Some South Dakota legislators think it's fine to discriminate against certain kinds of human beings but not to discriminate against certain kinds of dogs.
Senate Bill 75 appears to be a manifestation of pit-bull obsession. Its purpose is to "prohibit local governments from enacting, maintaining, or enforcing regulations on certain dog breeds."
SB 75's prime sponsor, Senator Dan Lederman (R-16/a country club near Sioux City), is co-sponsoring SB 67, a measure that authorizes individuals and businesses to refuse service to homosexuals, racially mixed couples, remarrying divorcees, and anyone else whose marriages and life choices annoy them.
Joining Senator Lederman in treating dogs better than humans are the following misguided Republicans:
- Sen. Tim Begalka (R-4/Clear Lake)
- Sen. Bob Ewing (R-31/Spearfish)
- Sen. Ryan Maher (R-28/Isabel)
- Sen. Jeff Monroe (R-24/Pierre)
- Sen. Tim Rave (R-25/Baltic)
- Rep. Betty Olson (R-28B/Prairie City)
- Rep. Mike Verchio (R-30/Hill City)
These folks come from the same political party that gives us an attorney general who thinks it's o.k. to quote Martin Luther King, Jr. in celebrating the death penalty.
Say whatever you want about what wonderful pets pit bulls are. I find that discussion trivial until South Dakota grants all humans justice and equal rights.
They love America, or the cartoon image of America in their minds. They just hate Americans. Lederman is a bigot who ought to know better. Shameful. He would have fit in very well in pre-1964 Mississippi.
In the past two weeks, I have sent two emails to each of my three State Legislators with no response. Does the State Website email system work?
Senate bill 75 would still allow the enforcement of regulations against gay dogs still . . . right? It wouldn't force the accommodation dogs whose sexual orientation the sponsors disagree with.
Eh...poor conflation. I definitely do not think pitbull laws are trivial...under your logic, I could contend that I think gay marriage is trivial until we legalize marijuana considering no one is locked up if someone's relationship is considered 'honest' in the view of god vs. the thousands of people that are incarcerated due to asinine drug laws.
Any business can refuse service to anyone, right?
So this law would mean nothing.
It will go nowhere anyway.
One might wonder if these lawmakers have too much time on their hands.
There are lots of issues worth bringing to the Legislature. We have an animal cruelty bill before the Legislature that I find reasonable. But the conflation is apt when we see legislators actively protecting breeds of dogs from discrimination while actively denying classes of people equal access to goods and services and protection of law.
Barry, no outage I know of. I have sent and received messages through the official Legislative email addresses of various legislators this month.
No Stan, any business can't deny service to whoever they want to. Remember the Woolworth lunch counter sit-in in Greensboro, North Carolina? That protest showed the inequality of business "reserving the right to refuse service to anyone", luckily our country passed the civil rights laws and that type of behavior is frowned on by most Americans.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greensboro_sit-ins
Well, pitbull bans would prevent me from living in many communities, denying me equal access to goods and services.
First, it's blatantly unconstitutional. Is there a two-thirds amendment on this so the legislature can legally fund its defense by the Attorney General?
You can't legally refuse service to someone because they are a Jew, right Lederman? Or because they are a Native American. Or because they are black. Or because they are Catholic. Or because they are hetero. Same sex protections have been upheld in this nation, and this is in the exact same equal protection context as race and religious preference.
This is a hate-filled piece of garbage legislation that won't stand up in court. It's meant only to fan the flames of hatred. Simpletons backing this bill need to be removed from positions of government authority. If they want to pander to members of the Klan and other neo-hate groups, they can write letters to the editor and to blogs. They should never be allowed to write laws for a free society.
If only wingnuts could force pesky libs to attend obedience classes.....
Because of the stupidity of certain cities in the US, 75 dog breeds have been banned or restricted in the United States due to BSL laws. If you want to google it, you will find page after page of links. I wouldn't have even looked at this if someone wouldn't have told me both the Golden Retriever and the Lab are on the list. They also mentioned that Insurance Companies are raising rates if you own one of these dogs. South Dakota with their background of hunting should be well aware of this. This is way beyond a pitbull ban!! Support this bill if you want to see hunting continue in a normal way!!
Labs are notorious get out of the fence breeders.
"In the past two weeks, I have sent two emails to each of my three State Legislators with no response. Does the State Website email system work?"
Most likely the mail system works even if the legislature doesn't.
Proof that people of color and pitbulls can now get service anywhere:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CdXesX6mYUE
Yet another example of why I left that state. How can a party that embraces freedom as its most holy tenant so wholeheartedly discriminate against LGBT people like myself? It's cognitive dissonance at its finest.
SB 67 is yet just another example Dylan that it's a loss not only for those who feel they must leave the state many times reluctantly but for the friends and family that love them. All that talent, and possible revenue leaving the state thanks to bills like this that just add fuel to the fire of discrimination, hate crimes and suicides as a result of misguided fear, ignorance and intolerance. Great way to recruit future business here in SD.
