Shortly after I turned 11, I started taking Tae Kwon Do lessons. I got my black belt about 16 months later.
My father and uncle owned a small construction company, and one summer when I was about 14, they happened to be doing some work for a little old lady who happened to be the grandmother of one of my best friends in junior high. She had a big dog chained in her front yard.
So as I was walking up to this house for the very first time, the dog suddenly growled and lunged at me.
After several years of karate, all the moves had basically become reflexive; so I didn't mean to, but I kicked the dog in the head.
After that I never had a problem with the dog. Apparently, he knew who was boss and was very friendly to me after that.
It was like one of those Looney Tunes cartoons where the menacing bull dog turned into, "You're my best friend, aren't you, Pee Wee? Huh? Ain't cha, Pee Wee? Ain't cha my best friend? We're best buddies!"
Anyway, I think if a big dog attacked me like on the plane, if I had the opportunity, I'd kill it right then and there. These people need to start managing their pets.
And for that matter, they need to start managing their children as well. Once when I was at the library, a bunch of children were running around unsupervised. I told the librarian, "This might be the WalMart parking lot?"
She found it amusing, and maybe I am being a little paranoid, but I don't know if letting children run around like that is another sign of letting heterosexuals and parental units not have to take responsibility for what they don't want to, simply because they are in the majority, to hell with anyone else's needs.