There's been a ton of reaction to the whole Artest-Socks fiasco, so I thought I'd round up some of the best bits.
From Matt Ufford at With Leather:
If convicted, Artest could face a $20,000 fine. So basically, if you're in the NBA, starving your pets is exactly the same as losing a three-point contest to Gilbert Arenas.
And from a With Leather commenter:
The liberal media has used "Marmaduke" to deceive America into believing Great Danes are self-sufficient, not to mention affable.
J.E. Skeets questions Ron's choice of species to abuse at AOL Fanhouse:
Oh, no, a Great Dane, Ron? Come on! A hairless Mexican Xoloitzcuintle. . . yeah, sure, that I can understand. But a Great Dane, man? Pathetic.
Not everyone perceives the gravity of the situation, however. One poster at KingsFans questions the importance of the story:
I swear, what's next?? 'Corliss Williamson forgets he left his bathroom light on while playing the Hornets, details at 11!!'
And another...
Typical pathetic and desparate (sic) Sac news media. Lets see if they can blow this into a Muss DUI relation.
And how about some levity from the moderator of said message board?
...if it was anyone other than Ron Artest it wouldn't have even made the news. The allegations on their face actually appear ridiculous. It seems pretty obvious this was intentionally leaked to the media for whatever reason.
And in our final dispatch from that haven of objectiveness and sensitivity that is KingsFans...
Ron Artest can't get a break. Ignorant strangers screw with him at every possible opportunity. Someone please tell me why nosey busy-bodies don't focus their attention on drug-dealers, wife-beaters, pot-smoking losers, and corrupt politicians.
People: Stop calling animal control when your neighbor doesn't feed his dog for six weeks! There are bigger problems in the world you know!
Jesus H. Christ.