BADRAP surrenders to facts

"A lie can run around the world six times while the truth is still trying to put on its pants." ~Mark Twain

on May 20, 2013 @ 9:00 am PST, BADRAP made the following proclamation:
It's Dog Bite Prevention Week. Did you know that there was never such thing as a 'Nanny's Dog'? This term was a recent invention created to describe the myriad of vintage photos of children enjoying their family pit bulls. While the intention behind the term was innocent, using it may mislead parents into being careless with their children around their family dog - A recipe for dog bites!

INNOCENT? the phrase 'Nanny Dog' was never used innocently. it was a very deliberate, very deceptive campaign to manipulate people into accepting a FIGHTING bred dog into the community.

manipulation is never innocent.

BADRAP (or JANE) has employed a talented public relations specialist. they have managed to put a fantastic spin on the reversal of the 'Nanny Dog' myth and back peddled right out of that sticky mess. or so they think. but trying to flush this lie from internet will be a herculean task, similar to trying to remove pee from the pool. the damage is done. this LIE will never be erased and the truth will still be trying to put its pants on long after DONNA'S big announcement has fallen from the top of the page.

flip flopping is nothing new for DONNA REYNOLDS. years ago, she said things like "pit bulls are naturally dog aggressive" and advised people against taking their pit bulldogs to dog parks. now she talks in terms of "individuals" and "dog selective". i think the change happened right around the time BADRAP became JANE BERKEY'S pet project.

let me be perfectly blunt. i'm calling shenanigans on BADRAP. i have a theory. rather than try to explain "the myriad of vintage photos" as DONNA claims, i think the likes of BADRAP, AFF and the utah cult BEST FRIENDS, aggressively sought out vintage photos of pit bulls with kids in an attempt to reinvent the pit bull into something that didn't scare people.

pit zealots like to point the finger of blame to the famous 1987 sports illustrated article for ruining the reputation of their pit bulldogs. but media coverage works both ways. after the famous vick bust of 2007 and the "rehabilitation" of his grippers, pit bulldogs, especially vick pit bulldogs were constantly being paraded in the media. there was a massive surge in all of the myths: nanny dog, it's all how they're raised, ATTS, man biters were culled etc.

trend in DBRF:
2009 - 14 people were killed by pit bulls
2010 - 22 people were killed by pit bulls
2011 - 22 people were killed by pit bulls (DARLA NAPORA)
2012 - 23 people were killed by pit bulls (REBECCA CAREY)
2013 and now in the first 122 days of this year, a whopping 13 people have been killed by pit bulls, 14 if you count the man who was struck by a car while fleeing a rampaging gripper. at the current pace, grippers are on target to claim the lives of 42 americans this year.

a very small sample of pro-pit bulldog media coverage:
12/2008 with the help of JIM GORANT, sports illustrated redeems itself in the eyes of nutters by publishing a sickening pro-pit article (page 2 paragraph 3 references the nanny dog)
09/2010 NPR story about the vick dogs
01/2011 (uploaded to youtube) PBS cashes in on the feel good vick dog action.
many of the vick dogs have their own facebook pages, websites and blogs

books
2009 badd newz
2010 one good dog (a jane berkey production)
2010 lost dogs 
2011 saving audie (propaganda age 6-9)
2011 pit bulls: villains or victims? (a regurgitation of karen delise + police gazette)
2012 wallace: the underdog

tv shows
2009 pit bulls and paroles 
2010 pit boss

documentaries
2009 vicktory to the underdog
2010 the pit bull hoax
2010 beyond the myth
2012 guilty til proven innocent

miscellaneous crap
2008 vicktory dog wine
2013 jonny justice plush toy
creepy calendars of tattooed floozies & bulldogs

i'm sure that i missed a few.

media blowback
you don't have to be a rocket scientist to see the impact that of all of this positive media attention has had on the number of dog bite related fatalities. whether positive or negative, too much media attention on a breed of dog is never a good thing. media hype always appeals to people on the most superficial of levels. too much negative press attracts the thugs & criminals and too much sugar coated press attracts the naive and politically correct fur mommy crowd who think their love supersedes genetics. both of these groups compromise the safety of the rest of us.

slick public relations tricks fueled by a guilty conscience and BADRAP thinks they can back out of this mess with their reputation intact and pretend as if nothing happened. not if i can help it.

"Nanny Dog" was the pit bull breed booth theme at multiple booths at Americas Family Pet Expo in Orange County, CA.
Paid attendance 30,000.

thank you pmic4od!

in search of "innocence"
i briefly surveyed the presence of the nanny dog on the internet. here is a small sampling of nanny dog references. what do you think, are they innocent?

first stop 'in the company of dogs' where you can show the world your pit bull pride with a t-shirt or pillow.

which words jump out at you first?

here's what jumps out at me.
1) babysitter
2) pit bull
3) misunderstood
that's no accident.


GEORGE TAKEI (star trek's sulu) thinks pit bulls get a "bad rap". nutters really hate facts. i posted the link to badrap's big announcement, you know, cuz i'm all about educatin' but this little weasel deleted my comment.

