I am a dog person. In fact, I love dog more than man. A lot more. Infinitely more, to be truthful.
So, before my heart was wrecked by the gunshot, it had already been wrecked once, by the hit and run.
Actually, come to think of it, what is the difference between them?
Nothing that I can think of.
Do we treat dog as we treat man? Do they treat the Blacks as they treat their first class citizens?
Dogs, they do not have the same rights as man. We hit them, we run. The dog dies. And there are no consequences for it.
The Blacks, they, obviously, as told by the movie's postscript about how the White officer murdered a Man in cold blood and was prisoned less than a year, do not have the same rights as America's first class citizens either. They shot him. He died. They got away with it. And there are no consequences for it.
Same. All the same. And there is more of the same to it.
Dogs, we have some misconceptions about them. A lot, actually. They look aggressive. We think them dumb. We think them simple. We think they are not capable of feeling the same indignity that we feel when we are subject to insults, the same pain when hurt, the same anxiety when threatened, the same anguish when someone loved is lost, the same responsibility for his family, the same longing to be loved, to fit in, the same need for respect, for reciprocity, for dignity.
We think we are more "sophisticated", we are more "intelligent", we appreciate life, as least our own, more.
We think they are disposable. We think we can do no wrong; only the stupid, immoral, senseless, unruly, and rule-less Dog can be the trespasser. They are always the guilty party. They are always to blame. The righteous Man, the sophisticated Man, the mannered Man, the intelligent Man, the Superior Man, of course, only, by his tolerance, allows the Dogs to live. And any inconvenience is their ingratitude and guilt.
We think we are better; we are "exceptional". Therefore, we have more rights; we suppose we can just hit and run, and get away with it.
And they surely did shoot and murder Oscar, and got away with it.
Our presumptions about Dog are wrong. All wrong.
Dog is in every sense a superior being than Man. Dogs do not lie. Dogs do not cheat. Dogs are never ungrateful. Dogs are never snobbish. Dogs never trade their masters for a bag of coins. Dogs never discriminate; you show him love, he loves you back. Dogs are just; you wronged him, he will bite you back. Dogs are generous; you give him a place to rest, he gives you his life. Dogs are a hearty bunch; they know the fun of life more than Man knows its suffering.
And we hit and run. And they shoot and murder. And we think we are better. And they think they are superior.
We are despicable. We are heartless.
They are soulless. They are irredeemable.
