Ellen DeGeneres' picture of a kid standing on a dog could end it for her?

[FrodosPet]

July 1, 2014

"Well, that's one way to reach the sink."


https://www.facebook.com/ellentv/photos/a.182755292239.124686.26012002239/10152602026212240/

I'm not defending Palin - I think she is a joke bordering on being a lousy human being. But remember, if everyone hammers on Palin over this, there will be collateral damage to someone often considered a hero on the left as well.

[dsc]

1. Ellen has no children

that photo was submitted by a viewer. Google is your friend.

[onenote]

48. that's a lame excuse.

Ellen's picture was roundly criticized as well it should have been. Posting the picture as something that shows cute behavior, not behavior that should be avoided, is the problem and Palin deserves to be criticized for it and so did Ellen. Just as LBJ deserved to be criticized for pulling on his beagles' ears until they yelped.

[erpowers]

62. Not Her Kid

There is a big difference between the picture Ellen Degeneres posted and the one Sarah Palin posted. The child in the picture posted by Ellen is not Ellen's child; therefore, she does not have the ability to tell the child what to do. On the other hand, Sarah Palin posted a picture of her son. She had the ability to tell him not to step on the dog.

[onenote]

66. Ellen had the ability not to post the picture

or the ability to post a message saying that this isn't a good thing.
Her failure to do so was wrong.

I don't have kids. But if I posted a "cute" picture of a kid with a gun, I would be, and should be, criticized out the wazoo. And DUers would never excuse me because it was not my kid.

[OregonBlue]

2. In case you missed it Ellen is a Lesbian. She has no children. Quit reading Faux Snooze and use the

Google.

[FrodosPet]

3. I stand corrected about the relationship, and have edited the title

Nevertheless, when this photo was posted on Facebook and EllenTV.com, it was accompanied by a joke, not a condemnation.

[Ms. Toad]

20. And she was roundly criticized for it -

read the comments. They are very similar to those leveled against Palin - to the extent the comments were about it being a cute concept.

But Ellen was not responsible for training the child, or for protecting the pet. Since most of the concern about Palin was directed to Palin's responsibility as her parent and pet owner, you might want to consider self-deleting your OP because it was based on a false analogy.

[cwydro]

4. It's true what you say.

But lesbians can and DO have children.

Just sayin.

[OneGrassRoot]

27. Well, I messed that up...

Somehow I read your reply to Oregon Blue as a reply to me, and it confused me. Then I saw you weren't replying to me at all. I haven't been here in so long that I couldn't remember if delete truly removed the post or not, but that's what I tried to do.

Anyway, just explaining why I tried to delete my comment...lol

Sorry about that.

[cwydro]

30. Now I'm confused lol!

But thanks for the giggle.

I screw up all the time on here so no worries.

[OregonBlue]

54. Yes they do but Ellen does not.

[Kali]

23. wtf?

Lesbians can't have children?

[Ms. Toad]

31. Darn. I'll have to inform my daughter she doesn't exist.

Or maybe I'm not really a lesbian.

(But aside from that big "oops," the point is correct - the child and dog in Ellen's photo are not hers. Even though they could have been.)

[cwydro]

34. Yes, that was a large oops.

I'm a gay women with no children.

But I'm pretty sure I could have some if I had so chosen.

[Aerows]

50. I have none

and I'm also pretty sure I could have some, too.

[cwydro]

64. Lol

I have no regrets on that score.

[OregonBlue]

55. Ellen does not have children and has talked about it a lot. Of course Lesbians can have

children but not all want to or believe they have to be mothers to be fulfilled as women.

[Lex]

67. P.S. Lesbians have children.

This really shouldn't be surprising.

[SickOfTheOnePct]

5. Selective outrage

It's an affliction of both sides of the political spectrum.

[DrDan]

65. +1 yep!

[alphafemale]

6. I don't like this either.

Even though it is a much smaller child.

You never let a kid think it is okay to stand on an animal.

[FrodosPet]

7. Exactly my point!

I don't like Sarah Palin. I wish she would fade into pure obscurity. As well, Ellen needs to remove that photo from her website and Facebook, and apologize for joking about animal cruelty.

I don't like hypocrisy even more than I don't like Palin.

[hootinholler]

11. Wouldn't that depend on the animal?

I'm pretty sure people stand on horses and elephants pretty regularly.

[Ms. Toad]

22. But Ellen had nothing to do with letting that particular child

think it was okay to stand on an animal. Palin did - and that is what the bulk of the concerns have been directed to.

