Blue Mass Group

Reality-based commentary on politics.

Crimes against chastity, morality, decency and good order.

By

<a href="http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/Politics/story?id=3329017&page=1 "
Credit:ABC News

The martyrdom of Seamus the Irish Setter, strapped to the roof of the family car in his dog box by Mitt Romney and driven for hours on the highway until he lost control of his bowels, is now well and truly running in the media/Internet spin cycle. The Globe, which broke the story, offered a comprehensive review today (including some of David’s incisive commentary), along with intriguing references to a video of a singing dog atop a station wagon and T-shirts that say “I do not support the Romney Fresh Air Tour of Canada.” Sadly, I could not find these. Please add links in the comments if you know where they are. ABC News has the story here.

Discussion on blogs from PETA to FreeRepublic has been lively. The headline: Romney tortured his best friend, in front of his children, to resolve a problem.

There are still a few unresolved issues here. I think we owe it to poor Seamus to follow up on them.

  • Crimes against chastity, morality, decency and good order. There was a lot of discussion yesterday about whether Romney can be prosecuted in Massachusetts. Here is the current law (hat tip Ana Marie Cox at Swampland):  MGL Chapter 272: Section 77. Cruelty to animals: “[W]hoever … as owner, possessor, or person having the charge or custody of an animal … causes it to be carried in or upon a vehicle, or otherwise, in an unnecessarily cruel or inhuman manner or in a way and manner which might endanger the animal carried thereon … shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for not more than 5 years or imprisonment in the house of correction for not more than 2 1/2 years or by a fine of not more than $2,500, or by both such fine and imprisonment.” The main questions seem to me to be what legislation was in force in 1983 when the trip took place and the statute of limitations .

  • Canadian cause of action. Might there be a separate cause of action under the animal welfare statues in Canada, and specifically Ontario?

  • Other animals in Mitt Romney’s custody. Does Mitt Romney currently have a dog or other animals under his control? Given Romney’s endorsement of this system of canine transport, perhaps authorities should remove any such animals to ensure that current Massachusetts laws are not broken. Romney hits the road a lot these days. Who is to say he won’t strap some other dog who, “likes fresh air,” to the top of his campaign car for a weekend jaunt to, say, Iowa.
    Please share widely!
    fb-share-icon
    Tweet
    0

    • Comments

    2. The MA statute of limitations is 6 years in this case. It only takes a minute to do the research.

      <

      p>
      I doubt a jurisdiction exists with a 20+ year statute of limitations for animal cruelty. To put it in perspective, the statute of limitations for forcible rape in MA is 15 years.

      <

      p>
      No one likes Mitt Romney, but come on, prosecuting someone for being really mean to a dog 20 years ago? You’re overreacting.

      • …nobody is suggesting that Romney be prosecuted over this incident.  The issue is what this says about his judgement.

        • That might have been issue of the previous BMG post about the Romney-dog fiasco, but not Bob’s post. I suggest you read it again.

          <

          p>
          “There are still a few unresolved issues here. I think we owe it to poor Seamus to follow up on them…[t]here was a lot of discussion yesterday about whether Romney can be prosecuted in Massachusetts.“

          <

          p>
          Why would the poster wonder whether Romney can be prosecuted if not because he’s suggesting perhaps he should be prosecuted? Just to satisfy his intellectual curiosity?

          • Potroast has it exactly right downthread. We have to keep things lively around here đŸ™‚ Thanks for your excellent legal research.

            <

            p>
            Now, about those Canadian statutes …

    3. And I think Romney deserves every bit of mocking this causes for him.

      <

      p>
      Here we have a man who questions the ability of gay parents to raise children, but this man isn’t even capable of caring for a dog. 

      <

      p>
      I am going to relish watching this man humiliate himself and spend millions of dollars on a vain quest to pet his ego. I can’t wait to see him lose, badly.

      • The same people he is trying desperately to court right now while throwing his own state to the wolves will be his own undoing. They are bigots, and they won’t like him for being different either. He thinks that just because he sides with them on gay marriage they are going to forget he is a Moron Mormon. Correction, when this is done, no one will forget he is a moron.

        <

        p>
        All the Mormons I’ve ever known are good, kind people. His dishonesty must be killing them, and it can’t be doing their public image any good.

