Thursday, August 30, 2007
This sporting life?
In the US, Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick pleaded guilty last week to federal charges relating to the operation of a dogfighting ring over a month after being indicted. - he faces a possible 6 year sentence. Here the BBC claim to have evidence, to be broadcast tonight, that Tyrone GAA player, and all-Ireland medal winner, Gerard Cavlan, “is a senior figure in a dog fighting operation known as The Bulldog Sanctuary Kennels.” When previously charged with possession of a dangerous dog, to which he pleaded guilty, Cavlan’s lawyer had told the court, “Mr Cavlan has no involvement in relation to any other activities that would be illegal.” According to the latest report “The USPCA will be following up on Spotlight’s findings.”.. [not just the USPCA I’d hope - Ed] Adds Additional BBC report here Update The Panorama undercover reporter’s account is here and, for the time being, the Panorama programme can be viewed here [RealPlayer file]
Pete Baker @ 07:41 AM
“Must every topic you comment upon attempt to reflect badly on an aspect of nationalist life and culture, of which, I might add, dog-fighting is not one. It is a sick pastime of individuals with a seriously disturbed pscyhe, and who are found among all sections of society, but notably rural peasants, inner urban lumpen-proletariat and playboy bourgeois and decadent aristocracy. The usual suspects for all practices revolting and reactionary in other words.
Posted by Rory on Aug 30, 2007 @ 07:08 PM”
Now now Rory, the point here is Micheal Vic has been suspended from the NFL, and Gerard Cavlan has not been suspended (yet) from the GAA for largely the same offense.
Its plebs that Pete dislikes, as far as I know Micheal Vic is not a Taig.
Posted by on Aug 31, 2007 @ 01:15 AMGeorge,
You are plain, flat out wrong.
Let me make this simple.
On BBC NI there was a Spotlight from 9 til 10. That was followed by Panorama after the 10pm news.
On the Network BBC there was just the Panorama which ran from 9 til 10.
Barriskill, the Farmers Boys chief, was doorstepped at length at the end of the Spotlight. There was also an attempt to doorstep Hammy, one of his underlings.
And your attempt to minimise Cavlan’s role strikes me as risible.
Posted by on Aug 31, 2007 @ 05:49 AMThese people are complete sickos.
Anyone who can breed, rare, and train dogs to fight to the death in the name of entertainment and ‘sport’ are one step below murderers in my opinion.
Of all the things to be involved in as a hobby. Particularly harrowing was the fact that these people kill any dogs that wont/can’t fight and as for Mr Gonzalez electrocuting one of his dogs, then taking it into the house to finish the job, what can you say…
I do believe these people are capable of anything..
Hope they now get prosecuted appropriately..
Posted by on Aug 31, 2007 @ 08:31 AMThat certainly would be nice SV1 but the TV program would probably be inadmissable as “evidence”.
Still, the PSNI, as well as the USPCA, now know where to look.
So here’s hoping.Posted by on Aug 31, 2007 @ 08:48 AMGeorge,
Just to correct one of your earlier comments, you said that Ger Cavlan had no connection with actual dog fighting, he stated in the programme that he “put down” any dogs over the age of 15 months that showed no interest in fighting.
He’s being singled out because he is well known, is no more or less guilty than any of the rest of the scumbags involved in this & lets hope, if found guilty, they are made an example of.
Posted by on Aug 31, 2007 @ 08:48 AMI live in London, and the panorama show was on this story last night (although I haven’t watched it yet).
This thread is kind of descending into a parody of slugger in microcosm, with a local story (within a highly topical global context) descending into laughable allegations of attempting to discredit (in this case)cathlicks/GAA/nationalists etc etc - seriously, get over yourselves
I’ve just come back from NY and the Vick story is absolutely huge, and all over the media - and since his guilty plea, the place is rife with speculation that he’s cooked up a deal to give up other footballers involved in a wider-ranging sub-culture of dog-fighting than is known about at the minute. That this has somehow become an apparently pretty widespread phenomonen in some parts of societies across the world is pretty shocking, to me at any rate, and if the BBC has managed to evidence some of it in the UK and Ireland, all the better. Hopefully the full weight of the law will be brought to bear on all participants.
Posted by on Aug 31, 2007 @ 08:57 AMCromwell,
I said there is no evidence presented in the programme, not that he had no connection with dog fighting.Maybe there is other stuff for the police to put together a case.
