When fighting a political battle, you have to be able to recognize allies and count votes.
I contend that the center/ right of both political parties, Democrat and Republican, are our best allies, and best chance of passing pro-dog legislation.
Here are a couple of examples:
1.) Who passed legislation to shield gun manufacturers from liability, when someone misuses a gun? The Republicans in this Congress. The Democrats have, for several years, been wanting to make it the gun manufacturer’s responsibility if a criminal uses a gun to kill someone. Why should a gun manufacturer be responsible if some weirdo steals a gun and then uses it to murder someone? It is immoral to hold people responsible for sins that they never committed.
2.) Who passed legislation to shield fast food retailers from liability, when someone stuffs their faces for years and years and ends up morbidly obese? Again, the Republicans in this Congress.
The Republicans, as a general rule, if they are conservatively bent, tend to support the idea of personal responsibility. The liberal ones will not.
The Democrats, as a general rule, if they are liberal, tend to protect whomever they perceive to be the “victim”, regardless of whether the victim caused their own problems or not. The conservative ones will not.
Which brings us to banning of certain breeds of dog.
As a rule of thumb, if you are going to be able to fight against breed bans, you’ll get a better hearing from less liberal Republicans and Democrats, because they will tend to focus on whether the dog or owner were responsible for a bad dog bite incident. Similarly, the more liberal the politician, the more they will want to hold the breed responsible, and want to ban the breed for the good of society.
Think on that when you go to the ballot box… or when you are lobbying for change… or writing letters to the editor…
Who are our allies and who will vote with us?
a.) Center/ right politicians, whether Democrat or Republican. Liberal Democrats and Republicans will side against us… and that could mean the end of your dog, period.
b.) I’m betting we can get some support from the gun and food industry, since this kind of trend to blame things instead of individuals has a trickle down effect to them, too. I think you can get the gun lobby, and possibly other targeted groups, such as the fast food manufacturers, to side with us in our fight… and even mobilize their people to send logistical support, funds, and volunteers our way to support our pro-dog causes.
I contend that the center/ right of both political parties, Democrat and Republican, are our best allies, and best chance of passing pro-dog legislation.
Here are a couple of examples:
1.) Who passed legislation to shield gun manufacturers from liability, when someone misuses a gun? The Republicans in this Congress. The Democrats have, for several years, been wanting to make it the gun manufacturer’s responsibility if a criminal uses a gun to kill someone. Why should a gun manufacturer be responsible if some weirdo steals a gun and then uses it to murder someone? It is immoral to hold people responsible for sins that they never committed.
2.) Who passed legislation to shield fast food retailers from liability, when someone stuffs their faces for years and years and ends up morbidly obese? Again, the Republicans in this Congress.
The Republicans, as a general rule, if they are conservatively bent, tend to support the idea of personal responsibility. The liberal ones will not.
The Democrats, as a general rule, if they are liberal, tend to protect whomever they perceive to be the “victim”, regardless of whether the victim caused their own problems or not. The conservative ones will not.
Which brings us to banning of certain breeds of dog.
As a rule of thumb, if you are going to be able to fight against breed bans, you’ll get a better hearing from less liberal Republicans and Democrats, because they will tend to focus on whether the dog or owner were responsible for a bad dog bite incident. Similarly, the more liberal the politician, the more they will want to hold the breed responsible, and want to ban the breed for the good of society.
Think on that when you go to the ballot box… or when you are lobbying for change… or writing letters to the editor…
Who are our allies and who will vote with us?
a.) Center/ right politicians, whether Democrat or Republican. Liberal Democrats and Republicans will side against us… and that could mean the end of your dog, period.
b.) I’m betting we can get some support from the gun and food industry, since this kind of trend to blame things instead of individuals has a trickle down effect to them, too. I think you can get the gun lobby, and possibly other targeted groups, such as the fast food manufacturers, to side with us in our fight… and even mobilize their people to send logistical support, funds, and volunteers our way to support our pro-dog causes.
No comments:
Post a Comment