HighestWelfare.Humane.Assured.GoodPractices.Vegetarian. Regenerative.Flexitarian.Lies...
What is the difference between No Welfare, High Welfare, and Highest Welfare when they all require animals to die? Only human comfort, NONE protect the actual animals. The most humane, ethical, and honest Webster-defined "welfare" is NOT exploiting animals - not using, not wearing, not eating, not killing - animals. The only meaningful position is vegan, everything else is just how humans euphemize animals' required suffering and violent deaths: no human exploits animals because they honestly believe that NOT exploiting animals is UNethical or INhumane.
A 14-year-old family dog heartlessly shot and killed
Image | Fox 8 News Cleveland
Related, please click on and sign:
Demand Maximum Sentence for OH Man that Killed his Neighbors Sr Dog
From Examiner
By Bonnie Snider
Willoughby, OH: On the morning of November 22nd, Dave Davison endured a guardian’s worst nightmare. He found his almost-14-year-old black Labrador, Thai, shot 3 times and killed on the 50-acre property he was renting. Source.
Thai had been his family member and best friend her entire life. An elderly, docile and sweet girl, there was no reason for her to be gunned down. But she was, and Davison and his family are suffering untold heartbreak.
Thai had been let out onto the property by a family friend to use the bathroom the afternoon before. When she didn’t return for supper a couple of hours later, the family got concerned. They searched and called for her, but in the dark on the wooded, remote property they had to finally give up the search.
The next morning, Mr. Davison found her body on the property. As he tried to pet his beloved fallen girl, his hands came up covered in blood and he discovered 3 bullet holes in her body. There were 3 bullets from a Ruger 22-caliber found at the scene.
Brent S. Parker, a 26-year-old neighbor was arrested on November 30th in connection with the crime. He appeared in court and has pled not guilty to the charges of killing or injuring a domestic animal (a first-degree misdemeanor with penalties of up to 6 months in jail and/or $1000 fine).
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He pled guilty to pointing and discharging a firearm (a fourth-degree misdemeanor with a maximum penalty of up to 30 days in jail and/or a $250 fine). Parker was released after posting $3500 bond and is due for a pretrial hearing on December 28th.
Mr. Davison’s anger is also because in addition to the fact that beloved Thai was heartlessly killed, Parker’s discharge of a firearm a total of 5 times onto the property could have harmed his 2-year-old daughter and/or his pregnant wife, Nicole.
A petition has been started by the compassionate animal advocacy organization, Hands4Paws, directed at the Municipal Judge in Willoughby County for this case. It asks that Parker receive the maximum penalties under the law for the murder of his beloved friend. Davison would like to see Parker’s permit to carry a concealed weapon also revoked. (This is a Change.org, which normally allows anyone from any country to sign.)
While Davison knows none of this will bring his precious Thai back, he needs to know that she’s gotten justice for being heartlessly gunned down for no apparent reason. Davison and Thai even shared the same birthday on December 27th. It will be a bittersweet day for Davison without his 14-year-old girl, Thai.
Please consider adding your voice for this cause. Unless and until perpetrators of these crimes are shown that the legal system will not tolerate these heartless acts, they will continue undeterred.
Rest in peace Thai. Know that your life mattered even to those who never met you. You won’t be forgotten and you will live forever in the hearts of your family.
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Reintroduction of bill making it illegal to take pictures; please send sample letter
Image | Beautefantasy
BACKGROUND | FROM BEAUTEFANTASY
Billions of animals need our help. Yesterday, Florida Senator Jim Norman reintroduced his bill to protect animal abusers by making it a crime to film animal cruelty on factory farms. Senator Norman wants to stop groups like PETA, MFA, HSUS, and others from filming undercover video of factory farming. He states factory farming is a private industry and therefore the public does not have a right to see what goes on inside their walls. He says that if people saw the pigs getting castrated, for example, they would probably not eat ham (McDonalds). The animals desperately need your voice. Without you, they have no hope.
WHOM TO CONTACT
Telephone: 813-265-6260
Email: norman.jim.web@flsenate.gov
District Office:
14031 N. Dale Mabry Blvd.
Tampa, FL 33618
(813) 265-6260
Senate VOIP: 41200
Legislative Assistants:
Dennis Cadle and Ben Kelly
Tallahassee Office:
214 Senate Office Building
404 South Monroe Street
Tallahassee, FL 32399-1100
(850) 487-5068
Senate VOIP: 5068
SUBJECT
Please retract your plan illegalizing Animal Rights Activists documenting animal cruelty
SAMPLE LETTER
Dear Senator Norman,
If you were confident all animals are being treated “humanely”, you would gladly welcome Animal Rights Activists. Many of these resulted in heightened food safety and animal welfare improvements. However, we both know that cruelty is prevalent, suffering is felt by all, and slaughtering, in and of itself, is inhumane, the deliberate taking of a life. Subsequently, the public has every right to see from where their food comes.
