1.) Many members of the Vulcan Society & the Society itself gave donations and continued support to the families of our fallen brothers, and Vulcan members were at the side of our two brothers in that fire when they fell….We were there, without any fanfare and the need to show off what we did….our support and actions, as always went beyond a website….our concerns went to the families in their time of grief….not to a website

2.) The Vulcan Society is a non-profit organization that address’ many issues and concerns of its members and the community that it serves. Why is should there be a separate advocacy group dividing firefighters? First our mission is to “work with” all groups and we do not teach separatisim, second when black members were being bypassed with a 100% score, when our applications were being thrown in the trash, and when the tests were proven to be biased and unfair, no one, from any other group came forward to say “lets fix this”. “Lets make the test and process fair and open to everyone.” Even in this day and time when there are still problems with the exams, no other groups, unions etc. have come forward to address the problems with the exams regardless of who it impacts and that is what we continue to do…..work for a fair and level playing ground for all, regardless of color.

3.) Our organization services high risk, low income neighborhoods of all colors….for this year alone we have given out 200 free car seats, 450 free smoke detectors, 150 free bikes, training in CPR & First Aid training to 600 adults and youth of various ages, along with other safety materials….The Vulcan Society is used as a means for its members to give back to the community….the members time is all volunteer for these services….But I guess you missed that part off our “website”.

http://christopher-king.blogspot.com/2008/02/kingcast-presents-truth-about.html

Excerpt:

“…..while it is obviously improper to be drunk on the job (Cahill), and while trace amounts of marijuana and cocaine were in Payne’s body, there’s no causal connection between those facts and their deaths.

Hint: In the first picture, that’s a flashfire caught at that exact moment that Firefighter Payne died. Read the comments for more on this.

So this means the city needs to shell out for all of the benefits owed to the families, and meanwhile that doesn’t excuse the lack of a contract between the city and the firefighters’ union for more than a year, either. That having been said, if there is substance abuse occurring on the job then that most certainly DOES need to be addressed, but the current policy is woefully inadequate, as noted in the comments.”

I watched Vick’s public apology with my little son who USED TO wear Michael Vick jerseys to school. It is disturbing to think a certain percentage of the population is honestly going to be swayed by Michael Vick’s “enlightenment” carefully crafted by his overpaid attorneys. Call me a cynic, but I don’t believe a man who has been allegedly torturing animals since childhood coincidentally has a religious epiphany as a result of getting caught and losing his job. I hope I am wrong.

I think it is a sad commentary that we, as a culture, are using the Vick story to compare “What’s worse?” “What’s worse”, we ask, “carelessly fathering illegitimate children, or dogfighting?”. “Dogfighting or gambling?” “Dogfighting or rape?” “Dogfighting or racism?” “Dogfighting or hateful nationalism?” “Dogfighting or (fill in the blank)….?” The comparisons to dogfighting have been endless.

Dogfighting is one more piece of evidence our country is in need of a spiritual transformation (please note I said spiritual and not necessarily religious). Animals are sentient beings – they feel pain, and they suffer, just like we do. They are not more important, or less important than human beings, but like human beings, they are important, too.

Dogfighting pits one dog against another until one of them dies. The survivor gets his flesh torn off, ears ripped off, eyes pulled out, etc., and the reward for being “a winner” is to writhe in pain until the next fight. Enough said. The pictures make my flesh crawl. The losers are tortured, beaten, starved, electrocuted or drowned. For what? Because these poor creatures were unlucky enough to be born a dog!

Every major faith teaches its followers to be responsible stewards of animals and the Earth. Please help us get the word out that caring for animals, just like caring for people, is an important part of just being a decent person and citizen. If we make this a priority, there will be no more dogfighting horror stories, and no more pointless comparisons of evils. Let us all rise, together, to be better people than we are today, shall we?

Chaplain Nancy Cronk
Founder, http://www.AnimalChaplains.com