The Meat Eaters

By JEFF MCMAHAN
The Stone is a forum for contemporary philosophers on issues both timely and timeless.

.
Viewed from a distance, the natural world often presents a vista of sublime, majestic placidity. Yet beneath the foliage and hidden from the distant eye, a vast, unceasing slaughter rages. Wherever there is animal life, predators are stalking, chasing, capturing, killing, and devouring their prey. Agonized suffering and violent death are ubiquitous and continuous. This hidden carnage provided one ground for the philosophical pessimism of Schopenhauer, who contended that “one simple test of the claim that the pleasure in the world outweighs the pain…is to compare the feelings of an animal that is devouring another with those of the animal being devoured.”

Theologians’ labors will not be over even if they are finally able to justify the ways of God to man. For God must answer to animals as well.
.The continuous, incalculable suffering of animals is also an important though largely neglected element in the traditional theological “problem of evil” ─ the problem of reconciling the existence of evil with the existence of a benevolent, omnipotent god. The suffering of animals is particularly challenging because it is not amenable to the familiar palliative explanations of human suffering. Animals are assumed not to have free will and thus to be unable either to choose evil or deserve to suffer it. Neither are they assumed to have immortal souls; hence there can be no expectation that they will be compensated for their suffering in a celestial afterlife. Nor do they appear to be conspicuously elevated or ennobled by the final suffering they endure in a predator’s jaws. Theologians have had enough trouble explaining to their human flocks why a loving god permits them to suffer; but their labors will not be over even if they are finally able to justify the ways of God to man. For God must answer to animals as well.
Full article: http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/09/19/the-meat-eaters

Wildlife crime soaring in Britain, driving some species close to extinction

Wildlife crime is soaring in Britain, driving some species such as the hen harrier close to extinction, wildlife experts have warned.


Under the Protection of Badgers Act 1992 it is a criminal offence for anyone to wilfully kill a badger
The number of wildlife crimes more than doubled in the last year, from 2,177 to 5,854, with badgers and rare birds among the most persecuted, according to the National Wildlife Crime Unit, a police-led, multi-agency unit which gathers intelligence on national wildlife crime.

Cases of cruelty to animals in their natural habitat are now being reported at a rate of 120 a week. Among them are badger bating, egg thefts, bird trapping, deer poaching, hare coursing and habitat destruction.

"There is an increase in wildlife crime in general. We are seeking to use wider policing powers, such as the Proceeds of Crime Act, to target criminals where it hurts them most – in their pocket," he said.

Dr Mark Avery, the RSPB's conservation director, added: "There is far too much wildlife crime going on in the countryside. The scale of it is unacceptable in the modern age.

"The hen harrier is pretty close to being extinct in England, in large part down to wildlife crime."

Northumbria is Britain's wildlife crime capital, with 525 reported cases between February and July this year. The county is also responsible for the highest number of wildlife shootings.

Humberside was the worst area for poaching, with 119 incidents, while Grampian saw the highest number of reports of wildlife being trapped or snared.

Tayside and Lancashire, along with Grampian, were worst for crimes against birds of prey - hen harriers are targeted partly because of their reputation for preying on game such as grouse. North Wales had the most cases of badger persecution and habitat destruction.

Bats in Gwent were the most tormented in the country, Lincolnshire had the most cases of hare coursing and infringements of the new fox hunting rules were most reported in Devon and Cornwall.

The NWCU figures did not include attacks on domestic or farm animals which, says the RSPCA, have also risen from 105,000 investigated in 2003 to 140,000 last year. Dog fighting has risen tenfold since 2004 to nearly 300 incidents last year, and airgun attacks on animals and sheep and cattle rustling are also on the increase.

One of the most worrying trends was the increase in cruelty to badgers, thought to be motivated in part by the belief they are responsible for spreading bovine tuberculosis.

Between February and July this year, the NWCU recorded 241 incidents of badger persecution - nearing the total for 2008, which was 280.

Badger baiters are now feared to be travelling all over the country to find them, motivated by payments of up to £1,000 for a live badger for a dog to be set on.