Ten billion non-human animals are slaughtered every year in decidedly inhumane manners: when cows are skinned while still conscious; when pigs suffer in gestation crates, barely able to move; when male chicks, of no value to the industry, are thrown alive in huge trash bags; when many industry standards cause suffering, including tail docking, castration, branding, and tagging, all with no anesthesia; when people beat on the animals and subject them to such agony.
Although not required, I do feel it important to validate my concerns: when I try to imagine what possible motive animal abusers entertain for subjecting their animal victims to such malicious, heinous acts of brutality, I fail, but I am thankful for a lack of cognitive understanding and rationalization. To engage in such malevolent behaviour absolutely suggests sociopathic and sadistic tendencies and demonstrates an incontrovertible lack of morality regarding other living beings and a gross disrespect for the law. In fact, a person who shows such a remarkable lack of compassion towards animals has, disturbingly enough, the ability to show such indifference towards humans. This link between animal and human abuse has been established, and if we excuse or ignore the torture or killing, we would be serving an injustice to both animals and society.
With that in mind, you should be confident that transparency is the best decision; however, if you continue with your plans to introduce legislation making it illegal for Animal Rights Activists to document the treatment of animals, we can only conclude that you are hiding behind legislation the real hideous nature of factory farming.
You may be interested to read the following expose:
They die piece by piece : Investigation reveals rampant cruelty in industrial slaughterhouses
Thank you for your time and attention.
Name, address details
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Attention, karma: can you please make it worse?
Mail Online | Mouth method: A shepherd castrates a sheep with his teeth in the TV show Dirty Jobs - these are not the two men who fell ill
Shepherds who bit off lambs’ testicles at special farming event hit by violent ‘food poisoning’ bug
By Gavin Allen
From Mail Online
Two shepherds who bit off lambs’ testicles as part of a special farming event were hit by a violent food poisoning bug.
The stomach-churning case was documented by the Wyoming Department of Health after it investigated the mini-outbreak of Campylobacter jejuni enteritis.
The pair, who had taken part in an event in which 1,600 lambs were to be castrated over several days, ended up with punishing vomiting and diarrhea, stomach cramps and fever. One of the men was affected worse than the other and spent a night in hospital.
When doctors tried to establish how the two men came to be infected with the same rare and severe bug, they ran through a long list of possibilities.
Neither men had eaten poultry or unpasteurised dairy products, which are common sources of the virus, and they did not live together or share food or water. No-one they knew became ill either.
Lab tests of the virus revealed both men were suffering from exactly the same particularly rare strain of the virus, never before recorded in the state of Wyoming, so the investigation turned to the places the men had been together.
It was later revealed that of the 12 shepherds who took part in the sheep ‘docking’ event, in which the tail’s are also removed and the animals’ ears marked, only two had used their teeth to castrate the sheep – the two men who fell ill.
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It transpired that a few lambs that were castrated had diarrhea, which infected them via their mouths on contact with the sheep’s testicles.
Participants in the castration event were advised by the organisers to use specific techniques, and to wash their hands thoroughly afterwards.
However, the pair instead used a different technique and suffered because of it.
The bizarre biological case, highlighted by science writer Maryn McKenna on her blog, is by no means the first case of shepherds castrating lams with their teeth and, while not widespread, the practice is relatively commonplace.
It was even featured on the U.S. TV show Dirty Jobs, where game host Mike Rowe even had a go at it himself.
As the ranchers in the video above explain, they use the mouth method to get a better grip on the ‘slippery’ testicles as they are removed.
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The Life and Death of RQ5977
Image | SAEN
FROM SAEN
Please contact Dr. Gibbens and demand that he take immediate action against the Covance Research Products facility of Alice Texas for the deaths and traumatic injuries of multiple primates. See below for address details and sample letter.
Her birth date is recorded as 1/1/00. Her journey to the United States began overseas in China. Huge breeding farms in this nation hold tens of thousands of primates in captivity before sending them to the U.S. Facilities in this nation are virtually unregulated. The photograph of the rusted enclosure above is from such a facility.
She spent almost a decade in the U.S., apparently in the Alice (TX) holding facility owned by the Covance Research Products Company. During 2009 she was treated a total of 20 times including physical examinations, TB tests, treatments for parasites, weighing and physical exams. According to these records, nothing was wrong. In fact, she was examined only ten days before her death, and nothing was noticed. She was given a clean bill of health.
She arrived at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) on 10/29. Her records from UCSF paint a very different picture from the official Covance record. At 11:51 am she is listed as having “Several fresh puncture wounds on extremities (upper and lower).” There is “fresh blood in cage.” And she “is exhibiting SIB behavior (per DVM).” SIB means self-injurious behavior.
