What a sick bunch of people. I think this clearly demonstrates the typical mentality of a hunter – a complete disregard for any form of life. They actually literally tied up the Turkeys as well, making this a sadistic practice that offered no challenge. They simply lusted to torture and kill and get off on watching it.
From the article below:
“The Elstonville Sportsmen's Association admitted to staking the turkeys to straw bales and shooting them with bows and arrows during a contest, according to the office of the Lancaster County District Attorney.
The club was charged with eight violations of the Pennsylvania Cruelty to Animals statutes including four counts of ill treatment and four counts of offering live animals as prizes in a contest.”
Article:
Club used live turkeys for shooting contest
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070309/us_nm/
pennsylvania_turkeys_dc_1
Fri Mar 9, 3:59 PM ET
LANCASTER, Pennsylvania (Reuters) - A Pennsylvania sportsmen's club was fined $400 on Friday for cruelty to animals after using live turkeys as targets, prosecutors said.
The Elstonville Sportsmen's Association admitted to staking the turkeys to straw bales and shooting them with bows and arrows during a contest, according to the office of the Lancaster County District Attorney.
The club was charged with eight violations of the Pennsylvania Cruelty to Animals statutes including four counts of ill treatment and four counts of offering live animals as prizes in a contest. Lancaster County District Court Judge John Winters fined the club the minimum $50 for each offense after it pleaded no contest to the charges.
"This case sets a precedent that the gutless acts of animal cruelty perpetrated by the Elstonville Sportsmen's Association are in fact illegal," said Keith Mohler of Farm Sanctuary, which campaigns against cruelty to farm animals.
"Anyone seeking to gain amusement from the torture of innocent creatures will be prosecuted and brought to justice."
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Friday, March 09, 2007
Why is the Iditarod Cruel, and What Companies Sponsor Such Cruelty?
Why is the Iditarod cruel? Well, keep reading and then visit http://www.helpsleddogs.org/faq.htm
Here are some quick facts on why this is a very cruel event:
“On average, 52 percent of the dogs who start the race do not make it across
the finish line. According to a report published in the American Journal of
Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, of those who do cross, 81 percent have
lung damage. A report published in the Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine
said that 61 percent of the dogs who finish the Iditarod have ulcers versus
zero percent pre-race.
Tom Classen, retired Air Force colonel and Alaskan resident for over 40
years, tells us that the dogs are beaten into submission:
"They've had the hell beaten out of them." "You don't just whisper into their
ears, 'OK, stand there until I tell you to run like the devil.' They
understand one thing: a beating. These dogs are beaten into submission the same way
elephants are trained for a circus. The mushers will deny it. And you know what?
They are all lying." -USA Today, March 3, 2000 in Jon Saraceno's column.
Mushers believe in "culling" or killing unwanted dogs, including puppies.
Many dogs who are permanently disabled in the Iditarod, or who are unwanted for
any reason, including those who have outlived their usefulness, are killed with
a shot to the head, dragged or clubbed to death. "Dogs are clubbed with
baseball bats and if they don't pull are dragged to death in harnesses....." wrote
Alaskan Mike Cranford in an article for Alaska's Bush Blade Newspaper (March,
2000).
A list of sponsors and their Email addresses are found below OR at http://www.helpsleddogs.org/sponsors.htm After reading the truth, you may want to express your disgust at their sponsorship of such cruelty. You can do so by using the following sample letter:
PLEASE WRITE AND FORWARD WIDELY
From the Sled Dog Action Coalition, http://www.helpsleddogs.org
Please help the Iditarod dogs by sending protest emails to race supporters.
These dogs are helpless victims of profoundly inhumane treatment and cannot
speak for themselves. What happens to them during the Iditarod includes death,
paralysis, penile frostbite, bleeding ulcers, bloody diarrhea, lung damage,
ruptured discs, viral diseases and pneumonia.
For the dogs, the Iditarod is a bottomless pit of suffering. Throughout this
eight to 16-day competition, Iditarod personnel encourage mushers to race
diseased dogs. Instead of pulling sick dogs from the race, veterinarians
frequently give them massive doses of antibiotics to keep them running.
Veterinarians also work to help the mushers before the Iditarod begins.
Although the dogs are often sick, veterinarians allow them to start the race
anyway. One chief Iditarod veterinarian even published a musher/veterinary handbook
advising mushers on how to avoid having prohibited substances detected in
pre-race veterinary checks.
Please speak for the dogs by sending Iditarod supporters protest emails. The
2007 Iditarod sponsors, musher sponsors, race promoters and business members
are listed below. Emails are first given in a group and then individually under
the sample letter. Email addresses with semi-colons and commas in group form
can be found on http://www.helpsleddogs.org/sponsors.htm at the bottom of the
page.
ALL EMAIL ADDRESSES FOR IDITAROD SUPPORTERS - for easy sending, copy and
paste as a bunch into your "Blind Copy" box. You may want to divide the block into
several groups and email each one separately:
jeff.immelt@corporate.ge.com, dan.janki@corporate.ge.com,
Jacques.espinasse@vivendi.com, maurie_perl@advancemags.com, John_Bellando@condenast.com,
kklose@npr.org, investor_relations@hmco.com, editor@americanwaymag.com,
tom.horton@aa.com, Christopher.Gay@cabelas.com, rod.ross@equilife.com, ken.hanna@csplc.com,
csab.media@cs-americas.com, jay@diabetesandwellness.org,
alan.w.bieler@marsh.com, media@carnival.com, DanielJ.Sescleifer@energizer.com, conso@royal-canin.fr
, info@royalcanin.us, contact.nl@masterfoods.com, askus@masterfoodsusa.com,
gpruitt@mcclatchy.com, ircontact@simon.com, jlowber@gci.com,
roger_millay@discovery.com, james.moses@elderhostel.org, tmattia@na.ko.com,
corpcsf@wellsfargo.com, newsroom@alaskaair.com, Shareholders.IM@pg.com, Mayor@ci.anchorage.ak.us,
mayor@ci.wasilla.ak.us, yum.investor@yum.com, karen.raskopf@blockbuster.com,
tom.tiller@polarisind.com, mhrmarketing@mhrmail.com, ir.dcx@daimlerchrysler.com
, manager@ci.nome.ak.us, programming@thirteen.org, stevecurwood@loe.org,
dkravis@nutroproducts.com, jvenh@acehardware.com, gpn@unl.edu,
teachersource@pbs.org, investor.relations@horizonlines.com, kroger.investors@kroger.com,
gdonnelly@mortonarb.org, gtedesco@mortonarb.org, info@workman.com,
vanmarterch@lilly.com, toronto@gartnerlee.com, investor.relations@akzonobel.com,
fhees@alaskanbeer.com, orders@riverboatdiscovery.com, media@cruisewest.com,
investor_relations@scholastic.com, skruse@hollandamerica.com, abuckelew@carnival.com,
eileen_masio@timeinc.com, communications@girlscouts.org, pubaffmr@chevrontexaco.com,
enterprise.comments@exxonmobil.com, info@penair.com, employment@providence.org,
ssolomon@dixieline.com, public.relations@stihl.us,
investor_relations@netapp.com, info@womenssportsfoundation.org, Investor.Relations@aa.com,
tony@playrooment.com, press@echostar.com, ir-newyork@shell.com, tjacobs@dobson.net,
hr1@amerigas.com, contact.privacy@mcd.com, customersupport@batteriesplus.com,
cparrott@sportsmanswarehouse.com, ann.simanis@elderhostel.org,
Chancellor@uaa.alaska.edu, info@akbushcompany.com, info@frontierflying.com, info@trapperscreek.com,
contact@meierslakeroadhouse.com, info@talkeetnalodge.com,
innkeeper@alaskafrontiergardens.com, rivercabins@doyon.com, HolyDogRanch@yahoo.com,
information@maclarenlodge.com, fishing@gottafish-charters.com, qiviut@gci.net,
sales@kaladi.com, traxak@alaska.com, gkatsion@kittelson.com, pat@northsloperestaurant.com,
pilot01@eagle.ptialaska.net, spikealaska@earthlink.net, info@inlettower.com,
info@akdogtour.com, adventure@raspberryisland.com, chan@d.umn.edu, tma@d.umn.edu
, allouiz@thepastyfactory.com, info@barker-ewing.com,
ryoung@altitudetraining.com, sales@redcom.com, jbilitz@jjkeller.com, rodney.bolls@bglobal.us,
trambars@trambars.com, info@princetontec.com, trophyglove@lisco.com, brewpub@rmisp.com
, gsipe@cogentsolutionsgroup.com, info@outfitterharborsprings.com,
info@ndindustries.com, mkrajews@volusia.k12.fl.us, sales@ursawagon.com,
tchozes@pathwaynet.com, bellevillenews@yahoo.com, admin@wtsda.com, hid@aelight.com,
info@westernplows.com, sales@pjoperating.com, innkeeper@folkestone.com,
hughesseafood@tds.net, ruby@arcocoffee.com, info@empirecanvasworks.com, Macgellan@mac.com,
wiggys@wiggys.com, info@jupitersolutions.net, info@coloradocrossroadsbandb.com,
terry@unitedrailroad.net, reservations@krabloonik.com, info@team-diel.de,
info@globetrotter.de, sales@immunocorp.no, post@viascandinavia.no, info@kamik.com,
post@brynje.no, post@noraid.no, anni@visees.no, info@alaskakayakacademy.com,
info@alaskavacationstore.com, spikealaska@earthlink.net,
alaskansplendor@yahoo.com, fish@fish4salmon.com, mlitzen@kenai.net, info@outerlimitsalaska.com,
info@talkeetnaair.com, wildart@davidtotten.com, info@alaskagrandview.com,
t-wolf@alaskatimberwolftours.com, info@alaskanativearts.org, POlson@randomhouse.com,
mcarr@nutroproducts.com, lechleiter_john_c@lilly.com, bsgro@cdschool.org,
jschrank@cclphoenix.org, mmow@elkhart.k12.in.us, greg.creed@tacobell.com,
dmcpherson@wned.org, Commissioner@fldoe.org, pr@hollandamerica.com,
home.pa-newsroom.168d00@statefarm.com, rich.johnson@conocophillips.com,
sarah_palin@gov.state.ak.us, feedback@versus.com
SAMPLE LETTER:
Dear Iditarod Supporter:
I protest your organization's support of the Iditarod dog sled race. For the
dogs, this barbaric event is a bottomless pit of suffering. What happens to
them during the Iditarod includes death, paralysis, penile frostbite, bleeding
ulcers, bloody diarrhea, lung damage, ruptured discs, viral diseases and
pneumonia. Please end your involvement in this cruel race.
In the Iditarod, dogs are forced to run 1,150 miles, which is the approximate
distance between Miami, Florida and New York City. USA Today sports columnist
Jon Saraceno called the Iditarod "a travesty of grueling proportions" and
"Ihurtadog." Fox sportscaster Jim Rome called it "I-killed-a-dog." Orlando
Sentinel sports columnist George Diaz said the race is "a barbaric ritual" and "an
illegal sweatshop for dogs."
Throughout this eight to 16-day competition, Iditarod personnel encourage
mushers to race diseased dogs. Instead of pulling sick dogs from the race,
veterinarians frequently give them massive doses of antibiotics to keep them
running.
Veterinarians also work to help the mushers before the Iditarod begins.
Although the dogs are often sick, veterinarians allow them to start the race
anyway. One chief Iditarod veterinarian even published a musher/veterinary handbook
advising mushers on how to avoid having prohibited substances detected in
pre-race veterinary checks.
At least 130 dogs have died in the Iditarod. No one knows how many dogs die
after this tortuous ordeal or during training.
On average, 52 percent of the dogs who start the race do not make it across
the finish line. According to a report published in the American Journal of
Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, of those who do cross, 81 percent have
lung damage. A report published in the Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine
said that 61 percent of the dogs who finish the Iditarod have ulcers versus
zero percent pre-race.
Tom Classen, retired Air Force colonel and Alaskan resident for over 40
years, tells us that the dogs are beaten into submission:
"They've had the hell beaten out of them." "You don't just whisper into their
ears, 'OK, stand there until I tell you to run like the devil.' They
understand one thing: a beating. These dogs are beaten into submission the same way
elephants are trained for a circus. The mushers will deny it. And you know what?
They are all lying." -USA Today, March 3, 2000 in Jon Saraceno's column.
Mushers believe in "culling" or killing unwanted dogs, including puppies.
Many dogs who are permanently disabled in the Iditarod, or who are unwanted for
any reason, including those who have outlived their usefulness, are killed with
a shot to the head, dragged or clubbed to death. "Dogs are clubbed with
baseball bats and if they don't pull are dragged to death in harnesses....." wrote
Alaskan Mike Cranford in an article for Alaska's Bush Blade Newspaper (March,
2000).
Jon Saraceno wrote in his March 3, 2000 column in USA Today, "He [Colonel Tom
Classen] confirmed dog beatings and far worse. Like starving dogs to maintain
their most advantageous racing weight. Skinning them to make mittens. Or
dragging them to their death."
Please end your organization's association with this horrific race.
Sincerely,
Cabelas
Email: Christopher.Gay@cabelas.com
Daimler Chrysler
Email: ir.dcx@daimlerchrysler.com
Coca-Cola
Email: tmattia@na.ko.com
Millennium & Copthorne Hotels
Email: mhrmarketing@mhrmail.com
Wells Fargo & Company
Email: corpcsf@wellsfargo.com
Kroger Company (Fred Meyer Stores)
Email: kroger.investors@kroger.com
Spenard Builders (Lanoga Corporation)
Email: ssolomon@dixieline.com
Chevron Corportation
Email: pubaffmr@chevrontexaco.com
Exxon Mobil Corporation
Email: enterprise.comments@exxonmobil.com
Anchorage Daily News (Mc Clatchy Company)
Email: gpruitt@mcclatchy.com
Providence Health System
Email: employment@providence.org
Alaska Airlines (Alaska Air Group)
Email: newsroom@alaskaair.com
Peninsula Airways, Inc. (Pen Air)
Email: info@penair.com
Alaska Brewing Company
Email: fhees@alaskanbeer.com
The City of Anchorage
Email: Mayor@ci.anchorage.ak.us
The City of Nome
Email: manager@ci.nome.ak.us
5th Avenue Mall (Simon Property Group)
Email: ircontact@simon.com
Horizon Lines
Email: investor.relations@horizonlines.com
City of Wasilla
Email: mayor@ci.wasilla.ak.us
Network Appliance, Inc.
Email: investor_relations@netapp.com
General Communication, Inc. (GCI)
Email: jlowber@gci.com
IDITAROD PROMOTERS:
NBC Universal (GE -General Electric Company owns 80%)
Email: jeff.immelt@corporate.ge.com, dan.janki@corporate.ge.com
NBC Universal (Vivendi - owns 20%)
Email: Jacques.espinasse@vivendi.com
Glamour Magazine (Conde Nast Publications - Advance Publications)
Email: maurie_perl@advancemags.com, John_Bellando@condenast.com
NPR (National Public Radio)
Email kklose@npr.org
Houghton Mifflin Company
Email: investor_relations@hmco.com
American Way Magazine -American Airlines (AMR Corporaton)
Email: editor@americanwaymag.com, tom.horton@aa.com
Travel Channel (Discover Communications, Inc.)
Email: roger_millay@discovery.com
Elderhostel
Email: ann.simanis@elderhostel.org
Living on Earth
Email: stevecurwood@loe.org
Lilly Oncology (Eli Lilly and Company)
Email: vanmarterch@lilly.com
PBS Nature
Email: programming@thirteen.org
PBS Reading Rainbow
Email: gpn@unl.edu, dmcpherson@wned.org
PBS TeacherSource
Email: teachersource@pbs.org
Cruise West
Email: media@cruisewest.com
Playroom Entertainment, Inc.
Email: tony@playrooment.com
Riverboat Discovery
Email: orders@riverboatdiscovery.com
Women's Sports Foundation
Email: info@womenssportsfoundation.org
TIME for Kids
Email: eileen_masio@timeinc.com
Holland America Line (Carnival Corporation)
Email: skruse@hollandamerica.com, abuckelew@carnival.com
Scholastic Corporation
Email: investor_relations@scholastic.com
Workman Publishing Company
Email: info@workman.com
Girl Scouts of the USA
Email: communications@girlscouts.org
Morton Arboretum
Email: gdonnelly@mortonarb.org, gtedesco@mortonarb.org
STIHL (STIHL Group)
Email: public.relations@stihl.us, stefan.caspari@stihl.de
Hawaiian Vacations
Email: guestservices@hawaiianvacations.com
University of Alaska Anchorage
Email: Chancellor@uaa.alaska.edu
Fodors (Random House)
Email: POlson@randomhouse.com
Carolina Day School
Email: bsgro@cdschool.org
Christ Lutheran School
Email: jschrank@cclphoenix.org
North Side Middle School
Email: mmow@elkhart.k12.in.us
Florida Commissioner of Education
Email: Commissioner@fldoe.org
State Farm Insurance Company
Email: home.pa-newsroom.168d00@statefarm.com
ConocoPhillips
Email: rich.johnson@conocophillips.com
Sarah Palin, Governor of Alaska
Email: sarah_palin@gov.state.ak.us
Versus Cable TV
Email: feedback@versus.com
IDITAROD BUSINESS PARTNERS:
Alaska Timberwolf Journeys & Tours
Email: t-wolf@alaskatimberwolftours.com
Grand View Inn & Suites
Email: info@alaskagrandview.com
Alaska Kayak Academy
Email: info@alaskakayakacademy.com
Alaska Native Arts Foundation
Email: info@alaskanativearts.org
Alaska Vacation Store
Email: info@alaskavacationstore.com
Alaska Discovery RV Tours
Email: spikealaska@earthlink.net
Alaska Splendor Limousines
Email: alaskansplendor@yahoo.com
Fishtale River Guides
Email: fish@fish4salmon.com
Litzen Guide Service
Email: mlitzen@kenai.net
Outer Limits Alaska
Email: info@outerlimitsalaska.com
Talkeetna Air Taxi
Email: info@talkeetnaair.com
David Totten's Online Gallery
Email: wildart@davidtotten.com
MUSHER SPONSORS:
Marsh (Marsh & McLennan Companies)
Email: alfred.j.modugno@marsh.com, alan.w.bieler@marsh.com
Nutro Products, Inc.
Email: dkravis@nutroproducts.com, mcarr@nutroproducts.com
7-UP (Cadbury Schweppes plc)
Email: ken.hanna@csplc.com, csab.media@cs-americas.com
Equitable Life & Casualty Insurance Company
Email: rod.ross@equilife.com
Energizer Batteries
Email: DanielJ.Sescleifer@energizer.com
Royal Canin (Mars/Masterfoods owns 56 percent of the company)
Email: conso@royal-canin.fr, info@royalcanin.us, contact.nl@masterfoods.com,
contact.us@masterfoods.com, askus@masterfoodsusa.com
The Dish Network
Email: press@echostar.com
Jiffy Lube International, Inc. (Shell Oil Company)
Email: ir-newyork@shell.com
CELLULARONE (Dobson Communications Corp.)
Email: tjacobs@dobson.net
Eukanuba/Iams (Procter & Gamble Company)
Email: Shareholders.IM@pg.com
Blockbuster Video
Email: karen.raskopf@blockbuster.com
McDonalds Restaurants (McDonald Corporation)
Email: contact.privacy@mcd.com
Taco Bell (Yum! Brands, Inc.)
