem with calculated harassment of certain residents and welcomed the ordinance, which is based on extreme negative stereotypes of both dogs and owners. Critics fear the Lancaster ordinance will lead to profiling of young black and Latino men seen with "pit bulls" or Rottweilers as gang-bangers. Parris wasn't concerned: "I have no desire to help [gang-bangers]. The only thing I want to do is crush them and remove them from the community." Kindly, gently annihilating dogs California's infamous SB 861, supported and co-authored by members of the "humane" movement, opened the door for local ordinances like Lancaster's. Breed specific mandatory surgical removal of reproductive organs is spreading in California. Now Rottweilers and Rottweilers owners have been caught in the crossfire. Love does not discriminate, except in the Golden State where the "humane" movement helped dismantle the protections state law once offered by prohibiting breed profiling. Bad Rap's Excellent Adventure in Legislation The slickest pit bull "rescue" in the country helped write SB 861 -- rationalizing what they did as "re-tooling the preamble of the bill to outline the intent of the bill and to remove the 'dangerous and vicious' language that was going to flatten all of us." As Bad Rap tap dances as best they can, they claim they "officially" opposed SB 861. But how can you collaborate on a proposal and oppose it as the same time? Bad Rap hasn't had a whole lot to say about the Lancaster ordinance, but PETA and Ingrid Newkirk are thrilled. Of course, Ingrid would happily kill every dog Bad Rap wants to find a home for. R. Rex Parris' hate campaign for the eradicatation of pit bulls gang-bangers Bad Rap thinks they removed the language that was going to "flatten" us. Apparently not. It looks like everyone didn't get that memo. Successful lawyer and newbie Mayor R. Rex Parris of Lancaster, California campaigned on a law-and-order, gang-eradication platform. And he sure loves to shoot off his mouth: "I want gangs out of Lancaster," Mayor R. Rex Parris said in a recent interview. "I want to make it uncomfortable for them to be here. Anything they like, I want to take it away from them. I want to deliberately harass them.... "It's really like [gangs] having a weapon that they are allowed to display and intimidate people," Parris said. "If they have a pit bull, they may as well put a sign on their head saying, 'Come get me.' " Then there was:

“I want to deliberately harass the gangs. We will take their dogs; we will take their cars,”

Making it easy for Mayor Parris Think I'm coming down too hard on old Bad Rap? Did I singled them out unfairly? Self-inflicted wounds hurt the most, but let's run the list of the other "humane" organizations and supporters of SB 861. Bad Rap wasn't the only adventurer that took part in the SB 861 feeding-frenzy. Who else helped enable Mayor R. Rex Parris' fear-driven eradication campaign? Step out from the shadows and hang your heads in shame. . . . City and County of San Francisco Counties of Los Angeles, Napa, Tehama Cities of Apple Valley, Concord, Fremont, San Jose, Santa Rosa, West Hollywood Ace of Hearts Dog Rescue Action for Animals Animal Defense League Animal Issues Movement Animal Legislation Action Network Animal Place Animal Switchboard Association of Veterinarians for Animal Rights California Animal Control Directors Association California Association of Nurse Anesthetists California Lobby for Animal Welfare Contra Costa Humane Society Doris Day Animal League Friends of Long Beach Animals League of California Cities Peninsula Humane Society PETA United Activists for Animal Rights United Animal Nations Lessons learned? Mayor Parris is busy keeping his hate campaign alive. He doesn't have time to thank those that paved the way for him. I just hope that the members of some of these groups are beginning to understand the terrible repercussions of bad legislation. Innocent dog owners, and innocent dogs, are being hurt by SB 861. Good dogs are dying. There's no such thing as "just a little discrimination." Discrimination cannot be "retooled" into anything more acceptable. Love Does Not Discriminate Pit bull owners know it. Rottweiler owners know it. I believe most dog owners know it. Never, never let public servants -- or humane organizations -- in your community get away with it. _____________________________ Couple of other things: Noted with pleasure: Dogs White People Like Department of "forgot to mention before": Handy dandy contact information for Lancaster, CA

• City Council phone number: 661-723-6019
• email Mayor Parris at rrparris@cityoflancasterca.org

and, last but not least. . .

• Report a hate crime in Lancaster, California (877)728-7322 (7-AT-PEACE)

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.

HSUS Dogfight Czar John Goodwin Fails

Again 

Pit bull breeder Pat Patrick acquitted of all charges

Patrick's not guilty of a crime, but his dogs died anyway 

Barely a month since Floyd Boudreaux's acquittal in Louisiana, and Arizona judge John Leonardo tossed out the dogfighting and animal cruelty charges against Pat Patrick and Emily Dennis. 

Oh, my.

How embarrassing for the Humane Society of the United States. 

