Arnold Schwarzenegger Signs Bills Allowing the Purchase of Dead Kangaroo Products and Semi-Automatic Pistols

Hum…seems the two have something in common. Sad but true, he’s a proponent of violence and unnecessary killing.

Article:

Governor allows kangaroo products in flurry of bill actions

http://www.sacbee.com/111/story/431194.html

By Kevin Yamamura - Bee Capitol Bureau

Published 4:36 pm PDT Saturday, October 13, 2007

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed bills legalizing the purchase of kangaroo products and requiring new semi-automatic pistols to include an identifying microstamp, and he vetoed a proposal to provide college financial aid to illegal immigrants, his office announced Saturday.

The gun legislation, Assembly Bill 1471 by Assemblyman Mike Feuer, D-Los Angeles, will make California the first state in the nation to require manufacturers to include technology in semi-automatic pistols that stamps the make, model and serial number on each cartridge fired. The requirement takes effect in January 2010 and was largely backed by Democrats and opposed by Republicans in the Legislature.

"While I appreciate and understand that this technology is not without limitations, I am signing this bill to provide law enforcement with an additional tool for solving crimes committed with semi-automatic handguns in California," Schwarzenegger wrote in a signing message.

The Republican governor vetoed Senate Bill 1 by Sen. Gil Cedillo, D-Los Angeles, which would have given undocumented immigrants access to community college fee waivers and other financial aid. The bill excluded those students from the state's competitive grant program after Schwarzenegger vetoed a similar proposal last year.

But in his veto message, Schwarzenegger again said he is concerned the proposal would place an "additional strain" on the state budget. He also noted that undocumented students already qualify for an in-state tuition rate.

The kangaroo proposal, SB 880 by Sen. Ron Calderon, D-Montebello, drew intense opposition from animal rights organizations who decried the manner in which the Australian marsupials are killed. But California retailers selling kangaroo soccer shoes said they faced a disadvantage because online firms based in 47 other states can legally sell such products.

Though he does not own kangaroo shoes, Schwarzenegger is an aficionado of animal-skin boots, such as those made from alligator or crocodile, which he also removed from a state list of banned animal products last year.

"Many good products are made from kangaroos harvested legally under Australian law and the federal Endangered Species Act and those products should be allowed to be on the California market," said Schwarzenegger spokesman Aaron McLear. "Importantly, this bill allows California to continue to prohibit the sale of products made from species of kangaroos that are listed as threatened or endangered under the federal endangered species act."

Schwarzenegger signed SB 490 by Sen. Elaine Alquist, D-San Jose, to ban trans fats from foods sold in vending machines or cafeterias at public schools in California starting in July 2009.

The governor also took action on several consumer bills. He signed SB 220 by Sen. Ellen Corbett, D-San Leandro, requiring bottled water companies to cite the origin of their product. Another signed Corbett bill, SB 250, will allow consumers to receive the cash value for gift cards with balances less than $10.

But he vetoed AB 779 by Assemblyman Dave Jones, D-Sacramento, to restrict businesses from storing sensitive payment data. The bill also sought to require companies to give consumers extensive information when a security breach occurs. It came as a response to the 2005-06 theft of more than 45 million credit card numbers from a T.J. Maxx and Marshall's database.

"Big business, hackers and ID thieves won today and consumers and common sense lost," Jones said in a statement. "I'm shocked and disappointed that the governor thinks our personal information should be left out in the open for identity thieves and hackers to pilfer."

In his veto message, Schwarzenegger wrote that the credit card industry has already established security protocols for the storage of payment data.

"This issue and the data security requirements found in this bill will drive up the costs of compliance, particularly for small businesses," Schwarzenegger added.

Adidas Uses Kangaroo Skin for Soccer Shoes: As a Result, California Decides that Adidas Cannot Sell Soccer Shoes Made from Slaughtered Kangaroos

Incredible action that hopefully will lead to a national ban. Sick that Adidas uses the skin of slaughtered kangaroos.