The conversation has been entertaining today regarding SB67 on KELO's website. The homophobes are crawling out of the woodwork. Evidently, Freedom of Religion to these folks means they get to use their religion to justify discriminating against those who are not just like them. My daughter sums it up perfectly...we live in DumbDumbVille.
The only problem I see is the potential for harassment from people who want to shake down a business. Let's say a same sex couple wants a caterer for their wedding. But the caterer is already booked and declines. The couple then sues and then the caterer has to hire a lawyer and go to court to prove he didn't turn the job down out of any discrimination, he just didn't want the work. Maybe he wants to go on vacation that week. It really isn't anybody's business why an independent contractor turns down a job, and nobody should rack up a bunch a legal fees just because he made other plans
Businesses should be allowed to ban obese people, airlines and taxi services should charge more for fat people. Scales and BMI stations should be outside stores where food is sold.
All wedding cakes should be purchased at Safeway, then lets move on. If you are gay and you want a cake for your wedding, just buy the thing and put it in the freezer until that blissful day. I am thinking that maybe there should be a law in their sale in the first place as those things just make your hands sticky and get in the way of drinks. Lets move on as we have working poor that can only dream of a catered wedding, how silly are we? If a business wants to cut its own throat instead of the cake, let them. Only a republican would want big government intruding on small business.
Businesses with buffets should scales at the door and anyone with a BMI over 23 will pay $1.00 for every whole number above that.
Larry, that's one of the least insane comments you've made this month. It gets the grudznick seal of approval.
Food stores should have a scale at the till and adds sur charges according to BMI.
Gas stations should have scales that determine price per gallon according to BMI unless you have documentation in your debit/credit card updated by your doctor that you're on a weight reduction regimen.
Hope another blizzard finds you people.
god may not love you, Larry, but grudznick does.
Which god would not love him?
Mr. Grudz, aren't most florists and caterers gay anyway?
Oh! Perish the thought, Jim! Whatever would all those right-wing, christian, straight folks do if only gays ran those types of businesses? ;-)
CBS this morning reported it was possible to lose weight just by keeping your house colder...as long as one does not eat more to keep warm.
Mr. Jim. Most probably are, but not the female ones. As to your god question, it was a trick comment by me that my friend Larry would understand.
Is Lederman representing South Dakota or is he just playing to the Sioux City crowd?
Gay marriage is legal in Iowa and Sioux City did look at banning vicious breeds of dogs after some tragedies caused by dogs who were bred for violence.
Sometimes I think Steve King is his puppeteer. Wait...the visual of King's hand in the puppet makes me think that someone needs to come out of the closet.
As for the rest of them, guess what, gay marriage isn't legal in SD...so how could a poor bigoted baker be forced to bake a wedding cake? When was the last gay marriage here? Isabel? Pierre? Baltic? Clear Lake? Prairie City? Hill City? Spearfish?
Some Reps in tourist towns must be oblivious to the negative impact that can be generated by these types of actions. Imagine a post on a global travel website telling people to avoid these towns because they are spreading hate.
This wasn't about protecting anyone who could be forced to take money from someone they don't like...it is to send a message that we are the last bastion of hope for homophobes, bigots and red necks.
One has to wonder why these elected officials are wasting taxpayer money and time on these issues.
They measured my body fat at seven percent.
Do I get a discount at the Golden Corral?
Stan, you are lean, pristine blogging machine. You should never be discounted, as your words to the masses, are like the leaves to the tree. You sir, should be able to intake nourishment at your leisure and on Grudz's tab, at the very least.
Mr. Gibilisco is welcome to use my tab any time he cares to, as long as my friend Bill hasn't maxed it out again.
Wonder what God thinks about so-called "Christians"
who preach hate? I guess it's okay as long as you
wrap the American flag around you and vote Republican.
My question on SB75 is what happened to local control? I thought Republicans were for local control.
I wonder what happened in that Colorado bakery case on appeal? It might be like the infamous McDonald's hot coffee burn case.
That's the one where a customer burned herself when she spilled hot coffee. She sued McD's and the jury awarded her a Big Pile o' Money! Republicans told and retold the story ad nauseum to support their claims that lawsuits, especially against big businesses, should be sharply limited. What they forgot to add Every Single Telling, was that McD's won the appeal. The legal system worked exactly as it is supposed to.
So, I wonder if this bakery suit has been appealed, where that's at, etc. Paul Harvey, come back from the dead and tell us "The rest of the story." The anti-equality people sure aren't going to do so.
Good call Owen! The great thing about the GOP is that their ideologies are situational and they can hold two opposing thoughts in their head without missing a beat as to their hypocrisy.
It's like mandates. How dare big government mandate we do anything.
Oops, did I mean ethanol or healthcare?