BEST FRIENDS ANIMAL SOCIETY  gets in on the 'nanny dog' action with one of the vick cash cows - HANDSOME DAN.
"When our daughter, Josephine, was born in 2010, we knew Dan would be great with her. We just had no idea how great. When she was a baby, he would sleep next to her crib. Now that she is a little older, he is so calm and patient with her. Sudden movements have always startled Dan, but the craziness of a toddler doesn't seem to bother him at all. Dan can truly be considered a nanny dog!"


JIM GORANT my understanding of his book is that he was personally spoon fed by DONNA and TIM. this pdf sports illustrated article written by GORANT is hosted on NCRC :-)

JAMES SULLIVAN  this fresh faced punk journalist is described as a culture critic.
"In 19th-century England, one dog breed was known as the “nanny dog’’ for its exceptional relationship with children. One probable member of the same breed, writes author Jim Gorant, was a beloved World War I mascot; another was the Little Rascals’ constant companion."


ELIZABETH A BROWN  journalist writing for the christian science monitor.
"If readers are surprised to find an entire book devoted to these dogs, here’s another upset: Our image of pit bulls couldn’t be further from the truth. The Staffordshire bull terriers, from which the American pit bull terrier descends, were known to be so gentle that in the 1800s they were called “nanny dogs,” ideal to be left alone with babies."


JOE WOESTENDIEK  (a pulitzer prize winning journalist - LOL!) the omidog blogger wrote a puff piece about one of JANE SAUL ROTROSEN BERKEY'S literary clients.

BRENT TOELLNER  pit zealot, blogger and marketing/advertising slime ball.

ANDREW ROZSA  psychologist, irresponsible pit bull owner and a very bad neighbor. his comment about the 'nanny dog' is actually comical.
"A Google search of the phrase “nanny dog historical fact” yields 1.5 million hits, much of it “”noise.” However, the vast majority of hits on the top few pages will be supportive of the idea, while the minority who calls us “nutters,”  holds the opinion that this is a myth."
witness proof of assertion in action.


YONAH WARD GROSSMAN  this idiot is just way too confident in his position. he reminds me of another Mark Twain quote, "It ain’t what you don’t know that gets you into trouble. It’s what you know for sure that just ain’t so." GROSSMAN wrote about the nanny dog, not just once but twice. his blog posts went viral.

JOSHUA HOLLAND  this idiot calls himself the truth vigilante.
"For most of the 114 years since the American pitbull terrier was first recognized by the United Kennel Club, the breed was rightly seen as the perfect “nanny dog” for children because of its friendly nature, loyalty and stability. As the ASPCA notes, the pitbulls were “once considered especially non-aggressive to people."

(shame on you alternet, i expect more from you!)


PAMELA KRAMER  "Although pit bulls are still suffering from discrimination, this book will go a long way toward the day when they will no longer carry the stigma of "fighting" dog, but rather the appellation "nanny" dog, once again (as they were known years ago)."

i expect this crap from the examiner. afterall, they provide CINDY MARABITO and PENNY EIMS with a platform to spread their lies and propaganda. but the christian science monitor? boston.com? alternet? c'mon!


PIT BULL RESCUE CENTRAL 'faq' LOL!
They are often referred to as "nanny dogs" because they are excellent with children.


JASON MANN (pitbulllovers.com)
4. Pit Bulls are great with kids. They weren't referred to as the "nanny's dog" for nothing that's for sure.


CELIA SUE HECHT a best friends groupie

COASTAL CANINE MAG fall 2012

IAN DUNBAR you'd be hard pressed to find a more spectacular display of stupidity from a so-called expert. DUNBAR doesn't actually mouth the words NANNY and DOG but his meaning is undeniable as he tells viewers that pit bulls are his first choice for child psych wards because pit bulls don't care if kids pull their tails. ISYN.


SHERIDAN FRENCH
"Below is a great, short article that gives a brief history of Pit Bulls and brings to attention that the breed has become very misunderstood and misrepresented. Please, please read in order to educate yourself on this wonderful dog, a breed that used to be known as the Nanny Dog." 
scroll to the bottom for the photo of her toddler hanging on her pit bull while the pit bull is eating two feet from her other dog who also has his face in the food bowl.


KEITH L. KENDRICK a pit bull fanatic in oregon
"So despite being known as the "nanny dog" in the early 1900's, as well as in the United States as a well regarded all purpose family dog good with children, because of such highly distorted journalism Pit Bulls immediately became the top demon dog."


i have pdf copies of all of these (and more) just in case the FTC comes a knockin'.

“The great enemy of the truth is very often not the lie — deliberate, contrived and dishonest — but the myth — persistent, persuasive and unrealistic. Too often we hold fast to the cliches of our forebears. We subject all facts to a prefabricated set of interpretations. We enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought.” 
~John F. Kennedy

so, to recap - BADRAP, i don't believe you and i don't forgive you.