James Dobson: Dog Beater

[pstokely]

Focus on the Canine

http://www.geocities.com/cddugan/DobsonsDog.html

[brainshrub]

1. Wow, great article!

[stevedeshazer]

2. Very revealing

200 - 12, I win.

Republican Family Values

[The Zanti Regent]

32. Jesus told him to beat a helpless doggy!

What better way is there to show God's compassion?

[RBHam]

3. Does he collect the semen?

And is that he crossbred Strom thurmond and Anita bryant to create ann coulter?

just asking....

[RBHam]

doesn't any of you have a photo-shop comparison?

or are you afraid i'm right?

[RBHam]

7. doesn't any of you have a photo-shop comparison?

or are you afraid i'm right?

[BuelahWitch]

4. Rotten SOB

[MisterP]

5. anti-beating site:

http://www.nospank.net/dugan.htm

[Blue Diadem]

6. poor little doggie! Is this the same guy

that put Michael Moores home address and phone number out to the public. I remember reading that MM got threats and harassment.

[OutsourceBush]

8. Does he beat the dog before or after he has sex with it?

[Just Me]

9. Maybe, James will return as his dog.

Asshole.

[idiosyncratic]

13. This is what he will look like

[Just Me]

21. Let me clarify: Hope he's sent back as a dog in the same hands.

Geez. The former "homeless" creatures I've adopted,...want to be close to me because they don't fear me. I set limits without ever having to be abusive.

The man has a low tolerance level,...and less control over his own negative emotions than his "dog".

He's a total control-freak. Let life prove to him how little control he has,...and, perhaps, his eyes will change: they will either grow red or become more soft,...his choice.

[pansypoo53219]

10. ooh. i am sending that to my MOTHER

who like my grandmother, god-bless her sole, was a dr dobson fan.
christian values my ASS.

[Proud2BAmurkin]

11. what a fuckface

.

[Erika]

12. Dobson Is Sick BigTime!

Can you imagine taking a belt to a small animal or a child? Mr. Dobson claims to be a Christian and one of Bush's biggest supporters.

Can you imagine Christ taking a belt to such? This is yet another example of the far right-wingers and their less than rocket scientists supporters hijacking Christianity.

[David Dunham]

14. If Dobson lived in NY or CT, I'd call the police and have the SOB arrested

Someone ought to release a pair of pit bulls on Dobson and give them 10 minutes with him in a closed room.

[pstokely]

15. could it have been a demon possessed dog

disobeying a man of God like Dobson

http://www.landoverbaptist.org/news0502/demondogs.html

[m berst]

16. he has done us a favor

Inadvertently Mr. Dobson has done us an enormous favor here. He has connected the daily activities and attitudes of people to the larger societal issues.

I am often surprised to see the reluctance of so many of us liberals and Democrats to connect the everyday things they see in their lives with the national political and cultural scene, while at the same time decrying our lack of power.

The Bush administration, and the Republican party are all about bullying - not Christianity, no values, not free enterprise, not conservative philosophy - and there is a seamless connection between the everyday behavior of the citizenry and the behavior of our senior officials.

We often are mystified as to what hold Bush has on his supporters, and this article about Dobson sets it out for us very clearly. Bullying has become the norm throughout society. Republicans don't lead, they bully. They don't argue, they bully. They don't run businesses, they bully. This pervasive climate of bullying, and tacit acceptance of it by those of us in the opposition, is the mechanism that keeps George Bush in power. Bush gives bullies permission. The public gives the bullies in the White House permission. It is feeding on itself and growing.

We try to shame the bullies. You can't shame bullies. We try to negotiate with bullies. You can't negotiate with bullies. We try to persuade bullies. You can't persuade bullies. We need to stand up to them and call it when we see it.

Confronting bullying, standing up to it, exposing it and condemning it is our every day lives is the quickest surest path to stop the Republican leadership. All one needs to do is peruse DU for a day to see that Democrats have accepted bullying, provided that it is for the right cause. Bullying IS the cause for the Republicans. The only cause. Every bullying action by the bully in chief reinforces bullying behavior in the population, and every bullying action in our everyday life creates more power and justification for the bully in chief.

The whole movement - the right wing, the religious right - is all about bullying. It is like a growing hysteria. Any place that we call people on it or take a stand on it, we weaken it. Any time we overlook it, or excuse it, or engage in it ourselves, we strengthen it. This puts the power to stop this into our hands, every day and everywhere.

It is all about bullies - admiring them, rewarding them, making excuses for them, rolling over to them, emulating them, apologizing for them and accepting them. It is happening everyday to every one of us. That is where it can be confronted, and that is where it is most effective when it is confronted.

[Erika]

18. Your post was great!

It is my intent to yell out that the Bush administration is NOT Christian. It burns me to no end that they think Bush is a Christian when he does not follow the teachings of Christ.

[m berst]

20. yes, I fear it is a ruse

Reminds me of the Nazi party claiming to be a "socialist workers' party" until very late in the game. The Nazi party also claimed to be Christian in their early going, although they dropped that pretense pretty early on.

