Did anyone else notice the total lack of irony or er, consciousness, or something in this absurd story about the city resources that are available for homeless dogs?
It reminded me of how people went beserk when an anti-war activist at the University of Wisconsin threatened to kill a puppy to protest the war in 1991. Predictably, there was more outrage over the puppy than there was about the war. It's amazing, by the way, how many websites one can find in "google" by searching various combinations of "gulf war" 1991 madison and puppy without actually finding a single article mentioning that aforesaid event.Another memorable commentary on this appeared in Doonesbury in the 1970s, when BD's girlfriend was horrified to learn that "baby ducks" had been killed in connection with My Lai.
Why, why do people love Puppies, foetuses and Terry Schiavo?... Because puppies, invalids, foetuses, and dogs are helpless, while people imagine that those people killed in American wars are bad, wicked terrorists - who can fight back. The idea of a person fighting back is seen as bad in most contexts (unless it is done on behalf of Schiavo, baby ducks, etc) has to do with denouncing the exercise of power and aggression not only in the "other" but by oneself. "Oh no, I'm not exercising power," why, "I'm only helping the dogs/baby ducks/etc...now give me some more money for weapons."
In my failed effort to find a copy of the "baby ducks" frame, I found this interesting article on Garry Trudeau's support of the Kosovo bombing -- remember that?
The news is just one war after another. It's all so perfectly avoidable and yet, so defined as inevitable. One of my students today said, as I was explaining why we're spending more time on the civil rights movement than on WWII (I told them there was whole channel on cable dedicated to WWII, I was sure they could learn a lot without me) that I should just admit it, "You don't like war."
probably true.
And if you can't get enough news about dogs, then see what you can find on this web page.
If you want to find something newsworthy, may I suggest that you attend Rahul Mahajan's talk on April 13th? I am simply excited about the extremely large number of totally diversionary events I am planning on attending in the coming weeks, beginning on Thursday at the Public Library, where R.Crumb will be speaking. oh goody!
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