'Yeah, I shot the dog. What the f--- you gonna do about it?'

[PaulConventionWV]

We rescued a pit bull from a shelter ten months ago. Since doing so, I genuinely believe that I have become a better person. I'm not as self-centered as I used to be, nor as introverted. I have struck up more conversations (BECAUSE of my dog) with complete strangers in the past ten months than I ever did in the forty years preceding.

My wife makes fun of me, because I like to take Snowflake with me just about everywhere I go (besides work). But everyone who sees her, and especially everyone who interacts with her, has a better day because of it. Just yesterday I saw the happiest two-year-old girl in the world, who giggled with joy at being able to pet (and be licked by) my dog.

On the flip side are those "people" who do things like kick, beat, stab, or kill dogs. Whether theirs or a stray.

While I don't think of myself as the nicest person in the universe, I *know* that I'm better than people like that.

Good for you. I applaud you for becoming a better person. The dog is valuable because it helped you look in on yourself. The dog, however, is not a human being and is not capable of becoming a "better" or "worse" person because it is not a person. It is a thing, just like a plant. If a plant helps you think better and makes you a better person, it is still just a plant. Just like a dog is still just a dog and nothing more.

You may be better than people who torture dogs, but the dog itself will never be better or worse than the human who does that to them because they are not capable of morality, philosophy, or even abstract thought. They simply aren't on the same scale.

 

[James Madison]

You were right until you said, "In the same way a parent watches over their child." I think most people would disagree with that. It is not the same.

How is it not the same? You provide for them, make decisions for them, protect them, and care for them.

 

[PaulConventionWV]

As much conviction as Hitler? I don't think so.

That doesn't make any sense. Who knows how much conviction Hitler had? It's not even relevant.

 

[PaulConventionWV]

All life is sacred

But the innocence of dogs is what makes this so outrageous.

The problem is that these are sadist fucks who go around shooting puppies, and is debatable which soul is more blessed

Like I said, dogs are no more "innocent" than they are evil. They are about as innocent as a cactus in that they don't have the capability to be either good or evil. Innocence means they haven't yet been corrupted. Only humans can truly be innocent because only they can be corrupted. Dogs are simply reacting to stimuli in their environment are capable of neither good nor evil. Therefore, there is no "innocence" for them.

 

[FSU63]

Way to provide context, dickwad.

No mass genocide ever occurred.

That doesn't make any sense. Who knows how much conviction Hitler had? It's not even relevant.

I know because I've seen videos of his speeches. You couldn't fake his passion.

 

[PaulConventionWV]

I know what my dog thinks. We communicate quite well together. He tells me when he is hungry and when he needs to go out. He tells me when he is cold and wants to get under a blanket. He tells me when he feels like playing.

Again, I'm saying you don't know anything about animals.

You just haven't taken the time to get to know one.

You don't know any more than I do about how they think. You might know more about how they act, but you are no more capable than me of measuring the good will or intentions of a dog than I am. You are simply looking for patterns in their behavior, not truly communicating.

 

[PaulConventionWV]

How is it not the same? You provide for them, make decisions for them, protect them, and care for them.

Because every parent I know values their children more than any dog. And any parent I know would be willing to sacrifice themselves for their own children, no matter what unspeakably horrible acts their children are capable of. They are always worthy of forgiveness.

If you value a human more than a dog, then that affects the way you care for them separately, no?

 

[Henry Rogue]

I honestly don't get why you hate me so much. It seems to have something to do with my age and level of education. In that case, a merry "up yours!" to you, too. Leave me alone.

Maybe you just come across as unlikable.

 

[Dr.3D]

You don't know any more than I do about how they think. You might know more about how they act, but you are no more capable than me of measuring the good will or intentions of a dog than I am. You are simply looking for patterns in their behavior, not truly communicating.

Well if you couldn't talk with language and people had to pay attention to how you act to understand what you wanted, I'm sure some idiot would say the same thing about you.

 

[PaulConventionWV]

No mass genocide ever occurred.


I know because I've seen videos of his speeches. You couldn't fake his passion.

Ok, but how do you measure that passion and compare it to someone else's. More to the point, why does it matter how much conviction he had?

 

[chudrockz]

Good for you. I applaud you for becoming a better person. The dog is valuable because it helped you look in on yourself. The dog, however, is not a human being and is not capable of becoming a "better" or "worse" person because it is not a person. It is a thing, just like a plant. If a plant helps you think better and makes you a better person, it is still just a plant. Just like a dog is still just a dog and nothing more.

You may be better than people who torture dogs, but the dog itself will never be better or worse than the human who does that to them because they are not capable of morality, philosophy, or even abstract thought. They simply aren't on the same scale.