At 12:40 PM she is “Sitting up . . . several fresh abrasion/red marks on ® upper & lower arm.” Shortly after this she is anesthetized for a physical examination, using ketamine and acepromazine. Additional dosages of these drugs are given to maintain anesthesia when she starts to regain consciousness. All in all she is anesthetized from 12:57 PM to 2:55 PM for examination. At 2:55 an intravenous catheter is inserted and she is killed with 3 ccs of Euthasol.
Her body is described “Multiple SIB puncture wounds on plantar surfaces (soles) of both feet and on distal portions of legs and arms. Many wounds appeared to be several days old and most of the wounds on the feet were inflicted during the SIB episode earlier today. Evidence of acute and chronic SIB. Several deep and superficial puncture wounds present.”
She was never named. We know her only as RQ5977. But her suffering was not unique, many primates from this Covance facility have major injuries.
According to Covance records, RQ4571 was missing the pinnae of both ears, had a defect to the 5th finger of the right hand, and was missing the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th digits on the right hand. The right leg cannot be fully extended and had moderate muscle wasting.
RQ 4562’s right eyelid cannot close and the eye may have had a cataract. The right hip cannot fully extend and has muscle wasting. RQ5967 is missing the pinna of the left ear, the right 2nd finger is too short, and the right 3rd toe is missing 2 phalanges. RQ4373 has an eyelid that is scarred and fused to the eyebrow, which leads to overtearing. The pinnae of both ears are missing, the right thumb is deformed, the 3rd finger of the left hand is fused from an old fracture, part of the right mandible is missing.
Many other monkeys from this facility are missing fingers or toes, or have broken digits or damaged ears. Out of 31 animals discussed in these records, 19 of them had an injury of one type or another; this amounts to an injury rate of 61.3%. So much for captivity keeping animals safe.
The massive Covance facility that shipped these animals is almost too big to imagine. The last inspection showed that 7861 crab-eating macaques and 5464 rhesus macaques, or 13,325 primates total, were imprisoned here as of June of 2011. This inspection report also shows that there is a significant problem with the monkeys developing frost-bite injuries on their tails due to inadequate enclosures.
The information discussed here is from records for only a few animals, but it provides a reasonable picture. If we extend these numbers out, then it is likely that 8168 of the animals at this facility are injured. Thousands are missing fingers, toes, ears, tails, eyelids, or possibly even entire arms or legs. This is a veritable army of cripples, but there is no war – thousands of injuries without a battlefield.
No place can the bloodbath be better seen than in that enclosure which held RQ5977 during the trip from Covance to UCSF. According to her records, many of her injuries were old, and so she may have been self-destructive while at Covance, before her trip began. By the time she arrived at UCSF she had multiple puncture wounds to her hands and feet, and all the way up her arms and legs. She was probably incarcerated in the small travel enclosure, not unlike a portable dog kennel, for one or two fear-filled days — locked inside the belly of an airplane or the back of a truck, totally isolated, with no idea what was happening to her, in darkness, possibly enduring changes in altitude; she simply could not control her fear and stress. Attacking the cage did no good. There was nothing else available but her own body. Her wounds were severe enough that the only option was to kill her.
I am thankful that her misery ended, that she was prevented from any more suffering. She has been released from a world which she probably saw only as suffering and agony.
In reality, I never looked into that carrier. I never saw that desolate creature. I didn’t look into her crazed eyes. I didn’t touch her wounds. I didn’t wipe the blood from her body or her cage. But the images which her simple two-page description has generated are permanently etched into my mind. I know what abject suffering looks like.
Her life could have been worse; all of her suffering could have been heightened. Upon surviving the trip, she could have found her way into an experiment that caused brain damage, confined her to a restraint chair, deprived her of water, or even bolted devices into her skull.
Imagine to already be so agonized and then to have these things piled on to your helpless consciousness. To be so inundated with suffering that misery is the sum total of your existence. Every second is confinement, thirst, pain, isolation, and fear.
I doubt that anything we can endure can be as terrifying and as soul wrenchingly painful as what RQ5977 endured. Her captivity, her insanity, her utter inability to change her situation in any way, and her total isolation are all beyond anything we can even comprehend.
As gut wrenching as her situation was we must not turn away from it, for that would be the easy way out. We must somehow make it part of ourselves. We must keep her in our hearts. We must remember her because we owe her that much.
She will never have justice. We cannot give her her life back. We cannot somehow magically put her back in the wild where she belonged. The ten years that she spent inside the Covance Concentration Camp cannot be undone.