Fortune in Pima County's eyes

The Patrick prosecution began when HSUS brought dogfighting allegations to the attention of the Pima County Sheriff's department. Did Goodwin dazzle Pima County authorities with tales of how lucrative dogfight prosecutions are? 

Pat Patrick's kennel is located on an attractive piece of real estate. If authorities had successfully gained control under civil asset forfeiture proceedings, the property's value would have covered the cost of all kinds of goodies for the sheriff's department. 

Note to "pit bull" breeders with tangible property: get yourselves a real estate attorney and protect your homes from civil asset seizure proceedings. Do it now. 

Dogfight Czar waddles to the scene 

Goodwin himself showed up at Patrick's kennel during the raid (looking kinda pudgy for a vegan, don't you think?). Cameras rolled. Headlines screamed. Donate Now! emails made the rounds. John Goodwin gave interviews. 

HSUS's "extensive evidence." Not. 

To this day and despite the acquittal, the HSUS website boasts of the "extensive evidence" gathered as HSUS, the Humane Society of S. Arizona and the county sheriff's office swarmed over Patrick's property, gloating that. . .

With the arrests of these dogfighting kingpins, one of the most important underground dogfighting networks in the U.S. has been effectively dismantled. As a supplier of several major fighting-dog bloodlines, Patrick holds a status among professional dogfighters ranking second perhaps only to the infamous Floyd Boudreaux. . . 

HSUS looked forward to a "swift and decisive prosecution".

But just as Floyd Boudreaux was promptly acquitted when he finally got his day in court, the case against Patrick fell into little itty bitty pieces. 

Scorched earth policy: HSUS raids leave no dog standing

Dogfight Czar Goodwin must love the smell of napalm in the morning.

Goodwin & Co. made no plans to hold the Patrick dogs as evidence pending trial. 

Eleven months of "investigating" Pat Patrick -- plenty of time to find housing -- and the world's largest, wealthiest "animal protection" organization made no arrangements to provide for dogs it "rescued." 

Pat Patrick's dogs made for great photo opportunities, though. They were reportedly very sweet, and HSUS exploited their PR value every chance they got. And then HSUS arranged for 94 dogs to die.

This old timer, photographed with an HSUS "rescuer," was seized and killed six months before Pat Patrick even went to trial.  

Patrick, like Floyd Boudreaux, was sentenced to the (permanent) loss of his dogs by the Humane Society of the United States. 

Prior to the court proceedings that vindicated him.

Diane Jessup, who ran the now defunct "LawDogs" program and was imported by HSUS to evaluate Patrick's dogs, took three puppies home with her.

The pups were supposed to be part of the program.

Czar Goodwin even got a little sentimental about it--

It's heartwarming to see these lucky puppies have an opportunity at a better life, while being ambassadors for their much-maligned breed. . .

But Jessup killed the puppies, including this one, all the same.

Must be the season of the bitch

Bad Rap -- the notorious San Francisco pit bull boutique that co-authored and enabled SB 861 and thus collaborated in the incremental extermination of "pit bulls" in California -- picked up a couple of Patrick dogs, too. 

Donna Reynolds, Bad Rap's arrogant queen of double-speak, rationalized it this way: 

"The system killed the dogs because NOBODY WANTED THEM."

Nobody wanted them? Is she crazy? Pat Patrick and Emily Dennis wanted their dogs. Desperately.

Unproved allegations are lethal to pit bulls

In most states -- Arizona appears to be an exception -- "seize in place" court orders in alleged animal cruelty cases are available.

The animals that are the basis for the charges can lawfully be left where they are -- with court-ordered inspections to guarantee their health and safety -- pending adjudication.
 

Pat Patrick's dogs had a home. As the court found, there was no ongoing animal welfare crisis at Patrick's kennel. No deliberate, malicious abuse of animals. No dogfighting.

Patrick's dogs--like Boudreaux's dogs--should be alive today.

Did the Pima County Sheriff's office get kissed first? 

Cause they sure got left holding the bag, didn't they?

Will HSUS bail out Pima County if the consequences for killing Patrick's innocent dogs prove costly? Will HSUS come to the aid of LA SPCA, which pointlessly slaughtered the Boudreaux dogs? 

This three year veteran of the Chicago Police Department’s Animal Abuse Control Team thinks the $5,000 bounty HSUS offers for dogfighting tips is a scam.

HSUS is pretty tight with a nickle. HSUS spends money to make money. But that's about it.

This has to stop.

We cannot allow pit bull breeders to suffer the loss of their dogs based on allegations.
HSUS, its cohorts like the Pima County Sheriff's Department, and its apologists -- like Bad Rap -- are turning the country into a police state.

The time to stop it is now, before its too late.

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.