"A dog can't become a better person because it isn't a person." No shit?

I suppose it's pointless, since you seem (in your words) "hardened." But I'm telling you the truth, and I'd venture to guess that the VAST majority on this forum and elsewhere agree with me, that there IS indeed something special about dogs. They are NOT just things.

If someone pees on my grass, I'll tell them to put their goddamned wang away and go home. If someone kicks my dog who is on my grass doing nothing to anyone, I *will* fuck them up.

 

[Dr.3D]

"A dog can't become a better person because it isn't a person." No shit?

I suppose it's pointless, since you seem (in your words) "hardened." But I'm telling you the truth, and I'd venture to guess that the VAST majority on this forum and elsewhere agree with me, that there IS indeed something special about dogs. They are NOT just things.

If someone pees on my grass, I'll tell them to put their goddamned wang away and go home. If someone kicks my dog who is on my grass doing nothing to anyone, I *will* fuck them up.

Some of the best people I know are dogs.

 

[PaulConventionWV]

Maybe you just come across as unlikable.

In that case, the best policy is to simply mind your own business when unprovoked. I don't care what you think of me. I'm on a message board, so I'm going to speak my mind. I bet 99% of people here are totally different in real life than they are on the internet.

 

[PaulConventionWV]

Well if you couldn't talk with language and people had to pay attention to how you act to understand what you wanted, I'm sure some idiot would say the same thing about you.

There is a reason dogs can't communicate with us. They aren't capable of feeling the same things we are. Humans who lose that capability are no less human because of it. Some idiot might say that about me, but they would be just that, an idiot.

 

[Dr.3D]

There is a reason dogs can't communicate with us. They aren't capable of feeling the same things we are. Humans who lose that capability are no less human because of it. Some idiot might say that about me, but they would be just that, an idiot.

Dogs can communicate with us if we just pay attention to them. They feel pain, hunger, cold and the need for love just like we do.

 

[LibertyEagle]

Good for you. I applaud you for becoming a better person. The dog is valuable because it helped you look in on yourself. The dog, however, is not a human being and is not capable of becoming a "better" or "worse" person because it is not a person. It is a thing, just like a plant. If a plant helps you think better and makes you a better person, it is still just a plant. Just like a dog is still just a dog and nothing more.

You may be better than people who torture dogs, but the dog itself will never be better or worse than the human who does that to them because they are not capable of morality, philosophy, or even abstract thought. They simply aren't on the same scale.

Why is it so hard for you to comprehend that a beloved pet animal is more important to the owner than some low life who would try to harm that beloved animal? It's really just common sense.

 

[PaulConventionWV]

"A dog can't become a better person because it isn't a person." No shit?

I suppose it's pointless, since you seem (in your words) "hardened." But I'm telling you the truth, and I'd venture to guess that the VAST majority on this forum and elsewhere agree with me, that there IS indeed something special about dogs. They are NOT just things.

If someone pees on my grass, I'll tell them to put their goddamned wang away and go home. If someone kicks my dog who is on my grass doing nothing to anyone, I *will* fuck them up.

If someone kicked my car, I might do the same thing. Those are all subjective judgments we make on a daily basis. The point about a dog not being a person is that it is not capable of good or evil, and so its value cannot even be measured against a human because it is a thing and is not capable of showing the same range of morality as humans.

The only special thing about dogs is their loyalty. That's why we value them so much, because a loyal animal is beneficial to the survival of the human to whom the dog is loyal. Outside of their utility, however, there is nothing special. They are still incapable of abstract thought and we are still incapable of communicating with them in any meaningful way by virtue of their very nature.

Spinach is a very good, nutritional plant. It is generally a better plant than lettuce, but it would never even occur to me to measure its worth in human life. How many humans is a leaf of spinach worth? 0.1? 0.01? It doesn't matter because they can't even be compared. Dogs may have more utility value than either spinach or lettuce, but their worth still can't be measured in human life.

 

[PaulConventionWV]

Dogs can communicate with us if we just pay attention to them. They feel pain, hunger, cold and the need for love just like we do.

They feel the same need for survival. I would leave "love" out of it. It doesn't change anything, though. We can't communicate with them beyond what is needed for the survival of each.

 

[chudrockz]

I can't recommend this book that my wife got me enough. I finally got time to read it a couple of weeks ago, and it's amazing.

http://www.amazon.com/Devoted-Extra...UTF8&qid=1388713349&sr=8-1&keywords="Devoted"

 

[LibertyEagle]

They feel the same need for survival. I would leave "love" out of it. It doesn't change anything, though. We can't communicate with them beyond what is needed for the survival of each.

CORRECTION. YOU can't. However, a lot of us can.