William K. Wolfrum

Yes, my wife and I are, in fact, crazy dog people.

–WKW

The Mainstream Media in the U.S. is broken. Completely and utterly broken. And it’s helping to create a nation of imbeciles, plain and simple. Because when a woman shows off pictures of a dead dog and declares that she’s found some type of supernatural beast, real journalists are supposed to shun her. Perhaps even mock her before slamming the phone down.

But not the Associated Press. And now MSNBC, Fox News and countless others are running the story about this lady and the dead dog, and treating it like some type of actual front-page news event and some type of issue that deserves debate and thought.

“Monster or dog? ‘Goatsucker’ tale debated”

CUERO, Texas - Phylis Canion lived in Africa for four years. She’s been a hunter all her life and has the mounted heads of a zebra and other exotic animals in her house to prove it.

But the roadkill she found last month outside her ranch was a new one even for her, worth putting in a freezer hidden from curious onlookers: Canion believes she may have the head of the mythical, bloodsucking chupacabra.

“It is one ugly creature,” Canion said, holding the head of the mammal, which has big ears, large fanged teeth and grayish-blue, mostly hairless skin.

What tipped Canion to the possibility that this was no ugly coyote, but perhaps the vampirelike beast, is that the chickens weren’t eaten or carried off — all the blood was drained from them, she said.

Chupacabra or not, the discovery has spawned a local and international craze. Canion has started selling T-shirts that read: “2007, The Summer of the Chupacabra, Cuero, Texas,” accompanied by a caricature of the creature. The $5 shirts have gone all over the world, including Japan, Australia and Brunei. Schaar also said he has one.

There’s pictures at the story if you want to see. It’s basically a story being used to showcase pictures of a dead dog or perhaps a coyote. In order to sell T-shirts. And AP is bringing the story to the masses, and the mainstream media is lapping it up like sad fools.

Seriously, it’s literally embarrassing seeing what the big news corporations thing the public should view as “news.” In fact, MSNBC has it listed under its “Science” section.

No wonder Weekly World News went out of business. All other forms of media lowered themselves to its standards.

–WKW

Afonso is constantly teaching us lessons. In this case, the message is clear - never be afraid to aim high.

–WKW

Michael Vick’s career as an NFL quarterback is over. Vick has accepted a plea deal and will plead guilty to federal dogfighting conspiracy charges, according to ESPN:

“Vick agrees to plead guilty in dogfighting case”

Michael Vick’s lawyer said Monday the NFL star will plead guilty to federal dogfighting conspiracy charges, putting the Atlanta Falcons quarterback’s career in jeopardy and leaving him subject to a prison term.

The offense is punishable by up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, although federal sentencing guidelines most likely would call for less.

Prosecutors, who were seeking a prison term of 12 to 18 months, have yet to formally agree to the plea, a source told ESPN’s Kelly Naqi.

“After consulting with his family over the weekend, Michael Vick asked that I announce today that he has reached an agreement with federal prosecutors regarding the charges pending against him,” lead defense attorney Billy Martin said in a statement.

“Mr. Vick has agreed to enter a plea of guilty to those charges and to accept full responsibility for his actions and the mistakes he has made. Michael wishes to apologize again to everyone who has been hurt by this matter.”

Vick is charged with conspiracy to travel in interstate commerce in aid of unlawful activities and conspiracy to sponsor a dog in an animal fighting venture.

The career of one of the most physically gifted players in NFL history is done because of his sick mind. Michael Vick is officially untouchable now. No team or company will ever want to be associated with him again. And rightfully so. Because come next Monday when he stands before a judge, he will officially admit the he is unfit to live in a civilized world. He had it all, but he couldn’t control his sick impulse to murder and torture dogs.

Next up: Jonathan Babineaux.

–WKW

It is alleged that Michael Vick was a ringleader in a huge dog-fighting operation, as well as someone who apparently gained perverse pleasure in torturing dogs. Vick pleaded not guilty to the federal charges brought against him, but with the public clamoring for his head, the NFL has basically suspended him until further notice while all his sponsors, including Nike, have done the same.

That doesn’t mean the Atlanta Falcons don’t have an alleged dog murderer in their midst, however.

Jonathan Babineaux was arrested in February of this year on a charge of felony animal cruelty. Apparently, after a fight with his girlfriend, Babineaux took her pit bull and beat it to death with his own hands.

Babineaux is currently in the Falcons pre-season camp, obviously keeping a low profile.

Simply put, however, as long as Babineaux is allowed to play with the Falcons while Vick is forced to sit out, the NFL’s and the Falcons’ treatment of Vick can only be seen as a PR ploy. It has nothing to do with ethics, or a standard of character they want from their players.

As long as Babineaux remains active, the NFL and the Falcons are little more than hypocrites whose hands were forced in the Vick case.

