KANDAHAR, AFGHANISTAN – We may not all agree on what constitutes acceptable entertainment but can we kill those engaged in actions with which we disagree?
When it comes to ‘sport’ what counts as a ‘game’ is often in the eye of the beholder. I think we all recognise that certain classic forms of competition – running, swimming, etc. – do qualify as sport while others – golf, curling, ballroom dancing – are more marginal. NB I do NOT need to hear from all the golfers, curlers and ballroom dancers out there: I know that your activities mean a lot to you – it’s just that they are not ‘sport’.
Then we have ‘sports’ that are brutal in nature. Like boxing. Or dog fighting.
I don’t know how anyone can see pitting one canine against another with a goal to seeing these two animals rip each other’s throats as a sport. Or a game. Or acceptable. And yet it does happen and even attracts those you would think have more sense. Like former NFL quarterback Michael Vick.
So if this form of entertainment were to disappear tomorrow no one would be sad I’d imagine. Except of course those who bet on the outcomes of these ‘matches’. But does that mean it’s ok to kill over it?
On this day in 2008
A suicide bombing at an outdoor dog fighting competition in the southern Afghan province of Kandahar killed 80 people and wounded scores more. Officials said the attack apparently targeted a prominent militia commander who had stood up against the Taliban.
Dog fighting competitions are a popular form of entertainment in Afghanistan. The fights can attract hundreds of spectators who cram into a tight circle around the spectacle. The blast in question crumpled several Afghan police trucks and left bloodstains around the barren dirt field.
There are too many patients here. Some of them are in very serious condition.
Afghan doctor
It is often said that there is no ‘fun’ in FUNdamentalism. The Taliban are both fundamentalists and terrorists. And while I cannot accept dog fighting nor can I accept the killing and maiming of hundreds. Acts of this nature are more akin to animals.
How ironic that a terrorist attack aimed at those abusing dogs was itself subhuman.
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