(no subject)
I was just reading some online debates about breed specific legislation, or bsl for short. For those of you who don't know what this is, bsl is legislation that is aimed at controlling or prohibiting the breeding of certain dogs. Pit bulls and their related breeds are often the target.
I have owned pitbulls my entire life, and not once have I ever been bitten by a one. However, since I realize anecdotal evidence isn't always reliable, I decided to look up some statistics. This website (http://dogsbite.org/bite-fatalities-2008.htm) is biased against pit bulls, but unwittingly serves to prove my point. Last year, 23 people were killed due to dog attacks. Let's compare this to the number of people who were killed in car accidents (http://www-fars.nhtsa.dot.gov/Main/index.aspx). Unless I'm reading the table incorrectly, according to this website, there were 37,261 people killed in car accidents last year. I've read that the leading cause of accidents isn't even alcohol. I myself have been hit by a car, but I have never been bit by a pitbull. In fact, I'm sure that people are a much bigger threat to my safety than any dog could be.
Now, I propose that we apply the some of the same logic to vehicles that we apply to pitbulls, you know, since they're so dangerous. I'm not saying that we do away with all vehicles, just the ones that we don't need. That means that anybody who lives within city limits shouldn't own a car. They could use public transportation, or *gasp*, walk their fat asses to work or school. This would save roughly 40,000 people from car related fatalities every year, plus we have the added benefit of reducing diseases that are attributed to sedentary lifestyles. Or, we can all go back to being sane and not letting our emotions cloud our judgment. I know that to the loved ones of the 23 people who died last year due to dog attacks that some one precious and irreplaceable was lost, but people are going to die now matter how safe we make our society. If people are going to die, was is the grief of 23 families compared to the grief of 37,261 families. God, I really need to stop caring about the world around me.
I have owned pitbulls my entire life, and not once have I ever been bitten by a one. However, since I realize anecdotal evidence isn't always reliable, I decided to look up some statistics. This website (http://dogsbite.org/bite-fatalities-2008.htm) is biased against pit bulls, but unwittingly serves to prove my point. Last year, 23 people were killed due to dog attacks. Let's compare this to the number of people who were killed in car accidents (http://www-fars.nhtsa.dot.gov/Main/index.aspx). Unless I'm reading the table incorrectly, according to this website, there were 37,261 people killed in car accidents last year. I've read that the leading cause of accidents isn't even alcohol. I myself have been hit by a car, but I have never been bit by a pitbull. In fact, I'm sure that people are a much bigger threat to my safety than any dog could be.
Now, I propose that we apply the some of the same logic to vehicles that we apply to pitbulls, you know, since they're so dangerous. I'm not saying that we do away with all vehicles, just the ones that we don't need. That means that anybody who lives within city limits shouldn't own a car. They could use public transportation, or *gasp*, walk their fat asses to work or school. This would save roughly 40,000 people from car related fatalities every year, plus we have the added benefit of reducing diseases that are attributed to sedentary lifestyles. Or, we can all go back to being sane and not letting our emotions cloud our judgment. I know that to the loved ones of the 23 people who died last year due to dog attacks that some one precious and irreplaceable was lost, but people are going to die now matter how safe we make our society. If people are going to die, was is the grief of 23 families compared to the grief of 37,261 families. God, I really need to stop caring about the world around me.