Why was she there so long? Why wasn’t she simply sold sooner? The answer is breeding. There are now ten years worth of her sons, daughters, grandsons, and granddaughters — generation upon generation of her progeny potentially at Covance. Or they may have been shipped to UCSF, in a cage just like hers. They could be at the University of Kentucky. It makes no difference where they are imprisoned, they are still inmates. They have an inheritance of confinement, a legacy of agony. It is up to us to do something about this. We owe it to them and to her.
The next time that our work seems overwhelming, the next time that the pictures are too hard to look at, the next time that it all seems too difficult, remember RQ5977. We owe her, and her children, a debt that cannot be paid. Remember them and keep going. Keep pushing, keep fighting, keep protesting – never give up. Members of our species have done this terrible thing to her and her family. Remember the eyes of this terrified, injured, bleeding monkey. Look in deeply. Drink in the agony of her soul. Drown.
It is up to us to make this right.
WHOM TO CONTACT
Postal
Dr. Robert Gibbens
Director, Western Region
USDA/APHIS/AC
2150 Center Ave.
Building B, Mailstop 3W11
Fort Collins, CO 80526-8117
Email:
Robert.M.Gibbens@usda.gov
Fax
970-494-7461
Send free fax from HERE directly from your computer. You don’t need a fax machine, you don’t need a credit card, and you don’t have to register. Please remember to check your email after you send the fax; you will need to confirm fax via legitimate email address.
SAMPLE LETTER
Dear Dr. Gibbens,
I was shocked to learn about the cruelty inflicted on primates as exploited by the Covance Research Products facility of Alice Texas for research, the efficacy of which is questionable at best, and lethal at worst. These experiments subject the primates to enormous suffering and pain, and I respectfully request that you take immediate action against Covance for their part in the deaths and mutilations of many of them.
The destination for the primates is an endless period of pain and suffering; these sentient beings are subjected to cruel and barbaric experiments, including surgical maiming and modified diets that promote heart disease, wasting, and death. Prior to this cruel fate these animals are exposed to dirty, diseased, cramped, and immobilizing conditions en route to laboratories in the US and Japan, and it is our moral and obligatory duty as responsible and empathetic citizens to expose this cruelty and effect an immediate cease to this illegal activity. As such, I implore upon you to thoroughly investigate Covance’s primate trade and suspend them permanently with the conclusion of such an investigation.
I know your time is limited, and I thank you for your concern and attention.
HORSE SLAUGHTER IS UNETHICAL and UNCIVILIZED BEHAVIOUR – Occupy Republican National Committee.
Horse Slaughter Is Unpatriotic
From The Persian Horse’s Blog
Horse Slaughter is UnPatriotic, UnAmerican, Immoral, UnEthical, and UnCivilized. Eating Horses is Sub-Human Behaviour and UnHealthy. Horse Meat can cause Bone Marrow Cancer. Call the Republican National Committee (RNC) and let them know you will only vote for candidates who support the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act S. 1176.
- CALL the Republican National Committee at 202-863-8500
- FAX the Republican National Committee at 202-863-8820
- CLICK HERE For Access to Free Faxing From Your Computer. No Fax Machine, Registering, or Credit Card Required.
- BE SURE TO CLICK the Fax Confirmation Link in your Email, so your Fax Delivery will Succeed.
- EMAIL the Repubican National Committee at info@gop.com
- REPEAT these Actions Every Day…..For The Horses
Sample Email
I, and the 70% of Americans who do not support horse slaughter, will not consider voting for any congressperson, or Presidential Candidate, who supports horse slaughter, or transport to horse slaughter, in any manner; I will only vote for candidates who support the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act, S. 1176.
Warning: Graphic
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Mr. President: Veto the NDAA
Please sign petition HERE
From Amnesty International
The latest National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) is nothing short of a disaster for human rights. Unfortunately, despite an outcry from activists like you, Congress has already more or less guaranteed that this bill — with its disturbing detention provisions — will soon reach President Obama’s desk.
We can’t take the risk that this legislation will ever become law.
Tell President Obama that he must follow through with his threat to veto the NDAA.
It’s not an exaggeration to say that the rule of law and human rights in the United States as we know them are at stake. On its face, this bill is scary enough — it would keep Guantanamo open indefinitely, hinder federal trials of terrorism suspects, and would further entrench detention without charge in U.S. law.
Those provisions alone are a deep affront to human rights. But the broader implications are just as terrifying.
If the U.S. government has the foggiest belief that you might be associated with Al Qaeda or its allies, even a U.S. citizen within U.S. borders could be targeted. How would we know if that “belief” is justified, you may ask? Well, we don’t — there is no innocent until proven guilty on the battlefield. And this bill would bring the battlefield to U.S. soil.
Sweeping new powers for the U.S. president and military — based on “beliefs” alone — at the expense of individual liberty. This is not the America we believe in.
