You can tell a lot about a person by how they treat animals.

Alabama has the weakest cockfighting laws in the nation. There is a $50 fine if caught. That’s a parking ticket. Dinner for four. Alabama is one of only 13 states where cockfighting isn’t a felony. One of those 13 states isn’t Louisiana. One of those 13 states isn’t Georgia. For a good time, “sportsmen” from Louisiana and Georgia come here.

In case you don’t know:

“In a cockfight, two roosters fight each other to the death while people place bets. Cockfighters let the birds suffer untreated injuries or throw the birds away like trash afterwards. Besides being cruel, cockfighting often goes hand in hand with gambling, drug dealing, illegal gun sales and murder. Left to themselves, roosters almost never hurt each other badly. In cockfights, on the other hand, the birds often wear razor-sharp blades on their legs and get injuries like punctured lungs, broken bones and pierced eyes—when they even survive.”

–the Humane Society of the United States

Does that strike you as something deserving of a $50 fine? The price of a concert ticket. A night at the movies.

The federal government doesn’t think so. Cockfighting is punishable by up to three years in jail and a fine of up to $250,000 if perpetrators buy, sell or transport an animal used for fighting across state lines.

So what’s your problem, Alabama? Once AGAIN a bill to stiffen the penalties for cockfighting in Alabama has made it out of committee. Once AGAIN the cockfighting lobby (Do you get to have a lobby for something that is ALREADY ILLEGAL?) is making an effort to keep the bill from coming to a vote. Since a good chunk of Alabama’s legislators are cowards, they may succeed again. No one wants to vote against the bill because then they are the “Cockfighting Senator” and no one wants to vote for it because “that nice young man who watches roosters murder each other brought me a muffin basket.” Or maybe they enjoy a cockfight every now and then themselves.

This is not OK. And you don’t have to live here to tell them so. Last time the bill was up, cockfighters from Georgia called the Alabama statehouse to have them kill the bill. All’s fair. I’ve made it easy for you: at the end of this post, there is a list of the state representatives who are blocking the vote, their districts, and how to contact them by email. Do me a favor. Tell them to suck it up and vote. Tell them the world is watching. Tell them 2009 poll of Alabama voters, 82% favored stronger penalties and believed cockfighting is cruel and inhumane.

Never be afraid to do what’s right, especially if the well-being of a person or animal is at stake. Society’s punishments are small compared to the wounds we inflict on our soul when we look the other way.

– Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

The 32 names that follow are the 32 representatives that asked the Speaker of the House to not let the bill be heard.

• Micky Hammon / info@mocold.com / Limestone and Morgan
• Dan Williams / dan.williams@alhouse.gov / Limestone
• Ed Henry / ed.henry@alhouse.gov / Cullman and Morgan
• Ken Johnson / kenjohnsonrep@gmail.com / Lawrence & Winston
• Jeremy Oden / Jeremy.oden@alhouse.gov / Blount, Cullman, & Morgan
• Mac Buttram / mbuttram@att.net / Cullman
• Bill Roberts / broberts1229@cs.com / Walker
• Richard Baughn / rgbups@yahoo.com / Tuscaloosa, Walker, & Winston
• Daniel Boman / daniel_boman@thebomanfirm.com / Fayette, Lamar, & Tuscaloosa
• Mike Millican / mike.millican@alhouse.gov / Marion & Winston
• Jim Patterson / jimpattersonhd21@gmail.com / Madison
      According to the source of this list, Patterson is PRO-cockfighting.
• Todd Greeson / todd.greeson@alhouse.gov / DeKalb
• Kerry Rich / kerryrich@bellsouth.net / DeKalb & Marshall
• Wes Long / weslong@mclo.org / Marshall County
• Steve Hurst / steve.hurst@alhouse.gov / Calhoun and Talladega
• John Merrill / john@tuscaloosagop.org / Tuscaloosa County
• Harry Shiver / harryshiver@aol.com / Baldwin, Conecuh, Escambia, & Monroe
      Contacted about stalling: “I’m a yes vote for Jim Barton’s bill. We need to strengthen this bill.”
• Alan Baker / staterep@co.escambia.al.us / Baldwin & Escambia
• Lesley Vance / Lesley.vance@alhouse.gov / Lee & Russell
• Mark Tuggle / tughd81@gmail.com / Lee & Tallapoosa
• Paul Lee / pwlee@graceba.net / Houston
• Steve Clouse / steve.clouse@alhouse.gov / Dale & Houston
• Randy Davis / rmdavis14@aol.com / Baldwin & Mobile
      Contacted about stalling: “not true I am prepared to vote”
• Joe Faust / jfaust@co.baldwin.al.us / Baldwin
• Steve McMillian / bcld07@gmail.com / Baldwin
      Contacted about stalling: “you have been grossly misinformed”
• Mike Jones / mljatty@andycable.com / Covington & Escambia
• Barry Moore / barry@barrymooreindustries.com / Coffee
• Alan Boothe / alan.boothe@alhouse.gov / Dale & Pike
• Paul Beckman / paulbeckmanjr@yahoo.com / Autauga & Elmore
• Donnie Cheesteen / dchesteen@panhandle.rr.com / Geneva & Houston
• Duwayne Bridges / duwayne.bridges@alhouse.gov / Chambers & Lee
• KL Brown / klbrown@cableone.net / Calhoun

Representative Jim Barton was courageous enough to sponsor HB74. jbarton104@gmail.com

The source of this list is a petition that targets residents. If you live here, please take 30 seconds to sign. If you don’t live here, please take 30 seconds to sign, I’m told the petition will work. Representatives phone numbers can be found here too.