Human Baby Sacrifice

I’m a self-declared life long student enrolled in a study of history, civilization, and comparative mythology. One of the most fascinating subjects, almost taboo to discuss, is to look with morbid curiosity on the practice of blood offerings....be it lovely doves or gentle lambs, but especially, humans, and even more so…. innocent human children. We ponder the mystery of a superstitious culture when we view the image of a delicate child mummy sacrificed thousands of years ago in some pre-Colombian ritual. We contemplate what kind of human need there was for this sort of dark practice, and if the seeds of this need lurk in us still today, passed genetically from an ancestor who lived hundreds and thousands of years ago. This ritualistic killing was usually associated with appeasing a god, often to ensure a good harvest. However, no culture is exempt from this practice.

One of the gods of the ancients most associated with child offerings was named Moloch, worship of whom was practiced by the Canaanites, Phoenicians, and related cultures in North Africa and the Levant. His name and reputation have been conjured throughout literary history by the likes of Milton in his Paradise Lost, to various current sinister popular cultural entities from the names of heavy metal bands, to characters in games. He is usually portrayed as a Bull. There is an uncanny likeness in the image of this god to the BEAST we pay homage to in this blog…
admittedly, with not too veiled and very feigned reverence.
In Bertrand Russell's A Free Man's Worship, Moloch is used to describe a particularly savage brand of religion:

"The savage, like ourselves, feels the oppression of his impotence before the powers of Nature; but having in himself nothing that he respects more than Power, he is willing to prostrate himself before his gods, without inquiring whether they are worthy of his worship. Pathetic and very terrible is the long history of cruelty and torture, of degradation and human sacrifice, endured in the hope of placating the jealous gods: surely, the trembling believer thinks, when what is most precious has been freely given, their lust for blood must be appeased, and more will not be required. The religion of Moloch — as such creeds may be generically called — is in essence the cringing submission of the slave, who dare not, even in his heart, allow the thought that his master deserves no adulation. Since the independence of ideals is not yet acknowledged, Power may be freely worshiped, and receive an unlimited respect, despite its wanton infliction of pain."

We even read of this practice in the Old Testament, from Joshua's "foundation sacrifice", King David's sacrifice of seven men, to the hint that perhaps Solomon the Wise would have cleft a child into two equal pieces to solve a dispute between a true mother and an impostor. To the Christians, the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross became the ultimate propitiation.

Child sacrifice persists to this day. There are shocking reports of it happening currently in Uganda. I can't help but noticing, it happens right here in the U.S.A. too, right down the street and way too frequently; when families sacrifice their children to the household pit bull.


Some may offer to refute this claim, that these deaths and serious injuries inflicted by the family dog are merely “accidents”. But when we look at numbers, knowing the risks, and then to blatantly refuse to look at the evidence, parents who chose to keep pit bulls in households with small children, are playing roulette in such a way that it can only be compared to a willy-nilly sacrifice.

Yes, the leading cause of premature death in children is accidents. The most common accidents are accidental poisoning, falls, choking, and drowning. Most of these accidents are indeed preventable, but what differs between the object that caused the death, if it was an object at all, is that in the case of pit bulls, it is actually designed to kill. Window cleaner, medicines, stairs, popcorn, and swimming pools and lakes are not designed to kill any other being. We can’t make the same claim for pit bulls. We can't blame phenomena like the laws of gravity, and lakes will be lakes. Try as we may, lightening and earthquakes neither can be harnessed, nor prevented. Whether or not it's true as the pit bull advocacy claims, it's not so much the coconut that kills, but the laws of physical science that govern the falling object, gravity and velocity that kills. Stop it with blaming coconuts and don't blame Isaac Newton!


Permitting a pit bull to interact with a child, even with the parent in the room, is surely as dangerous as leaving a bunch of medications around in a bowl as if it were Halloween candy. Across the fruited plain and beyond, there are daily reenactments of the the biblical story of Daniel in the lion's den, with "Junior" cast in the role of Daniel, and "Diablo" cast in the role of the Lion, performed in the nursery.
These parents must fancy themselves
to be living incarnations of St. Francis of Assisi, cultivating their own tableaus of
"Lions and Lambs" right there on the davenport in the parlor. With all of the risks blatantly clear, their pathetic dramatizations and pretensions fail, and would be impresarios and thespians become inadvertent shamans participating in a kind of postmodern Human Baby Sacrifice.