Email: greg.creed@tacobell.com, yum.investor@yum.com
Ace Hardware
Email: jvenh@acehardware.com
Amerigas (UGI Corporation)
Email: hr1@amerigas.com
Polaris Industries Inc.
Email: tom.tiller@polarisind.com
Sportsman's Warehouse
Email: cparrott@sportsmanswarehouse.com
Batteries Plus
Email: customersupport@batteriesplus.com
Great Alaskan Bush Company
Email: info@akbushcompany.com
Frontier Flying Service, Inc.
Email: info@frontierflying.com
Trapper's Creek Smoking Company
Email: info@trapperscreek.com
Meier's Lake Roadhouse
Email: contact@meierslakeroadhouse.com
Talkeetna Alaskan Lodge
Email: info@talkeetnalodge.com
Alaska Frontier Gardens Bed & Breakfast
Email: innkeeper@alaskafrontiergardens.com
Kantishna Wilderness Trails
Email: rivercabins@doyon.com
Holy Dog Ranch
Email: HolyDogRanch@yahoo.com
Maclaren River Lodge
Email: information@maclarenlodge.com
Gotta Fish Charters
Email: fishing@gottafish-charters.com
Oomingmak
Email: qiviut@gci.net
Kaladi Brothers Coffee Company
Email: sales@kaladi.com
Tracks of Alaska Photography
Email: traxak@alaska.com
Clam Gulch Lodge
Email: gkatsion@kittelson.com
North Slope Restaurant and Saloon
Email:pat@northsloperestaurant.com
Wright Air Service
Email: pilot01@eagle.ptialaska.net
Alaskan Discovery RV Tours, Ltd.
Email: spikealaska@earthlink.net
Inlet Tower Hotel & Suites
Email: info@inlettower.com
Homer Stage Line
Email: hsl@xyz.net
Pasty Factory
Email: allouiz@thepastyfactory.com
Alaska Icefield Expeditions
Email: info@akdogtour.com
Raspberry Island Remote Camps
Email:adventure@raspberryisland.com
University of Minnesota, Duluth, MN
Email: chan@d.umn.edu
Tweed Museum of Art
Email: tma@d.umn.edu
Intervet (Akzo Nobel)
Email: investor.relations@akzonobel.com
Barker-Ewing River Trips
Email: info@barker-ewing.com
Colorado Altitude Training
Email: ryoung@altitudetraining.com
REDCOM Laboratories, Inc.
Email: sales@redcom.com
J. J. Keller & Associates, Inc.
Email: jbilitz@jjkeller.com
bGlobal, Inc.
Email: rodney.bolls@bglobal.us
Gartner Lee, Ltd.
Email: toronto@gartnerlee.com
Tram Bars
Email: trambars@trambars.com
Princeton Tec
Email: info@princetontec.com
Trophy Glove Company
Email: trophyglove@lisco.com
Snake River Brewing
Email: brewpub@rmisp.com
Trixsyn (Cogent Solutions Group LLC.)
Email: gsipe@cogentsolutionsgroup.com
The Outfitter
Email: info@outfitterharborsprings.com
ND Industries
Email: info@ndindustries.com
Ursa wagons
Email: sales@ursawagon.com
Great Lakes GeoScience
Email: tchozes@pathwaynet.com
Belleville Recorder
Email: bellevillenews@yahoo.com
World Tang Soo Do Association
Email: admin@wtsda.com
AE Light (Allsman Enterprises, LLC)
Email: hid@aelight.com
Western Products
Email: info@westernplows.com
PJ Operating Corp.
Email: sales@pjoperating.com
Folkestone Inn Bed & Breakfast Innkeepers
Email: innkeeper@folkestone.com
Hughes Seafood Company, Inc.
Email: hughesseafood@tds.net
Arco Coffee (Andresen-Ryan Coffee Co.)
Email: ruby@arcocoffee.com
Empire Canvas Works
Email: info@empirecanvasworks.com
Macgellan.com
Email: Macgellan@mac.com
Wiggy's, Inc.
Email: wiggys@wiggys.com
Jupiter Solutions
Email: info@jupitersolutions.net
Colorado Cross Roads Bed & Breakfast
Email: info@coloradocrossroadsbandb.com
United Railroad Materials
Email: terry@unitedrailroad.net
Krabloonik Kennels
Email: reservations@krabloonik.com
Teamdiel
Email: info@team-diel.de
Globetrotter.de
Email: info@globetrotter.de
Immunocorp
Email: sales@immunocorp.no
Via Scandinavia
Email: post@viascandinavia.no
Kamik
Email: info@kamik.com
Bynje
Email: post@brynje.no
Noraid
Email: post@noraid.no
Vi sees
Email: anni@visees.no
Deland Middle School
Email: mkrajews@volusia.k12.fl.us
Here are some quick facts on why this is a very cruel event:
“On average, 52 percent of the dogs who start the race do not make it across
the finish line. According to a report published in the American Journal of
Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, of those who do cross, 81 percent have
lung damage. A report published in the Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine
said that 61 percent of the dogs who finish the Iditarod have ulcers versus
zero percent pre-race.
Tom Classen, retired Air Force colonel and Alaskan resident for over 40
years, tells us that the dogs are beaten into submission:
"They've had the hell beaten out of them." "You don't just whisper into their
ears, 'OK, stand there until I tell you to run like the devil.' They
understand one thing: a beating. These dogs are beaten into submission the same way
elephants are trained for a circus. The mushers will deny it. And you know what?
They are all lying." -USA Today, March 3, 2000 in Jon Saraceno's column.
Mushers believe in "culling" or killing unwanted dogs, including puppies.
Many dogs who are permanently disabled in the Iditarod, or who are unwanted for
any reason, including those who have outlived their usefulness, are killed with
a shot to the head, dragged or clubbed to death. "Dogs are clubbed with
baseball bats and if they don't pull are dragged to death in harnesses....." wrote
Alaskan Mike Cranford in an article for Alaska's Bush Blade Newspaper (March,
2000).
A list of sponsors and their Email addresses are found below OR at http://www.helpsleddogs.org/sponsors.htm After reading the truth, you may want to express your disgust at their sponsorship of such cruelty. You can do so by using the following sample letter:
PLEASE WRITE AND FORWARD WIDELY
From the Sled Dog Action Coalition, http://www.helpsleddogs.org
Please help the Iditarod dogs by sending protest emails to race supporters.
These dogs are helpless victims of profoundly inhumane treatment and cannot
speak for themselves. What happens to them during the Iditarod includes death,
paralysis, penile frostbite, bleeding ulcers, bloody diarrhea, lung damage,
ruptured discs, viral diseases and pneumonia.
For the dogs, the Iditarod is a bottomless pit of suffering. Throughout this
eight to 16-day competition, Iditarod personnel encourage mushers to race
diseased dogs. Instead of pulling sick dogs from the race, veterinarians
frequently give them massive doses of antibiotics to keep them running.
Veterinarians also work to help the mushers before the Iditarod begins.
Although the dogs are often sick, veterinarians allow them to start the race
anyway. One chief Iditarod veterinarian even published a musher/veterinary handbook
advising mushers on how to avoid having prohibited substances detected in
pre-race veterinary checks.
Please speak for the dogs by sending Iditarod supporters protest emails. The
2007 Iditarod sponsors, musher sponsors, race promoters and business members
are listed below. Emails are first given in a group and then individually under
the sample letter. Email addresses with semi-colons and commas in group form
can be found on http://www.helpsleddogs.org/sponsors.htm at the bottom of the
page.
ALL EMAIL ADDRESSES FOR IDITAROD SUPPORTERS - for easy sending, copy and
paste as a bunch into your "Blind Copy" box. You may want to divide the block into
several groups and email each one separately:
jeff.immelt@corporate.ge.com, dan.janki@corporate.ge.com,
Jacques.espinasse@vivendi.com, maurie_perl@advancemags.com, John_Bellando@condenast.com,
kklose@npr.org, investor_relations@hmco.com, editor@americanwaymag.com,
tom.horton@aa.com, Christopher.Gay@cabelas.com, rod.ross@equilife.com, ken.hanna@csplc.com,
csab.media@cs-americas.com, jay@diabetesandwellness.org,
alan.w.bieler@marsh.com, media@carnival.com, DanielJ.Sescleifer@energizer.com, conso@royal-canin.fr
, info@royalcanin.us, contact.nl@masterfoods.com, askus@masterfoodsusa.com,
gpruitt@mcclatchy.com, ircontact@simon.com, jlowber@gci.com,
roger_millay@discovery.com, james.moses@elderhostel.org, tmattia@na.ko.com,
corpcsf@wellsfargo.com, newsroom@alaskaair.com, Shareholders.IM@pg.com, Mayor@ci.anchorage.ak.us,
mayor@ci.wasilla.ak.us, yum.investor@yum.com, karen.raskopf@blockbuster.com,
tom.tiller@polarisind.com, mhrmarketing@mhrmail.com, ir.dcx@daimlerchrysler.com
, manager@ci.nome.ak.us, programming@thirteen.org, stevecurwood@loe.org,
dkravis@nutroproducts.com, jvenh@acehardware.com, gpn@unl.edu,
teachersource@pbs.org, investor.relations@horizonlines.com, kroger.investors@kroger.com,
gdonnelly@mortonarb.org, gtedesco@mortonarb.org, info@workman.com,
vanmarterch@lilly.com, toronto@gartnerlee.com, investor.relations@akzonobel.com,
fhees@alaskanbeer.com, orders@riverboatdiscovery.com, media@cruisewest.com,
investor_relations@scholastic.com, skruse@hollandamerica.com, abuckelew@carnival.com,
eileen_masio@timeinc.com, communications@girlscouts.org, pubaffmr@chevrontexaco.com,
enterprise.comments@exxonmobil.com, info@penair.com, employment@providence.org,
ssolomon@dixieline.com, public.relations@stihl.us,
investor_relations@netapp.com, info@womenssportsfoundation.org, Investor.Relations@aa.com,
tony@playrooment.com, press@echostar.com, ir-newyork@shell.com, tjacobs@dobson.net,
hr1@amerigas.com, contact.privacy@mcd.com, customersupport@batteriesplus.com,
cparrott@sportsmanswarehouse.com, ann.simanis@elderhostel.org,
Chancellor@uaa.alaska.edu, info@akbushcompany.com, info@frontierflying.com, info@trapperscreek.com,
contact@meierslakeroadhouse.com, info@talkeetnalodge.com,
innkeeper@alaskafrontiergardens.com, rivercabins@doyon.com, HolyDogRanch@yahoo.com,
information@maclarenlodge.com, fishing@gottafish-charters.com, qiviut@gci.net,
sales@kaladi.com, traxak@alaska.com, gkatsion@kittelson.com, pat@northsloperestaurant.com,
pilot01@eagle.ptialaska.net, spikealaska@earthlink.net, info@inlettower.com,
info@akdogtour.com, adventure@raspberryisland.com, chan@d.umn.edu, tma@d.umn.edu
, allouiz@thepastyfactory.com, info@barker-ewing.com,
ryoung@altitudetraining.com, sales@redcom.com, jbilitz@jjkeller.com, rodney.bolls@bglobal.us,
trambars@trambars.com, info@princetontec.com, trophyglove@lisco.com, brewpub@rmisp.com
, gsipe@cogentsolutionsgroup.com, info@outfitterharborsprings.com,
info@ndindustries.com, mkrajews@volusia.k12.fl.us, sales@ursawagon.com,
tchozes@pathwaynet.com, bellevillenews@yahoo.com, admin@wtsda.com, hid@aelight.com,
info@westernplows.com, sales@pjoperating.com, innkeeper@folkestone.com,
hughesseafood@tds.net, ruby@arcocoffee.com, info@empirecanvasworks.com, Macgellan@mac.com,
wiggys@wiggys.com, info@jupitersolutions.net, info@coloradocrossroadsbandb.com,
terry@unitedrailroad.net, reservations@krabloonik.com, info@team-diel.de,
info@globetrotter.de, sales@immunocorp.no, post@viascandinavia.no, info@kamik.com,
post@brynje.no, post@noraid.no, anni@visees.no, info@alaskakayakacademy.com,
info@alaskavacationstore.com, spikealaska@earthlink.net,
alaskansplendor@yahoo.com, fish@fish4salmon.com, mlitzen@kenai.net, info@outerlimitsalaska.com,
info@talkeetnaair.com, wildart@davidtotten.com, info@alaskagrandview.com,
t-wolf@alaskatimberwolftours.com, info@alaskanativearts.org, POlson@randomhouse.com,
mcarr@nutroproducts.com, lechleiter_john_c@lilly.com, bsgro@cdschool.org,
jschrank@cclphoenix.org, mmow@elkhart.k12.in.us, greg.creed@tacobell.com,
dmcpherson@wned.org, Commissioner@fldoe.org, pr@hollandamerica.com,
home.pa-newsroom.168d00@statefarm.com, rich.johnson@conocophillips.com,
sarah_palin@gov.state.ak.us, feedback@versus.com
SAMPLE LETTER:
Dear Iditarod Supporter:
I protest your organization's support of the Iditarod dog sled race. For the
dogs, this barbaric event is a bottomless pit of suffering. What happens to
them during the Iditarod includes death, paralysis, penile frostbite, bleeding
ulcers, bloody diarrhea, lung damage, ruptured discs, viral diseases and
pneumonia. Please end your involvement in this cruel race.
In the Iditarod, dogs are forced to run 1,150 miles, which is the approximate
distance between Miami, Florida and New York City. USA Today sports columnist
Jon Saraceno called the Iditarod "a travesty of grueling proportions" and
"Ihurtadog." Fox sportscaster Jim Rome called it "I-killed-a-dog." Orlando
Sentinel sports columnist George Diaz said the race is "a barbaric ritual" and "an
illegal sweatshop for dogs."
Throughout this eight to 16-day competition, Iditarod personnel encourage
mushers to race diseased dogs. Instead of pulling sick dogs from the race,
veterinarians frequently give them massive doses of antibiotics to keep them
running.
Veterinarians also work to help the mushers before the Iditarod begins.
Although the dogs are often sick, veterinarians allow them to start the race
anyway. One chief Iditarod veterinarian even published a musher/veterinary handbook
advising mushers on how to avoid having prohibited substances detected in
pre-race veterinary checks.
At least 130 dogs have died in the Iditarod. No one knows how many dogs die
after this tortuous ordeal or during training.
On average, 52 percent of the dogs who start the race do not make it across
the finish line. According to a report published in the American Journal of
Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, of those who do cross, 81 percent have
lung damage. A report published in the Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine
said that 61 percent of the dogs who finish the Iditarod have ulcers versus
zero percent pre-race.
Tom Classen, retired Air Force colonel and Alaskan resident for over 40
years, tells us that the dogs are beaten into submission:
"They've had the hell beaten out of them." "You don't just whisper into their
ears, 'OK, stand there until I tell you to run like the devil.' They
understand one thing: a beating. These dogs are beaten into submission the same way
elephants are trained for a circus. The mushers will deny it. And you know what?
They are all lying." -USA Today, March 3, 2000 in Jon Saraceno's column.
Mushers believe in "culling" or killing unwanted dogs, including puppies.
Many dogs who are permanently disabled in the Iditarod, or who are unwanted for
any reason, including those who have outlived their usefulness, are killed with
a shot to the head, dragged or clubbed to death. "Dogs are clubbed with
baseball bats and if they don't pull are dragged to death in harnesses....." wrote
Alaskan Mike Cranford in an article for Alaska's Bush Blade Newspaper (March,
2000).
Jon Saraceno wrote in his March 3, 2000 column in USA Today, "He [Colonel Tom
Classen] confirmed dog beatings and far worse. Like starving dogs to maintain
their most advantageous racing weight. Skinning them to make mittens. Or
dragging them to their death."
Please end your organization's association with this horrific race.
Sincerely,
IDITAROD SPONSORS:
Cabelas
Email: Christopher.Gay@cabelas.com
Daimler Chrysler
Email: ir.dcx@daimlerchrysler.com
Coca-Cola
Email: tmattia@na.ko.com
Millennium & Copthorne Hotels
Email: mhrmarketing@mhrmail.com
Wells Fargo & Company
Email: corpcsf@wellsfargo.com
Kroger Company (Fred Meyer Stores)
Email: kroger.investors@kroger.com
Spenard Builders (Lanoga Corporation)
Email: ssolomon@dixieline.com
Chevron Corportation
Email: pubaffmr@chevrontexaco.com
Exxon Mobil Corporation
Email: enterprise.comments@exxonmobil.com
Anchorage Daily News (Mc Clatchy Company)
Email: gpruitt@mcclatchy.com
Providence Health System
Email: employment@providence.org
Alaska Airlines (Alaska Air Group)
Email: newsroom@alaskaair.com
Peninsula Airways, Inc. (Pen Air)
Email: info@penair.com
Alaska Brewing Company
Email: fhees@alaskanbeer.com
The City of Anchorage
Email: Mayor@ci.anchorage.ak.us
The City of Nome
Email: manager@ci.nome.ak.us
5th Avenue Mall (Simon Property Group)
Email: ircontact@simon.com
Horizon Lines
Email: investor.relations@horizonlines.com
City of Wasilla
Email: mayor@ci.wasilla.ak.us
Network Appliance, Inc.
Email: investor_relations@netapp.com
General Communication, Inc. (GCI)
Email: jlowber@gci.com
IDITAROD PROMOTERS:
NBC Universal (GE -General Electric Company owns 80%)
Email: jeff.immelt@corporate.ge.com, dan.janki@corporate.ge.com
NBC Universal (Vivendi - owns 20%)
Email: Jacques.espinasse@vivendi.com
Glamour Magazine (Conde Nast Publications - Advance Publications)
Email: maurie_perl@advancemags.com, John_Bellando@condenast.com
NPR (National Public Radio)
Email kklose@npr.org
Houghton Mifflin Company
Email: investor_relations@hmco.com
American Way Magazine -American Airlines (AMR Corporaton)
Email: editor@americanwaymag.com, tom.horton@aa.com
Travel Channel (Discover Communications, Inc.)
Email: roger_millay@discovery.com
Elderhostel
Email: ann.simanis@elderhostel.org
Living on Earth
Email: stevecurwood@loe.org
Lilly Oncology (Eli Lilly and Company)
Email: vanmarterch@lilly.com
PBS Nature
Email: programming@thirteen.org
PBS Reading Rainbow
Email: gpn@unl.edu, dmcpherson@wned.org
PBS TeacherSource
Email: teachersource@pbs.org
Cruise West
Email: media@cruisewest.com
Playroom Entertainment, Inc.