I don't mean to question Christianity, nor the man's faith, but his use of his faith to promote his political career is worrisome and raises many questions.

The two most revealing things to me about this are that the man does not belong to a congregation nor attend church regularly, and that his official story of his conversion - that it was Billy Graham who inspired him during a personal meeting - is contradicted and denied by Graham himself. Another troubling thing is that he is using Amway mogul, motivational speaker, and Assemblies of God minister Doug Wead as a coach to help him send signals and connect to the Evangelical community.

[colonel odis]

27. your post should be required reading.

as i recall from the schoolyard, bullies crumble when you stand up and punch them in the nose.

[Warren DeMontague]

17. How Christian.

Fuckface.

[fishwax]

19. What a jerk

Dobson is one of the worst. How anybody can see that model of parenting as moral or as christian is beyond me.

[bluedonkey]

22. What a jerk!

Too bad he doesn't have a bigger dog...
I hope he dies of hemorrhoids!

My fundie nieces love him and advised me to 'take the strap to my son before it's too late'.That was about 5 years ago and I have not set foot in their house since.

[theHandpuppet]

23. Another portion of the article reads...

Dobson even views some crying babies as "little dictators" engaged in a bid to control and enslave their parents, and advises parents not to let the child "win" by picking up the child and soothing it.  He warns that:
 
 "It is possible to create a fussy, demanding baby by rushing to pick him up every time he utters a whimper or sigh.  Infants are fully capable of learning to manipulate their parents through a process called reinforcement, whereby any behavior that produces a pleasant result will tend to recur.  Thus, a healthy baby can keep his mother hopping around his nursery twelve hours a day (or night) by simply forcing air past his sandpaper larynx."

Dobson's words remind me of a despicable Sunday School teacher I had some 40 odd years ago, one who taught a class of pre-teens which included myself and my sister. She preached, among other things, that when babies cry it is tantamount to sin because the baby is only thinking of itself (thereby guilty of selfishness) and that children go to hell if they have not accepted Christ as their savior, even if they live somewhere where they had never heard of Jesus. I have never forgotten the revulsion and horror I felt at these "teachings", even after all these years.

This was also the same church that lectured children that fossils were planted by Satan to test our faith (and gave us all little tracts about it -- me especially, being fascinated by paleontology) and that slavery was acceptable according to the Bible.

Lest you think this happened somewhere in back-of-beyond, small town Alabama, this was a Southern Baptist church in OHIO. Fortunately, I was not long for that church as I was summarily drummed out after leading a student walkout protest of the Vietnam War. Never looked back and to this day you have to drag me kicking and screaming into a church. Last time was at my father's funeral, where the officiating pastor delivered a fire and brimstone sermon about hell rather than the eulogy. To be honest, I truly think that adhering to that kind of religion is a form of mental illness, and that a good portion of this cult country is suffering from mass psychosis.

[Joy Anne]

28. stories of rejection by churches needed

Re "the bouncer ad":

The United Church of Christ's ad has received abundant support from faith-based organizations and individuals from all walks of life. However, some groups, specifically the Association for Church Renewal and the Institute on Religion and Democracy--widely identified with the religious right--are calling our ad, "dishonest and insulting to other Christian churches."
The ad is clearly allegorical. In the same way Jesus used startling symbols in his parables - it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to get into heaven - it contains arresting imagery, taken from the point of view of those who have felt excluded. In focus groups held in preparation for the production of this ad, non-church goers cited again and again that the reason they didn't attend church was because they had been wounded or rejected in the past. We are simply trying to reach out to this group in a language they can understand and invite them to give the church another chance.

Were our focus groups on target? Have you been hurt by a church? Your stories will help illustrate the need for inclusion and highlight the importance of our message. The attacks on the UCC's campaign deny the truth that many people face. Please post your stories as comments as a way of serving witness to the truth. We're interested in your experience as a way of personalizing the realities our ad reflects.

Go to http://www.accessibleairwaves.org
Look for the new blog entry in the middle of the page entitled "Have you been turned away?"
Click on the red Comments link to read the stories that generous, kind people have already shared -- and add you own.


Please post comments here on this blog that reflect how your experience made you feel towards church in general and whether or not it impacted your participation in church. Please refrain from posting specific information about individuals, specific churches or religious groups - our mission is to encourage inclusion.

As we continue to let more and more people know about our extravagant welcome, your responses can help our congregations better serve as welcoming places where healing can take place and more accurately address the pain you are feeling.

Thank you,

The Rev. Bob Chase
Director of Communication
United Church of Christ

[artemisia1]

24. He and Dr. Laura are cut from the same cloth.

I was raised by fundies with similiar beliefs and practices. There is no way to describe the pain these rightwing nut jobs cause. Isn't it enjoyable to have %50 of Americans in a cult?

[Stephanjnj]

25. Focus on Flogging Fido

Merely a fundie how-to primer, with pet-as-surrogate applications that can be put into practice later on as their own kids are systematically brutalized.

