Not Chicken Enough

Not chicken enough. Yes. Others will not stand up for what is right and what is their life.

“He who sacrifices freedom for security deserves neither.”
– Benjamin Franklin

Chickens are game and brave to face geese, dogs, cats, and even myself. They will hit where it hurts. Goose’s head. Dog’s nose. Dog’s side. Cat’s back. Man’s thigh, knee, feet, hand, stomach and sometime fly up to the man’s head.

Dogfighting is a sports. It starts from the mating of great fighters – male and female dogs. More or less two months from conception, the puppies will be born. Raising and keeping them active and strong bring out their breed’s characteristics. That is being game and has the instinct to kill the other in the shortest time possible without them getting torn up themselves. This is where breeding and competition go hand in hand. With lots of animal love from their owners.

– Gameness til the End

Editorial: Downright chicken

By: Dothan Eagle editorial board | Dothan Eagle
Published: May 02, 2012

One can hardly consider the notion of fighting animals for sport without thinking of Michael Vick, the NFL quarterback whose involvement in a dog fighting ring landed him in federal prison for more than a year and almost tanked his career.

Some might say he’s seen the light, and now understands that pitting animals against each other to fight to the death for gambling and entertainment purposes is an extraordinarily barbaric practice.

Recently, the reformed Vick was in Alabama to beseech state legislators to address our state’s pathetic law against cockfighting. Vick pointed out that animal cruelty is wrong, and that Alabama’s maximum fine for cockfighting – $50 – makes our law the weakest in the nation.

His words apparently fell on deaf ears. In considering what should be a no-brainer – increasing fines for those involved in cockfighting to discourage the abusive “sport” and its associated illegal gambling, and to ensure that our state doesn’t become a destination for the cockfighting underworld – Alabama legislators balk, balk, balked, failing to get the measure up for a vote.

Perhaps the reluctance to update penalties for a cockfighting prohibition that has been in place in our state for more than 100 years has to do with lobbying efforts by the Alabama Gamefowl Breeders Association, which has successfully defeated measures to strengthen cockfighting penalties for the past three years. AGBA claims it has no stake in cockfighting, but curiously opposes efforts to update the law.

That’s a poor reason to allow illegal activity to continue unabated.

Lawmakers must allow this measure to come up for a vote, and then approve it without hesitation. Failing to do so is dereliction of duty – or just downright chicken.