Email: tony@playrooment.com
Riverboat Discovery
Email: orders@riverboatdiscovery.com
Women's Sports Foundation
Email: info@womenssportsfoundation.org
TIME for Kids
Email: eileen_masio@timeinc.com
Holland America Line (Carnival Corporation)
Email: skruse@hollandamerica.com, abuckelew@carnival.com
Scholastic Corporation
Email: investor_relations@scholastic.com
Workman Publishing Company
Email: info@workman.com
Girl Scouts of the USA
Email: communications@girlscouts.org
Morton Arboretum
Email: gdonnelly@mortonarb.org, gtedesco@mortonarb.org
STIHL (STIHL Group)
Email: public.relations@stihl.us, stefan.caspari@stihl.de
Hawaiian Vacations
Email: guestservices@hawaiianvacations.com
University of Alaska Anchorage
Email: Chancellor@uaa.alaska.edu
Fodors (Random House)
Email: POlson@randomhouse.com
Carolina Day School
Email: bsgro@cdschool.org
Christ Lutheran School
Email: jschrank@cclphoenix.org
North Side Middle School
Email: mmow@elkhart.k12.in.us
Florida Commissioner of Education
Email: Commissioner@fldoe.org
State Farm Insurance Company
Email: home.pa-newsroom.168d00@statefarm.com
ConocoPhillips
Email: rich.johnson@conocophillips.com
Sarah Palin, Governor of Alaska
Email: sarah_palin@gov.state.ak.us
Versus Cable TV
Email: feedback@versus.com
IDITAROD BUSINESS PARTNERS:
Alaska Timberwolf Journeys & Tours
Email: t-wolf@alaskatimberwolftours.com
Grand View Inn & Suites
Email: info@alaskagrandview.com
Alaska Kayak Academy
Email: info@alaskakayakacademy.com
Alaska Native Arts Foundation
Email: info@alaskanativearts.org
Alaska Vacation Store
Email: info@alaskavacationstore.com
Alaska Discovery RV Tours
Email: spikealaska@earthlink.net
Alaska Splendor Limousines
Email: alaskansplendor@yahoo.com
Fishtale River Guides
Email: fish@fish4salmon.com
Litzen Guide Service
Email: mlitzen@kenai.net
Outer Limits Alaska
Email: info@outerlimitsalaska.com
Talkeetna Air Taxi
Email: info@talkeetnaair.com
David Totten's Online Gallery
Email: wildart@davidtotten.com
MUSHER SPONSORS:
Marsh (Marsh & McLennan Companies)
Email: alfred.j.modugno@marsh.com, alan.w.bieler@marsh.com
Nutro Products, Inc.
Email: dkravis@nutroproducts.com, mcarr@nutroproducts.com
7-UP (Cadbury Schweppes plc)
Email: ken.hanna@csplc.com, csab.media@cs-americas.com
Equitable Life & Casualty Insurance Company
Email: rod.ross@equilife.com
Energizer Batteries
Email: DanielJ.Sescleifer@energizer.com
Royal Canin (Mars/Masterfoods owns 56 percent of the company)
Email: conso@royal-canin.fr, info@royalcanin.us, contact.nl@masterfoods.com,
contact.us@masterfoods.com, askus@masterfoodsusa.com
The Dish Network
Email: press@echostar.com
Jiffy Lube International, Inc. (Shell Oil Company)
Email: ir-newyork@shell.com
CELLULARONE (Dobson Communications Corp.)
Email: tjacobs@dobson.net
Eukanuba/Iams (Procter & Gamble Company)
Email: Shareholders.IM@pg.com
Blockbuster Video
Email: karen.raskopf@blockbuster.com
McDonalds Restaurants (McDonald Corporation)
Email: contact.privacy@mcd.com
Taco Bell (Yum! Brands, Inc.)
Email: greg.creed@tacobell.com, yum.investor@yum.com
Ace Hardware
Email: jvenh@acehardware.com
Amerigas (UGI Corporation)
Email: hr1@amerigas.com
Polaris Industries Inc.
Email: tom.tiller@polarisind.com
Sportsman's Warehouse
Email: cparrott@sportsmanswarehouse.com
Batteries Plus
Email: customersupport@batteriesplus.com
Great Alaskan Bush Company
Email: info@akbushcompany.com
Frontier Flying Service, Inc.
Email: info@frontierflying.com
Trapper's Creek Smoking Company
Email: info@trapperscreek.com
Meier's Lake Roadhouse
Email: contact@meierslakeroadhouse.com
Talkeetna Alaskan Lodge
Email: info@talkeetnalodge.com
Alaska Frontier Gardens Bed & Breakfast
Email: innkeeper@alaskafrontiergardens.com
Kantishna Wilderness Trails
Email: rivercabins@doyon.com
Holy Dog Ranch
Email: HolyDogRanch@yahoo.com
Maclaren River Lodge
Email: information@maclarenlodge.com
Gotta Fish Charters
Email: fishing@gottafish-charters.com
Oomingmak
Email: qiviut@gci.net
Kaladi Brothers Coffee Company
Email: sales@kaladi.com
Tracks of Alaska Photography
Email: traxak@alaska.com
Clam Gulch Lodge
Email: gkatsion@kittelson.com
North Slope Restaurant and Saloon
Email:pat@northsloperestaurant.com
Wright Air Service
Email: pilot01@eagle.ptialaska.net
Alaskan Discovery RV Tours, Ltd.
Email: spikealaska@earthlink.net
Inlet Tower Hotel & Suites
Email: info@inlettower.com
Homer Stage Line
Email: hsl@xyz.net
Pasty Factory
Email: allouiz@thepastyfactory.com
Alaska Icefield Expeditions
Email: info@akdogtour.com
Raspberry Island Remote Camps
Email:adventure@raspberryisland.com
University of Minnesota, Duluth, MN
Email: chan@d.umn.edu
Tweed Museum of Art
Email: tma@d.umn.edu
Intervet (Akzo Nobel)
Email: investor.relations@akzonobel.com
Barker-Ewing River Trips
Email: info@barker-ewing.com
Colorado Altitude Training
Email: ryoung@altitudetraining.com
REDCOM Laboratories, Inc.
Email: sales@redcom.com
J. J. Keller & Associates, Inc.
Email: jbilitz@jjkeller.com
bGlobal, Inc.
Email: rodney.bolls@bglobal.us
Gartner Lee, Ltd.
Email: toronto@gartnerlee.com
Tram Bars
Email: trambars@trambars.com
Princeton Tec
Email: info@princetontec.com
Trophy Glove Company
Email: trophyglove@lisco.com
Snake River Brewing
Email: brewpub@rmisp.com
Trixsyn (Cogent Solutions Group LLC.)
Email: gsipe@cogentsolutionsgroup.com
The Outfitter
Email: info@outfitterharborsprings.com
ND Industries
Email: info@ndindustries.com
Ursa wagons
Email: sales@ursawagon.com
Great Lakes GeoScience
Email: tchozes@pathwaynet.com
Belleville Recorder
Email: bellevillenews@yahoo.com
World Tang Soo Do Association
Email: admin@wtsda.com
AE Light (Allsman Enterprises, LLC)
Email: hid@aelight.com
Western Products
Email: info@westernplows.com
PJ Operating Corp.
Email: sales@pjoperating.com
Folkestone Inn Bed & Breakfast Innkeepers
Email: innkeeper@folkestone.com
Hughes Seafood Company, Inc.
Email: hughesseafood@tds.net
Arco Coffee (Andresen-Ryan Coffee Co.)
Email: ruby@arcocoffee.com
Empire Canvas Works
Email: info@empirecanvasworks.com
Macgellan.com
Email: Macgellan@mac.com
Wiggy's, Inc.
Email: wiggys@wiggys.com
Jupiter Solutions
Email: info@jupitersolutions.net
Colorado Cross Roads Bed & Breakfast
Email: info@coloradocrossroadsbandb.com
United Railroad Materials
Email: terry@unitedrailroad.net
Krabloonik Kennels
Email: reservations@krabloonik.com
Teamdiel
Email: info@team-diel.de
Globetrotter.de
Email: info@globetrotter.de
Immunocorp
Email: sales@immunocorp.no
Via Scandinavia
Email: post@viascandinavia.no
Kamik
Email: info@kamik.com
Bynje
Email: post@brynje.no
Noraid
Email: post@noraid.no
Vi sees
Email: anni@visees.no
Deland Middle School
Email: mkrajews@volusia.k12.fl.us
Group Reminds Al Gore that Switching to Vegetarianism Has Greater Effect on Global Warming than Does Driving a Hybrid Car
Excellent and real points. I’ll let the following quotes speak for themselves. Notice how the facts come from the United Nations and the University of Chicago. So, any chance at branding them biased would be off:
“In its recent report “Livestock’s Long Shadow—Environmental Issues and Options,” the United Nations determined that raising animals for food generates more greenhouse gases than all the cars and trucks in the world combined.
Researchers at the University of Chicago have determined that switching to a vegan diet is more effective in countering global warming than switching from a standard American car to a Toyota Prius.
PETA also reminds Gore that his critics love to question whether he practices what he preaches and suggests that by going vegetarian, he could cut down on his contribution to global warming and silence his critics at the same time.”
Article:
PETA plea to Al Gore
http://people.monstersandcritics.com/news/
article_1274083.php/PETA_plea_to_Al_Gore
Former Vice President Al Gore poses for photos after "An Inconvenient Truth" won the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature (UPI Photo/Phil McCarten)
By Stone Martindale Mar 7, 2007, 16:13 GMT
PETA claims that according to U.N., animals raised as food stock create more greenhouse gas then all the vehicles combined. They have penned a letter to Al Gore asking him to step away from the meat.
PETA issued a public letter to former vice president Al Gore explaining to him that the best way to combat the threat of global warming is to go vegan, and they offered to cook him faux “fried chicken” as an introduction to meat-free meals.
In its letter, PETA points out that Gore’s Oscar winning documentary, "An Inconvenient Truth" that outlines the potentially catastrophic effects of global warming has failed to address the fact that the meat industry is the largest contributor to greenhouse-gas emissions.
In the letter, PETA points out the following:
The effect that our meat addiction is having on the climate is truly staggering. In fact, in its recent report “Livestock’s Long Shadow—Environmental Issues and Options,” the United Nations determined that raising animals for food generates more greenhouse gases than all the cars and trucks in the world combined.
Researchers at the University of Chicago have determined that switching to a vegan diet is more effective in countering global warming than switching from a standard American car to a Toyota Prius.
PETA also reminds Gore that his critics love to question whether he practices what he preaches and suggests that by going vegetarian, he could cut down on his contribution to global warming and silence his critics at the same time.
“The single best thing that any of us can do to for our health, for animals, and for the environment is to go vegetarian,” says PETA President Ingrid E. Newkirk. “The best and easiest way for Mr. Gore to show his critics that he’s truly committed to fighting global warming is to kick his meat habit immediately.”
“In its recent report “Livestock’s Long Shadow—Environmental Issues and Options,” the United Nations determined that raising animals for food generates more greenhouse gases than all the cars and trucks in the world combined.
Researchers at the University of Chicago have determined that switching to a vegan diet is more effective in countering global warming than switching from a standard American car to a Toyota Prius.
PETA also reminds Gore that his critics love to question whether he practices what he preaches and suggests that by going vegetarian, he could cut down on his contribution to global warming and silence his critics at the same time.”
Article:
PETA plea to Al Gore
http://people.monstersandcritics.com/news/
article_1274083.php/PETA_plea_to_Al_Gore
Former Vice President Al Gore poses for photos after "An Inconvenient Truth" won the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature (UPI Photo/Phil McCarten)
By Stone Martindale Mar 7, 2007, 16:13 GMT
PETA claims that according to U.N., animals raised as food stock create more greenhouse gas then all the vehicles combined. They have penned a letter to Al Gore asking him to step away from the meat.
PETA issued a public letter to former vice president Al Gore explaining to him that the best way to combat the threat of global warming is to go vegan, and they offered to cook him faux “fried chicken” as an introduction to meat-free meals.
In its letter, PETA points out that Gore’s Oscar winning documentary, "An Inconvenient Truth" that outlines the potentially catastrophic effects of global warming has failed to address the fact that the meat industry is the largest contributor to greenhouse-gas emissions.
In the letter, PETA points out the following:
The effect that our meat addiction is having on the climate is truly staggering. In fact, in its recent report “Livestock’s Long Shadow—Environmental Issues and Options,” the United Nations determined that raising animals for food generates more greenhouse gases than all the cars and trucks in the world combined.
Researchers at the University of Chicago have determined that switching to a vegan diet is more effective in countering global warming than switching from a standard American car to a Toyota Prius.
PETA also reminds Gore that his critics love to question whether he practices what he preaches and suggests that by going vegetarian, he could cut down on his contribution to global warming and silence his critics at the same time.
“The single best thing that any of us can do to for our health, for animals, and for the environment is to go vegetarian,” says PETA President Ingrid E. Newkirk. “The best and easiest way for Mr. Gore to show his critics that he’s truly committed to fighting global warming is to kick his meat habit immediately.”
Wednesday, March 07, 2007
Animal Abuse, both Physical and Sexual, Very Common in Latin America: Country of Chile Especially Full of Egregious Cruelty
Yes, you read it right – sexual abuse. Unbelievable, but read this quote of an actual incident and you’ll see it’s no lie: “One bitch was brought in that had been sexually abused by its owner and burned with cigarettes," Navarro said.”
Article:
Buried alive puppy highlights pet abuse in Chile
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/3983808a12.html
By CAROLINA ALIAGA - Reuters | Wednesday, 7 March 2007
SANTIAGO: One recent summer's day, Ruth Moreno and her family were out walking in northern Chile when they came across an animal's snout sticking out of the ground, desperately sniffing for air.
They dug away the surrounding earth and found a six-month old puppy, barely alive.
"It was shocking. We uncovered its little face but we couldn't free it from the ground and we went to look for help," Moreno said.
Eventually, the puppy was freed and taken to a veterinary surgery where it died the following day.
"It was in a very bad condition, malnourished and severely dehydrated, with hypothermia and blocked airways," said vet Rodrigo Vasquez.
The puppy had been buried alive. No one has yet established who did it or why.
"This is the most extreme case of abuse I've seen, but it's quite common," Vasquez said. "Just recently we had a dog brought in which had been knifed."
Animal rights activists say abuse of dogs is common across Latin America and, despite its reputation as one of the region's richest and most developed countries, Chile is no exception.
The Andean nation has done much to eradicate rabies, prevalent elsewhere in the continent, but still, every year, hundreds of dogs in Chile are maltreated by their owners.
"This type of abuse is frequent in Chile, but it's hidden," said Luis Navarro, president of the Society for the Protection of Animals (SPA). "Abandonment, physical maltreatment and sexual abuse happen more often than you'd think."
DOGS SEXUALLY ABUSED
Gertraud Ernst, a German who cares for around 120 abandoned and abused dogs in her home in Santiago, agrees.
"The situation in Chile is terrible and the police do nothing about it," she says.
A recent study from the University of Chile estimated there were a million pet dogs in the Santiago area, which has a population of 6 million people.
The government says there are a further 215,000 strays roaming the streets while animal rights campaigners put the figure at 250,000.
The SPA says it treats 5000 dogs a year, 10 per cent of which are in seriously poor health.
"One bitch was brought in that had been sexually abused by its owner and burned with cigarettes," Navarro said.
"The owner was arrested but the next day he was freed," he added.
The reasons for the abuse, and why it is prevalent in Chile, are not clear.
"Animals are simply receptacles of violence," said Mario Villagran, a sociologist based in Santiago. "The dog just happens to be the closest living thing to the man when he wants to vent his feelings."
At this time of year, summer in the Southern Hemisphere, the problem gets worse.
"People go on holiday and throw out their pets, leaving them in the streets," Navarro said.
The Chilean penal code allows for the imprisonment of those found guilty of animal abuse for up to 540 days, but activists say such penalties are almost unheard of and culprits are much more likely to be fined than jailed.
"There's been only one case of someone being jailed – a man who killed his dog by shooting it in front of children," Navarro said. "He was in prison four days and paid a fine of 70,000 pesos ($130)."
The government says it is doing what it can to combat abuse of animals.
"We've helped set up sterilization centers for pets and soon we will put forward a set of norms and rules on how to be a responsible pet owner," said Fernando Fuenzalida, a vet from the regional health ministry in the Santiago area.
He said the government also wanted to include lessons on animal welfare and responsible pet ownership in the national curriculum, taught in schools throughout the country. "That's a medium to long-term aim of the government," he said.
In the meantime, the SPA expects to deal with thousands more cases like that of the puppy buried alive in northern Chile.
"In some cases we've reported abusers to the police, with their first name, their last name and photographs of the animals showing they've been seriously physically abused," Navarro said. "And no one has done anything."
Article:
Buried alive puppy highlights pet abuse in Chile
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/3983808a12.html
By CAROLINA ALIAGA - Reuters | Wednesday, 7 March 2007
SANTIAGO: One recent summer's day, Ruth Moreno and her family were out walking in northern Chile when they came across an animal's snout sticking out of the ground, desperately sniffing for air.
They dug away the surrounding earth and found a six-month old puppy, barely alive.
"It was shocking. We uncovered its little face but we couldn't free it from the ground and we went to look for help," Moreno said.
Eventually, the puppy was freed and taken to a veterinary surgery where it died the following day.
"It was in a very bad condition, malnourished and severely dehydrated, with hypothermia and blocked airways," said vet Rodrigo Vasquez.
The puppy had been buried alive. No one has yet established who did it or why.
"This is the most extreme case of abuse I've seen, but it's quite common," Vasquez said. "Just recently we had a dog brought in which had been knifed."
Animal rights activists say abuse of dogs is common across Latin America and, despite its reputation as one of the region's richest and most developed countries, Chile is no exception.
The Andean nation has done much to eradicate rabies, prevalent elsewhere in the continent, but still, every year, hundreds of dogs in Chile are maltreated by their owners.
"This type of abuse is frequent in Chile, but it's hidden," said Luis Navarro, president of the Society for the Protection of Animals (SPA). "Abandonment, physical maltreatment and sexual abuse happen more often than you'd think."
DOGS SEXUALLY ABUSED
Gertraud Ernst, a German who cares for around 120 abandoned and abused dogs in her home in Santiago, agrees.
"The situation in Chile is terrible and the police do nothing about it," she says.
A recent study from the University of Chile estimated there were a million pet dogs in the Santiago area, which has a population of 6 million people.
The government says there are a further 215,000 strays roaming the streets while animal rights campaigners put the figure at 250,000.
The SPA says it treats 5000 dogs a year, 10 per cent of which are in seriously poor health.
"One bitch was brought in that had been sexually abused by its owner and burned with cigarettes," Navarro said.
"The owner was arrested but the next day he was freed," he added.
The reasons for the abuse, and why it is prevalent in Chile, are not clear.
"Animals are simply receptacles of violence," said Mario Villagran, a sociologist based in Santiago. "The dog just happens to be the closest living thing to the man when he wants to vent his feelings."
At this time of year, summer in the Southern Hemisphere, the problem gets worse.
"People go on holiday and throw out their pets, leaving them in the streets," Navarro said.
The Chilean penal code allows for the imprisonment of those found guilty of animal abuse for up to 540 days, but activists say such penalties are almost unheard of and culprits are much more likely to be fined than jailed.
"There's been only one case of someone being jailed – a man who killed his dog by shooting it in front of children," Navarro said. "He was in prison four days and paid a fine of 70,000 pesos ($130)."
The government says it is doing what it can to combat abuse of animals.
"We've helped set up sterilization centers for pets and soon we will put forward a set of norms and rules on how to be a responsible pet owner," said Fernando Fuenzalida, a vet from the regional health ministry in the Santiago area.
He said the government also wanted to include lessons on animal welfare and responsible pet ownership in the national curriculum, taught in schools throughout the country. "That's a medium to long-term aim of the government," he said.
In the meantime, the SPA expects to deal with thousands more cases like that of the puppy buried alive in northern Chile.
"In some cases we've reported abusers to the police, with their first name, their last name and photographs of the animals showing they've been seriously physically abused," Navarro said. "And no one has done anything."
Utah Politicians Kill Bill That Would Have Made the Intentional Torture of an Animal a Felony in the State
Surprise, surprise. Politicians again only doing things for the sake of business. It’s beyond strange why something as simple as making horrible cruelty a felony would even have to be debated.
