sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=2983121
if you were unfamiliar with the story, a nfl quarterback has just pled guilty to running a dog fighting ring. his career is ruined because he took his dogs across state lines to gamble and he “brutally murdered” some of his dogs…
briandunne.org/2007/08/01/defend … ights.aspx
"…A fundamental principle of libertarian ideology is that one can do whatever he so wishes with his own property, provided that he not harm another person…
This will hurt some reading this, but dogs are property. They are no more human than my television, Little Red Book, and fax machine. They are chattel – tangible personal property. You can buy or sell dogs. Dogs have no rights of ownership, nor can they pick their owner. We euthanize dogs – in fact, google the word “euthanize†and eight of the first ten links are for animal euthanasia. Dogs are separated from their mother very young and sold to humans a week or two later – does any of this sound human?
Yes, I know, people share ice cream with dogs, as well as long walks in the park. Dogs keep us company and help the disadvantaged. They play fetch and help keep intruders out of our homes. Dogs are wonderful creatures… but they are merely creatures.
I believe that dogs should be treated with respect; they should not be abused or tortured. If an animal is killed, it should bear as little pain as possible. I believe this under the broader principle that no living creature should suffer any more than is required; not because the particular animal in question looks like one I once shared a two bedroom apartment with. This is my own subjective moral, applied to my own private life. Sometimes animals must suffer for human demands – slaughtering for food, the extermination of pests, the euthanasia of pets or beasts of burden – but I do not want to be responsible for more suffering than necessary after balancing the cost-benefit.
If a fly gets in my house, I try to shoo it out. I don’t go fishing because I don’t eat fish and I do not want the animal to die simply for my own temporary amusement. If a cat is in my yard I scream at it and flail my arms until it leaves. The point is I apply my personal moral to my own life, my own interactions with nature. I understand that sometimes a firm hand is needed with nature, but I try not to go overboard and cause greater harm than is necessary to accomplish my goal.
But, those are my private transactions with animals. And just as others have shown reserve in questioning my actions – killing for food, eliminating pests, ending a pet’s painful life – so too must we show reserve in questioning the actions of a person who uses dog fights as a means of entertainment. In the end, both the man who fights dogs and I act on our own subjective morals – we determine what we are comfortable with and we apply our behaviors with chattel, tangible personal property, accordingly. Neither of us hurt other people. Neither of us harms the property of others. You can say my reasons for harming animals are better than his, but in the end, that is a question of individual morality…"
BTW, dog fighting is legal in Japan…
animal rights indeed…
-Imp