None of the good coverage of the fighting dogs involved Cavlan. He was not present at any of it and there is nothing in that programme linking him to it.
If you ask me if I think he is involved in dog fighting my answer would be yes.
All the information that the programme got on the fighting dogs came from the raid on Cavlan’s house.
But, basically, as all of this came out in his court case last April there is nothing new in the public domain here regarding Cavlan except his admission that he contemplated the idea of perverting the course of justice by stealing his dog back.
And that he puts down dogs. As I said, a lot of circumstantial evidence but not enough, in my humble view, for a criminal conviction.
Jone,
I have all the BBCs and the only one it was on at the time was BBC NI. Didn’t occur to me that it might have run earlier on the other BBCs as usually it’s the other way around.Posted by on Aug 31, 2007 @ 09:04 AMI’ve just read the Post article Pete linked, and it’s interesting - Vick’s statement got, I’d say, a pretty positive reception, mostly from the sports journos (white and black) who seemed to be more inclined to want to talk about second chances and stuff (despite the supposedly spontaneous statement smacking of typical re-hashed boilerplate waffle about bad decisions, having to grow up etc etc).
but what interested me more than anything (this was my first time proper in the USA, other than simply passing through) was the absolute obsession that everyone seemed to have about race - everything seemed to be viewed through the prism of skin colour. The first question on most of the news broadcasts was inevitably a variation on “do you think there will be perceived to be a racial element to this?” - to which the obvious answer seemed to me to be “no, if the media would only shut the f#@k up asking that question!!”
Posted by on Aug 31, 2007 @ 09:08 AMGeorge,
Sorry, but that just sounds like you are making excuses for him, this is’nt a court so he’s not being convicted of anything, but he did himself no favours by some of his comments & behaviour in the programme.
Posted by on Aug 31, 2007 @ 11:56 AMCromwell,
I don’t like what I am saying either but this is my reading of the situation. I am not making excuses for Cavlan, I am pointing out that there doesn’t appear to be enough evidence for a criminal prosecution.I would be more than happy for you to prove me wrong on this because, as I have said earlier, I do “think” he is involved in this sordid business.
But opinion without facts is just that: opinion.
You can’t ask for a person to be punished merely because in your opinion he deserves it.
Posted by on Aug 31, 2007 @ 12:03 PMAlways wondered why Cavlan preferred the “kennel end” at Croker.
George, the Farmer Boys were confronted on film, Barriscale and Hamill. Also the Panorama programme which followed,and which went out nationwide, was presented by Mandy McAuley and used much of the footage from Spotlight.
Cavlan is obviously a scumbag but it is plainly ridiculous to drag the GAA into this affair.
I seem to recall at least one member of a famous East Belfast soccer club appearing in court on charges more serious than those Cavlan stands accused of. No questions were asked as to whether the club or fellow players supported these activities. And rightly soPosted by on Aug 31, 2007 @ 12:05 PMGAA star this, GAA star that, pity they won’t bloody show a bit of the actual sport on the BBC. I guess it doesn’t count as a sport unless there’s some guy receiving sectarian abuse, or some guy involved in dogfighting. Something like the Sun practically boycotts GAA, but suddenly Ger Cavlan is on the front page two days in a row-GAA SHAME etc. Load of crap. If the GAA is so unimportant then why is it suddenly relevant when someone who plays it does something wrong. I don’t condone what Cavlan did at all, it’s wrong, but the GAA coverage is crap and it irks me.
Posted by on Aug 31, 2007 @ 12:27 PMwhy the censorship with my post big brother.
Posted by on Aug 31, 2007 @ 03:55 PMHow can we trust anything we see on TV anymore with so much news, and documentaries being faked and biased, and idiots like the presenter of the programme making absolute nonsensical claims that the all Ireland [edited moderator] final is the equivalent to a FA cup final, i am convinced the programme makers set out with a hidden agenda to discredit the GAA.
Posted by on Aug 31, 2007 @ 04:14 PM“i am convinced the programme makers set out with a hidden agenda to discredit the GAA.”
*rolls eyes*
Riddle me this Seany, how else would you describe the All Ireland final to a British audience who wouldn’t know Croker from a hole in the ground?
Posted by on Aug 31, 2007 @ 05:31 PM