Article:
Utah’s Animal Torture Bill Runs out of Time
http://www.newwest.net/index.php/city/article/
utahs_animal_torture_bill_runs_out_of_time/C104/L104/
By Tracy Medley, 3-05-07
Utah lawmakers let the clock run out before passing legislation that would make the intentional torture of an animal a felony in the state. Animal advocates, including the director of the Humane Society of Utah, Gene Baierschmidt worked hard to get SB190 on the books before the end of the 2007 legislative session, but were thwarted by certain legislators who felt the language of the bill was just too vague. For three years, Utah lawmakers have failed to create a felony provision for heinous cases of animal torture.
According to the Deseret Morning News, Rep. John Mathis, a Republican from Vernal was the strongest critic of the bill’s language. Mathis worried that the bill might impact neglectful pet owners for not feeding their pets or seeking veterinary attention, despite the explicit use of the words “intentional” and “torture” in the measure. “It’s a concern for me that someone could be charged with cruelty to an animal if they neglect to get veterinary care,” he explained in the D-News.
Mathis, who is also a veterinarian, is apparently unaware that neglect is already addressed in Utah’s current animal abuse laws.
Rep. Kerry Gibson of Ogden also quibbled with the bill’s language. “I have serious concerns with the word depravity. I don’t know if that’s defined anywhere,” Gibson said in the D-News. How about a dictionary – or looking through some law books, where the legal definition of depravity is clearly explained. But, I digress.
According to the D-News what Gibson really seemed worried about was appeasing insatiable animal rights extremists. “Make no mistake about going down this road. We won’t turn back from this.” Pardon me, but how exactly is the creation of a felonious option for extreme cases of deliberate animal-torture, somehow a point of no return? Have the 42 other states with similar laws experienced any problems? Did he bother to look? Is Gibson really just afraid that someday monkeys in pants will try to take his job – yes, Rep. Gibson, stop the madness now, before it starts.
It is outrageous that our legislators blackballed this bill for the third year in a row, especially given the glaring and horrific case of Henry, the Chihuahua who’s owner placed him in a 200 degree oven burning and leaving him irreversibly scarred and disabled. This was the perfect opportunity for Utah lawmakers to take such acts of unfathomable violence toward living creatures seriously and they blew it.
Boo!
Article:
Utah’s Animal Torture Bill Runs out of Time
http://www.newwest.net/index.php/city/article/
utahs_animal_torture_bill_runs_out_of_time/C104/L104/
By Tracy Medley, 3-05-07
Utah lawmakers let the clock run out before passing legislation that would make the intentional torture of an animal a felony in the state. Animal advocates, including the director of the Humane Society of Utah, Gene Baierschmidt worked hard to get SB190 on the books before the end of the 2007 legislative session, but were thwarted by certain legislators who felt the language of the bill was just too vague. For three years, Utah lawmakers have failed to create a felony provision for heinous cases of animal torture.
According to the Deseret Morning News, Rep. John Mathis, a Republican from Vernal was the strongest critic of the bill’s language. Mathis worried that the bill might impact neglectful pet owners for not feeding their pets or seeking veterinary attention, despite the explicit use of the words “intentional” and “torture” in the measure. “It’s a concern for me that someone could be charged with cruelty to an animal if they neglect to get veterinary care,” he explained in the D-News.
Mathis, who is also a veterinarian, is apparently unaware that neglect is already addressed in Utah’s current animal abuse laws.
Rep. Kerry Gibson of Ogden also quibbled with the bill’s language. “I have serious concerns with the word depravity. I don’t know if that’s defined anywhere,” Gibson said in the D-News. How about a dictionary – or looking through some law books, where the legal definition of depravity is clearly explained. But, I digress.
According to the D-News what Gibson really seemed worried about was appeasing insatiable animal rights extremists. “Make no mistake about going down this road. We won’t turn back from this.” Pardon me, but how exactly is the creation of a felonious option for extreme cases of deliberate animal-torture, somehow a point of no return? Have the 42 other states with similar laws experienced any problems? Did he bother to look? Is Gibson really just afraid that someday monkeys in pants will try to take his job – yes, Rep. Gibson, stop the madness now, before it starts.
It is outrageous that our legislators blackballed this bill for the third year in a row, especially given the glaring and horrific case of Henry, the Chihuahua who’s owner placed him in a 200 degree oven burning and leaving him irreversibly scarred and disabled. This was the perfect opportunity for Utah lawmakers to take such acts of unfathomable violence toward living creatures seriously and they blew it.
Boo!
Foie Gras Company - Hudson Valley Foie Gras - Fined $30,000 for Environmental Violations
Seems they got off easy too.
What is foie gras and why is it bad?
Foie gras (translated literally from French as "fatty liver" and pronounced 'fwah grah') is produced by cruel and inhumane farming practices. At just a few months old, ducks are confined inside dark sheds and force-fed enormous amounts of food several times a day. A farm worker grabs each duck and, one by one, thrusts a metal pipe down their throats so that a mixture of corn can be forced directly into their gullets. In just a matter of weeks, the ducks become grossly overweight and their livers expand up to 10 times their normal size.
As a result, ducks raised for foie gras have difficulty standing, walking, and even breathing. Many of them die before the end of the force-feeding cycle, and the mortality rate for ducks raised on foie gras farms is among the highest in the farming industry. Necropsies performed on foie gras ducks have shown extreme obesity, impaction of undigested food in the esophagus, lacerations in the throat, and a proliferation of bacterial and fungal growth in their upper digestive tracts.
More information on foie gras can be found at:
http://www.nofoiegras.org/
Article:
Hudson Valley Foie Gras fined $30,000 by DEC
http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/
20070307/NEWS/703070350
March 07, 2007
Ferndale — The Humane Society of the United States has won a round in its battle against Hudson Valley Foie Gras. The state Department of Environmental Conservation fined the company $30,000 for violations that were brought to light in a lawsuit brought by the society.
The violations involved the discharge of manure pollutants and building an unauthorized cesspool. Most of the other 800 violations were technical in nature.
"The only comment is that we negotiated the settlement with the DEC and continue to work closely with them to make sure the operation is in compliance with all rules and environmental regulations," company spokeswoman Allison Lee said.
Jonathan Lovvorn, vice president of animal protection litigation for the humane society, said, "We applaud the state for finally recognizing that this facility is violating water pollution laws. But the decision to settle 800 violations for less than $50 apiece is inexcusable."
What is foie gras and why is it bad?
Foie gras (translated literally from French as "fatty liver" and pronounced 'fwah grah') is produced by cruel and inhumane farming practices. At just a few months old, ducks are confined inside dark sheds and force-fed enormous amounts of food several times a day. A farm worker grabs each duck and, one by one, thrusts a metal pipe down their throats so that a mixture of corn can be forced directly into their gullets. In just a matter of weeks, the ducks become grossly overweight and their livers expand up to 10 times their normal size.
As a result, ducks raised for foie gras have difficulty standing, walking, and even breathing. Many of them die before the end of the force-feeding cycle, and the mortality rate for ducks raised on foie gras farms is among the highest in the farming industry. Necropsies performed on foie gras ducks have shown extreme obesity, impaction of undigested food in the esophagus, lacerations in the throat, and a proliferation of bacterial and fungal growth in their upper digestive tracts.
More information on foie gras can be found at:
http://www.nofoiegras.org/
Article:
Hudson Valley Foie Gras fined $30,000 by DEC
http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/
20070307/NEWS/703070350
March 07, 2007
Ferndale — The Humane Society of the United States has won a round in its battle against Hudson Valley Foie Gras. The state Department of Environmental Conservation fined the company $30,000 for violations that were brought to light in a lawsuit brought by the society.
The violations involved the discharge of manure pollutants and building an unauthorized cesspool. Most of the other 800 violations were technical in nature.
"The only comment is that we negotiated the settlement with the DEC and continue to work closely with them to make sure the operation is in compliance with all rules and environmental regulations," company spokeswoman Allison Lee said.
Jonathan Lovvorn, vice president of animal protection litigation for the humane society, said, "We applaud the state for finally recognizing that this facility is violating water pollution laws. But the decision to settle 800 violations for less than $50 apiece is inexcusable."
Another Greyhound Breeder Accused of Illegal Activity
Well, it comes with the territory. If you raise animals to be abused, then you’re probably a pretty sick person.
Article:
Greyhound Breeder Under Scrutiny
http://www.theintelligencer.net/News/articles.asp?articleID=17018
By CASEY JUNKINS
WHEELING — Paul Carbonneau, who earned more than $330,000 from breeding greyhound racing dogs in 2006, is under investigation for allegedly falsifying 35 health certificates for his dogs, according to George T. Sidiropolis, chairman of the West Virginia Racing Commission.
“At this time, Mr. Carbonneau’s dogs have been scratched from running at Tri-State Racetrack and Gaming Center in Cross Lanes because of suspicions we have about the validity of 35 of his health certificates,” Sidiropolis said.
“All of Mr. Carbonneau’s greyhounds are to be quarantined and segregated from the other dogs at Tri-State, which means none of his dogs are permitted on the track,” Sidiropolis said, noting he was unsure whether this would mean the dogs could be diseased or possibly on performance enhancing drugs.
Sidiropolis said the investigation of Carbonneau stems from an inspection conducted at Tri-State Monday, as well as a fax machine message sent to the West Virginia Racing Commission on Tuesday morning.
“On Monday, one of our inspectors showed up at Tri-State for a routine check and while he was reading the health certificates for Mr. Carbonneau’s dogs, 35 of them appeared suspicious to him. All 35 of these certificates had the signature of Dr. Bob Wilson from Grand Prairie, Texas,” Sidiropolis said.
“Because the certificates looked suspicious, our inspector called Dr. Wilson to ask him about the dogs, “ he said.
On Tuesday morning, the Racing Commission received a fax message from Wilson that was forwarded to The Intelligencer, and it states:
“I have not vaccinated any of the animals in his (Carbonneau’s) care for the past three years. Therefore, I have not issued him any vaccination certificates during this period of time, nor did I issue health certificates for him to travel from one state to another. Needless to say, anything signed by me in regards to items in this paragraph would be fraudulent and considered forgery.”
When Wilson was contacted Tuesday, he responded by saying, “My attorney has advised me not to comment about this any further.”
Sidiropolis said a complete and thorough investigation of Carbonneau is forthcoming.
“We are going to review each and every health certificate he has to find out where these dogs have been born, raised and treated,” he said.
Sidiropolis said Carbonneau has most of his dogs at Tri-State, but also runs some at Wheeling Island Racetrack and Gaming Center.
“Mr. Carbonneau currently runs five greyhounds at our track,” said Kim Florence, spokeswoman for the Wheeling Island track.
“We are waiting to see how the Racing Commission is going to handle this to see what we should do,” Florence added.
Sidiropolis said Carbonneau has been ordered to appear before the board of judges in a conference room at Tri-State at 6:35 p.m. today.
Messages left for Carbonneau at his residence were not returned.
Article:
Greyhound Breeder Under Scrutiny
http://www.theintelligencer.net/News/articles.asp?articleID=17018
By CASEY JUNKINS
WHEELING — Paul Carbonneau, who earned more than $330,000 from breeding greyhound racing dogs in 2006, is under investigation for allegedly falsifying 35 health certificates for his dogs, according to George T. Sidiropolis, chairman of the West Virginia Racing Commission.
“At this time, Mr. Carbonneau’s dogs have been scratched from running at Tri-State Racetrack and Gaming Center in Cross Lanes because of suspicions we have about the validity of 35 of his health certificates,” Sidiropolis said.
“All of Mr. Carbonneau’s greyhounds are to be quarantined and segregated from the other dogs at Tri-State, which means none of his dogs are permitted on the track,” Sidiropolis said, noting he was unsure whether this would mean the dogs could be diseased or possibly on performance enhancing drugs.
Sidiropolis said the investigation of Carbonneau stems from an inspection conducted at Tri-State Monday, as well as a fax machine message sent to the West Virginia Racing Commission on Tuesday morning.
“On Monday, one of our inspectors showed up at Tri-State for a routine check and while he was reading the health certificates for Mr. Carbonneau’s dogs, 35 of them appeared suspicious to him. All 35 of these certificates had the signature of Dr. Bob Wilson from Grand Prairie, Texas,” Sidiropolis said.
“Because the certificates looked suspicious, our inspector called Dr. Wilson to ask him about the dogs, “ he said.
On Tuesday morning, the Racing Commission received a fax message from Wilson that was forwarded to The Intelligencer, and it states:
“I have not vaccinated any of the animals in his (Carbonneau’s) care for the past three years. Therefore, I have not issued him any vaccination certificates during this period of time, nor did I issue health certificates for him to travel from one state to another. Needless to say, anything signed by me in regards to items in this paragraph would be fraudulent and considered forgery.”
When Wilson was contacted Tuesday, he responded by saying, “My attorney has advised me not to comment about this any further.”
Sidiropolis said a complete and thorough investigation of Carbonneau is forthcoming.
“We are going to review each and every health certificate he has to find out where these dogs have been born, raised and treated,” he said.
Sidiropolis said Carbonneau has most of his dogs at Tri-State, but also runs some at Wheeling Island Racetrack and Gaming Center.
“Mr. Carbonneau currently runs five greyhounds at our track,” said Kim Florence, spokeswoman for the Wheeling Island track.
“We are waiting to see how the Racing Commission is going to handle this to see what we should do,” Florence added.
Sidiropolis said Carbonneau has been ordered to appear before the board of judges in a conference room at Tri-State at 6:35 p.m. today.
Messages left for Carbonneau at his residence were not returned.
Monday, March 05, 2007
Medical Doctor Speaks Out: Dissection and Live Animal Labs Are No Longer Required or Even Hailed As Superior Teaching Tools
This is an excellent article that truly shows that medical schools that require live animal labs like dissection or vivisection are using outdated, inferior and wasted resources that are not producing good results. In essence, dissection and vivisection are not necessary parts of a good medial schools curriculum.
Article:
Animals are not meant for medical research
http://www.tribune-georgian.com/articles/2007/
03/02/news/opinion/letters/4letter3.2.txt
Dear Editor, As medical advisor for the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, I'd like to clarify some misleading statements made about our efforts to promote humane alternatives to animal dissection in a recent letter ("Much ado about nothing by animal rights activists," Feb. 23).
Contrary to Dr. Paul Cosenza's letter, PCRM is a respected nonprofit health and research advocacy organization and is led by physicians, dietitians and scientists who publish their work in peer-reviewed academic journals, present their findings before scientific conferences and serve as consultants on government panels.
For more than 20 years, we have worked to educate the public about the need to move away from using animals in medical research and education.
Most physicians, like me, complete their medical education without ever cutting into an animal. In fact, more than 85 percent of U.S. medical schools have eliminated live animal labs in favor of more effective and humane teaching methods, such as human patient simulators, virtual computer programs and physician mentoring and observation.
The America College of Surgeons no longer uses live animals in its clinical training programs and has endorsed the use of simulation technologies to replace live animal use in surgery training programs.
I almost did not pursue medicine because I thought I might have to dissect and harm animals in the process. I am now a double-board certified neurologist and public health specialist.
Unfortunately, I do know many people who considered pursuing careers in biology and medicine, but chose not to because they believed they might be required to dissect animals. Today, dissection and live animal labs are no longer required or even hailed as superior teaching tools. To imply that dissecting animals is a necessary part of any education is simply wrong.
Aysha Akhtar, M.D., M.P.H.
Senior Medical and Research Advisor
Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine
Washington, D.C.
Article:
Animals are not meant for medical research
http://www.tribune-georgian.com/articles/2007/
03/02/news/opinion/letters/4letter3.2.txt
Dear Editor, As medical advisor for the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, I'd like to clarify some misleading statements made about our efforts to promote humane alternatives to animal dissection in a recent letter ("Much ado about nothing by animal rights activists," Feb. 23).
Contrary to Dr. Paul Cosenza's letter, PCRM is a respected nonprofit health and research advocacy organization and is led by physicians, dietitians and scientists who publish their work in peer-reviewed academic journals, present their findings before scientific conferences and serve as consultants on government panels.
For more than 20 years, we have worked to educate the public about the need to move away from using animals in medical research and education.
Most physicians, like me, complete their medical education without ever cutting into an animal. In fact, more than 85 percent of U.S. medical schools have eliminated live animal labs in favor of more effective and humane teaching methods, such as human patient simulators, virtual computer programs and physician mentoring and observation.
The America College of Surgeons no longer uses live animals in its clinical training programs and has endorsed the use of simulation technologies to replace live animal use in surgery training programs.
I almost did not pursue medicine because I thought I might have to dissect and harm animals in the process. I am now a double-board certified neurologist and public health specialist.
Unfortunately, I do know many people who considered pursuing careers in biology and medicine, but chose not to because they believed they might be required to dissect animals. Today, dissection and live animal labs are no longer required or even hailed as superior teaching tools. To imply that dissecting animals is a necessary part of any education is simply wrong.
Aysha Akhtar, M.D., M.P.H.
Senior Medical and Research Advisor
Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine
Washington, D.C.
BBC Show Exposes Kids to Reality of Where Meat Comes From: Slaughter Scenes Result in Predicted Reaction – Tears and Horror
This is how life should be – show kids and people in general the reality of how the meat gets to the table. Slaughter is not pretty business, a fact which is skewed and not seen when someone sees the packaged product on the shelves. Ignorance is bliss, but it isn’t the truth.
Want to see the reality behind slaughter?
See http://www.geari.org/photos-videos-animal-rights.html for pictures and videos of slaughter and other forms of cruelty.
For slaughter in particular see:
http://www.atourhands.com/commodity.html
Article:
SLAUGHTER.. LIVE ON TV
EXCLUSIVE Schoolkids weep as pig is butchered, skinned & eaten
http://www.sundaymirror.co.uk/news/tm_headline=slaughter---
live-on-tv&method=full&objectid=18703505&siteid=62484-name_page.html
By Jenna Sloan Jenna.Sloan@Mgn.Co.Uk
LIVE animals are slaughtered in front of horrified school-children in a new TV shocker.
Graphic scenes from BBC's Kill It, Cook It, Eat It show smoke coming out of a pig's head as it collapses after being electrocuted. Abattoir staff then hang the twitching animal up by its legs and cut its throat, sending blood gushing to the floor.
Audience members including schoolkids watch behind a glass screen and some weep as the pig is thrown into boiling water and skinned. Earlier a film showed the same animal as a cute piglet.
After the animal is dead, a butcher carves it up and cooks it - and guests tuck into meat they saw alive only minutes before. In other episodes a cow is sawn in half and a lamb's head is cut off, in an effort to "reconnect" us with the meat we buy.
Kids' TV presenter and vegetarian Rani Smith burst into tears as she saw blood gush from a cow's neck. Vegetarian Society spokeswoman Liz O'Neill said: "It was upsetting."
Beef farmer Ken Howie told presenter Richard Johnson: "I do question whether the general public needs to see that."
Another disgusted woman said: "It actually made me feel sick seeing an animal being killed just for TV."
But BBC Three controller Julian Bellamy said: "There is a desire to learn where the food we eat comes from and how that food reaches our plate. It will get people talking."
KILL It, Cook It, Eat It is on BBC3 from tomorrow to Wednesday at 10.30pm.
Want to see the reality behind slaughter?
See http://www.geari.org/photos-videos-animal-rights.html for pictures and videos of slaughter and other forms of cruelty.