Often we find the evidence in this posted proudly on the latest media inquiry: Are Pit Bulls Dangerous? There’s a report of a few maulings, some very gruesome photographs of scalped children, and these are the lucky survivors. In response to this, the pit bull advocacy community is outraged, and they post photos of their own children, showing darling children posing with the family dog (usually, the camera has flashed in the eyes, making the dog and often the child appear to be demonically possessed, looking like Maloch incarnate!


(Observe the chaotic clutter, stained carpets and disgusting davenports, a general lack of good housekeeping or lawn maintenance in the backgrounds, and a glaring lack of any artistic or aesthetic valuing of these horrible photographs, I digress.) Yet these photographs remind me of some rather famous examples that stirred public concern, those of Michael Jackson and Steve Irwin, which will be discussed shortly. I’m baffled why people fall for this ploy, and are not disgusted and concerned about child welfare!



What the pit bull advocate is attempting to prove, is that their anecdotal experience outweighs that ONE time a pit bull attacked. They claim, “I grew up with one, or several, or a dozen, and my dad, grand-dad, great-grand-dad (likely a dog fighter) always had them, no problems, but we had a Daschund that would bite you (dispelling the “it’s all how you raise ‘em myth”), this of course, in response to a mauling somebody’s Daschund. The horrible thing is, all it takes is ONE time, and a child’s life is needlessly sacrificed to Maloch, for no reason. You wish you could turn back time and replace the sweet pit bull with the mean Daschund...that child would be alive, or in better shape. And as for that “it’s all how you raise ‘em” mantra they express in a manner that reminds me of those people who go into an auto pilot rosary…

almost ALL attacks, regardless of breed, are done by family dogs!

Another mantra you will observe frequently is the posting of the “Nanny dog” myth. It goes something like this: “these dogs are the ONLY dog purposely bred for the lack of human aggression, and when those “gentlemen” dogmen were done at the fight, the children would ride home in the tram with the injured dog”. There are some other parts to it…that these dogs are ideal with children because “they have a high pain threshold”, and “a high desire to please their owner”, and my favorite, “are the most loving”, right, so loving they want to gobble you up, and they smile and wag their tail the entire time doing so, I digress. What’s sickening, is there is a reverence to these horrible criminals who perverted the breeding of a dog to go after its own kind and kill, men who in their time, were considered to be low life thugs. The dogs were equally loathed, as was the sport of Bull Baiting, so detested in England, the Cruelty to Animals Act was passed in 1835.

The 19th century images of children posing with “Nanny Dog” (often looking horrified) only proves that there have always been unenlightened parents, and also should indicate that there has been progress made about attitudes about raising children, and certainly for safety. Note that animal welfare laws actually predate policies for children, such as the founding of the Children’s Aid Society in 1853 and the National Child labor Committee, formed to abolish child labor, in 1904. We no longer put cocaine in the cough syrup either.

Compare these same images, and recall the public outrage expressed when pop icon Michael Jackson dangled his son over a balcony in Berlin (2002), where he was staying to accept an award for his philanthropic work on behalf of children. He quickly apologized for his lack of judgment.

”It was a terrible mistake. "I offer no excuses for what happened," the statement read. "I got caught up in the excitement of the moment. I would never intentionally endanger the lives of my children."

Child abuse experts also criticized Jackson's behavior. "Considering Mr. Jackson started a charity to protect children, this was alarmingly irresponsible behavior with a child," Prevent Child Abuse America's Kevin Kirkpatrick told wire services. "Holding a child like that with what appeared to be one arm while leaning over a fourth-floor balcony window is pretty careless to say the least."

"I would tell anyone who saw an adult dangling a child out of a window to call a child protection hotline and the police," Alliance for Children's Rights' Janis Spire told wire services.

http://les/1458799/michael-jackson-apologizes-baby-incident.jhtml%20


There was similar outrage expressed for the stunt pulled by the late Steve Irwin, a “crocodile whisperer”, when he held his daughter while feeding a very large reptile:

Dozens of people rang a childcare hotline after Mr Irwin's performance, and the Australian Family Association called the conduct "child abuse".

The Childhood Foundation condemned the move as reckless.

"It's neglect... I don't think we should use children as props, and definitely not in situations that are going to put them in such danger," said the foundation's Joe Tucci.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3364733.stm%20

Surely, there are risks in being alive, and indeed, try what we may, most children who die prematurely in the U.S.A. will die of accidents. The government does what it can to prevent this, mandating safety requirements that have led to the creation of seat belts, required fencing around privately owned swimming pools, and those child proof medicine bottles that I can not open. There was recent outrage on the loss of a family's rights when those all terrain vehicles especially made for children were banned...due to lead content. Currently, there is great debate on the dangers of school lunches; from the pink slime served at the cafeteria, to the confiscation of homemade lunches that some authority figure deemed to be of sub-standard nutritional quality.

