[Specop_007]

Specop thinks liberals are silly, emotional creatures that serve little function other then to support restrictive, oppresive governments.

Oaths ever sworn,
Specop_007

Article

Pit bull owners remain defiant as a pit bull ban comes into effect across Ontario today -- with prominent lawyer Clayton Ruby launching a legal challenge to the first such province-wide ban in Canada.

In announcing a constitutional challenge to the ban, Ruby called the law "too vague" and "overly broad," saying it will unintentionally apply to many other dogs.

He says the legislation lists a number of breeds that are "substantially similar" to pit bulls.

The legislation captures dogs that are a problem, but also a large number "that are not part of the problem. ... That is a huge number of dogs," he said at a press conference Monday.

Pit bull owners now have 60 days to get their animals spayed or neutered, and must muzzle and leash them in public.

People will not be able to own, breed, import, transfer or purchase pit bulls, although they can still adopt them for a limited time.

Those violating the rules can end up with their pets seized and euthanized, while they could face finds of up to $10,000 or even jail time.

However animal advocates fear hundreds of adult and puppy pit bulls may now be euthanized and candlelight vigils were held across Canada Sunday night to protest Ontario's new law.

Jessica Peacock, of the American Staffordshire Terrier Club of Canada, said many of the problems associated with pit bulls were the fault of their owners.

"Banning an entire breed is not going to solve the problem of responsible dog ownership," she told CTV's Canada AM.

Peacock said she was concerned about owners who might not understand the consequences of the new legislation.

"They could have their dogs taken away from them and destroyed," she added.

Clayton Ruby says there is no evidence that pitbulls are more dangerous than other breeds.

"A number of experts will say ... that there is no scientific basis to conclude that pitbulls are any more dangerous than any other dog," Ruby said Monday.

But postal worker Darlene Wagner, who was attacked by one of the powerful animals, is happy the new law is finally here.

"It's been a long time coming and it will make me feel safer on the streets when I'm out there," she told CTV News.

Ontario's legislature passed the law in late March, but delayed implementation to help municipalities adjust. There will be a 60-day grace period, to Oct. 28.

Registered purebreds will be exempt from sterilization as long as they continue to participate in authorized dog shows.

But puppies born after Nov. 27 must be shipped out of the province, given to a research facility or destroyed.

The legislation also calls for a crackdown on any dog that bites, attacks or is a menace to public safety.

The new law comes after of a series of vicious attacks in the summer of 2004.

"I am convinced that pit bulls are ticking time bombs. I am convinced that they are inherently dangerous animals," Attorney General Michael Bryant said in announcing the legislation last fall.

While walking his friend's two pit bulls a year ago, a 25-year-old Toronto man found himself under attack by both dogs.

Bystanders tried beating the dogs with sticks, but that didn't help. Police had to shoot the animals numerous times each. The animals kept up the attack until they were dead.

But despite such horror stories, pit bull fans say the Ontario government's ban is too broad.

"Does anyone know that Helen Keller's companion dog was an American pit bull terrier?" asked Janet Chernin of the Dog Legislation Council of Canada.

The Ontario ban covers dogs that even look like Staffordshire terriers or American pit bull terriers.

Chernin claimed in a meeting with Bryant, he couldn't pick out a pit bull from a number of different photographs of similar-looking dogs.

In Nova Scotia, dog trainer Bob Ottenbrite asked rhetorically: "Why are some children good and some children bad? It goes back to home." Bad owners are a bigger problem, he said.

At the Toronto Humane Society, a spokesman said the government has made a mistake if it thinks the law will stop dog bites.

"What is so dangerous for the public is they think they can approach any dog, mishandle any dog that isn't a pit bull and they won't be bitten, and that's not going to be the case," said Tim Trow.

[EdF]

Grrr...

We have two pit bulls - they're both very sweet dogs who have never shown any sign of human aggressiveness (except that they're assertive about wanting to lick and get petted). One of them has a problem with being dog-aggressive, which is not unusual for the breed - so he's never outside off a leash. Most people don't distinguish between these two things.

- Ed

[emersonbiggins]

This is not a liberal issue. They're also discussing a ban on pit bulls in red-state Oklahoma, with most of the concern coming from parents with small children.
I'm not for the ban, and I'm a liberal.

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Paul Wesselhoft, OK Rep. (R)', '
')State Legislator Says He's Receiving Threatening Phone Calls

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) -- A Moore lawmaker who wants to file legislation to ban pit bull terrier dogs in Oklahoma says he's been receiving threatening telephone calls.

State Representative Paul Wesselhoft (R) says a caller left a message at his home July 30th stating that Wesselhoft ought to be shot.

Wesselhoft says SBC traced the call to the caller's number.

Cleveland County District Attorney Tim Kuykendall said Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation agents have talked to the caller about the incident and a decision was made not to pursue charges now. Kuykendall says charges could be filed later if more incidents are reported.

Wesselhoft proposed the legislation after a Moore boy lost his arm in a June 12th attack by pit bull terriers.

[sklump]

EdF, responsible owners are a great breed. But one day your dogs will outlive you and their next owners will be inbred mountain people who will let them run wild in parks.

There have been enough maulings of kids here to make this ban a net vote-winner. Otherwise they wouldn't have gone with it. This provincial gov't needs a distraction from its chronic record of failure.

Just because a party goes by the name "Liberal", doesn't make them small-l liberal (well, actually, Attila the Hun is liberal by US standards and Genghis Khan is a moderate ). The Ontario Liberals are more in the mushy middle. The last actual left-wing government here left a bad enough taste in peoples' mouths that no-one dares strike up again on that tack.

Our "red"s and "blue"s are the opposite of yours too, which leads to cognitive dissonance for us looking at your electoral maps .