For slaughter in particular see:
http://www.atourhands.com/commodity.html
Article:
SLAUGHTER.. LIVE ON TV
EXCLUSIVE Schoolkids weep as pig is butchered, skinned & eaten
http://www.sundaymirror.co.uk/news/tm_headline=slaughter---
live-on-tv&method=full&objectid=18703505&siteid=62484-name_page.html
By Jenna Sloan Jenna.Sloan@Mgn.Co.Uk
LIVE animals are slaughtered in front of horrified school-children in a new TV shocker.
Graphic scenes from BBC's Kill It, Cook It, Eat It show smoke coming out of a pig's head as it collapses after being electrocuted. Abattoir staff then hang the twitching animal up by its legs and cut its throat, sending blood gushing to the floor.
Audience members including schoolkids watch behind a glass screen and some weep as the pig is thrown into boiling water and skinned. Earlier a film showed the same animal as a cute piglet.
After the animal is dead, a butcher carves it up and cooks it - and guests tuck into meat they saw alive only minutes before. In other episodes a cow is sawn in half and a lamb's head is cut off, in an effort to "reconnect" us with the meat we buy.
Kids' TV presenter and vegetarian Rani Smith burst into tears as she saw blood gush from a cow's neck. Vegetarian Society spokeswoman Liz O'Neill said: "It was upsetting."
Beef farmer Ken Howie told presenter Richard Johnson: "I do question whether the general public needs to see that."
Another disgusted woman said: "It actually made me feel sick seeing an animal being killed just for TV."
But BBC Three controller Julian Bellamy said: "There is a desire to learn where the food we eat comes from and how that food reaches our plate. It will get people talking."
KILL It, Cook It, Eat It is on BBC3 from tomorrow to Wednesday at 10.30pm.
PA Senator Mike Brubaker Caught Meeting with Dog Breeders in Parking Lot of Store: Then Attempts to Restrain and Intimidate Person Who Took Photos
The senator is now being sued for his and his associate’s aggressive actions when they realized they were caught on camera.
There’s a few concerns about this and why this is worth posting.
One, it shows how business is actually run – politicians meet with lobbyists and business heads in places where they think they can’t be seen. If they meet at their office it will be registered.
Money is what makes the final decision.
In this case, once caught, they actually attempted to restrain the woman who took the pictures, violating free speech rights and her right of movement and to be free of harm.
In essence, it’s all dirty business complete with buying votes, intimidation and attempted physical restraint. All crimes.
Article:
Animal-rights activist sues over encounter with Pa. state senator
http://www.yorkdispatch.com/pennsylvania/ci_5349910
By MARK SCOLFORO The Associated Press
Article Last Updated: 03/03/2007 09:30:48 AM EST
EPHRATA, Pa. -- An advocate of tighter restrictions on dog kennels claimed Friday in a federal civil-rights lawsuit that a state senator and his aide intimidated her after she photographed them meeting with dog breeders in a convenience-store parking lot.
Barb Showalter, 41, of Denver, Pa., sued over a Monday encounter with Sen. Mike Brubaker, R-Lancaster, and Kristin Ebersole, executive director of the Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee that Brubaker chairs, outside a Turkey Hill store just off Route 222 in Ephrata.
Showalter claims Brubaker reacted to her taking pictures of participants in the gathering by trying to prevent her from driving away and that Ebersole pounded on her car window in an attempt to take her photos or camera.
Ebersole accused Showalter of exaggerating and called the allegations an "unfortunate" misunderstanding. Brubaker's office said the group assembled at the store for a fact-finding tour of dog kennels.
"In no way, shape or form was the senator trying to be threatening," Ebersole said
In the federal lawsuit mailed Friday to U.S. District Court in Philadelphia, Showalter alleges her rights under the U.S. Constitution related to free speech and search and seizure were violated.
The other defendants are four men who Brubaker and Ebersole were with at the store: Lancaster County kennel operators Nathan H. Myer and David W. Zimmerman, dog-industry lobbyist Kenneth E. Brandt and American Canine Association founder Bob Yarnall Jr.
The lawsuit accuses the four of violating Showalter's rights in allegedly concurring "that Brubaker and Ebersole should pursue (her) and presumably acquire her camera."
"She was there taking pictures," said Showalter's attorney, Don Bailey. "What are you going to chase somebody down for, block their car, beat on their windows? Obviously they wanted the pictures, and that's what blew the whole thing out of proportion."
Showalter said she purchased a disposable camera inside the store after recognizing people connected to the dog industry. She said she took several pictures, then locked herself inside her car as Brubaker and Ebersole approached.
Ebersole said they walked to Showalter -- whose name they recognized when someone else in their group identified her -- to introduce themselves, not to take her camera.
She said she tapped on Showalter's car window but did not hit the car aggressively. Brubaker did not try to prevent Showalter from leaving when he stood behind the car, Ebersole said.
Yarnall said Brubaker told him he thought Showalter might be with the news media and wanted to see if she had any questions.
"I would think it would have to be illegal to even put such a ridiculous lawsuit up," he said Friday by phone from California. Messages for Myer, Zimmerman and Brandt were not returned.
The Agriculture Department has proposed controversial new rules for larger kennels. Some people in the business of breeding and selling dogs have criticized the proposal as potentially too costly.
There’s a few concerns about this and why this is worth posting.
One, it shows how business is actually run – politicians meet with lobbyists and business heads in places where they think they can’t be seen. If they meet at their office it will be registered.
Money is what makes the final decision.
In this case, once caught, they actually attempted to restrain the woman who took the pictures, violating free speech rights and her right of movement and to be free of harm.
In essence, it’s all dirty business complete with buying votes, intimidation and attempted physical restraint. All crimes.
Article:
Animal-rights activist sues over encounter with Pa. state senator
http://www.yorkdispatch.com/pennsylvania/ci_5349910
By MARK SCOLFORO The Associated Press
Article Last Updated: 03/03/2007 09:30:48 AM EST
EPHRATA, Pa. -- An advocate of tighter restrictions on dog kennels claimed Friday in a federal civil-rights lawsuit that a state senator and his aide intimidated her after she photographed them meeting with dog breeders in a convenience-store parking lot.
Barb Showalter, 41, of Denver, Pa., sued over a Monday encounter with Sen. Mike Brubaker, R-Lancaster, and Kristin Ebersole, executive director of the Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee that Brubaker chairs, outside a Turkey Hill store just off Route 222 in Ephrata.
Showalter claims Brubaker reacted to her taking pictures of participants in the gathering by trying to prevent her from driving away and that Ebersole pounded on her car window in an attempt to take her photos or camera.
Ebersole accused Showalter of exaggerating and called the allegations an "unfortunate" misunderstanding. Brubaker's office said the group assembled at the store for a fact-finding tour of dog kennels.
"In no way, shape or form was the senator trying to be threatening," Ebersole said
In the federal lawsuit mailed Friday to U.S. District Court in Philadelphia, Showalter alleges her rights under the U.S. Constitution related to free speech and search and seizure were violated.
The other defendants are four men who Brubaker and Ebersole were with at the store: Lancaster County kennel operators Nathan H. Myer and David W. Zimmerman, dog-industry lobbyist Kenneth E. Brandt and American Canine Association founder Bob Yarnall Jr.
The lawsuit accuses the four of violating Showalter's rights in allegedly concurring "that Brubaker and Ebersole should pursue (her) and presumably acquire her camera."
"She was there taking pictures," said Showalter's attorney, Don Bailey. "What are you going to chase somebody down for, block their car, beat on their windows? Obviously they wanted the pictures, and that's what blew the whole thing out of proportion."
Showalter said she purchased a disposable camera inside the store after recognizing people connected to the dog industry. She said she took several pictures, then locked herself inside her car as Brubaker and Ebersole approached.
Ebersole said they walked to Showalter -- whose name they recognized when someone else in their group identified her -- to introduce themselves, not to take her camera.
She said she tapped on Showalter's car window but did not hit the car aggressively. Brubaker did not try to prevent Showalter from leaving when he stood behind the car, Ebersole said.
Yarnall said Brubaker told him he thought Showalter might be with the news media and wanted to see if she had any questions.
"I would think it would have to be illegal to even put such a ridiculous lawsuit up," he said Friday by phone from California. Messages for Myer, Zimmerman and Brandt were not returned.
The Agriculture Department has proposed controversial new rules for larger kennels. Some people in the business of breeding and selling dogs have criticized the proposal as potentially too costly.
Dog Fighting also a Problem in Australia
A disturbing reality.
Article:
Dog fighting is becoming a big problem in the country of Australia
http://www.dogflu.ca/
The sight of the pit bull newly rescued from the ring haunted all those who laid eyes on it at the RSPCA's Brisbane headquarters in Australia.
The intelligent eyes of the adult pit bull fighting dog gazed back, from a totally lacerated head. Every square centimetre of the tight, short-haired skin has been cut, torn and ripped by another dog's incisors.
His upper lip is partially torn off, his eyelids are red scabs and his ears are missing, previously cut off to avoid them from being crunched in the vice-like grip of an opponent.
It's a grotesque representation of a dog-like head - a one-glance story of the brutality and suffering endured by these unlucky animals.
This particular dog is just one of many involved in the cruel, secret, illegal dogfights which occur regularly across Queensland and Australia.
Just this week, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals fostered an American Staffordshire terrier who's ears had been sheared off. Charges against the owner have yet to be filed, but to look upon the young dog, say RSPCA officers, is a reminder that ear removal is a sure sign the animal was subjected to illegal dogfighting.
"We definitely know dogfights happen in Queensland. From information received, we believe they are more common in rural areas," said RSPCA inspector Daniel Young. "The most information we usually get is an anonymous call from someone involved or who has been asked to come along. Or they have changed their ways and believe it's cruel."
How Dogfights work:
The known network of gamblers and "sportsmen" interested in attending dogfights are contacted with information such as the secret meeting place.
"It's all hush-hush, highly illegal and a lot of money is involved," Young said. "A fight will be organised in a secluded area, but they have been held inside suburban houses. There was once one at Chinchilla where the dogs fought in a lounge room."
If neighbourhood residents notice signs like a large number of vehicles showing up at a house and dogs being removed from the vehicles, they should be suspicious.
"There could be a handful of people," Young added, "but we have had reports of 20 cars arriving at an address."
The internet has allowed information to be shared quickly and easily between organizers of illegal dogfights. There are rules to conducting fights and an assortment of chat rooms and other "safe" internet havens. One document in RSPCA hands specifies the use of a ring 4.2 metres in diameter with a 60 centimetre high wall.
"A fight can take place in an empty above ground pool, or they'll make an arena with a plywood surround," Young said. "They usually put carpet down, for a non-slip surface."
If you're suspicious of illegal dogfights in your neighbourhood, you'll have to use your eyes more than your ears for clues.
"Don't expect to hear a lot of yelping and barking," he said. "The dogs are quite silent when they fight."
RSPCA officials have obtained warrants and raided many places where there existed strong suspicion of dogfighting. Other criminal activity often goes hand in hand with dogfighting. If there are scarred, separately tethered or caged dogs to be found, fight preparation and cruel training equipment are usually located as well.
"Dogfighting attracts a lot of ferals," said RSPCA community relations officer Michael Beatty.
"A fight is a very big ordeal and the dogs need to be at their peak to last. In the past we have found treadmills used to get dogs' fitness levels up," added Young.
Inspectors have also seized "breaking sticks", used to lever open the clamped jaws of a fighting dog in battle.
One dogfight website brags about animals tearing into each other for 23 minutes straight.
"Dogs do die, but that's not the purpose of a fight," Young said.
An article by former RSPCA chief inspector Byron Hall stated that fights can be as long as three hours.
"The dogs are fought for the simple pleasure of man in order that man satisfy his need to act violently," it read. "The dogs are subjected to hours of brutality to end up either being hailed a champion or killed because they failed to fight to the satisfaction of their owners."
"Drugs and weapons are also frequently located on properties where pit bulls are found," it continued, "which make the job of an RSPCA Inspector even more hazardous than it already is."
Hall also cited an Ipswich case where a man was convicted of keeping a place for the purpose of fighting animals.
"He was found in possession of 35 pit bulls, a fighting pit, dogfighting magazines and other implements used for dogfighting," he related. "This conviction was the first of its kind in Queensland. The defendant was fined $1000 and ordered to pay $3007 costs to the society. Five dogs were euthanised due to their inability to be rehoused with the public. Through no fault of their own they had been programmed to kill, making their rehousing too great a risk for the society to take. The owner of the dogs was also found in possession of 236 cannabis plants and an unlicensed firearm."
Hall continued: "In order that a dog achieve champion status, it must win three fights. To achieve grand champion status, the dog must win five fights consecutively and to remain a grand champion it must either keep winning or retire undefeated."
According to information kept by the RSPCA, breeds such as Staffordshire terriers, mastiffs, Dobermans and Rottweiler’s are often paired off in preliminary fights before the main events.
A Queensland Police spokesman said statistics on stolen animals did not specify breed, "but," she added, "I'm sure dogs have been stolen for use in dogfights. Anecdotally, I'm sure it is happening."
Young said that catching offenders in the act is difficult, but essential in proving a concrete case in court.
With 11,180 reports to investigate last year alone, most of them involving at least one visit, Queensland's corps of 12 RSPCA inspectors is severely undermanned. But the society's kennels are regularly inhabited by "black tag" animals – dogs seized by inspectors or which are the subject of investigations.
"We see a lot of cases of neglect," said Beatty. "The majority of our work is educating people to their responsibilities. But a lot of people we investigate have far bigger issues. We are not in a position to make an assessment on them but it's usual to deal with people with mental issues, for want of a better word."
"There is a proven link between animal cruelty and violence on human beings," he said. "A survey in the United States looked at a list of serial killers and 88 per cent had a history of animal violence."
Domestic violence and animal cruelty also have well-established links. In one recent Brisbane case, a woman in a refuge had a live recording delivered to her, made by her husband as he tortured her pet dog.
If anything, Young said, cockfights are even more common than dogfights, because breeding fighting cockerels can be done quietly and without causing suspicion.
Cockerels make very little noise and are trained with sheaths over the razor-sharp steel spurs attached to their legs.
Organised cockfights are a tradition in some Asian countries, but are banned in Australia and can lead to fines of up to $22,500 or 12 months in prison.
People with any suspicion or information related to dog and cockfighting can call the RSPCA in Australia at 1300 852 188. Anonymous information is accepted.
Article:
Dog fighting is becoming a big problem in the country of Australia
http://www.dogflu.ca/
The sight of the pit bull newly rescued from the ring haunted all those who laid eyes on it at the RSPCA's Brisbane headquarters in Australia.
The intelligent eyes of the adult pit bull fighting dog gazed back, from a totally lacerated head. Every square centimetre of the tight, short-haired skin has been cut, torn and ripped by another dog's incisors.
His upper lip is partially torn off, his eyelids are red scabs and his ears are missing, previously cut off to avoid them from being crunched in the vice-like grip of an opponent.
It's a grotesque representation of a dog-like head - a one-glance story of the brutality and suffering endured by these unlucky animals.
This particular dog is just one of many involved in the cruel, secret, illegal dogfights which occur regularly across Queensland and Australia.
Just this week, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals fostered an American Staffordshire terrier who's ears had been sheared off. Charges against the owner have yet to be filed, but to look upon the young dog, say RSPCA officers, is a reminder that ear removal is a sure sign the animal was subjected to illegal dogfighting.
"We definitely know dogfights happen in Queensland. From information received, we believe they are more common in rural areas," said RSPCA inspector Daniel Young. "The most information we usually get is an anonymous call from someone involved or who has been asked to come along. Or they have changed their ways and believe it's cruel."
How Dogfights work:
The known network of gamblers and "sportsmen" interested in attending dogfights are contacted with information such as the secret meeting place.
"It's all hush-hush, highly illegal and a lot of money is involved," Young said. "A fight will be organised in a secluded area, but they have been held inside suburban houses. There was once one at Chinchilla where the dogs fought in a lounge room."
If neighbourhood residents notice signs like a large number of vehicles showing up at a house and dogs being removed from the vehicles, they should be suspicious.
"There could be a handful of people," Young added, "but we have had reports of 20 cars arriving at an address."
The internet has allowed information to be shared quickly and easily between organizers of illegal dogfights. There are rules to conducting fights and an assortment of chat rooms and other "safe" internet havens. One document in RSPCA hands specifies the use of a ring 4.2 metres in diameter with a 60 centimetre high wall.
"A fight can take place in an empty above ground pool, or they'll make an arena with a plywood surround," Young said. "They usually put carpet down, for a non-slip surface."
If you're suspicious of illegal dogfights in your neighbourhood, you'll have to use your eyes more than your ears for clues.
"Don't expect to hear a lot of yelping and barking," he said. "The dogs are quite silent when they fight."
RSPCA officials have obtained warrants and raided many places where there existed strong suspicion of dogfighting. Other criminal activity often goes hand in hand with dogfighting. If there are scarred, separately tethered or caged dogs to be found, fight preparation and cruel training equipment are usually located as well.
"Dogfighting attracts a lot of ferals," said RSPCA community relations officer Michael Beatty.
"A fight is a very big ordeal and the dogs need to be at their peak to last. In the past we have found treadmills used to get dogs' fitness levels up," added Young.
Inspectors have also seized "breaking sticks", used to lever open the clamped jaws of a fighting dog in battle.
One dogfight website brags about animals tearing into each other for 23 minutes straight.
"Dogs do die, but that's not the purpose of a fight," Young said.
An article by former RSPCA chief inspector Byron Hall stated that fights can be as long as three hours.
"The dogs are fought for the simple pleasure of man in order that man satisfy his need to act violently," it read. "The dogs are subjected to hours of brutality to end up either being hailed a champion or killed because they failed to fight to the satisfaction of their owners."
"Drugs and weapons are also frequently located on properties where pit bulls are found," it continued, "which make the job of an RSPCA Inspector even more hazardous than it already is."
Hall also cited an Ipswich case where a man was convicted of keeping a place for the purpose of fighting animals.
"He was found in possession of 35 pit bulls, a fighting pit, dogfighting magazines and other implements used for dogfighting," he related. "This conviction was the first of its kind in Queensland. The defendant was fined $1000 and ordered to pay $3007 costs to the society. Five dogs were euthanised due to their inability to be rehoused with the public. Through no fault of their own they had been programmed to kill, making their rehousing too great a risk for the society to take. The owner of the dogs was also found in possession of 236 cannabis plants and an unlicensed firearm."
Hall continued: "In order that a dog achieve champion status, it must win three fights. To achieve grand champion status, the dog must win five fights consecutively and to remain a grand champion it must either keep winning or retire undefeated."
According to information kept by the RSPCA, breeds such as Staffordshire terriers, mastiffs, Dobermans and Rottweiler’s are often paired off in preliminary fights before the main events.
A Queensland Police spokesman said statistics on stolen animals did not specify breed, "but," she added, "I'm sure dogs have been stolen for use in dogfights. Anecdotally, I'm sure it is happening."
Young said that catching offenders in the act is difficult, but essential in proving a concrete case in court.
With 11,180 reports to investigate last year alone, most of them involving at least one visit, Queensland's corps of 12 RSPCA inspectors is severely undermanned. But the society's kennels are regularly inhabited by "black tag" animals – dogs seized by inspectors or which are the subject of investigations.
