So, I was attacked by a dog tonight.

I'm fine -- the dog was a bully, not a biter -- but I'm pretty peeved at character disordered pet owners.

I was out running in the rain (I find it a great, refreshing, creative time to run), when a guy stepped out of his house with what looked like a large red akita. The dog ran at me, which I ignored, because the owner was there, and I thought, "Surely the dog is safe, with his owner standing right there."

The dog barreled in to me (must've been about 90 pounds), looked surprised that I didn't run, and took off up the street.

No reaction from the owner. None. Zip. Nada. Seriously, he looked expressionless as I continued my run past him.

I was 25 yards down when I could hear the dog's nails clipping across the asphalt as he charged me again. I turned around, planted my feet, and wound up to deck the dog.

So, here's the other scary part (aside from the owner doing nothing while all of this is happening): The dog saw what I was doing, it registered, and he skidded to a stop and ran back down the street. A dog that that has enough history to recognize a runner going into self-defense is a scary thing.

I'm a dog person, but seriously, if you own a dog, take responsibility for it. Don't penalize a dog for your bad decisions, if you can't handle or manage your pet.

I guess I'll have to do my rave of Dwayne McDuffie later this week, and defer my update of my video game blog with comic book gaming goodness as well.

Stupid character-disordered dog owner ...