No talk of Michael Vick's Puppy Pit?

[Antioch]

Surprised nobody is talking about Michael Vick's own home version of "The Brawling Pit", puppy addition. It's all fun and games here, but seriousy....watching dogs destroy each other. Next thing you know he'll want a boxing ring in his house.

Antioch

[pigdish]

Boxing has nothing in common with dog fighting.

As for Vick he is dumb or he is listening to really stupid people in his life. He hit the jackpot by being a famous QB and to throw it all away blows my mind.

Personally I can't see anything fun about a dog fight but it would seem that some people do. The fights were apparently on his property and there was no harm being done to anybody except the dogs. I'm not defending the dog fighting but it really bugs me when the government enforces itself on people and their property.

[Dragonsrule]

OK. Dogfighting is ILLEGAL in the US. The government has every right if they are given any reason to believe it is taking place. I have lost all respect for Vick. I don't care how great an athlete he is, he went too far if he is involved. This is the same if they believe you have a Meth lab in your house, or a basement Pot factory.

[pigdish]

I know it is illegal but why should the government be involved in making it illegal in the first place? It doesn't pose a danger to society. It is offensive and stupid to me but as long as it is not infringing upon other people then what's the harm?

It's not the same as having a meth lab or pot factory. Those substances, when taken by people, infringe upon society as a whole. People on drugs can harm other people and most often do create problems for everybody because we have to pay for programs to 'clean them up', have law enforcement to stop these people which costs money. If dog fighting wasn't illegal those people that do it would just enjoy their sport and be done with it.

Actually dog fighting, in brutal form, is no different than horse racing, the greyhound running, or any of those types of events.

[Antioch]

Except the dogs are breed for violence and could attack other people if they got loose. Some cities are now banning what they call "violent breeds" such as pit bulls. They are banned in Germany and other countries right now because of their checkered past. It's not the dogs fault. Some hostility is inhereted, but most is nuture for this sport.

I don't think it's anything like racing. They don't sick the greyhounds on each other (though they are pushed to the brink for our amusement.

[Dragonsrule]

OK. So these people breed these dogs to kill. They then sell them to people. Then said dogs turns on them or an innocent child killing them. Yes the police should be involved and it should be illegal. Horses and Greyhounds are not set against each other to kill or harm. Horses are bred to run and carry things, yes they could do without whips sometimes.

[pigdish]

My comparison of dog fighting to racing is to illustrate that in essence they are all "sports" for the amusement of humans. I'm delving deeper into the similarities rather than looking at the obvious dissimilarity of those sports.

So these people breed these dogs to kill. They then sell them to people. Then said dogs turns on them or an innocent child killing them. Yes the police should be involved and it should be illegal.

This is a tangential argument to the initial topic of dog fighting. Selling those dogs outside of the arena should be illegal since it poses a risk to society as a whole, as you mentioned kids and adults. But if the dogs are used solely for the fighting and on private property then there shouldn't be any involvement from outside forces (ie government).

Fun discussion.

[Antioch]

Very, and good point about the greater definition of "sport"! Yes, they are both "for sport"

[Dmitri]

Pig, I love you, but I don't follow your logic here. Look at it this way...

You say pot is illegal because it hurts the rest of society by causing society to have to pay to clean up after the stoners or what not. While I personally would argue the truth of the statement you made period, lets assume for a moment that it is accurate, that tokin up is not a "victimless crime". In your logic, the victim is society at large, because they have to pay taxes that go into rehabs and programs, and you could probably extrapolate it out into lost productivity and the like if you wanted. As for hurting people, I think that violence based on weed is probably a lot less likely than violence based on say Jack Daniels. I think the biggest threat that most stoners have is that they occasionally need to raid the junk food aisle at the local Qwik E Mart real late at night. But lets assume they are dangerous criminals, who should be tracked down.

Dog fighting leads to betting. Gambling leads to addictions, just like alcohol and drugs. Addictions lead to other criminal behavior (this is the usual logic for outlawing pot and other drugs, and prostitution.) So now dogfighting is the logical place for a little money laundering to start, some racketeering, leading to loan sharking, and other organized crime activities. I mean, someone has to clean up the money won on the dogs - someone is gonna fill that spot of loan shark to the gambling junkie. So in the end, whether the dog fight is on your own personal property or not, it is still dangerous to society, by the "addiction leads to other crime" model that everyone so likes to apply.

Personally, I think that most of the brutal sports (wrestling - yes I know it is fake, boxing, dogfighting, etc.) are negative impacts. I mean really - what is this all except violent voyeurism like they had in the Colosseum at Rome? Bread and circuses? Not saying they should be illegal - if someone has a choice, and chooses to be a boxer, then so be it. But these animals don't have that option. That is my issue here - training something to kill, for no reason other than an individuals desire to watch death. Seems kinda sick to me... sorry to sound so black and white, but that kind of forbid fascination with death cannot be healthy...

[galadon]

Since two of Vick's "friends" have turn on him. How much time is he trying to get out of.

No endorcements for Vick. They dropped him like a hot potato.