Iditarod brought to halt as mistreated dogs refuse to run. Wonder where Gov. Palin stands on this.

http://www.sportsline.com/spin/story/11013946

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (Sportsman's Daily Wire Service) -- The long-suffering dogs of the Iditarod have finally said "enough." Word of two-time runner-up Ramy Brooks disqualification from the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race for abusing his dogs prompted scores of "four-legged athletes" to stage a work stoppage until "conditions markedly approve."

"I wouldn't wish these conditions on a pit bull that killed and ate a family of four," said Cesar Millan, the renowned Dog Whisperer who was flown into Anchorage to interpret and speak on behalf of the disgruntled dogs. "Causes of death during the last 10 years have included strangulation in towlines, internal hemorrhaging after being gouged by a sled, liver injury, heart failure and pneumonia. Now, these are rugged, well-trained athletes used to withstanding extreme conditions. Some will succumb. So it's not necessarily the relentless physical abuse that we object to, it's the psychological terrorism inflicted by the mushers that must be stopped. The dogs I've conversed are making a statement: Enough is enough."

The 1975 Iditarod winner, Jerry Riley, was banned for life in 1990 after being accused of striking his dog with a snow hook (a large, sharp and heavy metal claw). Riley has since been an outspoken critic of the Iditarod's critics.

"It used to be just you, your dogs and the Alaskan landscape, competing against the world's best mushers and best-trained dogs. Now you've got these groups looking over your shoulder anytime you do what any self-respecting football or basketball coach does to impose discipline. Now, no one expects Bobby Knight to whack one of his players across the snout with an iron pipe or chain him to a tree for five hours without so much as a Milk-Bone biscuit, but it's not easy motivating dogs to race in sub-freezing temperatures, across rugged terrain, for hours on end ... particularly when they'd prefer to be sleeping at the foot of your bed, fetching a Frisbee on a weekend afternoon or mindlessly licking their own testicles. And now they're putting all these crazy ideas into their heads -- a work stoppage? What's next? Demands for health benefits, a pension plan and sensitivity training?"

I'm big fan of the Iditarod, so have at it, PETA folks, without my input. :)

As for Palin, I think she's probably for this protest .. if only becausethe dogs' not running makes them easier to shoot from a helicopter.