The Most Disgusting Story on the Internet

On January 16, 2007, Fox News offered a true competitor in the category of disgusting journalism. On January 17, the headline on the main site still read: "Reward Offered in Sodomizing of N.J. Puppy." The story's title was "$5,000 Reward Offered in Sexual Attack of Pit-Bull Puppy in New Jersey." Following the story, these words appeared: "FOXNews.com's Hannah Sentenac contributed to this report."

The story prompts so many questions that a journalist scarcely knows where to begin, but here are the top ten:

1. Did the alleged perpetrator think he was a dog?

2. Or, did he mistake the dog for a human being?

3. Does the same man need therapy or neutering?

4. For the scientific crowd, is trans-species breeding ethical?

5. Does this act satisfy the legal definition of "rape"?

6. How do we rehabilitate this "Man's Best Friend"?

7. Should the perpetrator do volunteer work at the Humane Society?

8. Or, should the Humane Society keep him in a cage?

9. Does this story supply a valuable case history?

10. Or, does it serve as an example of pornography?

The most disgusting aspect of this tale may be the fact that it is NOT new news. On June 21, 2006, WorldNetDaily posted this title: "Illegal alien rapes puppy" under the category "INVASION USA." In this case, officers reported seeing the sexual assault of a "'28-pound, 14-16-week-old dog of mixed breed,' according to the sheriffs office." The alleged rapist supposedly said: "'It's my dog,' and 'What's the problem?'" The story identified the location of the incident as Stuart, Florida.

In the preceding year, a similar incident also allegedly occurred in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Foxcarolina.com reported: "A Campobello teen is accused of raping one neighbor's dog and another neighbor's two little girls. Now the dog has died and charges against the teen have been upgraded." In this case, the dog's owner and her husband spoke as witnesses of this episode "with their own eyes." The story's title even emphasized the alleged crime against the canine, not the girls: "Charges Against Teen Upgraded After Dog He Allegedly Raped Dies."

Yet, on February 4, 2004, a writer speaking for "Animal Resistance" placed subsequent episodes in perspective when he stated: "A Thai man was mauled by a dog recently. Of course, he was trying to rape the dog, so in my view, he was asking for it...." In the same report, credited to Die Puny Humans, the writer recommended "public castration" and "ridicule" as punishments. He chose to post his message, though, on Vegan Porn: Man gets mauled while trying to rape dog." He also noted that jokes on this topic are not funny.

The last commentator-who spoke first in time-saw what the later reporters did not. The minute a pit-bull can defend itself, a rapist better run! This point is worth adding: A pit-bull is still a pit-bull. What man could confuse one with a woman? Only one who conceives of a man as a dog and a woman as that word beginning with B. That observation may slander an entire species-which one, you decide.