The Story of My Life - By Shayna

Book excerpt: The story of my life is about dog racing and a good deal more. It is about cruelty, the human capacity for cruelty towards human animals and animals of other species. Dog racing, commonly known as Greyhound racing, is not a sport because no legitimate sport uses enslaved/involuntary participants and murders many of them once they start losing and no longer are competitive and profitable. Dog racing is, in fact, a deadly form of entertainment, as are horse racing, dog fighting, cock fighting, hunting and circuses that use enslaved other-specied animals. Incidentally, I remember Greta talking about a form of entertainment that was popular in Ancient Rome and which took place in public arenas. There enslaved humans known as gladiators were forced to engage in deadly combat against each other to the delight of cheering crowds. Often the losing gladiator was killed outright, and sometimes he lived depending upon the mood of the spectators. Unlike some spectator sports whose fans identify with and form emotional attachments to the athletes, dog racing fans care little or nothing about the Greyhounds. This detachment can be attributed to the racers' short racing careers; some race for just one season or part of a season at a specific track, and then are shipped elsewhere. But let's return to my story. Please know that I am real, as are other characters. On the other hand, some characters are not real. They are fictional. And although some of the events discussed in Part One are based on real happenings, some are not, and Part One is a work of fiction. In conclusion, I hope with all my heart that this book touches the hearts and minds of its readers. - Shayna Lanesboro, MA (1998)