[EdF]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('sklump', '.')...There have been enough maulings of kids here to make this ban a net vote-winner....

[Specop_007]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('emersonbiggins', 'T')his is not a liberal issue. They're also discussing a ban on pit bulls in red-state Oklahoma, with most of the concern coming from parents with small children.
I'm not for the ban, and I'm a liberal.

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Paul Wesselhoft, OK Rep. (R)', '
')State Legislator Says He's Receiving Threatening Phone Calls

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) -- A Moore lawmaker who wants to file legislation to ban pit bull terrier dogs in Oklahoma says he's been receiving threatening telephone calls.

State Representative Paul Wesselhoft (R) says a caller left a message at his home July 30th stating that Wesselhoft ought to be shot.

Wesselhoft says SBC traced the call to the caller's number.

Cleveland County District Attorney Tim Kuykendall said Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation agents have talked to the caller about the incident and a decision was made not to pursue charges now. Kuykendall says charges could be filed later if more incidents are reported.

Wesselhoft proposed the legislation after a Moore boy lost his arm in a June 12th attack by pit bull terriers.

[emersonbiggins]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Specop_007', '
')Specop thinks you fail to see the full picture.

Artist extraordinaire,
Specop_007

[The_Toecutter]

The proposed Pit Bull ban simply entices me to own one just to spite this oversized piece of shit we have for a government. The dogs aren't the problem, it's the stupid people who decide to own them and then bother to not care for them.

The mere fact that people own them gets the security moms in an uproar. Security moms should be raped with razor blades, for all I care. It's their job to watch their own kids, and not expect big brother government to do it for them and then sanction everyone else who owns property or animals that doesn't please the security moms...

I keep big snakes. So long as I keep mine fed, and pay attention to it, they're virtually harmless. Pitbulls, or any dog for that matter, is in the same category. As are most animals in general.

[emersonbiggins]

Right on, Toecutter.
Whose panties get in a bunch whenever they see/hear something on TV that causes their ears (and, thus, their children's ears) to burn?
Doubtful that it's those promiscuous Hollywood liberals, with their drug-laden orgies and their biting comic wit on display for all to see.
Nope, it's those damn security moms, who think the world should be rubberized, sanitized and commodified for a 5-year-old's consumption.
F**k them. They'll not be happy until you live your life according to their rules, damned be your freedoms. It won't be long until they're after your guns, Specop. Your GUNS!!!

[Macsporan]

Pit Bulls are ugly, stupid, aggressive creatures that attack the defenceless and innocent.

Why am I not surprised the Specop has such deep sympathy for them?

[The_Toecutter]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'W')hose panties get in a bunch whenever they see/hear something on TV that causes their ears (and, thus, their children's ears) to burn?

[ubercrap]

Right, the dogs are not the problem. It's the type of person that often wants a powerful dog like this. Often, they are not responsible enough to own such a powerful dog. But, if your neighbors aren't doing something you don't like, then you're probably not living in a free country.

[sklump]

I die a little, inside, any time someone says "security mom".

The Pit Bull ban will have a constitutional challenge raised against it some time this year. I expect that the challenge will succeed and the ban will go down.

A problem here is that most responsible owners don't have Pit Bulls. I don't know what it's like in the States, but the problem dog/owner pairs tend not to be able to pay the fines when their dinosaurs maul kid after kid.

As far as cocker spaniels, their bites do nowhere near the damage that pit bulls' do. Police departments have come out in favour of the ban, since they have had to shoot dogs multiple times to divorce them from their bodies when suspects use the dogs in attempting to evade pursuit. Cocker spaniels, you can shake off.

I don't personally have much in the debate myself one way or another; like I said, this is a distraction from the facts that:
* Ontario now imports 25% of its power and the whole summer was very shaky ground
* The health levy has done nothing so far to improve wait times
* They gave away the Moiraine to property developers, destroying the last corridor across Toronto for wildlife
* Their educational reforms are in tatters, the dropout rate is actually increasing
* Still running deficits of $6 billion (although Americans won't understand that to be a problem, Canadians have become more more paranoid since the IMF rattled sabres at us in the '90s)
* No significant success in reworking transfer payments to the Feds.

In short, this ban is throwing a chunk of meat to us Voter Spaniels to fight over so we don't lock our jaws on the Premier's balls and crush at 300 psi.

[Battle_Scarred_Galactico]

One main thing to take away,

"Wesselhoft says SBC traced the call to the caller's number."

If you want threaten to shoot someone, use a payphone.

[EdF]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Macsporan', 'P')it Bulls are ugly, stupid, aggressive creatures that attack the defenceless and innocent.

Why am I not surprised the Specop has such deep sympathy for them?

[emersonbiggins]

Irony is so sweet.

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', '[')size=150]Author of N.M. dog law attacked by own dogs[/size]
Associated Press — Oct. 19, 2005

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — The author of a new state law that allows felony charges against owners of dangerous dogs was hospitalized over the weekend — after his own dog attacked him.

Bob Schwartz, who also is Gov. Bill Richardson's crime adviser, was hospitalized at University of New Mexico Hospital on Sunday night with bites on both his arms, said Pahl Shipley, a spokesman for the governor.

The hospital declined to release Schwartz's condition, but Shipley said Schwartz is "going to be fine."

Schwartz has three dogs registered with the city: a boxer and two English bulldogs, said Denise Wilcox, who oversees Albuquerque's animal care centers.

Schwartz was instrumental in getting a law passed this year that would allow felony charges against owners of dogs deemed dangerous or potentially dangerous and that seriously injure or kill another animal or person.

The law was designed to make dog owners accountable, said Sen. Sue Wilson Beffort, who worked with Schwartz to pass the bill.

"But I guess when it happens in your own family, that's another story," she said. "That's tragic."

[Hawkcreek]

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