“Dog Fighting As Bad As Hunting”?
August 23, 2007
R.L. White, president of the NAACP’s Atlanta chapter is saying that Michael Vick, quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons who pleaded guilty to charges involving dog fighting, should be given a second chance and not be banned from the National Football League.
According to this MSNBC report, White also said this:
White said he does not support dogfighting and that he considers it as bad as hunting.
“His crime is, it was a dog,†White said.
I sure would like for Mr. White to elaborate on that just a bit. It’s hard to know if he is simply comparing the level of crime committed or whether he is actually comparing hunting and dog fighting as being similar. Makes you wonder what he thinks about fishing.
In a related report, the U.S. Sportsman’s Alliance Vice President for Government Affairs, Rob Sexton, was to appear last night on Fox News to “address comments made by a Washington Post columnist and an NBA star that compare dog fighting to hunting”. I haven’t been able to find any links to that story yet but when I do, I’ll either update this post or put up a new one depending on the timing of the release.
Tom Remington
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From what I’ve seen on forums, the reaction to Sexton’s appearance was pretty mixed. Some people seemed to think he was pretty weak and missed a good chance to spread a positive message about hunting, and others thought he did a good job. I didn’t see it, so I hope someone posts a link to the video.
As to the comment by the NAACP, that’s just silly. Putting dogs in a pit and having them fight to the death is in no way like hunting. To imply otherwise just shows how uninformed some people are.
I’ve also been reading mostly negative comments about Sexton’s appearance saying that he stumbled over opportunities O’Reilly gave him to put hunting in a positive light.
I’ve read from some saying he wasn’t prepared and seemed to want to fall back on the conservation efforts by the hunting industry.
I too would like to see a video or read the text. Can’t seem to find it at the O’Reilly website either.
As the Chair of Animal Chaplains.com, I have been horrified to learn about dogfighting and the cruel torturing, maiming, and killing that takes place in it. I am saddened that celebrities like athlete Michael Vick and rapper DMX have been implicated in such unbelievably bloody crimes. Dogfighting is not a sport. It is the sadistic act of forcing animals to tear each other to pieces for the demented entertainment of an audience.
Like humans, animals are sentient beings who feel pain. We are instructed by all of the worlds major faiths to care for animals in responsible, loving ways. It is our moral and spiritual obligation to protect them. Please join us on October 4th, 2007, in cities all around the world to celebrate “World Animal Day”. On that day, animals will be blessed and honored, and we will hopefully all realize how lucky we are to have them in our world. For more information, search on the words “World Animal Day” for a celebration near you.
Nancy J. Cronk
Founder, Chair and Chaplain
Interfaith Association of Animal Chaplains
http://www.AnimalChaplains.com