Doctors warn of the dangers of Emo hair cuts leading to Lazy eye.

There's more media attention to the dangerous of "emo" hair cuts and the danger's imposed to the child of the "tanorexic" mother, than there is to the banality of choosing a breed of dog seven times more likely to kill its owner than any other breed.

Tanning Mom arrested for Child Endangerment.

My Granny survived cough medicines laced with cocaine. My own parents survived lead paint. I survived the *Easy-Bake Oven and those groovy clackers. My parents allowed for risks when they let me participate in tap dancing, skiing and they even allowed me to ride horses. I had some close calls, that pinto was half crazy! I loved that horse, and I’m grateful my own parents allowed me the "perilous" risk of riding, I learned some very valuable lessons, oddly, I’m going to sound like Cesar Milan here….being “Alpha” to a 1,200 pound animal with a mind of its own, putting trust into the relationship, and doing the thinking for a non-human being. Mostly, I enjoyed the thrill of flying and dancing with my beloved horse. I had my share of spills, but mostly I was lucky, supervised, and not allowed to go solo until 14. Besides, it's not usually the horse that kills...it's Newton's Law. There are safety requirements for children to wear helmets in at least public equestrian events. The pit bull advocacy balks loudly at the concept of putting muzzles on their dogs, and call it an invasion of their rights and suggest that it's a cruel practice. My horse was quite fine wearing a bit. With out the bit and stirrup, there would be no civilization as we know it. A simple muzzle in public, would allow for some civil safety and continued enjoyment of the "most superior breed of love".

Should have Patches the pinto had an incident that would have led to an unfortunate premature demise of little ol' me back in the days of Roman Chariots, surely my parents would have received the same sort of criticisms launched at Michael Jackson and Steve Irwin, and to the parents of Jessica Dubroff , who died at the age of 7 when her plane crashed and Jessica Watson who sailed successfully if not unofficially about the world at the age of 17. These young girls had parents who allowed them to pursue rather audacious quests. At what age do we draw the line? I offer no answers, but very small infants and children have no voice and they have no choice.




There is a second sacrifice made when one of their own converts of the Nanny Dog is thrown under the bus by the pit bull advocacy, when their own child is mauled by one. The parents of the child often end up expressing regret, and often send their other pit bull(s) to be euthanized with the one(s) that attacked. This after they were called all kinds of vulgar names, are bullied when they have already received a very horrible random punishment…”That was a sweet dog, he never tried to bite before, this was the first time!” …..and blamed for horrible negligence, for buying into the myth that advocates promoted in the first place. It’s a very strange ritual....first the child sheds blood, then the dog is sacrificed, then all of the survivors are put through a public grater that is likely the most painful sacrifice of all; left to mourn, question, and regret. They are the forsaken

Yet it’s not hard to find the root of the myth, which isn’t ancient but recent. So many well meaning people, wanting to participate in a kind of false civil rights movement for dogs to prove that they are more enlightened because they either missed the 60's because they were too young, not born yet, or would like to relive them again in their old age..., follow the dog behavior expert Cesar Milan. I admit it, I enjoy watching his show, and he is talented. I admire him as being the embodiment of a modern day Cinderella; a poor Latino who came to the U.S.A., followed his passion and became a huge success. I also know that his methods are disputed and viewed to be controversial by many dog behaviorists.


His statement "No dog is too much for me to handle", I find to be rather arrogant. He may be, but it's not true for his clients. I recall the episode of the two tofu eating sensitive new-age San Fransican's who had a "red zone" pit bull that attacked. Milan suggested he trade that pit bull for one of his, and they refused. I wonder how they are doing, and I hope they did not reproduce. What disturbs me most, is how he promotes pit bulls as family dogs, has made them fashionable, and now it seems, everyone has joined the cult of the pit bull at rates that makes the Scientology and Kabbalah centers envious.

"Because of Daddy, I'm getting one too"

"I used to be frightened of pit bulls, now I have one and they are my favorite forever!"

and so forth.

His blog reveals that his primary passion is pit bulls, and bringing awareness to bullying (but not of pit bull victims). I'm sure he has stated that he is a "Do as I say and not as I do" kind of expert, but in this blog, he reveals some very disturbing attitudes. His converts are expressing the same kind of nonchalance. Where are the children's advocates and agencies expressing outrage?

Oh, how this myth spreads! I appeal to the pit bull advocates, especially Cesar Milan... it’s time to close Pandora’s box. By now, surely Moloch is sated, and is getting very, very fat.



