The winners and the losers

• Winner: NFL quarterback Michael Vick deserves nothing but scorn for his part in running a dogfighting ring. But an animal shelter in Kanab deserves nothing but praise for agreeing to take 22 of the 48 American pit bull terriers that ring abused.

The Best Friends Animal Society has the facilities for housing dogs that can't get along with either humans or other dogs. Because these terriers were raised to fight, they aren't the kind to live in an average home. But Best Friends, which is receiving the largest single share of the dogs nationwide, has shown that even troubled animals deserve some dignity.

• Loser: We rarely comment on sentences we think are too lenient, but the five to 10 years a Pennsylvania woman got this week for using her newborn son like a weapon in an attack on her boyfriend seems much too little. But then, it would be hard to think of a penalty to match such a crime. The 4-week-old child, who was swung by his feet, suffered a fractured skull and has since recovered.

• Winner? Loser? We're frankly unsure what to think about the Dunkin' Donuts clerk in New Jersey who decided to strike a thief this week. He told authorities he did so because he didn't want to look stupid if a surveillance tape of the crime appeared on the video-sharing site YouTube.

Bravery is a good thing. It would have been nicer to learn of a more noble motive, however.