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Gail O'Connell-Babcock's avatar

I wasn’t able to read the whole report that Nathan Winograd wrote, the arrow went so deep. I do absolutely want to hurt those who hurt Chai while understanding there is no way to reach them. They have no heart. I don’t know how one reaches someone without a heart, so conditioned to cruelty it is normalized.

Dr Peck writes about how cultures of cruelty evolve in “The People of the Lie.”

https://lightenough.wordpress.com/2021/03/18/people-of-the-lie-by-m-scott-peck-book-review/

Zimbardo, a social psychologist at Stanford wrote “The Lucifer Effect “ about how cultures normalize cruelty and it becomes a habit.

In the Guardian 2 August 2024 Martin Pollack wrote about “My Father the Nazis” who felt no regrets. No one but Martin felt regret and sadness that his family of origin were unbearably cruel. As child he never knew, but he grieved anyway unable to understand. He documented it but was none the wiser. Where does cruelty come from?

MCAS (Multnomah County Animal Services ) euthanized ( killed) Coyote twice after bringing him back nearly dead to check for a micro chip. Then they killed him for good. Someone noted some dogs were being put into body bags unconscious. The response was don’t worry, they’ll suffocate.

Some say if you don’t read these records every week won’t you be more at peace? Yes, emotionally, but not really. What you don’t know can hurt you. Someone once asked me if a house has 2 doors why don’t you just go out the front door where the pleasantness is ? Why do you go out the back door where harm is? The answer I told her was if we clean up the area around the back door we have 2 doors. As long as Nathan can carry on and others who share this dismal work do carry on, I can too, a terrible fraternity.

We must.

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Gail O'Connell-Babcock's avatar

I still do not understand why the pound employees and managers who abused Chai and abuse other animals cannot be formally charged with animal abuse. If they want to call animals property then they destroyed county property. That is a crime too.

But there are animal abuse laws on the books in most states. Were a private party to do what these persons ( a misnomer) did then those parties would be charged. Why are they excused because they work for the government ? Why do they get to hide behind a government shield? I don't understand. It leads to a feeling of complete helplessness and sorrow: Allowed just to bear witness. And they should be shamed too...a giant month long bill board in a public space with Chai's picture and where to go for the full story.

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