[arthritisR_US]

41. Yes Palin is the pet owner and the parent and

her judgement is, as always, horrendously bad. Her poor parenting skills are on display along with her irresponsible pet ownership.

[onenote]

49. So Ellen posted it despite knowing its not behavior to be encouraged?

Of course not. She posted it because she thought it was a cute picture. And maybe it was. But it was a cute picture depicting behavior that shouldn't be encouraged or applauded, but should be criticized.

I can imagine a lot of "cute" pictures involving a child and an animal that, while cute, also would be depicting behavior that shouldn't be encouraged and thus, to the extent the picture is posted, should be used as a teaching lesson about what children should be taught NOT to do.

[Ms. Toad]

56. I was responding directly to the comment,

You never let a kid think it is okay to stand on an animal

which implied that a belief that Ellen was letting the child in the picture believe it was ok to stand on the dog. Ellen's site is site directed to adults - not children. So the only way Ellen's actions were was letting a kid believe it was ok to stand on an animal was if the child and animal depicted were hers - the conservative lie going around which dredged up this stale post. While I agree that it might have given parents the idea that having their children stand animals was cute, that is not what was being complained about - or what I responded to.

I agree it was stupid of her to post the picture - and she was hammered for it when she posted it in July. It was a teaching lesson back in July - and if you read the July thread, there was plenty of teaching going on.

The only reason the picture Ellen posted is in currently in circulation and influencing anyone is because people with a political motive, who didn't bother to fact check dredged it up and started recirculating it becase they thought (1) they caught a liberal parent doing exactly the same thing that Palin did and (2) that no one criticized her for it. When they grudgingly acknowledged that there was criticism, they complained that the criticism wasn't the same - essentially that Ellen was criticized for posting an inappropriate picture, but that Palin was personally criticized for her parenting. Duh. That's because all Ellen did was post a picture 6 months ago, for which she was severely criticized at the time. Now that they are (or should be) aware that they have been lied to, they are still trying to make hay by insisting that liberals are hypocrites if they do not demand that Ellen take action, now, to rectify a bad joke she posted 6 months ago. While I agree it was a lame move - and a teaching moment - it was over and done with 6 months ago, and any current harm is not because she posted it but because conservatives have brought it back into circulation.

Palin, on the other hand, posted a picture in the last week (so it is currently circulating because of her actions) AND she was responsible for encouraging the behavior by failing to intervene in the behavior depicted to train her child and protect the dog when her training failed.

There is no reason that criticism of a current (and more egregious) acts by Palin has to include criticism of (and a demand for action associated with) every similar thought ever uttered by someone I might happen to support, just because the conservatives have trotted it out as a hypocrisy meter.

[onenote]

57. Since I never made the comment you are attributing to me, you might want to edit

[Ms. Toad]

58. Done.

I didn't pay enough attention - I thought you were continuing an ongoing conversation, rather than joining it.

[Jackpine Radical]

8. That dog has such a long-suffering look on its face…

And I deplore this new craze of dog-standing, whoever is doing it.

[cwydro]

10. I know.

Why do people think this is cute?

My cat, on the other hand. thinks it is ok to climb me like a tree (claws and all).

But this standing on any animal is just wrong.

[treestar]

15. lol

it's getting out of hand!

[Quackers]

37. Don't knock it till you try it!

It's a party up in here!

[dissentient]

9. Yep, dumbest non-story of the year, so far (but it's early)

"Oh My God, a child stood on a dog!"

[arthritisR_US]

42. IMO, not a non story. One day the dog will

getwill get hurt, yelp and then bite in sresponse. Next, as all too often has happened, the animal is euthanized because of it. The potential for tragedy takes it beyond a non story.

[abakan]

44. If the dog was bothered by being used as a stool...

It would have moved. I would understand the uproar if the dog in question was a Yorkie but this dog readily allows it.

[Cosmic Kitten]

53. You do know it is a "service dog" right?

Are you aware of the training a service dog goes through?

Would YOU expect a service dog to respond differently from
the average family pet?

[Ms. Toad]

61. It is actually almost certainly NOT a service dog.

That seems to be another of Palin's fabrications.

The dog is barely a year old (it was born in January 2014). That is about the age service dogs start training (which last a minimum of 6 months - and more often 18-24 months). This dog (if you believe Palin) completed its training by 8 months of age - which happens to be the youngest age I have been able to find to START training. One site I found listed a mandatory one year of age for all standardized temperament tests (a prerequisite to being certified as a service dog).