[Killarney]

26. He is AWFUL.

:puke:

[retread]

29. How many serial killers started out abusing the family pet?

*

[laruemtt]

30. how totally sick!

wish we could rescue poor siggie from his demented "owner." just picture him with that self-righteous grin on his face while he's "disciplining" the poor pup. scarier than chucky, imho.

[s-cubed]

31. The behavior of the dog is classic alpha dog: dodson's behavior

is classic control freak. Dodson, I have to admit, was right to challeange a dog that growls and threatenes its owner, but he sure was wrong about the way he went about it.

He should never have let it get to that kind of confrontation; when he got home and realized that Siggy was boss, he should have asserted his authority by taking Siggy out for a walk, giving him a series of commands like sit, stay, especially down, which is a submissive position. This would most likely have stopped the problem. Then, Dr. Dobson, he of the great wisdom, might have helped his family understand dogs enough that they would not let Siggy become alpha.

I'd recommend that Dr. Dobson read a few good books on dog training: it might help him understand child training a lot better. Dogs are not kids; kids are not dogs, but positive reinforcement works much better for both than punitive training.

Since Dobson failed and let a confrontation develop, he then had to either handle it properly or get a professional's help. For a small to medium size dog, all you generally have to do is grab it by the back of the neck and give it a good shake (not violent - that can be like shaking a baby). For a larger dog, you first try the shaking method, and if that doesn't work, you pull its legs out from under it, put it on its side, hold it down by one hand on the neck and one near the tail, and tell it in a deep voice that you are the boss, not it, and you will not tolerate it trying to be the alpha. WARNING - IF YOU HAVE ANY DOUBTS ABOUT WHETHER THE DOG MIGHT TURN ON YOU, OR IF IT HAS BITTEN BEFORE, DON'T DO THIS. GET PROFESSIONAL HELP.

What I am describing is not cruelty to the animal: it is speaking to it in a language it understands. Dogs are pack animals: they expect and want a hierarchy that is well defined. That is what the typical dog greeting dog is all about: who's higher. Have I had to do this to any of my dogs? Only a very few times: one older dog from a pound needed the hold-down treatment, but I was very sure of how she would react before I did it, and I never let it get to the point that she growled at me.

I'll probably get flamed by some of you who think coddling their dogs is treating them well, but a well trained dog who understands his rank is a happy dog and the owner is a responsible owner.

[oneighty]

33. Yes

I had a German Shepherd that now and then would challenge me for the position of 'Head dog'of the household. The hold down method followed by dog biscuit treat worked well. Until the next time. His spirit was preserved.

180

[FlaGranny]

34. I got my first puppy

8-1/2 years ago - a spitz breed. I took her for her shots yesterday and the veterinarian told me she was the only spitz dog she had in her practice that she wasn't afraid to not muzzle. She said most of them will bite.

This sweet little girl was taught from the time she came into my house who the boss was. I never once hit her, but I allowed no dominance on her part on ANY issue. If she growled or tried to assert herself, I'd hold her gently by the sides of her face and growl at her and stare at her until she averted her eyes. I can take the food right out of her mouth. She never runs away from me, comes when I call, and is a very happy, well adjusted dog.

Her breed has a tendency to be excitable, mouthy, and to bark a lot. She had every single one of those tendencies as a puppy, but she grew up to be a joy. And never once have I hit her, stuck her nose into an "accident", or any of the other terrible things people do to their dogs. All I did was take the "alpha" role. When you take the alpha role, nothing makes the puppy happier than to please you. Training comes easy after that.

Edit: This small dog still greets every other dog it meets, large and small with a stiff tail, trying to show it she's boss. Most of them, even bigger ones, submit to her "authority."

[knitter4democracy]

35. Absolutely!

You cannot let a dog get away with growling or even showing its teeth like that, but you don't beat the hell out of the dog. What works on mine is to stand tall and stare at him or to hold his head in my hands with my hands closer to his neck (dogs will put their teeth on the neck to show dominance). He's not the most aggressive dog anyway, but he can get full of himself sometimes, since he's still young.

I can understand wanting the dog crated for the night, but why not give the dog a heater and a soft place if he wants one so badly? That guy is sick.

[livinginphotographs]

37. I've never been growled at by a Dachsund.

I'd bet that the reason the dog became so aggressive about being moved was because of the abuse from Dobson. Any dog can become mean if you beat on it enough. Maybe, as a cat person, I don't understand dogs as well, but my cats believe they run the house and I've never had to chase them around the room with a belt.

That's just sad. But why am I surprised he's a Bush supporter.

[fortyfeetunder]

36. If I were Siggy...

Next time I saw my master naked, I'd jump up and bite....

[bluedonkey]

38. BBBUUUUUWWWWAAAAAAHHHHH

That's it!
Tell your dogs to relay this message.I'm letting mine out to bark it to the neighborhood!!
We're gonna fix him!(literally,hehe)