It's an indisputable scientific fact that the majority of people who are cruel to animals eventually perpetrate violence against humans. That's why sages like Kant and Gandhi and Abe Lincoln thought a person's character could be judged by the way they treat animals.

Posted by: Brien Comerford | December 22, 2009 07:54 PM

hwo would set a poor kitten on fire.....i'm starting to think hitler tortured animals..but thats just not right

Posted by: ashley kennemer | December 22, 2009 10:42 PM

Ashley:

Actually, hitler loved animals and was a vegetarian, too!

Though, this situation is still true: MOST violent abuses victimize animals.

Posted by: David | December 23, 2009 07:00 AM

Brien,
Indisputable? I think you are getting ahead of yourself. True, most serial killers where cruel to animals in some shape or form. I am not denying that fact. Actually I will 100% agree with it.
However, just because every serial killer harmed animals, that doesn't mean that every kid who harms animals is going to become a serial killer.
When I was kid, my neighbor and I would take our BB guns to the nearest woods and shot as many birds as we could see, for a couple summers. Eventually, we realized that was very unecessary and we stopped. I am happy to report that neither one of us have killed, tortured or even harmed a fellow human and I am 99.99% sure we never will.
You need to stop speaking in absolutes, it just isn't healthy.
For the record, the kid who burned the cat needs to get his a** kicked.

Posted by: Kurt K | December 23, 2009 08:34 AM

What I want to know is why the witness watched this kid set a kitten on fire, not once but twice and swing it into furniture and did not stop him, or call the cops, or, or,??????

Posted by: Jasmine Vaught | December 23, 2009 09:33 AM

I think young Nikolas needs to be placed in a mental institution for the protection of those who might otherwise come in contact with him. If he asks why he is being placed there he can be told it is because he is a sociopath.

In most states, the requirements for psychiatric commitment are: The person is a danger to himself, a danger to others, or is destructive of property. In my view, Nikolas fills all of these requirements.

Posted by: Rev. Meg Schramm | December 23, 2009 12:49 PM

Let me tell you something.. If I EVER see anyone abusing an animal... They WILL pay the consequences .. and it won't be pretty!!!!

Posted by: carla | December 23, 2009 01:42 PM

Quote: For the record, the kid who burned the cat needs to get his a** kicked.

Kurt, is that all you can offer?

Nikolas Kerr is right when he describes himself as a sociopath, but kicking his butt is NOT going to address his extremely disturbed mind.
Frankly, he needs to be put in an institution where he is no threat to humans or animals. I believe in human rights but when it comes to such behavior, it is no longer a question of violating someone's rights. He has no "right" to live in a civilized society. He needs to be removed for a very long time. As for you and your friends who loved to blast birds out of thes sky when you were "kids"--I ask...what did your parents teach you? Frankly, if you would have been taught empathy and kindness at an early age, that behavior would never have reared its ugly head.

Animal cruelty and violence to humans is an INDISPUTABLE link. If you care, you need to look further. There are volumes of information proving it. Margaret Mead, the late anthropologist once said that "the most dangerous thing that can happen to a child is for him/her to torture or kill an animal and get away with it."

You are simply not convincing.

Posted by: Susan T | December 23, 2009 03:10 PM

Susan, you're missing the point - Kurt said he did it, but then felt remorse. I would shudder to think that you and others here had such a sheltered life that you didn't learn and make mistakes.

However, comments like the one you made only show to me that you really truly have had more sheltered lives in the city than anything.

Posted by: Mel | December 23, 2009 05:44 PM

Sorry Susan T,
Kick his butt then send him to an institution that can meet his mental health needs.
Or is that too harsh?

Posted by: Kurt K | December 23, 2009 06:20 PM

David,

There's a good article on Hitler's supposed vegetarianism on Wiki:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vegetarianism_of_Adolf_Hitler

"Reports state that Hitler occasionally ate meat during the 1930s. While Hitler reduced his meat consumption, he may have not eliminated it entirely, with culinary accounts indicating a sporadic preference for sausage, squab, liver dumplings, ham, and caviar."

"Dione Lucas, a European chef, was an eyewitness to Hitler's meat-eating. In her Gourmet Cooking School Cookbook (1964), Lucas, drawing on her experiences as a hotel chef in Hamburg during the 1930s, remembered being called upon quite often to prepare Hitler's favorite dish, which was not a vegetarian one. "I do not mean to spoil your appetite for stuffed squab," she writes, "but you might be interested to know that it was a great favorite with Mr. Hitler, who dined at the hotel often."

There is no such thing as a vegetarian who eats meat.

Posted by: Mike Quinoa | December 23, 2009 08:40 PM

perhaps that is true. yet if every man,woman,and child that hunted would be a threat to a mass murder. i dont want this to be interpreted to be hate mail. if you look at the numbers of hunters to serial killers or murderers this article would be completely irrelevant. i firmly believe that the reason they started with animals was because they had a mental disorder that caused them to prey on the weak. much like an animal of the wild would do. jeffrey dohmer for instance, he started with animals and yet he ate the bodies of his victims. is that not a good example of mental disorder vs animal instinct. all im saying is you cant premeditate all hunters for future killers of mankind

Posted by: DAVID | January 3, 2010 12:04 AM

Actually, Hitler's most renowned biographer talked about how his vegetarianism was made up as part of his image--it was meant to send a message about how strong-willed he was.

I believe his communications people also said he abstained from alcohol and sex.

Posted by: Jason | January 27, 2010 10:09 AM