Puppy Jake (where she says she got the dog) has a single dog in service, and it is not with the Palin family. Their second dog will begin its placement in the next few weeks - again, NOT with the Palin family.

I've posted links to support this several times - don't have time now to go back and find them all, but you should be able to find them either by searching this site, or performing a broader google site. Look for an article about how a puppy from Delmar Iowa ended up with the Palin family. It has the most comprehensive, contemporaneous, statement of the Palin's purchase of a dog from Iron Hills Retrievers, and its anticipated training at Canine Craze.

[abakan]

72. just for clarity...

My comment was about the large yellow lab in Ellen's photo. I would comment on the witch of wasilla but I don't want to waste the time.

[Ms. Toad]

73. The service dog was a reference to Palin's dog -

As to the large yellow lab in Ellen's photo - treating inappropriate behavior with a dog as cute is a bad thing.

The vast majority of dog bites occur in families, by dogs who were very patient - until they weren't. When they snap, because the children in the family do not understand (or don't respect) appropriate boundaries with their pet. (About 3/4 of all bites requiring medical care are by the family dog (or a dog the child is very familiar with - and about 3/4 of all bites also involve humans who interacted inappropriately with the dog). When parents don't enforce boundaries between children and the family pets, and pets finally snap (or a different animal which has a different disposition snaps), it is the animal that pays the price with its life or loss of its home. Most of that price could be prevented if people stopped allowing their children to treat their pets like stuffed animals - regardless of how apparently patient the specific animal is about putting up with it.

[OneGrassRoot]

12. (edited) Her FB page is being hammered in a similar fashion.

Last edited Sun Jan 4, 2015, 06:40 PM - Edit history (1)

As it should be, imho.

What I especially took exception to with the Palin pic is that she personally took the pic and accompanied it with the message to use whatever or whoever you have to to get to where you want to be. That's how I interpreted it because stepping over and on people (and other creatures and the planet) is The American Way and conservatives are proud of that.

Here are her precise words that accompanied the pic of Trig and their dog:

"May 2015 see every stumbling block turned into a stepping stone on the path forward. Trig just reminded me. He, determined to help wash dishes with an oblivious mama not acknowledging his signs for "up!", found me and a lazy dog blocking his way. He made his stepping stone," she wrote.

[cwydro]

19. Good point. nt

[arthritisR_US]

43. I didn't know that about what she had posted

along with the photo's and it really is sick but very much in keeping with who she is.

[jmowreader]

45. Another thing we need to be attacking on, and have started

I know this is a Down Syndrome child, but at the age of six he should at least know UP!

[smokey nj]

13. Ellen did get criticized when she posted that picture.

[Nitram]

14. In any case, it was worth it to hear Palin's incoherent retort.

[treestar]

16. It's not Ellen's kid and she's not necessarily approving

and making it funny. It could be a poke at whoever let the kid do that. Palin was the parent allowing it and thinking it was funny.

[Terra Alta]

17. I adore Ellen

but this is just wrong, IMO. I think Ellen should remove this from her page.

[FrodosPet]

46. I was a fan of hers since before she got her own sitcom

She was about the only good character on a show called "Open House" back in 1989-1990.

And I know that it is easy to be amused inappropriately. You laugh and then catch yourself saying "This is wrong to laugh at".

But yes, I hope Ellen apologizes and removes the pics.

And I don't hate Sarah Palin, because the primary goal of my life is to not hate anyone. I hope Sarah takes some time to reflect, and has a heartwarming. Unfortunately at this point, even if she went to the left of Bernie Sanders, people would still hate her based on legacy.

In any case, I hope that, if nothing else, this entire situation becomes a teaching moment about the difference between cute and animal abuse.

[oldandhappy]

18. Children have been crawling all over dogs

for decades. I am sure many viewers have old photos of similar situations. I am underwhelmed that this has become such an issue. Then again, if it gets rid of Palin == rage on!!

[onenote]

52. And kids have been getting bit by dogs for decades.

There is a reason that most professional dog trainers and vets are very critical of allowing children to stand or sit on dogs. Members of my family have had dogs as pets for ever. And what I've learned is that you can never be certain what their limits are and when they will snap. For example, my brother's dog has a tender spot on its ribs. She's been seen by her vet and its not really anything you can treat. And one could pet the dog 1000 times in and around that area with no reaction. But every once in a while, if somneone touches near that spot, the dog will shriek and lunge with teeth bared.

Anything that encourages people to treat a dog as a piece of furniture or a horse or whatever needs to learn that its not a good idea.