"We see a lot of cases of neglect," said Beatty. "The majority of our work is educating people to their responsibilities. But a lot of people we investigate have far bigger issues. We are not in a position to make an assessment on them but it's usual to deal with people with mental issues, for want of a better word."
"There is a proven link between animal cruelty and violence on human beings," he said. "A survey in the United States looked at a list of serial killers and 88 per cent had a history of animal violence."
Domestic violence and animal cruelty also have well-established links. In one recent Brisbane case, a woman in a refuge had a live recording delivered to her, made by her husband as he tortured her pet dog.
If anything, Young said, cockfights are even more common than dogfights, because breeding fighting cockerels can be done quietly and without causing suspicion.
Cockerels make very little noise and are trained with sheaths over the razor-sharp steel spurs attached to their legs.
Organised cockfights are a tradition in some Asian countries, but are banned in Australia and can lead to fines of up to $22,500 or 12 months in prison.
People with any suspicion or information related to dog and cockfighting can call the RSPCA in Australia at 1300 852 188. Anonymous information is accepted.
Sunday, March 04, 2007
Ask Morningstar Farms To Stop Using Eggs In Their Products: If They Insist On Continuing to Use Eggs, Ask That They At least Use Cage Free Eggs
This actually comes from COK and Vegan Outreach, but I did receive the information not too long ago from another group. COK and Vegan Outreach did an excellent job with this writing, so I’d like to pass this along. Please see the following website for more information after reading the information below - http://www.morningstar-egg-facts.com
If nothing else, please at least consider switching to another product other than Morningstar Farms. Gardenburger is the main choice, as they do adhere to a policy of not using eggs for all but one of their products. For that one product, they do not use battery eggs. Here is a link to a statement by Gardenburger in relation to eggs in their products and specifically on their policy of only using cage free eggs: http://www.gardenburger.com/community/articles/index.php#No_Caged
Yet, if you do have time, there are many actions below you can take. They are all very easy, from making a simple call, to emailing a form letter.
Article:
http://www.morningstar-egg-facts.com
Compassion Over Killing
and Vegan Outreach
are teaming up with compassionate people everywhere to ask
Morningstar Farms® to stop using eggs in its product line.
Morningstar Farms®, which is owned by the Kellogg® company,
is currently purchasing eggs produced by hens confined inside barren
wire battery cages. Battery caged hens are typically provided with a
meager 67 square inches of space in which to live that s less than
the size of one sheet of notebook paper. These birds are so
intensively confined for their entire lives that they are denied
their natural inclinations to spread their wings, perch, preen, or
even walk.
Morningstar Farms® has long been a leader in supplying delicious
vegetarian foods to a growing market. Let them know that the market
also wants them to remove their support from the cruel battery egg
industry. Please encourage them to join with companies like
Gardenburger®, which last year announced it has taken eggs out of all
its products except for one private-sourced item.
Take action today by submitting your comments online!
<http://www.morningstar-egg-facts.com/contact-morningstar/>
Use the form in this alert or visit Morningstar-Egg-Facts.com
<http://www.morningstar-egg-facts.com>
to send a letter.
Please also call Kellogg® s customer feedback hotline:
1-800-962-1413.
Hours (Eastern Standard Time):
Mon. - Thurs.: 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Friday: 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Say: Representative.
Press 2 for product information
Press 1 for general inquiries
If nothing else, please at least consider switching to another product other than Morningstar Farms. Gardenburger is the main choice, as they do adhere to a policy of not using eggs for all but one of their products. For that one product, they do not use battery eggs. Here is a link to a statement by Gardenburger in relation to eggs in their products and specifically on their policy of only using cage free eggs: http://www.gardenburger.com/community/articles/index.php#No_Caged
Yet, if you do have time, there are many actions below you can take. They are all very easy, from making a simple call, to emailing a form letter.
Article:
http://www.morningstar-egg-facts.com
Compassion Over Killing
and Vegan Outreach
are teaming up with compassionate people everywhere to ask
Morningstar Farms® to stop using eggs in its product line.
Morningstar Farms®, which is owned by the Kellogg® company,
is currently purchasing eggs produced by hens confined inside barren
wire battery cages. Battery caged hens are typically provided with a
meager 67 square inches of space in which to live that s less than
the size of one sheet of notebook paper. These birds are so
intensively confined for their entire lives that they are denied
their natural inclinations to spread their wings, perch, preen, or
even walk.
Morningstar Farms® has long been a leader in supplying delicious
vegetarian foods to a growing market. Let them know that the market
also wants them to remove their support from the cruel battery egg
industry. Please encourage them to join with companies like
Gardenburger®, which last year announced it has taken eggs out of all
its products except for one private-sourced item.
Take action today by submitting your comments online!
<http://www.morningstar-egg-facts.com/contact-morningstar/>
Use the form in this alert or visit Morningstar-Egg-Facts.com
<http://www.morningstar-egg-facts.com>
to send a letter.
Please also call Kellogg® s customer feedback hotline:
1-800-962-1413.
Hours (Eastern Standard Time):
Mon. - Thurs.: 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Friday: 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Say: Representative.
Press 2 for product information
Press 1 for general inquiries
Thursday, March 01, 2007
Killing of Zookeeper and Subsequent Killing of Jaguar Shows Stupidity of Keeping Animals Captive (Zoos)
What a tragedy all around. A woman dies and then they kill the Jaguar who simply was acting out of instinct. I’ll let the following quotes sum it up, but really this proves once again just how unnatural zoos and keeping animals captive is. Just plain stupidity that is completely obvious to the thinking person.
Here are a couple quotes that sum this issue up:
"That is how a jaguar kills its prey, and that animal has been programmed to do that for thousands of years," she said.
"Regardless of the handling, the hand-rearing, the years of captivity, that animal is still a jaguar," she said. "Any predator is a predator and it will always have that instinct. They are looking for opportunities to be themselves."
"These animals should not be in zoos because of the possibility of these things happening, and for the welfare of the animals," Bekoff said. "What's to be gained by having an animal like that in the zoo?"
Article:
Jaguar Attack Renews Predator Debate
Some question whether big predators should be captive
http://www.myfoxcolorado.com/myfox/pages/News/
Detail?contentId=2517996&version=2&locale=EN-
US&layoutCode=TSTY&pageId=3.2.1
DENVER --
A jaguar's lethal attack on a keeper at the Denver Zoo has renewed the debate over whether big predators should be kept in captivity in the first place.
Ashlee Pfaff, 28, died Saturday after she was mauled by a 140-pound jaguar named Jorge. The jaguar was shot and killed when it approached workers trying to save Pfaff.
Marc Bekoff, a retired University of Colorado biology professor and author of "The Emotional Lives of Animals," called Pfaff's death a tragedy.
"These animals should not be in zoos because of the possibility of these things happening, and for the welfare of the animals," Bekoff said. "What's to be gained by having an animal like that in the zoo?"
Others argue that allowing humans to see such animals up close makes it easier to raise money and public support to preserve the animals and their habitats in the wild.
"Money that's raised by zoos goes a great distance to preserve their habitats. We can do so much with education," said Jack Grisham, vice president of animal collections at the St. Louis Zoo.
Denver Zoo officials said Tuesday they were cooperating with investigations by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the Association of Zoos and Aquariums and Denver police.
An autopsy found Pfaff died of a broken neck and had extensive internal injuries. Police spokesman Sonny Jackson said toxicology tests from the autopsy will likely take several days.
Pfaff was attacked in a service hallway adjacent to the jaguar's enclosure. Zoo officials said the door to the enclosure was open.
"We don't know if she was going in, and we never will," zoo spokeswoman Ana Bowie said. "Why that door was open and what she was doing, we do not know."
Zoo policy requires doors to be closed when keepers are in adjacent areas and forbids keepers to be in an enclosure when an animal is present. Zoo officials said Pfaff had experience working with big cats and knew the routines.
The animal had no history of abnormal behavior, and a necropsy showed it was in good health.
Bekoff said even experts exercising extreme caution can make mistakes that put them in danger when dealing with predators.
He cited himself as an example: Despite extensive experience studying wolves, he once took a step toward a male gray wolf's food inside an enclosure. The wolf backed him against the fence, stared and growled before eventually backing off.
"I was foolish to do what I did and I know wolves well," he said. "I almost got nailed by a wolf being stupid."
Mara Rodriguez, an instructor at the Exotic Animal Training and Management Program at Moorpark College in California, said Pfaff's neck injuries sounded like the result of a classic jaguar hunting behavior.
"That is how a jaguar kills its prey, and that animal has been programmed to do that for thousands of years," she said.
"Regardless of the handling, the hand-rearing, the years of captivity, that animal is still a jaguar," she said. "Any predator is a predator and it will always have that instinct. They are looking for opportunities to be themselves."
Steve Feldman, spokesman for the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, said fatal animal attacks in zoos are "fairly rare." He said it was still too early to know exactly what happened in Denver.
The association, which accredits the Denver Zoo and more than 200 other institutions, requires its members to train its workers and follow safety procedures.
Zoo officials say they continually train employees and evaluate safety procedures and conduct "red alert" animal escape drills at least four times a year.
The zoo has 16 staffers trained in the use of firearms in case of an escape. Four of those employees responded to the attack on Pfaff.
Before Saturday, the most recent fatal attack at the Denver Zoo was a bear attack that killed a zookeeper back in the 1920s.
Here are a couple quotes that sum this issue up:
"That is how a jaguar kills its prey, and that animal has been programmed to do that for thousands of years," she said.
"Regardless of the handling, the hand-rearing, the years of captivity, that animal is still a jaguar," she said. "Any predator is a predator and it will always have that instinct. They are looking for opportunities to be themselves."
"These animals should not be in zoos because of the possibility of these things happening, and for the welfare of the animals," Bekoff said. "What's to be gained by having an animal like that in the zoo?"
Article:
Jaguar Attack Renews Predator Debate
Some question whether big predators should be captive
http://www.myfoxcolorado.com/myfox/pages/News/
Detail?contentId=2517996&version=2&locale=EN-
US&layoutCode=TSTY&pageId=3.2.1
DENVER --
A jaguar's lethal attack on a keeper at the Denver Zoo has renewed the debate over whether big predators should be kept in captivity in the first place.
Ashlee Pfaff, 28, died Saturday after she was mauled by a 140-pound jaguar named Jorge. The jaguar was shot and killed when it approached workers trying to save Pfaff.
Marc Bekoff, a retired University of Colorado biology professor and author of "The Emotional Lives of Animals," called Pfaff's death a tragedy.
"These animals should not be in zoos because of the possibility of these things happening, and for the welfare of the animals," Bekoff said. "What's to be gained by having an animal like that in the zoo?"
Others argue that allowing humans to see such animals up close makes it easier to raise money and public support to preserve the animals and their habitats in the wild.
"Money that's raised by zoos goes a great distance to preserve their habitats. We can do so much with education," said Jack Grisham, vice president of animal collections at the St. Louis Zoo.
Denver Zoo officials said Tuesday they were cooperating with investigations by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the Association of Zoos and Aquariums and Denver police.
An autopsy found Pfaff died of a broken neck and had extensive internal injuries. Police spokesman Sonny Jackson said toxicology tests from the autopsy will likely take several days.
Pfaff was attacked in a service hallway adjacent to the jaguar's enclosure. Zoo officials said the door to the enclosure was open.
"We don't know if she was going in, and we never will," zoo spokeswoman Ana Bowie said. "Why that door was open and what she was doing, we do not know."
Zoo policy requires doors to be closed when keepers are in adjacent areas and forbids keepers to be in an enclosure when an animal is present. Zoo officials said Pfaff had experience working with big cats and knew the routines.
The animal had no history of abnormal behavior, and a necropsy showed it was in good health.
Bekoff said even experts exercising extreme caution can make mistakes that put them in danger when dealing with predators.
He cited himself as an example: Despite extensive experience studying wolves, he once took a step toward a male gray wolf's food inside an enclosure. The wolf backed him against the fence, stared and growled before eventually backing off.
"I was foolish to do what I did and I know wolves well," he said. "I almost got nailed by a wolf being stupid."
Mara Rodriguez, an instructor at the Exotic Animal Training and Management Program at Moorpark College in California, said Pfaff's neck injuries sounded like the result of a classic jaguar hunting behavior.
"That is how a jaguar kills its prey, and that animal has been programmed to do that for thousands of years," she said.
"Regardless of the handling, the hand-rearing, the years of captivity, that animal is still a jaguar," she said. "Any predator is a predator and it will always have that instinct. They are looking for opportunities to be themselves."
Steve Feldman, spokesman for the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, said fatal animal attacks in zoos are "fairly rare." He said it was still too early to know exactly what happened in Denver.
The association, which accredits the Denver Zoo and more than 200 other institutions, requires its members to train its workers and follow safety procedures.
Zoo officials say they continually train employees and evaluate safety procedures and conduct "red alert" animal escape drills at least four times a year.
The zoo has 16 staffers trained in the use of firearms in case of an escape. Four of those employees responded to the attack on Pfaff.
Before Saturday, the most recent fatal attack at the Denver Zoo was a bear attack that killed a zookeeper back in the 1920s.
Death of Greyhound Causes Groups in Tasmania to Call for a Ban to Dog Hurdle Racing
I have to admit, I hadn’t heard of such a ridiculous event. As is shown by the article below, it is extremely dangerous for the greyhounds. And this danger is really why this only goes on in the one area of Tasmania.
For more on Greyhound racing (not with hurdles) and why it’s wrong see http://www.downbound.com/Greyhound_Racing_s/427.htm
Article:
Call to ban greyhound hurdle races
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/
0,20867,21306659-5006788,00.html
By Glenn Cordingley
March 01, 2007 12:58pm
Article from: AAP
Font size: + -
Send this article: Print Email
AN animal welfare group has called for dog hurdle-racing to be banned in Tasmania after a greyhound smashed into a barrier and died on the track.
The dog slammed into the second hurdle at high speed during trials for the Hobart Greyhound Racing Club on Tuesday night.
Witnesses at the Elwick racetrack in Hobart said its back was broken and skull smashed.
"The death of this greyhound is a reminder of why greyhound hurdle racing takes place in no other state in Australia, other than Tasmania," said Against Animal Cruelty Tasmania (AACT) spokeswoman Emma Haswell.
Last August, a dog at the same track died when it careered into a rail, raising concerns over a lack of a safety fence.
Ms Haswell said greyhounds converted to hurdle racing were generally considered past their prime and have always been used to running on flat tracks.
"These gentle and graceful dogs have never seen an uneven surface let alone a jump," she said.
"On top of this, many have been trained using live baits such as possums and rabbits.
"The dog's eye is on the lure and lure only. Hurdle racing is an accident waiting to happen every time and the AACT wants it banned immediately.
The Tasmanian Greens, who described the latest death as "shocking" and "avoidable", are calling for all dog races and trials to be suspended until a safety rail is installed at the track.
A spokesman from TOTE Tasmania said it would hold its own investigation into the incident.
Hobart Greyhound Racing Club chair Denise Fish said she was not considering a ban on greyhound hurdle racing.
"The chief steward is holding an investigation which is normal procedure. We are not considering a ban and will wait and see what comes out of the inquiry," she said.
"This was a racing accident, nothing more than that. A dog has clipped a hurdle and fell.
"It's just one of those unfortunate things. Like any other fall, you may or may not hurt yourself. You never want to see an animal get hurt but it happens."
For more on Greyhound racing (not with hurdles) and why it’s wrong see http://www.downbound.com/Greyhound_Racing_s/427.htm
Article:
Call to ban greyhound hurdle races
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/
0,20867,21306659-5006788,00.html
By Glenn Cordingley
March 01, 2007 12:58pm
Article from: AAP
Font size: + -
Send this article: Print Email
AN animal welfare group has called for dog hurdle-racing to be banned in Tasmania after a greyhound smashed into a barrier and died on the track.
The dog slammed into the second hurdle at high speed during trials for the Hobart Greyhound Racing Club on Tuesday night.
Witnesses at the Elwick racetrack in Hobart said its back was broken and skull smashed.
"The death of this greyhound is a reminder of why greyhound hurdle racing takes place in no other state in Australia, other than Tasmania," said Against Animal Cruelty Tasmania (AACT) spokeswoman Emma Haswell.
Last August, a dog at the same track died when it careered into a rail, raising concerns over a lack of a safety fence.
Ms Haswell said greyhounds converted to hurdle racing were generally considered past their prime and have always been used to running on flat tracks.
"These gentle and graceful dogs have never seen an uneven surface let alone a jump," she said.
"On top of this, many have been trained using live baits such as possums and rabbits.
"The dog's eye is on the lure and lure only. Hurdle racing is an accident waiting to happen every time and the AACT wants it banned immediately.
The Tasmanian Greens, who described the latest death as "shocking" and "avoidable", are calling for all dog races and trials to be suspended until a safety rail is installed at the track.
A spokesman from TOTE Tasmania said it would hold its own investigation into the incident.
Hobart Greyhound Racing Club chair Denise Fish said she was not considering a ban on greyhound hurdle racing.
"The chief steward is holding an investigation which is normal procedure. We are not considering a ban and will wait and see what comes out of the inquiry," she said.
"This was a racing accident, nothing more than that. A dog has clipped a hurdle and fell.
"It's just one of those unfortunate things. Like any other fall, you may or may not hurt yourself. You never want to see an animal get hurt but it happens."
Group in Italy Puts Forth Charter that Would Prevent Animals from Being Exploited on Television
An excellent idea. As the article below states, “The guidelines forbid programmers from using animals in a way that goes against their nature, including making them perform tricks or putting them in situations that can be seen as offending their dignity.”
Article:
Charter signed on TV animal rights.
http://www.wantedinrome.com/news/news.php?id_n=2810
Animal rights activists, Italian state broadcaster RAI and the minister for the environment, Alfonso Pecoraro Scanio, have presented a new charter that will prevent animals from being exploited on television.
The guidelines forbid programmers from using animals in a way that goes against their nature, including making them perform tricks or putting them in situations that can be seen as offending their dignity. Gianluca Felicetti, president of the Italian Anti-Vivisection League (LAV), said the charter was necessary following an increased exploitation of animals in television programmes. He cited the use of a kangaroo in the RAI programme Carramba che Sorpresa as an example.
In addition to setting out guidelines for the use of animals on television, the charter also recommends the establishment of a special commission made up of animal experts and vets who can evaluate plans for the presence of animals in transmissions and ensure they are in line with the philosophy of the charter. All other television channels are also asked to sign up to the guidelines. For the full text of the charter, see www.sas.rai.it.
Article:
Charter signed on TV animal rights.
http://www.wantedinrome.com/news/news.php?id_n=2810
Animal rights activists, Italian state broadcaster RAI and the minister for the environment, Alfonso Pecoraro Scanio, have presented a new charter that will prevent animals from being exploited on television.
The guidelines forbid programmers from using animals in a way that goes against their nature, including making them perform tricks or putting them in situations that can be seen as offending their dignity. Gianluca Felicetti, president of the Italian Anti-Vivisection League (LAV), said the charter was necessary following an increased exploitation of animals in television programmes. He cited the use of a kangaroo in the RAI programme Carramba che Sorpresa as an example.
In addition to setting out guidelines for the use of animals on television, the charter also recommends the establishment of a special commission made up of animal experts and vets who can evaluate plans for the presence of animals in transmissions and ensure they are in line with the philosophy of the charter. All other television channels are also asked to sign up to the guidelines. For the full text of the charter, see www.sas.rai.it.