President Obama already has threatened to veto the NDAA if these odious provisions come across his desk. But he’s also promised to close Guantanamo, and we all know that hasn’t happened — we’re not even close. We must keep the pressure on.
Urge President Obama to keep his pledge to veto the NDAA — and to honor his promise to close Guantanamo and uphold human rights.
Read more…
Image | Eleventh Hour Liberation
From Eleventh Hour Liberation
Posted by Tricia Alf
To save the cost of airfare, I traveled home from the Animal Rights National Conference 2011, by way of a popular commercial bus line. Many folks think that riding on a bus for 8 hours is time consuming & sadly think, an inferior form of travel. To me, a plane is simply a bus flying in the air. What’s the difference? No peanuts? Big whoop-dee-do! I had more time than money.
A cab picked me up in front of the hotel where the ARNC was held. I was then taken to the main bus station. The change of scenery was clearly noticeable. I went from a luxurious environment to one that was socio-economically depressed. I sat in the outdoor waiting area, noticing the people around me. They were noticing me as well because the slogan on my sweatshirt stated,
“END WHALING NOW! This Is Not a Request!”.
A young man, a college student, approached me. He asked what bus I was taking, where I was going, etc. After talking for a short time, he asked, “what does your sweatshirt say?”. So, I turned to let him read it. He said, “whaling, what do you mean?” I began to speak of illegal whaling in the Southern Ocean. He stopped me. He responded, “Oh! I know about that, it is really sad what they do to those whales. I saw that on T.V.” We talked for a bit more until I needed to stand in line to board my bus.
Shortly after, while standing in line, a mid-40’s man stood behind me. I backed into him accidentally, which started our conversation. After mild chit-chat with this well-educated man, he saw my sweatshirt & its slogan. He said, “Are you vegetarian?” I replied, “I have been for nearly 13 years, but I am vegan now.” He told me that he had been vegetarian and vegan in the past–wanted to change his diet back to vegan. Of course I encouraged him to do so! I asked him if it was only for diet or due to animal cruelty issues. He told me it was for diet, but he does love animals, too.
I was really excited about these two conversations! I had just left an extraordinary conference & was able to share about animal rights, anti-animal cruelty & veganism! The bus trip was turning out to be quite fun!
After boarding the bus and relaxing, I was hit with a thought like a ton of bricks. I have a degree in Cross-Cultural Studies with an emphasis in African-American History. I am 4 classes short of a degree in Interdisciplinary Studies: emphases in Sociology as well Philosophy (Applied Ethics)–certification in Ethics. Why then, the following issue, the following problem, never occurred to me in depth before this, I can only assume is due to my narrow focus solely on the animals & not enough about the activists, the human factor behind our movement.
The two men I had conversed with were both black African-American men who were genuinely interested in understanding the ills of animal cruelty. Yes, I see color. Clearly they were black males. We who have sight all do so. There is no pretending that we do not even if we wish we didn’t. It is part of what makes us all different and interesting looking–beautiful trademarks of our own individuality…at least the part that can be literally seen.
I began thinking how I was suddenly struck by the lack of black African-American animal activists at the conference I had just attended. I thought about the lack of black African-American animal activists on my Facebook friends list; the lack of black African-American animal activists I know in person; the lack of black African-American animal activists involved in large, well-known animal rights organizations.
I also realized that it wasn’t just the lack of black African-American’s, it was the lack of all people of color in any substantial numbers within the AR movement. Thus, placing those of us “people of color” in yet another “minority” position in a social sector–and I would argue, within a working sector as well.
[Note: When I state “minority”, I am referring specifically to the socio-economic, socio-cultural/ethnic institutionalized minority/majority demarcation that exists in the United States. Additionally, when I state “people of color”, I am referring to those who would classify themselves, or others would classify them as non-“white” (however, Latinos are considered Caucasians, but, of Latino origin, thus “non-white”). Certainly, I know every human has some “color”–flesh. Lastly, I refuse to contribute toward any potential debate about the terms I have used here.]
So, something is wrong. Something is very wrong! Seemingly, the “something wrong” is wrong with the animal rights community, animal welfare/advocacy organizations as a whole. Are animal activists subconsciously excluding people of color from animal rights issues? Or, have we been so narrow sighted, narrowly focused, as I had been, that we just didn’t notice? How did we not realize? Seriously, what in the hell is going on?! I am not attempting to shame the AR community, but I desire to make a valid point and get folks thinking…and then acting for positive change.
Returning to my story, in the span of less than one hour, I had 2 black men ask me about the slogan on my shirt. When I wear shirts with AR slogans in public, where the majority are white humans, I have never had that happen–never! Clearly, the issue is not that black African-Americans do not care about animals. So then, what is the reason I don’t see more people of color involved in the AR cause? Does the problem begin with those organizing AR causes? Perhaps the answer is intricate in the “nature & nurture” of circumstance from the AR community & its “big hitter” organizers?
