I'm with Mark. Some of my favorite dogs are pits. They are the favorite of my younger sister Alison, who works with animals professionally. They are sweet, intelligent, beautiful, clownish, dignified (they pose like statuary), extremely gentle, especially around children and cats. Fighting dogs are chosen early after close attention to the traits of their parents and to early behavior. They are then cruelly abused to bring aggressivity to the fore. The truth is that virtually every breed has been involved in fatal human attacks. Breed-specific legislation is statistically untenable and false comfort.
One takes a risk owning any dog but proper care can reduce the risk to virtually nil. Infants and toddlers require constant supervision (don't they anyway?). Dogs should always be leashed (in urban areas) except for prescribed dog runs.
Breeding has a large part in this. Doberman Pinschers have had aggressivity largely bred out of them. They are now among the most docile of breeds.
P.S. Editing in to say I just absorbed more fully Mark's "blank slate" theory. I still largely agree with him. But dogs are bred for certain characteristics and inherent traits will remain. But spaying/neutering, early socialization, proper training, scope for excercize, play and other doggy behavior will hugely countervail any dangerous aggressivity (if such even exists).
[This message has been edited by Mike Slippkauskas (edited September 08, 2008).]
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