    5. When I read that Mitt Romney has tied his dog to his Wagon Queen Family Truckster like Aunt Edna, I had three reactions:
      First, Seamus??!! It’s always about the Irish! Perhaps we should get a few guys from Southie and tie our former Governor to the top of a car. I would imagine that the wind blowing through (and messing up) his hair would be great punishment for him.
      Second, How did the dog like Wally World?
      Third, there will be a backlash over this. People will criticize the “liberal press” for taking this incident and blowing it up into more than it is. They will say that when he was young and stupid, he did young and stupid things. I hope that it doesn’t take away from a real examination of his record here. This guy makes me nervous as the primaries are front loaded this year and after he does well in Iowa and New Hampshire, he could be off to the races.
      Finally, I wonder if Romney ever took this dog “varmint” hunting? Can you imagine if he caught anything? He’s the only hunter I know who would put the dead deer in the back seat and tie the dog to the hood!!
      Oh yes, and finally, finally, how is it that a guy who names his son Tagg has a dog with a name like Seamus? Shouldn’t it be the other way around?

      • The hive mind of BMG bows to none. The son Tagg/dog Seamus comparison hadn’t occurred to me, but it is inspired. As to “varmint” hunting and dogs riding on top the car, one FreeRepublic commenter thought this photo shed important light on this matter:

        <

        p>

      • Do I really get to use that excuse till I’m 36? Isn’t that middle aged? At what point does one cease to be young and stupid? Personally, I think I’m missing out on doing a lot of fun, irresponsible, stupid things by not taking advantage of these Young and Stupid years. Tsk.

        • …one of the Republican’s impeachment managers in 1998?  He claimed that his dalliance with a married woman who was not his wife (which tore that family apart) was a “youthful indiscretion.” 

          <

          p>
          Hyde was 39 when that happened.  Apparently, Republican males are entitled to engage in “youthful indiscretions” for their entire lives.

    6. I would love to hear from a professional’s point of view what the dog must have felt. Romney wants to say the dog loved it, is that possible?

      • I know you asked for a vet, and I am responding with geeks, but they are very good and highly qualified geeks who can describe what happens when you strap a dog crate on the roof of a moving car.  ABC News did an investigation,  and the full text of the article is online.

        <

        p>

        What Happens to a Dog on a Roof Traveling 50 MPH?

        All kidding aside, what exactly would be the dangers of strapping the family pet to the roof of a speeding vehicle for 12 hours?

        Llope said putting a dog on top of a car is just like putting anything or anyone else on the roof.

        “What happens to a dog in this situation is precisely what would happen to any of us in the same situation: Trapped in a box for 12 hours would be no one’s idea of comfortable,” said Llope.

        Dr. Russell Cumming, a professor of aerospace engineering at California Polytechnic State University, got a little more technical.

        “At that speed, assuming sea level conditions, the poor little dog would have about 10 pounds per square foot pressing against his head,” said Cumming.

        And in layman’s terms?

        “He would constantly feel a little less than 3 pounds pressing on his head for the entire trip,” he added. “The windshield would help, but boy that would get tired.”

        Nobel Prize-winning physicist Douglas Osheroff of physics at Stanford University said the dog crate on top of the car would change the air flow around the vehicle.

        “Beyond a certain velocity, the air flow becomes turbulent,” said Osheroff. “The airflow isn’t going to be laminar,” which means it won’t have a uniform distribution.

        Cumming said that’s bad news for Seamus.

        “Chances are the windshield would only protect the front of the dog, but the air flowing around the windshield would buffet the side of the dog — that would be tiring,” said Cummings. “My wife’s a vet, and she would be more worried by the dehydration of the dog’s eyes under those conditions.”

        In addition to dehydration, fatigue and fright, Seamus was strapped on top of a car for 12 hours with limited or no bathroom breaks — a condition that was highlighted in the Boston Globe article.

        “A brown liquid was dripping down the back window, payback from an Irish setter who’d been riding on the roof in the wind for hours,” the article said.

        After his son noticed the liquid, Romney pulled the car over and hosed down Seamus at a gas station before putting him back into the crate on top of the car and continuing on with the drive.

    Archives