The issue I am speaking to isn’t only about black African-Americans. It is about all people who are not in positions of “power”, meaning, those in categorized “groups” of people that are the least represented by those in power. In short, our country is controlled (overall) by those with the most power–that means “white males”. And no, I am not prejudiced against white males. I’m just stating what I deem to be the obvious facts. Women are part of the minority group too. We can all give examples such as Ingrid Newkirk, or even President Obama, however these examples are not representative of the power structure in the grand scheme. Prejudice and racism have not left the building, my friends. As much as we would like to think inequality away from the planet, class & social structures do exist and they most often exist around an ethnic and cultural baseline in America. Those are the facts.
I don’t have the answers, but we need to initiate some critical, vital, serious conversations within the animal rights movement to figure it out–and quick! As you can see, from my limited experiences in a bus station, (and at the ARNC) the AR movement seems to have been marginalizing potential would-be activists, potential would-be vegans.
The conversations need to include how to include & embrace geographical “spaces” within dry bed “Activist Deserts“; through community based needs/interests, also from the standpoint of power issues relating to gender, class, ethnicity (race), culture. If we don’t, we really aren’t the best voices for those without a voice, are we? We simply don’t do all we can, if we don’t do all that we can. Those, too, are the facts.
Additionally, if “we” Abolitionists wish to continue to use comparison of animal cruelty to former (the term “former” debatable) human slavery of blacks in America, I think it suits Abolitionists well to befriend more African-American ARA. How can we genuinely know what we compare when we truly do not know the scope of the issue as it stands currently? How can we compare when we ignore the glaring issues of race suppression that are before us today? We suppress by marginalization & disclusion. Please, let’s walk the walk, of the talk of talk.
If you are a human being “of color” like me, you will “get it” from the onset of this article. You will ingest this and clearly relate. For those who do not, and there is still confusion or even resistance to my claims, there may be an underlying issue of “Dysconscious Racism” occurring. Meaning, not the absence of (race) consciousness, but rather, lack of critical consciousness in regard to the broad scope of issues of racism as is felt, seen, experienced by a “person of color” (Joyce King/via Breeze Harper).
Sometimes we cannot see the forest for the trees. Well, that is, until all the “trees” have been cut down because we didn’t hook on to every possible, potential solution to quell the problem forehand. Or, find one day, the forest is gone entirely.
Demand Cameroon release gay men sentenced to five years in prison
Please sign petition HERE
Background | From CHANGE
In November, two gay men in Cameroon were sentenced to five years in prison simply for being gay, the harshest penalty allowed under Cameroonian law. During the trial, according to the AFP, the judge issued some particularly homophobic comments, leading one lawyer to call the trial “a bad ruling,” and leading Amnesty International to label these men as “prisoners of conscience.”
The sentence comes on the heels of increased homophobia in Cameroon, and debates over legislation that would further criminalize homosexuality in the country. Human rights attorney Alice Nkom told AllOut.org that “Violence against gay people in Cameroon has skyrocketed to unprecedented levels: the situation is quickly becoming a crisis. The president of Cameroon can put a stop to this, and if he feels enough pressure he will do so.”
Help send a message to Cameroon that the world is watching, and won’t stand silent while people are sentenced to jail solely because of their sexual orientation. Demand the release of these gay men from prison.
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Cats Endure Bleeding and Bruising in University of Virginia Training Program: Please take action
If you have not already, please click on and sign:
Please End the Use of Live Animals in UVA’s Pediatrics Residency
Background | From PCRM
Live cats are used in a cruel pediatrics residency training program at the University of Virginia. PCRM’s recent federal complaint says this is unlawful and that the university already owns a simulator that better mimics newborn anatomy.
Pediatrics training at the University of Virginia (UVA) includes repeatedly forcing a plastic tube through the mouth and into the windpipe (trachea) of a live cat. Animals used in this training procedure often suffer tracheal bruising, bleeding, scarring, severe pain, and they are at risk of death.
“It is unnecessary to traumatize and harm animals to teach pediatric emergency procedures, especially when validated simulators developed to replace animals are widely used,” says Josie Kinkade, M.D., a local physician who co-signed the federal complaint. “A newborn’s anatomy is different from a cat’s, and residents at UVA can get a better education using human based medical simulators.”
UVA’s state-of-the-art medical simulation center already owns a simulator validated for this training. Numerous pediatrics residencies use the Gaumard Premie HAL and Premie Blue simulators, which mimic the airway of a low birth weight premature newborn.
Watch Simulator Video:
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PCRM’s complaint, which was filed with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Eastern Region Animal Care office, states, “UVA is violating the AWA because superior training methods exist that could replace the university’s use of live animals and alleviate this severe pain.” The complaint also cites inadequate oversight in the approval of the training protocol by the school’s animal care and use committee.
