On dogs

I'm terrified to publish this post. With all the attention that Mike Vick is bringing to the treatment of animals in our society I'm afraid that anything I write that is less than 2000% glowing about dogs will be used against me later in life. This is on top of my long-standing belief that if you were to ask women if they had to choose between a dog-hater and an STD-carrier to date or marry, they would readily choose the STD-carrier.

So let me be clear: I've got no beef with dogs.

I am, however, a believer that there are some places that should be dog friendly, and some places that shouldn't be dog friendly. Specifically, I do not like the idea of dogs in they grocery store. This seems to put me at odds with a significant chunk of Seattle. I was perusing the produce section a couple of weeks ago when I noticed a young woman with carrying a rather hairy purse. Only it wasn't a purse, it was a dog.

Now, I'm not sure why anyone would want a dog that fits into a purse... it seems to defeat the whole purpose. At that point, why not get a cat. But just because your dog is compact doesn't mean that he or she is immediately welcome everywhere he can fit. I've heard stories of dogs going to law school (or maybe that was in a movie), but I don't get my food at law schools. I do get my food at grocery stores, however, and I really don't appreciate people deciding that it's cool if their pet hangs out near my cherries.

Of course, were I to say anything in Seattle I'm sure I would be run out of town immediately, and they would probably hold a protest and demand that Hilary or Obama stake out a position on the topic. Or, more accurately, Seattle would send me a very passive-aggressive letter highlighting the fact that "someone" hated dogs and their presence was no longer appropriate.