If hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, angry dog lovers can’t be far behind.

I must admit that the reaction to an article from earlier in the week, Is it time to ban pit bulls?, was certainly more than I expected. The passion (in some cases, vitriol) of those responding (whether on this site, others, or via email) runs the spectrum. Some even devolved into name calling, which, though it weakens the credibility of anyone’s argument, does indicate the depth of feelings on this issue. (There were also many, many, polite, informed and persusaive messages.)

Two of the most common objections to the article were that there is no such thing as a “pit bull”, and that the media was responsible for the public perception that “pit bulls” are dangerous dogs. (I’m still confused by those who argue both - that the media gives pit bulls a bad name, but there’s no such thing as a pit bull.) Posters battled back and forth: some said, despite technicalities, there are certainly types of dogs commonly known as pit bulls, and they are dangerous; others said no dogs are inherently dangerous and any problems lie with the owner, not the dog (no matter what type).

Well, those fighting the battle to defend these dogs will be annoyed to know the Houston media was at it again within a few days of the original story:

A couple in Montgomery County is describing a horrific scene at their house near Splendora.

What happened in Thelma Simon’s backyard almost defies description. Her husband Floyd, a triple amputee, had let their 10-year-old Boston terrier outside to relieve herself.

Floyd: “I looked out this glass door and I seen two pit bulls had my little dog.”

The triple amputee crawled out of the house attempting to intervene, but was unsuccessful:

Floyd: “They got her head sucked through that gate and literally tore her head off.”

The couple said that one of the “pit bulls” belonged to his neighbor. (The TV station claims that when the reporters tried to interview the neighbor, he told them to go away or he would call the police. So, in all fairness, we never got to hear the neighbor’s story.)

The day got no better for Floyd after the police arrived:

“I got mad. He got mad. Cop got mad,” said Floyd. “He called some more cops and we all got mad.”

And Mr. Simon made a threat.

“I told him I would kill his dogs if they ever came back on my property,” he said.

For that, Floyd Simon was issued a citation for disorderly conduct and assault by threat.

Talk about pouring salt on your wounds.

Good grief.

ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos Reports: Though often regarded as a longshot candidate for president, Republican Ron Paul tells ABC News that he has an impressive $2.4 million in cash on hand after raising an equal amount during the second quarter, putting him ahead of one-time Republican frontrunner John McCain, who reported this week he has only $2 million in the bank.

When another BP shooting came across the wire Tuesday and there was little reaction, I thought that finally people understood the situation. Sigh, I should’ve known better.

What exactly happened inside an El Paso drainage tunnel in which an undocumented immigrant was shot and wounded by a Border Patrol agent Tuesday is becoming a contentious issue in the community.

First off, he isn’t an “undocumented immigrant”. He is an ILLEGAL CRIMINAL INTRUDER trespassing on U.S. soil. Second, there isn’t anything contentious about it.

“The agent perceived a threat against himself,” Border Patrol spokesman Doug Mosier said.

The agent had gone into a manhole with a flashlight to investigate an immigrant sighting at Hill and Ninth streets, officials said.

A federal law enforcement officer with a flashlight and a gun in a manhole is not someone you want to mess with. You are NOT INNOCENT when you are breaking and entering a foreign land.

Officials of the Mexican Consulate in El Paso interviewed the wounded man Wednesday but would not disclose the man’s version of events because the investigation continues. They said Thursday that the man had family and a work history in Denver and was headed there after spending time in Mexico.

I don’t give a rat’s rear end what the Mexican Consulate says. There are roads and bridges leading to Denver. For LEGAL immigrants. Manholes are for criminals.

“We are not convinced that the argument that they (agents) were defending themselves is a good argument,” Fernando Garcia, executive director of the Border Network for Human Rights, said at a news conference Thursday.

Who asked you to be convinced? What you need to do is start telling your friends and neighbors to stop breaking into the United States illegally.

“We do recognize we have a problem of criminal organizations. These are not nice organizations, but we don’t believe the immigrants are the ones attacking enforcement agents. They are just (caught) in the middle of these two forces.”

I’m real happy that you recognize a problem exists, but at the risk of being redundant, WHO ASKED YOU? How about YOU go down into a manhole and see if you come out alive?

And how did this latest protest get started?

Segundo Barrio residents who saw the aftermath of Tuesday’s shooting have described to their neighbors seeing the wounded migrant halfway out of the manhole, leading some residents to think — erroneously — that the shooting took place above ground.

Downtown resident Eva Castorena said she heard the story from an elderly woman who said she saw the shooting on her street.

That’s right, residents of the barrio lying about it because the elderly woman COULDN’T have seen the shooting on the street because IT HAPPENED UNDERGROUND!

Wheeerrreee’s Johnny?!

 

——————–

Job Wanted–Prepress production operator seeking day shift position with opportunity to eventually advance into supervisory role. Candidate has over seventeen years experience in the printing industry working in diverse fields from newspaper to high-end clients including Pepsi, Mary Kay Cosmetics, R. J. Reynolds, Donruss Sports Trading Cards, etc.

Applicant has a B.A. in Communication Arts and has a wide range of experiences from graphic design and ad building to preflight and prepress service. Project experience is also widely diverse including packaging, multi-page layout and trading cards. Interested parties should contact candidate with resume request via email at “cchd AT houston DOT rr DOT com”.

——————–

Get paid to tell us what you think– Register to participate in one of our focus groups; earn money telling us what you think about politics, your community and consumer goods. Click here to learn more and sign-up!

——————–

——————–

Dawn Wolf Design– LST’s full-service graphic designer of choice. Talented, professional, competitively priced; a generous LST volunteer, we could not recommend her more highly. | 713-984-9200 | website

——————–