Troy Lee Gentry, of the Country Singing Duo Montgomery Gentry, Sentenced to Three Months Probation and $15,000 Fine for Killing a Captive Black Bear
How cowardly is this? Pay for a captive bear to kill. That’s just plain weak and even hunters would agree that this constitutes unethical behavior on all levels.
Article:
Singer Gentry sentenced in bear killing
http://www.insidebayarea.com/celebrities/ci_5323546
Associated Press
DULUTH, Minn. - Troy Lee Gentry, of the country singing duo Montgomery Gentry, has been sentenced to three months of probation and a $15,000 fine for killing a captive black bear. He also must give up hunting in Minnesota for five years.
Gentry pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor in November. Under a plea deal, he agreed to forfeit the bear and the bow he used during the hunt near Sandstone. The 600-pound bear has been part of a taxidermy display at Gentry's home in Tennessee. He was sentenced Friday.
The bear was killed in October 2004 at the 80-acre Minnesota Wildlife Connection. Owner Lee Marvin Greenly sold the bear for $4,650 and orchestrated the hunt, which Gentry videotaped and edited to make it appear the bear had been killed in a fair chase hunt, according to authorities.
Montgomery Gentry, which includes co-singer Eddie Montgomery, are known for hits such as "My Town" and "If You Ever Stop Loving Me."
Article:
Singer Gentry sentenced in bear killing
http://www.insidebayarea.com/celebrities/ci_5323546
Associated Press
DULUTH, Minn. - Troy Lee Gentry, of the country singing duo Montgomery Gentry, has been sentenced to three months of probation and a $15,000 fine for killing a captive black bear. He also must give up hunting in Minnesota for five years.
Gentry pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor in November. Under a plea deal, he agreed to forfeit the bear and the bow he used during the hunt near Sandstone. The 600-pound bear has been part of a taxidermy display at Gentry's home in Tennessee. He was sentenced Friday.
The bear was killed in October 2004 at the 80-acre Minnesota Wildlife Connection. Owner Lee Marvin Greenly sold the bear for $4,650 and orchestrated the hunt, which Gentry videotaped and edited to make it appear the bear had been killed in a fair chase hunt, according to authorities.
Montgomery Gentry, which includes co-singer Eddie Montgomery, are known for hits such as "My Town" and "If You Ever Stop Loving Me."
A Quick and Brief Look at the History of Vegetarianism
This writing really provides a quick and brief look at the history of vegetarianism. Of course much is left out, but for a good overview, it’s worth reading.
Article:
Vegetarianism is not a fad, has meaty history
http://media.www.daily49er.com/media/storage/
paper1042/news/2007/03/01/Opinion/Vegetarianism.
Is.Not.A.Fad.Has.Meaty.History-2749664.shtml
Celine Dilfer
My first encounter with the death of an animal was years ago, but it was so emotional that it still affects me so much that it still influences my diet today. I was on a train that made a stop much earlier than announced. Confused, I looked outside and saw something that still haunts me to this day - the sight of fresh blood splattered throughout a 5-foot radius and an herd of agonized cows severed beneath the train.
Under my tears, I felt an impossible sadness and wished never to see a dying animal again. A vegetarian diet has been my way of life since then - a decision which has invoked all types of remarks. Among the most notable of the remarks is how vegetarianism is just a new fad and I'll grow out of it eventually. I quell my desire to call them out on their uneducated assumption, and opt for a polite nod.
The truth is that vegetarianism has a very long history, and is nothing new. An agreement that the history of vegetarianism even classifies as intellectual history has yet to be accepted, perhaps because it's the same very people that disregard "rights" for animals, that denies any "history" for animals.
However, the vegetarian movement has been tried and tested, with varying degrees of success and owes its rockiness to the fact that there has not been a single compelling argument in favor of vegetarianism that hasn't been countered by one against it, both of equal authority.
Nonetheless, the concept is still strongly embraced by about 4 million people worldwide and dates back to sometime in 500 B.C. According to an article published in the Jan. 22 issue of The New Yorker, scholars believe a group of mystical mathematicians, known for their most notable leader, Pythagoras, was the first group to engage in a philosophical debate about carnivorous behavior.
These mathematicians placed equal value on animal and human life, and they often questioned the proper relationship between a human and animal. They followed a doctrine known as metem-psychosis, which stated that in the afterlife your soul passed from one species to another. Abstaining from eating animals then was the only way to avoid cannibalism. Metempsychosis gained a lot of followers, but remained hidden from the Catholic Church. The Catholics, believing that the afterlife consisted of souls migration between heaven and hell, condemned any other belief, and saw vegetarians as a defiant to God's will.
But even between the devout, discrepancies arose. Some felt that it was not only our right, but also our divine duty to eat animals, whereas others felt that all of Gods' creations should be valued, and neither have dominion over one another.
Not excluding the religious beliefs of others, it is important to notice that Egyptians practiced a vegetarian ideology around 3200 B.C. based upon karmic beliefs. Also, India, the vegetarian capital of the world, centered their religion on ideas of non-violence and respect for all forms of life.
The Greeks and Romans played a significant part in the revival of the movement between the 3rd and 6th centuries. It is interesting to note that Socrates, Plato and Aristotle, some of the greatest philosophers of all time, all advocated a "natural" life, free from animal cruelty.
Many other reasons for going meatless stemmed throughout history until the 1700s, when another prominent group of thinkers emerged who outwardly opposed the treatment of animals.
From The Enlightenment of the 18th century emerged a new thought about humans' place in creation order. From this era rose another reason for a meatless diet, apart from religion - a moral issue. Arguments that animals were in fact intelligent, feeling creatures were voiced and the morality of killing them inhumanly was questioned.
George Cheyenne, a Scottish diet doctor, and other commentators argued that the habit of killing, like that of meat eating itself, hardened the heart and the nerves, both figuratively and literally. Our first step towards peace begins on our plate. Thus, abstinence from flesh eating strongly appealed to those against war and violence.
What makes this movement so fascinating are all the different reasons throughout history that have inspired people to take on a vegetarian diet. Its should be noted that health was at some pinnacle of the reasoning for many years, as a plant based diet was often a remedy to different ailments.
But whatever the reason, whether religious affairs, moral or health, the notion of a vegetarian diet has been embraced by some of history's most significant and influential thinkers, such as Albert Einstein, Leonardo DiVinci, Mahatma Gandhi made a whole religion based on it, Isaac Newton, Plato, Socrates, Voltaire, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Edison, César Chavez and countless other prominent people throughout world history. Embarassingly, so was Adolf Hitler.
People who wanted to contribute abstract thought, and analysis of what consequences human actions have set out with a vision for a better life, improvement of society's status quo.
Vegetarianism is not a new trend, but a continuing struggle for an enhanced moral life. I think it's fair to say then that vegetarians would be good company - people with a desire to question the world and attempt to better it.
Celine Dilfer is a senior communications major.
Article:
Vegetarianism is not a fad, has meaty history
http://media.www.daily49er.com/media/storage/
paper1042/news/2007/03/01/Opinion/Vegetarianism.
Is.Not.A.Fad.Has.Meaty.History-2749664.shtml
Celine Dilfer
My first encounter with the death of an animal was years ago, but it was so emotional that it still affects me so much that it still influences my diet today. I was on a train that made a stop much earlier than announced. Confused, I looked outside and saw something that still haunts me to this day - the sight of fresh blood splattered throughout a 5-foot radius and an herd of agonized cows severed beneath the train.
Under my tears, I felt an impossible sadness and wished never to see a dying animal again. A vegetarian diet has been my way of life since then - a decision which has invoked all types of remarks. Among the most notable of the remarks is how vegetarianism is just a new fad and I'll grow out of it eventually. I quell my desire to call them out on their uneducated assumption, and opt for a polite nod.
The truth is that vegetarianism has a very long history, and is nothing new. An agreement that the history of vegetarianism even classifies as intellectual history has yet to be accepted, perhaps because it's the same very people that disregard "rights" for animals, that denies any "history" for animals.
However, the vegetarian movement has been tried and tested, with varying degrees of success and owes its rockiness to the fact that there has not been a single compelling argument in favor of vegetarianism that hasn't been countered by one against it, both of equal authority.
Nonetheless, the concept is still strongly embraced by about 4 million people worldwide and dates back to sometime in 500 B.C. According to an article published in the Jan. 22 issue of The New Yorker, scholars believe a group of mystical mathematicians, known for their most notable leader, Pythagoras, was the first group to engage in a philosophical debate about carnivorous behavior.
These mathematicians placed equal value on animal and human life, and they often questioned the proper relationship between a human and animal. They followed a doctrine known as metem-psychosis, which stated that in the afterlife your soul passed from one species to another. Abstaining from eating animals then was the only way to avoid cannibalism. Metempsychosis gained a lot of followers, but remained hidden from the Catholic Church. The Catholics, believing that the afterlife consisted of souls migration between heaven and hell, condemned any other belief, and saw vegetarians as a defiant to God's will.
But even between the devout, discrepancies arose. Some felt that it was not only our right, but also our divine duty to eat animals, whereas others felt that all of Gods' creations should be valued, and neither have dominion over one another.
Not excluding the religious beliefs of others, it is important to notice that Egyptians practiced a vegetarian ideology around 3200 B.C. based upon karmic beliefs. Also, India, the vegetarian capital of the world, centered their religion on ideas of non-violence and respect for all forms of life.
The Greeks and Romans played a significant part in the revival of the movement between the 3rd and 6th centuries. It is interesting to note that Socrates, Plato and Aristotle, some of the greatest philosophers of all time, all advocated a "natural" life, free from animal cruelty.
Many other reasons for going meatless stemmed throughout history until the 1700s, when another prominent group of thinkers emerged who outwardly opposed the treatment of animals.
From The Enlightenment of the 18th century emerged a new thought about humans' place in creation order. From this era rose another reason for a meatless diet, apart from religion - a moral issue. Arguments that animals were in fact intelligent, feeling creatures were voiced and the morality of killing them inhumanly was questioned.
George Cheyenne, a Scottish diet doctor, and other commentators argued that the habit of killing, like that of meat eating itself, hardened the heart and the nerves, both figuratively and literally. Our first step towards peace begins on our plate. Thus, abstinence from flesh eating strongly appealed to those against war and violence.
What makes this movement so fascinating are all the different reasons throughout history that have inspired people to take on a vegetarian diet. Its should be noted that health was at some pinnacle of the reasoning for many years, as a plant based diet was often a remedy to different ailments.
But whatever the reason, whether religious affairs, moral or health, the notion of a vegetarian diet has been embraced by some of history's most significant and influential thinkers, such as Albert Einstein, Leonardo DiVinci, Mahatma Gandhi made a whole religion based on it, Isaac Newton, Plato, Socrates, Voltaire, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Edison, César Chavez and countless other prominent people throughout world history. Embarassingly, so was Adolf Hitler.
People who wanted to contribute abstract thought, and analysis of what consequences human actions have set out with a vision for a better life, improvement of society's status quo.
Vegetarianism is not a new trend, but a continuing struggle for an enhanced moral life. I think it's fair to say then that vegetarians would be good company - people with a desire to question the world and attempt to better it.
Celine Dilfer is a senior communications major.
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Cruel China at It Again: Allows Tourists to Pay To Have LIVE Animals Thrown From Trucks to Be Mauled By Live Tigers
Yes, this isn’t a joke. Sadly it’s all true. But what do you expect from this cruelest country on Earth? I’m always a little surprised when a new story comes out, but I’m starting to not be anymore.
I need to repeat that these are LIVE animals. Some as big as OX. So they will literally dump a live OX or cow from a truck and then sicko tourists and their sick Chinese counterparts have a good laugh.
Here’s a little from the article below. The article actually has pictures and I encourage you to visit them. Just read this and you’ll be blown away once again by the cruelty of China:
“EYES rolling and squealing with fear, the cow is forced from the back of a moving pick-up truck into the dirt.
There is an explosion of dust, blood and flashing cameras as an ambush of tigers moves in for the kill, tearing great strips off the animal's back as it struggles for a second, then goes still, bar the odd twitch.
A minute later there is little left of the ton-weight heifer except a scrap of skin, a mess of bones and a puddle of blood.”
“To watch a live chicken thrown to the tigers costs £2.50. You can also opt for an £8 duck, an £8 pheasant or a £40 sheep. Strapped for cash? You can choose raw steak for 80p. But the prize is a cow or ox, which costs £120.”
More about Cruel China can also be found at the links below. The first link is especially telling as it provides actual photos of the reality of animal torture in China:
http://geari.blogspot.com/2006/03/
crash-course-in-unbelievable-cruelty.html
http://geari.blogspot.com/2006/08/
cruel-china-plans-another-large-dog.html
http://geari.blogspot.com/2006/08/
even-on-heels-of-beyond-disgusting-dog.html
http://geari.blogspot.com/2006/05/
in-order-to-get-back-at-dalai-lama-and.html
http://geari.blogspot.com/2007/01/
sean-diddy-combs-admits-dog-fur-used.html
Article:
EXCLUSIVE: NICE HOL?
EXCLUSIVE Tourists buy live animals.. to throw to tigers
http://www.sundaymirror.co.uk/archive/archive/
tm_method=full%26objectid=18673059%26siteid=62484-
name_page.html
By Adam Lee-Potter
EYES rolling and squealing with fear, the cow is forced from the back of a moving pick-up truck into the dirt.
There is an explosion of dust, blood and flashing cameras as an ambush of tigers moves in for the kill, tearing great strips off the animal's back as it struggles for a second, then goes still, bar the odd twitch.
A minute later there is little left of the ton-weight heifer except a scrap of skin, a mess of bones and a puddle of blood.
Seconds from death... a truck ready to dump the doomed cow
But this is not some wild savannah. Welcome instead to China's latest tourist craze - paying up to £120 a time to feed live animals to ravenous Siberian tigers. From four packed buses goggle-eyed tourists shoot roll after roll of film, and even clap. One Westerner waves a roll of notes at the tour guide, excitedly gesturing at the bizarre menu pinned to the wall.
A chicken is gobbled up by one of the ravenous tigers
To watch a live chicken thrown to the tigers costs £2.50. You can also opt for an £8 duck, an £8 pheasant or a £40 sheep. Strapped for cash? You can choose raw steak for 80p. But the prize is a cow or ox, which costs £120. The Heilongjiang Siberian Tiger Park in Harbin, Northern China, is becoming one of the country's top destinations. The park is home to more than 700 of these huge animals - also known as Amur or Manchurian tigers. There are just 400 left in the wild. One tourist who got more than he bargained for from the hourlong £4 tour was American Paul Gray, 40. "I was expecting a safari, not a bloodbath," he said. "But people were baying for more. One of the guides threw a chicken and it landed on one of the support vehicles. A tiger leapt on to the roof and gobbled it up in one go. I was horrified."
Last year, Wang Wei, of China's Wildlife Conservation Department, promised to "put an end to shows of feeding beasts of prey with live animals". But, today, it is still very much business as usual.
I need to repeat that these are LIVE animals. Some as big as OX. So they will literally dump a live OX or cow from a truck and then sicko tourists and their sick Chinese counterparts have a good laugh.
Here’s a little from the article below. The article actually has pictures and I encourage you to visit them. Just read this and you’ll be blown away once again by the cruelty of China:
“EYES rolling and squealing with fear, the cow is forced from the back of a moving pick-up truck into the dirt.
There is an explosion of dust, blood and flashing cameras as an ambush of tigers moves in for the kill, tearing great strips off the animal's back as it struggles for a second, then goes still, bar the odd twitch.
A minute later there is little left of the ton-weight heifer except a scrap of skin, a mess of bones and a puddle of blood.”
“To watch a live chicken thrown to the tigers costs £2.50. You can also opt for an £8 duck, an £8 pheasant or a £40 sheep. Strapped for cash? You can choose raw steak for 80p. But the prize is a cow or ox, which costs £120.”
More about Cruel China can also be found at the links below. The first link is especially telling as it provides actual photos of the reality of animal torture in China:
http://geari.blogspot.com/2006/03/
crash-course-in-unbelievable-cruelty.html
http://geari.blogspot.com/2006/08/
cruel-china-plans-another-large-dog.html
http://geari.blogspot.com/2006/08/
even-on-heels-of-beyond-disgusting-dog.html
http://geari.blogspot.com/2006/05/
in-order-to-get-back-at-dalai-lama-and.html
http://geari.blogspot.com/2007/01/
sean-diddy-combs-admits-dog-fur-used.html
Article:
EXCLUSIVE: NICE HOL?
EXCLUSIVE Tourists buy live animals.. to throw to tigers
http://www.sundaymirror.co.uk/archive/archive/
tm_method=full%26objectid=18673059%26siteid=62484-
name_page.html
By Adam Lee-Potter
EYES rolling and squealing with fear, the cow is forced from the back of a moving pick-up truck into the dirt.
There is an explosion of dust, blood and flashing cameras as an ambush of tigers moves in for the kill, tearing great strips off the animal's back as it struggles for a second, then goes still, bar the odd twitch.
A minute later there is little left of the ton-weight heifer except a scrap of skin, a mess of bones and a puddle of blood.
Seconds from death... a truck ready to dump the doomed cow
But this is not some wild savannah. Welcome instead to China's latest tourist craze - paying up to £120 a time to feed live animals to ravenous Siberian tigers. From four packed buses goggle-eyed tourists shoot roll after roll of film, and even clap. One Westerner waves a roll of notes at the tour guide, excitedly gesturing at the bizarre menu pinned to the wall.
A chicken is gobbled up by one of the ravenous tigers
To watch a live chicken thrown to the tigers costs £2.50. You can also opt for an £8 duck, an £8 pheasant or a £40 sheep. Strapped for cash? You can choose raw steak for 80p. But the prize is a cow or ox, which costs £120. The Heilongjiang Siberian Tiger Park in Harbin, Northern China, is becoming one of the country's top destinations. The park is home to more than 700 of these huge animals - also known as Amur or Manchurian tigers. There are just 400 left in the wild. One tourist who got more than he bargained for from the hourlong £4 tour was American Paul Gray, 40. "I was expecting a safari, not a bloodbath," he said. "But people were baying for more. One of the guides threw a chicken and it landed on one of the support vehicles. A tiger leapt on to the roof and gobbled it up in one go. I was horrified."
Last year, Wang Wei, of China's Wildlife Conservation Department, promised to "put an end to shows of feeding beasts of prey with live animals". But, today, it is still very much business as usual.
The Humane Society of the United States Found that 24 of 25 Fur-Lined or Trimmed Coats Contained Dog Fur: Coats were Labeled as Containing Fake Fur
Finally someone put this to the test. 24 out 25 were mislabeled! A huge scam. Or, you can use the word lie. This is something we’ve spoken about before, as just by looking at the coats you can tell it’s real.
Of course, the fur comes from China where they love to torture dogs. You can read more about that at -
http://geari.blogspot.com/2007/01/
sean-diddy-combs-admits-dog-fur-used.html
and
http://geari.blogspot.com/2006/03/
crash-course-in-unbelievable-cruelty.html.
As you’ll read below, these coats were taken from very reputable stores and companies. They all carried mislabeled items or misleading items with fur from DOMESTIC DOGS. Here’s a quote from the article below:
“The Humane Society of the United States said it purchased coats from reputable outlets, such as upscale Nordstrom, with designer labels — Andrew Marc, Tommy Hilfiger, for example — and found them trimmed with fur from domestic dogs, even though the fur was advertised as fake.
"It's an industrywide deception," said Kristin Leppert, the head of the Human Society's anti-fur campaign.”
