Could Goofy own Pluto?

MSNBC's Test Pattern blog links to an Ask Metafilter post that takes up the old question of why Goofy,a dog, can talk and drive and, presumably, vote, while Pluto, who is also a dog, cannot.

I emailed MSNBC my explanation:

Goofy and Pluto are brothers. After Goofy was born, their mother became an alcoholic, and she drank throughout her next pregnancy, when she was carrying Pluto. Thus, he has Fetal Acohol Syndrome and is a simple-minded mute. Mickey is not his "owner," but his guardian.

But the bigger question is, why is Goofy in an interspecies romantic relationship with a cow? Maybe THAT's why Pluto's guardianship was granted to Mickey and not to Goofy.

We'll see if they print it.