The savage, like ourselves, feels the oppression of his impotence before the powers of Nature; but having in himself nothing that he respects more than Power, he is willing to prostrate himself before his gods, without inquiring whether they are worthy of his worship. Pathetic and very terrible is the long history of cruelty and torture, of degradation and human sacrifice, endured in the hope of placating the jealous gods: surely, the trembling believer thinks, when what is most precious has been freely given, their lust for blood must be appeased, and more will not be required. The religion of Moloch — as such creeds may be generically called — is in essence the cringing submission of the slave, who dare not, even in his heart, allow the thought that his master deserves no adulation. Since the independence of ideals is not yet acknowledged, Power may be freely worshiped, and receive an unlimited respect, despite its wanton infliction of pain.

Bertrand Russell, from A Free Man's Worship

So I close in the same manner in which I began, restating Bertrand Russell’s quote. This quote should remind you of watching an episode of a certain program on National Geographic. I wonder what became of the history, the civilization, and all of that comparative mythology?

CODA: This is what happens when a musician writes; Sonata Allegro form. In reality, it should have been a “Theme and Variations on yet another child sacrifice to the family pit bull”. I recall that Milan Kundera once wrote that this is why Beethoven’s last compositions favored the more ancient form; it’s more like real life.


*In February 2007, Hasbro and the Consumer Product Safety Commission recalled 985,000 Easy-Bake toy ovens after finding that children's hands and fingers can get caught in the oven's opening, thereby posing serious risk of burns. Since the recall, there were at least 249 reports of children getting their hands or fingers caught in the ovens, including 16 reports of second- and third-degree burns, and finger amputation. As a result, Hasbro recalled all front-loading Easy-Bake ovens sold since May 2006, even those that were repaired with the free kit distributed after the February 2007 recall.

Clackers (also known as Ker-Bangers and numerous other names) are a toy which was popular in the late 1960s and early 1970s. They consisted of two plastic spheres suspended on string which were swung up and down so they banged against each other, making a clacking sound. Clackers are similar in appearance to the Argentinian weapons, bolas. Clackers were discontinued when reports came out of children becoming injured while playing with them. Fairly heavy and fast-moving, and made of hard acrylic plastic (many thought incorrectly that they were made of glass) , the balls would occasionally shatter upon striking each other.


I wonder when the Consumer Product Safety Commission is going to recall pit bulls? They are more hazardous than Clackers and the Easy-Bake Oven COMBINED and then some!

Lawn Darts are banned.

Here is a Facebook page dedicated to posting photos of "Vicious Breeds and Children"

 http://www.facebook.com/groups/393213840728291/?ref=ts&fref=ts

Special thanks to the kind folks on the facebook page Pit Bull Regulation Project in their assistance finding these unbelievable photographs! By the way, if you see a photo of your kid posing with your pit bull here and want me to remove it, let me know. I will obscure the face of your child per your request. All of these photos were found on the "i hate pit bulls page of facebook" or on yahoo images. That means you shared your photo in a public forum. Once you post them in a public place, people are free to share them. I wouldn't share photos showing your child placed in a perilous situation if I were you, then again, I wouldn't post a photo of my child, and I wouldn't have a pit bull if I had a child. Thanks for providing examples for the point I wanted to make for the greater good of promoting child safety! May a benevolent force for good keep your child safe in the mean time.


Here is another collection of darling children being subjected to dangerous dogs, all for a photo op. I'm still not sure what they are trying to prove....

Another pit bull advocate on facebook, I later learned that her other dog is a rare wild breed called a

 New Guinean Singing Dog.

Other Human Baby Sacrifices....

Are you concerned about the imposition of lifestyle choices for innocent children?

Would you allow your child to smoke two packs a day?  How is this different than allowing a child to interact with a type of dog purposely bred for fighting.  The Tobacco Lobby and the Pit Bull Advocacy are so much the same.

Childhood obesity is ruled as child endangerment in a recent court case.

How many of you would be concerned for the innocent mindsets of the children being raised in environments like this? 

 

Beauty pageants for children...do they develop self esteem or foster the development of a myriad of  psychological problems?

 BAD CHOICES!

  
 Two year old falls into an exhibit of African Wild Dogs, after mother puts child on rail for a better view.

Toddler placed inside a washing machine to play "peek-a-boo".

A conservationist released a video of his child playing with Gorillas, to show how gentle they are.

Pit bull falsely blamed for biting off the finger of child....it was the pet piranha. 

Circus Clowns are too scary...rent some Alligators for your next pool party!

We should be just as horrified at this....

I dedicate this to all of the children

                  fatally mauled or injured by dangerous breeds.