Article:

State Supreme Court nixes sales of shoes made with kangaroo hide

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/
2007/07/23/BAGV2R5B795.DTL&tsp=1

Demian Bulwa, Chronicle Staff Writer

Monday, July 23, 2007

(07-23) 11:56 PDT SAN FRANCISCO -- Sportswear giant Adidas cannot sell popular soccer shoes fashioned from kangaroo hide in California despite the company's contention that federal law preempts a state ban on products made from the marsupials, the Supreme Court of California ruled today in a unanimous decision.

The ruling could have a major impact on the state's soccer retailers and players. Australian kangaroo skin, beloved by many players for its softness, has long been used in a variety of higher-priced shoes made by a number of brands -- including Adidas' famous Copa Mundial cleats.

The justices ruled in favor of an animal-rights group, Viva International Voice for Animals, a British nonprofit with its U.S. office in Davis. The group challenged Adidas in 2003, arguing that the California ban was valid because states have the power to enact stronger protections for wildlife than the federal government.

The state prohibited the import and commercial sale of kangaroo products in 1971, a year after banning products made from 23 other animals.

But a San Francisco Superior Court judge and the state Court of Appeal in San Francisco said the law conflicted with federal policy that resumed imports of kangaroo-skin products after Australia implemented a conservation program. The Supreme Court today reversed the appellate decision.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service banned imports of products made from three kangaroo species in 1974 after their population had dwindled in Australia. The agency allowed those imports to resume in 1995. Adidas now sells athletic shoes in California made from the hides of the red kangaroo, the eastern grey kangaroo and the western grey kangaroo.

Animal rights groups remain in a tense battle with soccer teams and retailers over the controversial leather. The California Senate voted in May to legalize the import and sale of kangaroo skins unless a particular species is considered endangered. The bill is now in the Assembly.

The Supreme Court said today that the kangaroo case was analogous to another high-profile court battle pitting Napa vintners against the maker of popular Two Buck Chuck wines. The court in that case said wine bottles labeled with the "Napa" name must be filled primarily with the juice of Napa-grown grapes, as state law mandated. Federal rules had an exception for brands established before 1986.

The case is Viva International vs. Adidas, S140064. The opinion is available at www.courtinfo.ca.gov/opinions.

Egomaniac David Beckham's And Los Angeles Galaxy Push To Legalise The Importation And Sale Of Kangaroo Skins In California

I guess vanity and too much money just isn’t enough for glam boy Beckham and his new glam team the Los Angeles Galaxy.

Article:

Beckham in push for roo skin boots

http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/
0,22606,21829059-910,00.html

PETA HELLARD, LOS ANGELES

June 01, 2007 02:15am


DAVID Beckham's new U.S. soccer team is behind a bid to legalise the importation and sale of kangaroo skins in California - so soccer players can wear boots made from the marsupials' leather.

After years of lobbying by sportswear giant adidas, the California Senate voted this week to end California's 37-year import ban on kangaroo products.

The Senate kangaroo Bill has pitted the Los Angeles Galaxy and CD Chivas USA soccer teams against animal rights activists.

The Bill passed in the Senate - after four years of failed efforts - would allow a kangaroo product to be imported and sold in California if the species were not otherwise protected by laws in the U.S. and abroad.

The Bill must still be approved by the Assembly and signed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to come into force.

Of the 55 species of kangaroos in Australia, six are commercially harvested and exported, including red kangaroos and eastern and western gray kangaroos.

Animal activists are fighting the proposal, which they say will lead to the deaths of endangered roos because hunting is done at night so it is hard to identify the exact species.

Lauren Ornelas, spokeswoman for animal rights organisation Viva USA, said Adidas had been relentless in spending about $530,000 to promote the Bill.

"Kangaroos are wildlife, not shoes," she said.

"Adidas needs to get in step with the times and use synthetic materials."

LA Galaxy president Alexi Lalas said California's law deprived his team.

"It is unfair to have these products freely available for commercial purchase in all of the other 49 states and not here," he said.