[Cerridwen]

21. Because when a good person does something we consider not good,

many of us tend to think it was a momentary lapse in judgement.

Though I believe Ellen was corrected by some of her followers for this picture.

When someone with a long history of hatred and ignorance does something not good, many see it as just another example of their ugliness.

I'd also note that palin is a politician and not an entertainer.

I don't remember Ellen trying to tie Democrats to terrorists and whipping up race hatred on her show. Nor do I remember her putting targets on certain Democratic districts.

Some of us can see the difference between an entertainer who looks like a good person and a politician who has spewed hatred all over the political landscape.

[Ms. Toad]

24. The negative comments about thinking it was cute

went beyond "corrected by some of her followers." They were overwhelmingly negative.

But the difference is, she Ellen posted a picture of an unrelated child and an unrelated dog. She was not actively engaged in encouraging bad behavior (by snapping the shot, rather than intervening) or in failing to protect the pet.

[Cerridwen]

26. It's nice to see we both recognize false equivalency.

[jeff47]

28. Yay! Let's lie to protect Palin!!!

Is that DeGeneres's kid? No? Is it her dog? No? Did she take the photo? No?

What exactly is supposed to be the equivalency there? We've got the kid's mom taking a picture, not protecting the dog, and apparently finding it adorable. Verses a one-line wisecrack about a picture someone else took of their child and dog.

Yeah....totally the same thing.

Please stop trying to protect Palin.

[Scootaloo]

32. I don't think he's trying to protect Palin. Rather, an attempt to attack Ellen.

[johnnylefty2000]

29. It would end her?

I hate how the right thinks that gays are pedophiles just because they like the same gender. If a woman has a son no one just assumes he is being sexually abused because her son is of the gender she is attracted to.

[mopinko]

33. ffs

this may be the dumbest post i have seen here this year.

[rock]

35. Remember the old joke about a dog whose

sitting in the corner moaning? The owner says, "He's sitting on a tack and just too lazy to move." This dog is not moaning. I suspect he's in no pain.

[NightWatcher]

36. After the Great Water War and fall of civilization, we'll sit around our burning piles of tires

and tell the few remaining children how back in the long ago everyone was outraged when a political nobody took a picture of her kid stepping on their dog and outraged the entire social media world.

[REP]

38. "She did it first!" Sulky Sarah resorts to petulant child's defense

So, because DeGeneres reposted a viewer pic on her site, that makes it okay for Palin to not correct her child when he stands on a service dog provided by a group who trains dogs for injured vets?

"Look! A shiny object! Don't look at what I'm doing!"

[gollygee]

39. I saw this photo before the Palin one

and I therefore thought the Palin one wouldn't be so bad - I assumed it would be like this, tiny kid, big dog who doesn't look particularly uncomfortable. However, then I did see the Palin one and I was still shocked. It was a pretty good sized kid on an average sized dog. I absolutely would have been getting the kid off the dog instead of snapping a pic.

[Rex]

40. Wow you must have spent a lot of time coming up with this one!

Yet, as so many have already pointed out - clever does not equal intelligence!

Nice try though...I give it an 8.5...better luck next time.

[workinclasszero]

47. Wow Fox "news" right wing BS is now promoted

at DU?????

[LanternWaste]

51. The first False Equivalency I've run into this year...

The first False Equivalency I've run into this year...

[Hutzpa]

60. It's the BS narrative of the right

when they are in denial of their abusive actions.

[Hutzpa]

59. WE NOW KNOW EXACTLY WHO YOU ARE.

defending Sarah Palin by bringing up pointing out another inhumane action does not correct the inhumane
action of another.

It is how the right defend their bias actions.

This both side do it premise has got to bloody end.

[Lex]

68. Plus evidently the OP thinks Lesbians can't have kids.

[leftyladyfrommo]

63. That could have ended badly if the dog decided to stand up

and leave.

I just hope she doesn't let the little boy ride on the dog. That could really hurt it.

[Omaha Steve]

69. Ellen owns 1/2 of a high quality pet products company

As for the joke about the photo. She tells jokes for a living. It's been in all the trade papers. Old school and on line.

http://www.halopets.com/



Our dogs get these twice a week.

[Nitram]

74. Sarah Palin IS a joke for a living

But this all seems like a tempest in a teapot.

[The Straight Story]

70. Is there a difference between taking a photo and posting one someone else took? (nt)

[Cha]

71. This is wrong.. I thinking Ellen realizes it now.