The Animal Welfare Act’s implementing regulations “require that a principal investigator—including course instructors—consider alternatives to procedures that may cause more than momentary or slight pain or distress to any animal used for research purposes.”
Nonanimal education methods are exclusively used by 94 percent of U.S. pediatrics programs, including those at Eastern Virginia Medical School, Inova Fairfax Hospital and Hospital for Children, and Virginia Commonwealth University Health System in Richmond, according to an ongoing PCRM survey.
To take action click HERE.
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Stop Force Feeding Pigs to be Publicly Slaughtered in Taiwan
Image | Force Change
Please click on and sign:
Stop Force Feeding Pigs to be Publicly Slaughtered in Taiwan
Background | From Force Change
Target: Leaders of the Taiwanese Government
Goal: End the cruel practice of force feeding pigs to be publicly slaughtered for the Pigs of God Festival, and use a more animal-friendly alternative during the ceremony.
The Pigs of Gods Festival, an annual contest that takes place in Taiwan, showcases a farmer’s ability to fatten up a prized pig to be ceremoniously slaughtered and paraded throughout the city streets. Through blatantly cruel methods, up to 60 choice pigs are force fed “special feed and other treatments” with the hopes of becoming the heaviest at the attraction. In the days leading up to the event, the pigs are further abused be being forced to consume heavy metals (like lead) and sand to add as much additional weight as possible.
In the years leading up to the festival, apart from the grotesque feeding habits, pigs also succumb to other perverse forms of mistreatment including castration without anesthesia due to the belief that it aids in the fattening process. As they become larger, they have trouble standing but continue to be fed. The pigs’ organs begin to fail and they develop sores across their bodies from having to lie down for long periods of time.
Once at the festival, which marks the Chinese Lunar New Year, excessively large pigs are hoisted in front of a waiting crowd where they are ceremoniously slaughtered, painted, and paraded on floats in front of a Taoist temple. In a markedly ironic twist, the Taiwanese government has made it illegal to either force-feed or slaughter animals inhumanely in public; however there is no official intervention for fear of the backlash that might come with trying to put a stop to a seemingly religious practice. And while it is considered a religious ceremony, it has been noted that the ceremony has only taken place for about the last 30 years.
For now, groups like the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) and the Environment and Animal Protection Society of Taiwan (EAST) are promoting an animal friendly version of the ceremony which would involve using an alternative pig, instead: one made out of flowers, rice, or dough. Sign the petition to demand this brutal torture and slaughter of innocent animals is stopped.
Call or write the Democratic National Committee (DNC) and let them know you can’t vote for anybody who supports horse slaughter! The Democrats are very poll sensitive because it’s an election year.
- PHONE THE DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL COMMITTEE: 202-863-8000
- PHONE DEMOCRATIC CONGRESSIONAL CAMPAIGN COMMITTEE: 202-863-1500
- PHONE THE WHITE HOUSE: 202-456-1111 or 202-456-1414
- FAX THE WHITE HOUSE: 202-456-2461
- CLICK HERE FOR FREE FAXING FROM YOUR COMPUTER. You do not need a fax machine OR a credit card, and you don’t have to register.
- CLICK HERE FOR DNC WEBFORM
Sample Text
I will not consider voting for any congressperson, or Presidential Candidate, who supports horse slaughter in any manner. I will only consider those who support the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act S.1176. Thank you.
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Image of Wild Turkey
From HumaneSpot.org
By NutritionFacts.org | More Information…
Short Description:
This brief article summarizes various studies and reports addressing the current state of turkey production in the United States. The rapid growth rate of turkeys is so great they cannot structurally support themselves. Once slaughtered, these turkeys are a human health risk due to the high rates of bacterial contamination.
Abstract:
Turkeys produced for meat consumption have been bred to grow so fast that many simply drop dead at only a few months of age due to heart attacks from the stress of carrying their own weight. Their growth rate is so expedited in these turkeys that in the period of time it takes a wild turkey to grow to eight pounds, farmed turkeys grow to be 28 pounds. “Their skeletons cannot adequately support such weight, leading to degenerative hip disease, spontaneous fractures, and up to 20% mortality due to lameness in problem flocks.
“Some farmers are taking this high growth rate as a good sign of “flock health” — they interpret the sudden deaths as an indicator that the turkeys are growing large at a fast pace. However, research points to the fact that disease resistance decreases in animals that have been selectively bred or genetically modified for extreme growth.