Conservations including the RSPB and the Wildlife Trusts believe that police are failing to be consistent in their handling of offenders, meaning many feel they can act with impunity. A government review into how wildlife crime is tackled is under way and will report in spring next year. Full Article:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/wildlife/6479165/Wildlife-crime-soaring-in-Britain-driving-some-species-close-to-extinction.html

UK Police Spying Began With Animal Rights Activists Then Expanded to Other Groups

There has been a slew of incredible, and disturbing, reporting by the UK Guardian recently on how police have rebranded activism as “domestic extremism” and “domestic terrorism.” Environmental activists, antiwar activists, animal rights activists and many more groups have been targeted. Specifically, police have gathered personal information on thousands of activists who simply attend protests or political meetings, and created massive national databases.

For instance, this “spotter card” was distributed to police officers in preparation for protests at Britain’s largest arms fair. According to the Guardian:

These so-called “spotter cards” are issued by police to identify individuals they consider to be potential troublemakers because they have appeared at a number of demonstrations.

One of the individuals featured at ‘H’ is Mark Thomas, a comedian and political activist. He has no criminal record. In a column, he noted how this scaremongering reflects truly misplaced priorities:

While being wanted outside the arms fair, I was legitimately inside researching a book on the subject, and uncovered four companies illegally promoting “banned” torture equipment.

Perhaps the most important bit of information, I think, is buried a bit in the story. According to this investigative piece by the Guardian:

Acpo’s national infrastructure for dealing with domestic extremism was set up with the backing of the Home Office in an attempt to combat animal rights activists who were committing serious crimes. Senior officers concede the criminal activity associated with these groups has receded, but the units dealing with domestic extremism have expanded their remit to incorporate campaign groups across the political spectrum, including anti-war and environmental groups that have only ever engaged in peaceful direct action.

If you’re familiar with this site and the Green Scare, you know that one of the key points I try to hit home, repeatedly, is that environmental and animal rights activists may be among the first targets in these political crackdowns, but they will not be the last. By the admission of some government officials in the UK, this has clearly been the case.

Whether or not that has been the official policy in the United States, the same dynamic is at play. If we do not stop the terrorism rhetoric, legislation, court cases and scare-mongering in its tracks, no activist and no social movement will remain untouched.

Of course, you could always just continue listening to the soundbites of police and government officials, like this one from Anton Setchell, who is in charges of the “domestic extremism” unit in the UK. People who find themselves on the databases, he says, “should not worry at all.”

Related posts:

Animal Rights Activist Named Alongside Bin Laden on FBI’s Terrorist List
Legal Handbook for Animal Rights and Environmental Activists
How Corporate Provacateurs Made Fran Trutt an “Animal Rights Terrorist”

The Cove, the dolphin slaughtering documentary

These are the links to the article on The Cove, the dolphin
slaughtering documentary (October 21, Tokyo, Japan)

Please watch the footage on CNN site. You can see that many
cameramen came to TIFF The Cove yesterday.
http://edition.cnn.com/video/data/2.0/video/showbiz/2009/10/21/lah.japan.dolphin.cove.cnn.html



Japan dolphin town defends hunt as film debuts
http://in.reuters.com/article/entertainmentNews/idINIndia-43328920091021?rpc=60


Wed Oct 21, 2009 6:08pm IST



Blog by the Director
The Cove at TIFF, as told by the Director
http://www.thecovemovie.com/BlogRetrieve.aspx?BlogID=5047&PostID=93418




TOKYO, Japan - A town at the centre of a controversial dolphin
slaughtering documentary could sue the film makers, local
fisheries officials said Wednesday, as it premiered at a Tokyo
film festival.
http://oceanicdefense.blogspot.com/2009/10/japan-dolphin-hunting-town-threatens-to.html





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GyaO! - Anime, Dramas, Movies, and Music videos [FREE]
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Speak up for badgers in Wales!

Speak up for badgers in Wales!
As you know, the situation for badgers in Wales is dire, with plans to all but exterminate them from parts of the country being steamrolled through the Welsh Assembly. Viva! continues to fight this decision, and is working with local groups within Wales. A ray of light is the fact that two Welsh Assembly Members have forced a fresh debate. In the best case scenario, this means that the decision to ‘cull’ might be overturned by the AMs when they vote. If you are Welsh, please contact your own AM with urgency. Click here

http://www.viva.org.uk/campaigns/badgers/action.htm

to find out how.

Action Alert: Stop Bow-Hunting Deer in Westchester & Rockland County Parks

We at Friends of Animals need your help on behalf of the deer. Westchester County plans to turn 850 acres in Lasden Park and Muscoot Farm Park into deer-killing fields for bowhunters starting November 7th A "task force" with a pro-hunting bent concluded that there was an "overpopulation" of deer eating as deer eat in the forest. Its members made the unprecedented decision to open up parklands where hunting was formerly prohibited.