–WKW

Today while spending time in the office, Afonso was given a
rawhide bone as a treat, but he didn’t feel secure about it.

So he decided to bury it.

So he dug.

Then he covered it, so no one would find it.

The bone - now buried.

Afonso then accepted some appreciation for his hard work.

Then Afonso remembered he had hidden a bone,
so he got it and chewed for a while.

Then Afonso decided to bury the bone again.

Then he covered it, so no one would find it.

The bone - now buried.

The End.

–WKW

Pinkie is a 12-year-old Basset Hound in Alabama that needs a loving home. She’s willing to travel to the right owners, so if you or someone you know want to give a loving dog a safe and caring home, contact the fine folks at Alabama Basset and Bloodhound Rescue, who go the extra mile for “senior” dogs:

Here at ABBR we are devoting our time, resources and space to help Senior dogs of all shapes and breeds. Each year, more and more seniors are dropped at the shelters in the South. Everyone of them with slim or no chance of getting adopted…think about it..when someone says “that’s an old dog”, haven’t you walked on..you think of your children and what it would do to the family to take him home and then loose him right away.

Now with more seniors showing up in the shelters, all the rescue folks are trying to make room for just one more..well we now have a way that you can help…it is called being a Guardian Angel to one of hounds. We will be giving regular updates on these kids and all it would take is a monthly donation or if you can’t do monthly then a one time donation will go a long way to help with medical treatment, food & long term care.

You can find Pinkie’s “Home Page” by clicking here, or find out more at Shakesville. If you want to look locally for a Basset to adopt, check out the Daily Drool, which has links aplenty to regional rescue centers.

–WKW

Mitt Romney: Confessions of a dog torturer:

“You know, PETA has not been my fan over the years,” Romney said. “PETA has been after me for having a rodeo at the Olympics and were very, very upset about that. PETA was after me when I went quail hunting in Georgia. And PETA is not happy that my dog likes fresh air.”

I’ll give Romney this - he’s no Michael Vick. But one would imagine a Presidential candidate might want to aim a little higher.

Romney can try and slough off this story all he wants, but here’s the truth - A vote for Mitt Romney is a vote for animal abuse.

–WKW

Afonso, the young stray we took in a few months back, woke up this morning full of play and love. And with two testicles.

This afternoon, sans the testicles, he’s not quite as cheerful.

My wife and I felt badly that we had to take Afonso in to be fixed, but aside from loving the bejeebers out of our dogs, we want to act responsibly for them. His procedure went smoothly, and we were told he’d soon be his old playful self again.

In Brazil, like nearly everywhere else on this globe, there is an outright epidemic of stray dogs. And the situation doesn’t appear to be getting better any time soon. The procedure cost us roughly (US) $75. And while Brazilians love their dogs as much as any people on the planet, such an outlay of money for many Brazilians amounts to half of their monthly income.

My wife and I hope some day to find a way to help the stray dog epidemic here. Our hearts break with each sad, stray dog we see on the streets. But even in the U.S., stray dogs are a severe problem. In 2004 in Southern California, we rescued a young stray, and struggled to find it a home after being told at the pound that it was 99.9 percent certain he’d be put to death.

Luckily, having worked for the San Bernardino Sun in the past, I contacted their longtime columnist and sportswriter Paul Oberjuerge, who used the dog (which we took to just calling “Puppy”) in a column as an example of the animal control problems in the area. Made famous, “Puppy” found herself a home.

It was a fluke, of course. Because there are literally millions of Puppys and Afonsos out there right now, on the street, living miserable lives that will only be ended by miserable deaths.

Dogs did their part for humans long ago. It’s possible we wouldn’t even be here if not for their willingness to be our companions, and keep watch over us. For that, and for the outright joy of life that dogs bring us, we need to be eternally grateful.

Spay and neuter your pets. Please.

–WKW

The Atlanta Falcons, with their quarterback position already filled my a dog-killing enthusiast in Michael “I need to find new friends” Vick, have said they are looking for defensive tackle Jonathan Babineaux to play a big part in their 2007 season.

Falcons look to Babineaux as sub for injured Coleman

Faced with the prospect of opening the 2007 season without injured defensive tackle Rod Coleman, the Atlanta Falcons won’t panic in attempting to fill the potential void, and instead will seek a replacement for their star inside pass rusher from the current roster.

General manager Rich McKay said on Tuesday that the Falcons won’t demonstrate any urgency in signing a veteran free agent to move into the starting lineup. Rather, the team will elevate third-year veteran Jonathan Babineaux to the first unit and, if the Falcons sign a more experienced player, it will probably be as a backup

Babineaux is still awaiting trial on felony animal abuse charges for murdering his girlfriend’s dog. The story made no mention of the issue.

It is becoming abundantly clear that the Atlanta Falcons and the NFL are pro-animal abuse.

–WKW