This lack of disease resistance may account for the high rates of bacterial contamination in turkeys that have been killed for food. Centers for Disease Control inspections found that while 7 of 10 samples of beef were contaminated with e. coli, 9 of 10 samples of turkey were. Turkey also had the highest contamination rates of the bacterias Enterococcus faecalis and multi-drug resistant Enteroccocus faecium. A test of food samples in grocery stores for a recent study also found that turkey had the highest rates for staph bacterias. 77% of samples were infected with staph bacteria and 79% were infected with multi-drug resistant staph bacteria.
From: http://nutritionfacts.org/blog/2011/11/21/talking-turkey-9-o…
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Image | MRIS Blog, Stock Photo
UPDATE: Baggage worker offered job back after dog debacle
Please click on and sign:
Demand Justice for Baggage Handler Who Reported Animal Abuse!
Background | From Change
Lynn Jones, a baggage handler at Reno-Tahoe Airport for the past five years was terminated last month after she refused to load an abused, bleeding, malnourished dog into a cargo hold, fearing it would die in transport. Jones, reported the abused animal to her supervisor who supposedly told her “the dog’s condition isn’t your concern.”
When Jones reported the abuse to Washoe County Regional Animal Services and the dog was seized for examination, treatment and documentation, Lynn Jones didn’t get a thank you – she got fired.
The dog in question was kept and treated for weeks by WCRAS and the case has apparently been forwarded to the District Attorney, but Lynn Jones still has no job.
According to www.ilovedogs.com “ATS posted a message on its website, saying the company is taking this matter “extremely seriously and commends this employee’s situational awareness and her desire to raise the concern on behalf of the canine involved and relieved to hear that the canine will fully recover.” It stated the company is currently “reviewing the actions of all employees involved to determine if the appropriate action was taken.”
Airport Terminal Services has a legal and ethical obligation to report cases of animal abuse. Lynn Jones is a hero, and deserves to not only have her position back, but to be issued a public apology and be given her full wages for the time period that she was terminated for doing the RIGHT THING
ATS can be contacted by going to http://www.atsstl.com/contact.asp
DEMAND justice for local hero, Lynn Jones.
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Help Brown Pelicans in the Gulf
Please click on and sign: Use BP’s fines to restore the Gulf!
Background | From NWF Action Fund
More than 800 dead and injured pelicans were found in the months following the BP oil disaster in the Gulf, and it’s likely many more pelicans were never found.
Biologists remain concerned about the long-term impacts of the dispersed and submerged oil on the bird’s food chain and nesting grounds. Scientists who study pelicans are also concerned about an additional threat to the bird–habitat loss.
BP and the other oil companies responsible for the disaster will pay significant fines to the federal government for their recklessness, but it will take legislation from Congress to ensure these fines are used to help restore Brown Pelicans, and many more Gulf wildlife.
Indeed, BP and the other oil companies will pay serious fines for their recklessness. However, unless Congress passes legislation directing how these penalties should be spent, the money from these fines may not be used to restore the Gulf.
These next two weeks are critical for putting the pressure on the U.S. Senate to pass legislation to help restore the Gulf. When Congress returns in January to the start of an election year, the chance that they will take up this legislation again will be lower.
Take Action! Help protect the Gulf’s brown pelicans by editing and sending a message, urging Congress to pass legislation to help restore the Gulf today.
Message | Please personalize
The Clean Water Act fines resulting from the oil spill should be used to restore the Gulf Coast and the Gulf of Mexico. The RESTORE Act is a sensible piece of legislation that has strong public support and backers on both sides of the aisle.
As the Senate majority leader, please take advantage of this opportunity to end 2011 on a positive note by making the bipartisan RESTORE Act a priority for passage before end of the year.
Unfairly Prosecuted Animal Activist: Please Sign Petition
Please click on and sign Unfairly Prosecuted Animal Activist
Background | From The Petition Site
In a day in age when murderers are allowed to go free within our judicial system, it seems absurd to punish Arnold Christopher Lagergren so harshly. We have a community wanting answers as to why such harsh punishment has been implemented for taking pictures and trespassing. Arnold Christopher Lagergren does not derserve to be made an example for merely attempting to save a life.
Update!
Lagergren faces a prison sentence of up to five years if convicted of a felony under the Florida Animal Enterprise Protection Act. Each of the misdemeanor charges he faces could add a year to that sentence.
Lagergren was “charged with four misdemeanor counts of trespass and vandalism for alleged incidents at the Marine Mammal Conservancy. Police reports describe him as affiliated with the international Animal Liberation Front organization, which advocates ‘direct action’ against animal captivity. … Monroe County Court Judge Regan Ptomey set bonds totaling $30,000 on the four charges, according to court records.” ~The Miami Herald
For full article:
Animal-Rights Activist Charged with Felony
Additional Articles:
New Information in Case of Man Arrested Trying to Free Whale
Animal Rights Activist Arrested After Photographing Whale Conservancy Workers
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