Hunting changes the way deer naturally evolve and can cause deer populations to increase. Nature itself ensures that the deer population is limited by available food, territory, and winter weather conditions, which restrict both food and range. The reproductive rate and the survival rate of deer will then decrease, creating a natural balance. Deer simply need us to let them be, and that's the message that needs to be communicated to your legislators.

Hunting is also known to increase the instances of accidents, with people driving into scattering deer. A 2002 study by Friends of Animals indicated that hunting exacerbates roadway deaths of deer. About half of all these accidents happen during the three months of hunting season: October, November and December.

We ask Westchester and Rockland County residents: Please contact the officials below and tell them that you demand an end to the plan to turn your peaceful parklands into places where arrows fly.


Westchester County Executive Andrew J. Spano
148 Martine Avenue
White Plains, NY 10601
Phone: 914.995.2900
Fax: 914.995.2939
Email: ceo@westchestergov.com

Joseph A. Stout, Commissioner
Dept. of Parks, Recreation & Conservation
25 Moore Avenue
Mt. Kisco, New York 10549
Phone: 914.864.7000
Fax: 914.864.7053
Email: jas7@westchestergov.com

Rockland County Residents

Rockland County Legislator Gerold Beirker wants to follow Westchester's bloody lead, and has introduced bowhunting legislation that would allow bowhunting of deer on county parkland.

We ask Rockland County residents to contact Legislator Gerold M. Bierker and tell him that your parklands are not appropriate places for bowhunters, and
that deer don't need to be managed unnaturally.

Gerold M. Bierker
Rockland County Legislature
11 New Hempstead Rd.
New City, NY 10956
Phone: 845.638.5753
Email: bierkerg@co.rockland.ny.us

Friends of Animals 777 Post Road Darien CT 06820 203-656-1522

CHILDREN 8-16 RECRUITED TO SHOOT HOGS TO DEATH IN FLORIDA

The Southwest Florida Water Management District
is sponsoring a "hunt" by winning essay contest applicants. The contest was
open to children 8-16. There were to be 24 winners, but the contest
attracted only 20 applicants.

The applicant featured in the St. Petersburg Times is a 9-year-old girl, a
fourth-grader at St. Jude's Cathedral in St. Petersburg, Florida, who's
mother encouraged her to enter the contest not long after the girl learned
to shoot on a camping trip.

The Children's "Hunt" is scheduled for October 17th and October 24th at the
Edward W. Chance Reserve - Gilley Creek Tract in the Lake Manatee Lower
Watershed southeast of the city of St. Petersburg, Florida.

The guns will be loaded when the children are situated in a blind.

[Since the shooting is to take place from a blind, it is probable that bait
will be placed in front of the blind(s) (where hogs were likely drawn by
bait previously in order to habituate them to the site), making the hog's
set-up targets. This whole thing is extremely unethical from a number of
perspectives. Some would call it psychologically damaging child abuse that
may do permanent harm.]


*WHAT YOU CAN DO:*

FIRST *CONTACT THE PUBLIC OFFICIALS* LISTED BELOW. THIS IS MOST IMPORTANT

THEN CONTACT THE MEDIA IN THE TAMPA - ST. PETERSBURG AREA

For the Times story (with picture) see:
http://www.tampabay.com/news/humaninterest/article1043489.ece


Also see the story at the bottom of this e-mail.


*WHO TO CONTACT:* (see contact information further down - after this basic
list)

*Todd Pressman*
Governing Board Chairman
The Southwest Florida Water Management District [SWFWMD]

*Cori Cuttler*
Community Affairs Program Manager
The Southwest Florida Water Management District
Tampa Service Office

*Rodney L. Barreto*
Chairman
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
[this is a really important one to contact
he is extremely influential in the state of Florida]

*Florida Governor Charles J. Crist, Jr.*

*Florida Lt. Governor Jeff Kottkamp*

*Florida Department of Children and Families
*(to Protect the Vulnerable)

*Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum*

*Tampa and St. Petersburg area media
*(newspaper web site is given above)
(link to TV stations:
http://www.stationindex.com/tv/markets/Tampa-St.+Petersburg
)

