People have forever fallen into the big brown eyes of puppies. Puppies have become irreplaceable in many peoples hearts, but many other people feel certain breeds of dogs should not be permitted in cities due to the breeds history of violence. A case of this extreme has occurred in a little town of Regent, ND. An elderly lady has submitted a petition to the City Council in effort to ban the Grandson from housing 3 pit bull puppies in city limits. The petition also proposes Rottweilers as a breed that should be banned as well. Due to her past experience with this breed she is afraid that people are at risk of these pups. Her adult grandson purchased these registered puppies for $600 a piece, so he feels if this ban passes that he will move from within city limits to a farm.
Does this Grandma have a real issue on her hands? Well according to The Humane Society of the United States, pit bulls and Rottweilers are not the only breeds that show extreme aggression. There are more than 4.5 million people who are bitten by dogs each year, which only 10-20 have ended with a fatality. Some people feel that it is not the instinct in the dog breed that affects how they are perceived, but rather the group of individuals who own the dogs. Breeds such as the Doberman Pincher and the Presa Canario have in the past been deemed as breeds that only are useful for guarding and are constantly aggressive. Due to this felling these breeds were banned and owners moved to owning pit bulls and Rottweilers. This is a clear indication of how an owner has a major influence in how a dog is raise and in what conditions.
Since this stereotyping has occurred the positive aspects of the breed has dwindled forcing many to be sent to animal shelters. The current rate for pit bulls to survive a animal shelter is 93%. Some of this may be due to the media coverage that has claimed perspective dog owners attentions. Even thought there are several breeds that bite humans each year there is still a view that pit bulls and Rottweilers are the worst. If you think about it you hardly hear of a Labrador Retriever or a Golden Retriever biting a family member. Yet pit bull fighting has become a main focus of the media and has not helped these breeds.
A new show, Pit Boss, has been added to Animal Planet's t.v. line up. The new show concentrates on a animal shelter that only rescues pit bulls. This animal shelter tries to display the gentle, good heartiness of the breed through having the dogs participate in photo shoots.
To me it looks like there is a split feeling between the feeling about the breeds. Seeing 37.2 % of households own a dog there can be many variances on thoughts about this issue. On this issue I would have to side with the elderly who wants to ban pit bulls and Rottweilers, because these have appeared to be two of the most aggressive. Also, I have experienced being around a dog that was part pit bull when I was younger and even thought the owner was responsible the dog still seemed to have some fire in his eyes. He would nip and growl at whoever tried to change something in his surroundings. I would not want to chance it with a breed like that in city limits. I fell that the responsible thing to do, with more than two dogs, is to give them space out in the country.
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Who, honestly, is running, empowering, and expanding our company?
In many American companies there seems to be only one main goal. This goal is to make money no matter what cuts on expenses many need to be taken. Some may say, "Well this is the world of business and people have to understand that." At the same time you have workers that are under compensated, under appreciated, under minded, and over worked. Very few of the large companies' CEOs know their employees outside of the conference room.
CEOs seem to only be concerned on receiving their bonuses and extending their powers over the smaller chains. A great local example of this is the story of the exposed CEOs of Blue Cross and Blue Shield who had flown to Grand Cayman Islands on companies budget as part of their bonuses. A report had been released stating that the CEOs had taken this vacation using $2.3 million. Also in further reports, Blue Cross and Blue Shield's CEOs had spent $3.5 million in hotel investments in Fargo, sales reward trips to resorts totalling $1.2 million, and $15 million in employee bonuses, these were given no matter if the goals for the year were met or not. The CEOs have since been fired and promptly replaced with company orientated individuals. While the past CEOs were taking their lavish trips the insurance premiums rose and the 450,000 coverage holders had to search for ways to make ends meet due to the increase expense or start searching for a new insurance provider, causing many hassles.
Even though these are tough facts to face, the media has decided to make this an issue by introducing shows that show the work of an average employee. Some of these shows happen to be "Dirty Jobs," "Deadliest Catch," and "American Loggers". These shows all have depicted the hard life of every day workers and the sacrifices in which they have made to survive. In addition to these shows, CBS had decided to launch a new reality series entitled "Undercover Boss". This new reality series is based on a President of a company making an effort to understand the workers blow them on the pay scale, and to see if the changes they have made in their company has been worth it or if the they have been undercutting and cold to the workers who make their life wages of their job. The first episode of the season pertained to one of the largest companies in the Midwest, Waste Management Inc. The President of the company decided to disguise himself as an entry level worker at the first day of work. He then continued to get a sense of what a day in the life of his workers was like and how dedicated they are to their work by performing a typical days work. The president did not live up to the standards that the workers are held at during the day. In fact, he was fired, for the first time in his life, by a foreman at one of the positions he started at.
Through this show the media, to me, has hit the need of the employees head on. CEOs need to respect their workers and understand that their employees are the ones that are powering their companies and launching them to new heights. Presidents of companies need to get a sense of what their employees go through every day and how each of them have struggles besides working that they are trying to manage. Every worker has a story and needs from their company which need to be met. The only companies that are worthy of what they do are the ones that care for their workers. I am glad to see that the media has brought to the attention of millions the need to focus on the little man and improve his work environment by exposing its faults to and of higher administration. By exposing these conditions it is making employers have to look at who, honestly, is running, expanding, and empowering the company.
CEOs seem to only be concerned on receiving their bonuses and extending their powers over the smaller chains. A great local example of this is the story of the exposed CEOs of Blue Cross and Blue Shield who had flown to Grand Cayman Islands on companies budget as part of their bonuses. A report had been released stating that the CEOs had taken this vacation using $2.3 million. Also in further reports, Blue Cross and Blue Shield's CEOs had spent $3.5 million in hotel investments in Fargo, sales reward trips to resorts totalling $1.2 million, and $15 million in employee bonuses, these were given no matter if the goals for the year were met or not. The CEOs have since been fired and promptly replaced with company orientated individuals. While the past CEOs were taking their lavish trips the insurance premiums rose and the 450,000 coverage holders had to search for ways to make ends meet due to the increase expense or start searching for a new insurance provider, causing many hassles.
Even though these are tough facts to face, the media has decided to make this an issue by introducing shows that show the work of an average employee. Some of these shows happen to be "Dirty Jobs," "Deadliest Catch," and "American Loggers". These shows all have depicted the hard life of every day workers and the sacrifices in which they have made to survive. In addition to these shows, CBS had decided to launch a new reality series entitled "Undercover Boss". This new reality series is based on a President of a company making an effort to understand the workers blow them on the pay scale, and to see if the changes they have made in their company has been worth it or if the they have been undercutting and cold to the workers who make their life wages of their job. The first episode of the season pertained to one of the largest companies in the Midwest, Waste Management Inc. The President of the company decided to disguise himself as an entry level worker at the first day of work. He then continued to get a sense of what a day in the life of his workers was like and how dedicated they are to their work by performing a typical days work. The president did not live up to the standards that the workers are held at during the day. In fact, he was fired, for the first time in his life, by a foreman at one of the positions he started at.
Through this show the media, to me, has hit the need of the employees head on. CEOs need to respect their workers and understand that their employees are the ones that are powering their companies and launching them to new heights. Presidents of companies need to get a sense of what their employees go through every day and how each of them have struggles besides working that they are trying to manage. Every worker has a story and needs from their company which need to be met. The only companies that are worthy of what they do are the ones that care for their workers. I am glad to see that the media has brought to the attention of millions the need to focus on the little man and improve his work environment by exposing its faults to and of higher administration. By exposing these conditions it is making employers have to look at who, honestly, is running, expanding, and empowering the company.
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