Please read on to find out more about this disturbing issue.
Article:
Some coats may have fur from dogs
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070223/ap_on_re_us/dog_fur_4
By KASIE HUNT, Associated Press Writer Fri Feb 23, 7:45 AM ET
WASHINGTON - That fur trim on your jacket that you think is fake? Tell it to Fido. An animal advocacy group says its investigation has turned up coats — some with designer labels, some at higher-end retailers — with fur from man's best friend. Some retailers were set scrambling to pull the coats from shelves, take them off Web sites and even offer refunds to consumers.
The Humane Society of the United States said it purchased coats from reputable outlets, such as upscale Nordstrom, with designer labels — Andrew Marc, Tommy Hilfiger, for example — and found them trimmed with fur from domestic dogs, even though the fur was advertised as fake.
"It's an industrywide deception," said Kristin Leppert, the head of the Human Society's anti-fur campaign.
The investigation began after the society got a tip from a consumer who bought a coat with trim labeled as faux fur that felt real. Leppert and her team began buying coats from popular retailers and then had the coats tested by mass spectrometry, which measures the mass and sequence of proteins, to determine what species of animal the fur came from.
Of the 25 coats tested, 24 were mislabeled or misadvertised.
Three coats — from Tommy Hilfiger's Web site ShopTommy.com, Nordstrom.com and a coat from Andrew Marc's MARC New York line sold on Bluefly.com — contained fur from domesticated dogs. The others had fur from raccoon dogs — a canine species native to Asia — or, in one case, wolves. The single correctly labeled coat was trimmed with coyote fur, but it was advertised as fake.
Most of the fur came from China.
In response to the Humane Society's investigation, Tommy Hilfiger stopped selling the fur-trimmed garment and said it was looking into the matter. "We were quite concerned to hear of this finding," said spokeswoman Wendi Kopsick.
Nordstrom called the 62 consumers who had purchased vests with dog fur trim to give them the opportunity to return the vests "because we would never want to deceive our customers in any way," Nordstrom spokeswoman Brooke White said. She said Nordstrom no longer buys fur trim products from the vendor, who had marketed the vests as faux fur.
Charles Jayson, chief executive of Andrew Marc, disputed the Humane Society and insisted in a statement that all fur on his coats labeled as raccoon contains "only farm-bred raccoon fur from Finland, and our items labeled 'faux fur' are a 100 percent synthetic fabric."
Importing domestic dog and cat fur was outlawed in 2000. Intentionally importing and selling dog fur is a federal crime punishable by a $10,000 fine for each violation. Michael Markarian, executive vice president of the Humane Society, said his group had contacted all the retailers and designers selling mislabeled coats or coats with dog fur.
Raccoon dogs look like oversized, fluffy raccoons and aren't kept as pets. Importing their fur is not illegal, but activists argue they are still a type of dog.
"This is an animal that is routinely killed by stomping them, or beating them, or skinning them alive," Markarian said. Video produced by Swiss Animal Protection and posted on the Internet shows raccoon dogs clubbed or slammed on the ground and some writhing, gasping and blinking as they are skinned alive.
The discovery of domestic dog fur is the latest twist in the investigation that ensnared retail giants Macy's and J.C. Penney late last year. Both of those retailers were discovered selling coats with raccoon dog fur labeled as raccoon.
J.C. Penney initially removed the offending garments from its stores around Christmas — but eventually it had employees scratch out the 'raccoon' label with black magic marker and put the coats back on the shelves. Macy's immediately pulled the items from its shelves.
Burlington Coat Factory also pulled some coats with mislabeled fur from their shelves. Rap artist Sean "Diddy" Combs stopped producing and selling coats from his Sean John line that had raccoon dog fur, and rapper Jay-Z pulled coats with raccoon dog from his Rocawear label.
Mislabeling fur is a misdemeanor punishable by a $5,000 fine or a year in prison. Fur valued at less than $150 is not required to be labeled.
A bill introduced by Reps. Jim Moran, D-Va., and Mike Ferguson, R-N.J., would close that loophole by requiring labels for all fur regardless of its value. It also would ban fur from raccoon dogs.
"Americans don't want Lassie turned into a fur coat," Moran said. "In the U.S., we treat cats and dogs as pets, not trimmings for the latest fashion wear."
Other retailers the Humane Society said sold mislabeled raccoon dog fur included Lord & Taylor, BergdorfGoodman.com and Neiman Marcus.com. Designers whose clothes were mismarked included Donna Karan's DKNY and Michael Kors. A coat from Oscar de la Renta advertised as raccoon had raccoon dog fur.
Neiman Marcus, which owns Bergdorf Goodman, said it removed Bogner and Andrew Marc coats from its Web sites. Michael Kors said it was investigating, and a DKNY spokeswoman said the label was unaware that raccoon dog fur had been used.
Donna Karan's executive vice president for global marketing and communications, Patti Cohen, said, "While it is not illegal to use this type of fur, we have taken measures to ensure that it is never again used for any of our products."
A spokeswoman for Oscar de la Renta declined to comment.
Of course, the fur comes from China where they love to torture dogs. You can read more about that at -
http://geari.blogspot.com/2007/01/
sean-diddy-combs-admits-dog-fur-used.html
and
http://geari.blogspot.com/2006/03/
crash-course-in-unbelievable-cruelty.html.
As you’ll read below, these coats were taken from very reputable stores and companies. They all carried mislabeled items or misleading items with fur from DOMESTIC DOGS. Here’s a quote from the article below:
“The Humane Society of the United States said it purchased coats from reputable outlets, such as upscale Nordstrom, with designer labels — Andrew Marc, Tommy Hilfiger, for example — and found them trimmed with fur from domestic dogs, even though the fur was advertised as fake.
"It's an industrywide deception," said Kristin Leppert, the head of the Human Society's anti-fur campaign.”
Please read on to find out more about this disturbing issue.
Article:
Some coats may have fur from dogs
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070223/ap_on_re_us/dog_fur_4
By KASIE HUNT, Associated Press Writer Fri Feb 23, 7:45 AM ET
WASHINGTON - That fur trim on your jacket that you think is fake? Tell it to Fido. An animal advocacy group says its investigation has turned up coats — some with designer labels, some at higher-end retailers — with fur from man's best friend. Some retailers were set scrambling to pull the coats from shelves, take them off Web sites and even offer refunds to consumers.
The Humane Society of the United States said it purchased coats from reputable outlets, such as upscale Nordstrom, with designer labels — Andrew Marc, Tommy Hilfiger, for example — and found them trimmed with fur from domestic dogs, even though the fur was advertised as fake.
"It's an industrywide deception," said Kristin Leppert, the head of the Human Society's anti-fur campaign.
The investigation began after the society got a tip from a consumer who bought a coat with trim labeled as faux fur that felt real. Leppert and her team began buying coats from popular retailers and then had the coats tested by mass spectrometry, which measures the mass and sequence of proteins, to determine what species of animal the fur came from.
Of the 25 coats tested, 24 were mislabeled or misadvertised.
Three coats — from Tommy Hilfiger's Web site ShopTommy.com, Nordstrom.com and a coat from Andrew Marc's MARC New York line sold on Bluefly.com — contained fur from domesticated dogs. The others had fur from raccoon dogs — a canine species native to Asia — or, in one case, wolves. The single correctly labeled coat was trimmed with coyote fur, but it was advertised as fake.
Most of the fur came from China.
In response to the Humane Society's investigation, Tommy Hilfiger stopped selling the fur-trimmed garment and said it was looking into the matter. "We were quite concerned to hear of this finding," said spokeswoman Wendi Kopsick.
Nordstrom called the 62 consumers who had purchased vests with dog fur trim to give them the opportunity to return the vests "because we would never want to deceive our customers in any way," Nordstrom spokeswoman Brooke White said. She said Nordstrom no longer buys fur trim products from the vendor, who had marketed the vests as faux fur.
Charles Jayson, chief executive of Andrew Marc, disputed the Humane Society and insisted in a statement that all fur on his coats labeled as raccoon contains "only farm-bred raccoon fur from Finland, and our items labeled 'faux fur' are a 100 percent synthetic fabric."
Importing domestic dog and cat fur was outlawed in 2000. Intentionally importing and selling dog fur is a federal crime punishable by a $10,000 fine for each violation. Michael Markarian, executive vice president of the Humane Society, said his group had contacted all the retailers and designers selling mislabeled coats or coats with dog fur.
Raccoon dogs look like oversized, fluffy raccoons and aren't kept as pets. Importing their fur is not illegal, but activists argue they are still a type of dog.
"This is an animal that is routinely killed by stomping them, or beating them, or skinning them alive," Markarian said. Video produced by Swiss Animal Protection and posted on the Internet shows raccoon dogs clubbed or slammed on the ground and some writhing, gasping and blinking as they are skinned alive.
The discovery of domestic dog fur is the latest twist in the investigation that ensnared retail giants Macy's and J.C. Penney late last year. Both of those retailers were discovered selling coats with raccoon dog fur labeled as raccoon.
J.C. Penney initially removed the offending garments from its stores around Christmas — but eventually it had employees scratch out the 'raccoon' label with black magic marker and put the coats back on the shelves. Macy's immediately pulled the items from its shelves.
Burlington Coat Factory also pulled some coats with mislabeled fur from their shelves. Rap artist Sean "Diddy" Combs stopped producing and selling coats from his Sean John line that had raccoon dog fur, and rapper Jay-Z pulled coats with raccoon dog from his Rocawear label.
Mislabeling fur is a misdemeanor punishable by a $5,000 fine or a year in prison. Fur valued at less than $150 is not required to be labeled.
A bill introduced by Reps. Jim Moran, D-Va., and Mike Ferguson, R-N.J., would close that loophole by requiring labels for all fur regardless of its value. It also would ban fur from raccoon dogs.
"Americans don't want Lassie turned into a fur coat," Moran said. "In the U.S., we treat cats and dogs as pets, not trimmings for the latest fashion wear."
Other retailers the Humane Society said sold mislabeled raccoon dog fur included Lord & Taylor, BergdorfGoodman.com and Neiman Marcus.com. Designers whose clothes were mismarked included Donna Karan's DKNY and Michael Kors. A coat from Oscar de la Renta advertised as raccoon had raccoon dog fur.
Neiman Marcus, which owns Bergdorf Goodman, said it removed Bogner and Andrew Marc coats from its Web sites. Michael Kors said it was investigating, and a DKNY spokeswoman said the label was unaware that raccoon dog fur had been used.
Donna Karan's executive vice president for global marketing and communications, Patti Cohen, said, "While it is not illegal to use this type of fur, we have taken measures to ensure that it is never again used for any of our products."
A spokeswoman for Oscar de la Renta declined to comment.
Amazon.Com Continues To Sell Magazines That Glorify and Incite Cockfighting: Will They Stop?
This is just too bad for Amazon. I just ordered stuff from them too, but no more. Seems they have no problem egging on and supporting the brutal sport of cockfighting. Below you will find out more information about this issue. Also visit www.hsus.org/amazon for a video about the Amazon.com cockfighting issue.
Article:
Amazon has no business selling Feathered Warrior
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/
archive/2007/02/26/EDGBDOA3ES1.DTL
Wayne Pacelle
Monday, February 26, 2007
Opinion
The First Amendment protects speech. It does not protect criminal conduct. So you have to wonder why on earth Amazon.com, the retail giant, insists on trafficking in criminal materials in the name of free speech.
Amazon executives and the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) have been at odds lately over the company's sale of materials that incite cockfighting -- a crime in all states but two, and in many a felony. The Feathered Warrior and the Gamecock may not be on your reading list, but for thousands of lawbreakers, they are a must-read. In fact, these journals of the blood sport are often among the top 500 sellers in the magazine category at Amazon.com -- which is believed to be the only online retail seller that will have anything to do with them.
At last count, Amazon was selling 27 books, monographs and magazines about cockfighting. If your passion in life is watching two tormented birds tear each other to pieces, in a bloody pit surrounded by shouting gamblers, Amazon is the place to go.
Two of these publications, in particular, should have set off alarm bells in the Amazon legal department, because from cover to cover they are filled with specific criminal solicitations. In the past year, Feathered Warrior and Gamecock have carried no fewer than 1,600 pages of ads soliciting specific illegal acts, mainly the purchase and sale of fighting birds. The latest edition of Gamecock even advertised the sale of an illegal cockfighting arena in rural Kentucky -- where HSUS investigators went undercover at the Saturday night cockfights and found a mob of hundreds staging fights between animals.
As usual in these spectacles, razors were attached to the birds' legs to maximize the bloodletting, the roosters were drugged to heighten their aggression and bets ran in the thousands of dollars. The Animal Welfare Act makes it a federal crime to sell fighting birds across state lines or to ship them out of the country, or to ship materials that promote animal fighting -- but you'd never know that by perusing these offerings at Amazon.
The company's lawyers have strained to find refuge in the First Amendment. But their argument that free speech is protected and that the retailer should not be selecting what consumers should read confuses the expression of an opinion with the solicitation of a crime -- a point easily settled by comparing Amazon's policies on cockfighting and on narcotics trafficking. Amazon sells High Times, a magazine that argues for the legalization of drugs. In its pages, you will find plenty of editorial comment about the legalization of narcotics. All of that is protected speech, as would be a journal advocating legalization of cockfighting, and no one would quarrel with the sale of such magazines.
What you will not find in High Times, however, or in any other publication available at Amazon.com, are mail-order advertisements for the sale of narcotics. You won't find a methamphetamine lab for sale, either. None of these items is advertised in materials available on Amazon, nor are obscene materials, or solicitations from child pornographers to be found on the site. Of course not: They are crimes, and Amazon is not in the business of abetting them.
Indeed, this is a company that prides itself on going even further than minimal legal requirements, and claims the right to unilaterally remove any item it sells without explanation -- a right it has exercised by declining, for example, to sell sexually explicit materials even if they might qualify as protected speech.
So why, in the case of animal cruelty, has Amazon suddenly decided that anything goes, and one man's criminal solicitation is another man's "protected speech"? Since when does any company get to decide for itself which crimes are worth enforcing, and which laws it will take the trouble to respect?
The HSUS has provided Amazon with extensive evidence showing the cruelty, viciousness and corruption of the cockfighting trade. We have explained to company executives that cockfighting is not only a tawdry industry all by itself, but also a breeder of other crimes, social ills and forms of violence. We have reminded them that across America police are trying to crack down on illegal cockfighting -- and it hardly helps law-enforcement agencies when Amazon serves as a national courier for the cockfighting subculture.
So far, all of these appeals to corporate responsibility have come to nothing. Cock fighters do not have many apologists left in America. Yet somehow Amazon has found itself to be their champion.
HSUS has filed suit against the magazine publishers and Amazon in District of Columbia Superior Court and filed a legal petition with the district attorney in King County, Wash., where Amazon has its corporate headquarters. It can still be resolved if Amazon's founder, Jeff Bezos, will step in and make it clear that his company will not violate federal animal cruelty laws. He has built an otherwise fine company, and now its good name is at risk. Bezos was once named "Man of the Year" by Time magazine. He might want to act quickly, before he earns the same honor from Feathered Warrior.
Wayne Pacelle is president and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States. For a video about the Amazon issue, go to www.hsus.org/amazon
Article:
Amazon has no business selling Feathered Warrior
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/
archive/2007/02/26/EDGBDOA3ES1.DTL
Wayne Pacelle
Monday, February 26, 2007
Opinion
The First Amendment protects speech. It does not protect criminal conduct. So you have to wonder why on earth Amazon.com, the retail giant, insists on trafficking in criminal materials in the name of free speech.
Amazon executives and the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) have been at odds lately over the company's sale of materials that incite cockfighting -- a crime in all states but two, and in many a felony. The Feathered Warrior and the Gamecock may not be on your reading list, but for thousands of lawbreakers, they are a must-read. In fact, these journals of the blood sport are often among the top 500 sellers in the magazine category at Amazon.com -- which is believed to be the only online retail seller that will have anything to do with them.
At last count, Amazon was selling 27 books, monographs and magazines about cockfighting. If your passion in life is watching two tormented birds tear each other to pieces, in a bloody pit surrounded by shouting gamblers, Amazon is the place to go.
Two of these publications, in particular, should have set off alarm bells in the Amazon legal department, because from cover to cover they are filled with specific criminal solicitations. In the past year, Feathered Warrior and Gamecock have carried no fewer than 1,600 pages of ads soliciting specific illegal acts, mainly the purchase and sale of fighting birds. The latest edition of Gamecock even advertised the sale of an illegal cockfighting arena in rural Kentucky -- where HSUS investigators went undercover at the Saturday night cockfights and found a mob of hundreds staging fights between animals.
As usual in these spectacles, razors were attached to the birds' legs to maximize the bloodletting, the roosters were drugged to heighten their aggression and bets ran in the thousands of dollars. The Animal Welfare Act makes it a federal crime to sell fighting birds across state lines or to ship them out of the country, or to ship materials that promote animal fighting -- but you'd never know that by perusing these offerings at Amazon.
The company's lawyers have strained to find refuge in the First Amendment. But their argument that free speech is protected and that the retailer should not be selecting what consumers should read confuses the expression of an opinion with the solicitation of a crime -- a point easily settled by comparing Amazon's policies on cockfighting and on narcotics trafficking. Amazon sells High Times, a magazine that argues for the legalization of drugs. In its pages, you will find plenty of editorial comment about the legalization of narcotics. All of that is protected speech, as would be a journal advocating legalization of cockfighting, and no one would quarrel with the sale of such magazines.
What you will not find in High Times, however, or in any other publication available at Amazon.com, are mail-order advertisements for the sale of narcotics. You won't find a methamphetamine lab for sale, either. None of these items is advertised in materials available on Amazon, nor are obscene materials, or solicitations from child pornographers to be found on the site. Of course not: They are crimes, and Amazon is not in the business of abetting them.
Indeed, this is a company that prides itself on going even further than minimal legal requirements, and claims the right to unilaterally remove any item it sells without explanation -- a right it has exercised by declining, for example, to sell sexually explicit materials even if they might qualify as protected speech.
So why, in the case of animal cruelty, has Amazon suddenly decided that anything goes, and one man's criminal solicitation is another man's "protected speech"? Since when does any company get to decide for itself which crimes are worth enforcing, and which laws it will take the trouble to respect?
The HSUS has provided Amazon with extensive evidence showing the cruelty, viciousness and corruption of the cockfighting trade. We have explained to company executives that cockfighting is not only a tawdry industry all by itself, but also a breeder of other crimes, social ills and forms of violence. We have reminded them that across America police are trying to crack down on illegal cockfighting -- and it hardly helps law-enforcement agencies when Amazon serves as a national courier for the cockfighting subculture.
So far, all of these appeals to corporate responsibility have come to nothing. Cock fighters do not have many apologists left in America. Yet somehow Amazon has found itself to be their champion.
HSUS has filed suit against the magazine publishers and Amazon in District of Columbia Superior Court and filed a legal petition with the district attorney in King County, Wash., where Amazon has its corporate headquarters. It can still be resolved if Amazon's founder, Jeff Bezos, will step in and make it clear that his company will not violate federal animal cruelty laws. He has built an otherwise fine company, and now its good name is at risk. Bezos was once named "Man of the Year" by Time magazine. He might want to act quickly, before he earns the same honor from Feathered Warrior.
Wayne Pacelle is president and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States. For a video about the Amazon issue, go to www.hsus.org/amazon
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