A Letter from South Africa

In the darknesss that is ignorance and stupidity, a single match can shed a great deal of light, provided it is placed against a large reflective surface.

And so it is with a letter I received this morning from Jonathan in South Africa who sent the following missive to Montana State Legislator Robyn Driscoll who proposes to euthenaze all the pit bull-type dogs (i.e. any molosser breed would seem to qualify) in the state:

Dear Ms. Driscoll,

My name is Jonathan Setter and I live in Cape Town South Africa. I am a keeper and occasional breeder of working terriers and have a keen passion for all terrier type and working dogs. I have read with much shock, about your proposals to outlaw and subsequently euthanise all 'pit bull type" canines in your state. It may come as a shock to you to receive correspondence from such a distance about the welfare of dogs, though I would like to draw your attention to some statistics related to dog attacks in your state in the hope that you will be able to see that the point of view in your proposal for their banning and mass euthanasia is heartless to say the least. Please peruse the following ...

.... I live in South Africa, a country that has been ravaged by years of policy that divided people up based solely on their physical appearance. I am a white man who is married to a black woman. Twenty years ago, this was a crime for which both my wife and I could be jailed. I am greatly disappointed to hear that such a cruel and unfair piece of legislation is even being considered in a country that I have had the pleasure to spend many months of my life and for which I have a great deal of respect for being a symbol of civil liberty.

If this law was to be applied to human beings, it would be regarded as bigotted and genocidal. I appeal to you to consider how much suffering and conflict could be avoided in this world if the human race were to start looking at issues and entities on a level that goes a little deeper than surface appearance. It would also be wise to consider that this proposal creates the potential fopr serious domestic disruption as not everybody is going to part with their dogs as easily as you might think. You stand capable of criminalising members of the public who have prefectly good dogs, just because you are judging them by their appearance.

It is my sincere prayer that reason and compassion will prevail in the case off the many good strong and loyal dogs whose lives are now needlessly under threat by this piece of legislation. I hope that " the land of the free and the home of the brave" also applies to your dogs for years to come.

Please do not introduce "canine apartheid" into your still free country.

Yours sincerely
Jonathan Setter
Terrierman-Cape Town South Africa