It's about damn time.

Lawmakers Consider an Animal Abuse Registry.

I'm all for this bill, and I hope the rest of the states follow suit. Way to go, Mr. Florez!

Some of the comments made me sick. Who the hell compares animal abuse with speeding? Those two are leagues apart. Everybody speeds. People who get speeding tickets usually aren't serial killers. They're average people. Speeding usually means that a person was in a hurry or not paying attention to the speedometer. It doesn't make them criminals.

Animal abusers are on a whole different level. An individual who beats, starves, tortures, or kills an animal is a dangerous criminal. I dare go so far as to say that it's eerily similar in nature to child abuse and domestic violence. There is a very short transition from animal abuse to, say, a spouse abusing his/her partner or some sicko going around and kidnapping and raping women.

To me, animal abuse is just as mortifying and despicable as child abuse. Both children and animals are powerless to change their situation, they're completely innocent, defenseless, and they have no idea why they're being hurt. Animals can suffer just as much as any human.

Anyone who would lump animal abuse in with shoplifting or speeding has their head up their ass.

And we're not talking about a registry for people who don't keep up on their horses' hoof trimming (which is something only a poophead would do, but that's not the point). It would be for FELONS. People like Michael Vick and Ernie Paragallo. The truly evil, sadistic asshats that nobody wants around.

I would use this database. I'm sure plenty of other people would, too.

I read an article in the paper about it the other day, and a question came up asking, "Do people who abuse animals deserve a lifelong label?"

Oh, Hell yes.

I can't believe that that's even a question. Anyone who would do something bad enough to be charged with felony animal abuse deserves to be hung up in the nearest tree.

And besides, let's say you were looking for a babysitter for your kid and you looked an applicant up on the registry, and he/she comes up for dog fighting. Would you want someone like that babysitting your kid? Would you even want that person in your neighborhood? Hell, no!

Call me a PETA-loving animal rights extremist all you want (it's not true, but go ahead). You don't have to be some crazy lunatic to agree that animal abuse is serious business and nothing to be taken lightly. Yes? Yes.

And, FYI, if it was up to me, all violent criminals would be branded across the forehead and be subject to public ridicule.

Actually, scratch that. All violent criminals would be subject to death by firing squad. That's what I would do.