04-21-2014, 10:18 PM
I am a sick, twisted pervert. Call me whatever the hell you want. I'm a dog shagger, a zoophile, a rapist, just pick your poison, whatever sounds right to you. I have a passing familiarity with the arguments for and against my sexual orientation, and this is what I have to say about it.
All I want is tolerance. I don't give a damn about being "accepted" or being considered "normal". I just want the unconstitutional, unfounded, fatuous state laws to be repealed so I don't have to live my life in fear of the long arm of the law. Yeah, the laws protect animals from abuse. I get that, it's awesome. Abuse is disgusting. I hate it, and I understand that some folks think I'm acting the hypocrite by saying that. Guess what? If that's what I am, the thing I hate most, an animal abuser, then I would surrender my dog and myself to the proper authorities. But I'm not an abuser, and I don't ever want to willingly do anything to harm or neglect the dog who I love. She's a great Dane, well over a hundred pounds, and I don't force her into anything. She's fine, and she still trusts me, shows affection to me, and is calm around me.
I'm just shocked at how willing people are to believe that all I mean is harm, regardless of context. Here I am: a man who loves dogs to such a degree that providing care, protection, love, and leadership to my dog is romantic to me. Yes, I find her to be beautiful, as well. If this attraction was something cruel, or if I had any inhibitions that she was uncomfortable, then I would want nothing to do with it. As it stands, I've known her for years and I'm very familiar with her unique temperament and body language. I can tell when she's nervous or uncomfortable by the deviance from her standard behaviors. If my bond with her was anything less, then my attraction wouldn't even be a consideration.
Look, I get the consent argument. If you're a vegan, then more power to you, I'm a bad, evil man. Do you eat meat? Was the cow killed with express verbal consent? No? Then you're just making it clear to me that consent itself isn't the issue you have, it's the grody, vulgar, unspeakable thought of sexual gratification. The way I see it, if I'm allowed to keep a dog as my pet without her consent, which in human terms is slavery; if I'm allowed to have her spayed and microchipped without her consent, which in human terms is exploitation; and if I am in complete control of her feeding, shelter, exercise, and all aspects of her care without her verbal consent, then why shouldn't I be allowed to request pleasure from her without her verbal consent, as long as I don't hurt her and I keep it to my privacy?
The whole "imbalance of power" argument is bullshit. My dog has every ounce of physical strength I do, if something I did to her hurt her or scared her, then I'd have stitches. Sure, humans are intellectually superior to animals, that doesn't mean I have to take advantage of that. I leave the back door open a crack, she's free to run outside, and when I want her in the bedroom, I have her follow me there, if she is willing to.
I'd be content if I could just be me and live my happy fucking life without dealing with all the anxiety. I shouldn't have to make excuses every time I turn down a job offer in a state I can't move to. If I volunteer at an animal shelter, it's not because I want to violate the dogs there, for God's sake. It's because I hate how so many dogs wind up in shelters, or worse, are euthanized, because of how neglectful and awful people are to them. It gives me fulfillment and satisfaction to see animals with a history of abuse and abandoment trust me enough to come over and let me pet them. I should be able to get an education in dog training, endure the jokes about the inuendo of "training", and not have people actually think I mean harm to the animals I work with. That couldn't be further from the truth, I should just have as much right as anyone else to feel passionate about preventing dogs from being euthanized that don't have to be, that can be rehabbed and find a loving home instead. I should have as much a right as anyone to foster large dogs who are most often euthanized, and I worked hard to earn a large piece of property with a fenced-in yard. I wouldn't think of having sex with any of them, they don't really belong to me, they are just transients. I care for them until I or the shelter I work with finds a caring home for them. Many of them have far too much stress and fear for that violation to even be considered.
A straight man can work in a soup kitchen and no one accuses him of sexual thoughts towards the patrons. A lesbian can be a CNA and no one bats an eye. A man who prefers his dog to a wife can help in animal shelters, but if his real feelings for his dog were known? Instantly, he's suspected of all kinds of carnal debouchery.
All I want is tolerance. I don't give a damn about being "accepted" or being considered "normal". I just want the unconstitutional, unfounded, fatuous state laws to be repealed so I don't have to live my life in fear of the long arm of the law. Yeah, the laws protect animals from abuse. I get that, it's awesome. Abuse is disgusting. I hate it, and I understand that some folks think I'm acting the hypocrite by saying that. Guess what? If that's what I am, the thing I hate most, an animal abuser, then I would surrender my dog and myself to the proper authorities. But I'm not an abuser, and I don't ever want to willingly do anything to harm or neglect the dog who I love. She's a great Dane, well over a hundred pounds, and I don't force her into anything. She's fine, and she still trusts me, shows affection to me, and is calm around me.
I'm just shocked at how willing people are to believe that all I mean is harm, regardless of context. Here I am: a man who loves dogs to such a degree that providing care, protection, love, and leadership to my dog is romantic to me. Yes, I find her to be beautiful, as well. If this attraction was something cruel, or if I had any inhibitions that she was uncomfortable, then I would want nothing to do with it. As it stands, I've known her for years and I'm very familiar with her unique temperament and body language. I can tell when she's nervous or uncomfortable by the deviance from her standard behaviors. If my bond with her was anything less, then my attraction wouldn't even be a consideration.
Look, I get the consent argument. If you're a vegan, then more power to you, I'm a bad, evil man. Do you eat meat? Was the cow killed with express verbal consent? No? Then you're just making it clear to me that consent itself isn't the issue you have, it's the grody, vulgar, unspeakable thought of sexual gratification. The way I see it, if I'm allowed to keep a dog as my pet without her consent, which in human terms is slavery; if I'm allowed to have her spayed and microchipped without her consent, which in human terms is exploitation; and if I am in complete control of her feeding, shelter, exercise, and all aspects of her care without her verbal consent, then why shouldn't I be allowed to request pleasure from her without her verbal consent, as long as I don't hurt her and I keep it to my privacy?
The whole "imbalance of power" argument is bullshit. My dog has every ounce of physical strength I do, if something I did to her hurt her or scared her, then I'd have stitches. Sure, humans are intellectually superior to animals, that doesn't mean I have to take advantage of that. I leave the back door open a crack, she's free to run outside, and when I want her in the bedroom, I have her follow me there, if she is willing to.
I'd be content if I could just be me and live my happy fucking life without dealing with all the anxiety. I shouldn't have to make excuses every time I turn down a job offer in a state I can't move to. If I volunteer at an animal shelter, it's not because I want to violate the dogs there, for God's sake. It's because I hate how so many dogs wind up in shelters, or worse, are euthanized, because of how neglectful and awful people are to them. It gives me fulfillment and satisfaction to see animals with a history of abuse and abandoment trust me enough to come over and let me pet them. I should be able to get an education in dog training, endure the jokes about the inuendo of "training", and not have people actually think I mean harm to the animals I work with. That couldn't be further from the truth, I should just have as much right as anyone else to feel passionate about preventing dogs from being euthanized that don't have to be, that can be rehabbed and find a loving home instead. I should have as much a right as anyone to foster large dogs who are most often euthanized, and I worked hard to earn a large piece of property with a fenced-in yard. I wouldn't think of having sex with any of them, they don't really belong to me, they are just transients. I care for them until I or the shelter I work with finds a caring home for them. Many of them have far too much stress and fear for that violation to even be considered.
A straight man can work in a soup kitchen and no one accuses him of sexual thoughts towards the patrons. A lesbian can be a CNA and no one bats an eye. A man who prefers his dog to a wife can help in animal shelters, but if his real feelings for his dog were known? Instantly, he's suspected of all kinds of carnal debouchery.