Please contact public officials first - don't rely on media to resolve this
- time is short


*HERE'S DETAILED CONTACT INFORMATION*


*Todd Pressman*
todd.pressman@watermatters.org

info@watermatters.org

Governing Board Chairman, The Southwest Florida Water Management District
[SWFWMD]
Possible home phone number: (727) 784-3084
Anywho.com found two with the name Todd Pressman in the Tampa Bay area of
Florida.
(both numbers may be for the same person)

*Cori Cuttler*
cori.cuttler@watermatters.org

Community Affairs Program Manager
The Southwest Florida Water Management District
Tampa Service Office
7601 US Hwy. 301
Tampa, FL 33637-6759
Phone: (813) 985-7481
1-800-836-0797 (Florida only)

*Rodney L. Barreto*
e-mail through:
http://www.flapartners.com/contact.php

(under "select one" select Rodney Barreto)
Chairman, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
Chairman/CEO, The Barreto Group, Inc.
Founding Partner, Floridian Partners, LLC
Business address (for both businesses):
235 Catalonia Avenue
Coral Gables, FL 33134-6704
Phone: (305) 444-4648
Fax: (305) 444-1128
Other numbers: (305) 596-5167, (305) 275-8123
Barreto was co-chair for finance in the campaign of Florida Governor Charles
J. Crist.

*Florida Governor Charles J. Crist, Jr.*
Charlie.Crist@MyFlorida.com
*Florida Lt. Governor Jeff Kottkamp*
Jeff.Kottkamp@MyFlorida.com

Switchboard: (850) 488-7146
Fax: (850) 487-0801
For individuals with hearing loss or speech disability:
1-850-922-7795 (TTY)
[Office hours are 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time]
State of Florida
The Capitol
400 S. Monroe St.
Tallahassee, FL 32399-0001

*Florida Department of Children and Families*
*(to Protect the Vulnerable)*
George H. Sheldon, Secretary
1317 Winewood Blvd.
Building 1, Room 202
Tallahassee, FL 32399-0700
e-mail: dcf-osc@dcf.state.fl.us

Phone: (850) 487-1111
Fax: (850) 922-2993

*Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum*
State of Florida
The Capitol PL-01
Tallahassee, FL 32399-1050
Switchboard: (850) 414-3300
e-mail through:
http://myfloridalegal.com/contact.nsf/contact?Open&Section=Attorney_General


The Attorney General of Florida sent a friend-of-the-court brief to the U.S.
Supreme Court to persuade the court to reverse a U.S. Court of Appeal
decision that reversed a U.S. District Court conviction of a person who made
and sold dog fighting videos and declared the law, which also prohibited
"crush videos", unconstitutional. Part of the Florida AGs argument mentioned
the connection between cruelty to animals and the formative development of
serial killers.

_______________________________________________________


*Florida Feral Hog Hunt Enlists Kids

*(Oct. 13) - A hunt to help curb Florida's feral hog problem has enlisted
some atypical shooters -- children.

The wild pig hunts are usually only open to adults. But this year, seeking
to not only curb the pigs but also encourage outdoor activities among kids,
the Southwest Florida Water Management District created a youth component to
the annual culling of the herds, the *St. Petersburg
Times*reported.

Wild hogs aren't native to Florida. They are thought to have been brought to
the area by Spanish explorers, according to the SWFWMD. They root with their
broad snouts to find food, which can greatly damage habitats.

"The District only allows hogs to be controlled through hunts when the
damage they cause is at unacceptable levels, and damage is occurring more
frequently and with increasing severity," the management district said.

Young hunters had to submit an essay about why they wanted to participate in
the events scheduled for Oct. 17 and Oct. 24 at the Edward W. Chance
Reserve's Gilley Creek Tract.

Cecilia Plummer, 9, of St. Petersburg, plans to hunt, she told the
newspaper.

"They're creepy," she said of the hogs. She learned to shoot during a recent
camping trip.

Each young hunter must be accompanied by an adult, and their guns must
remain unloaded until they arrive at their hunting site.

Not everyone supports the idea.

"We don't think having a young child shoot an animal and watch that animal
die before his or her eyes is a positive thing in any way," said Nick
Atwood, the spokesman for the Animal Rights Foundation of Florida.

STOP THE WILD HORSE WIPE-OUT -PETITION TO SIGN!

We, the Undersigned, endorse the following petition:
American Wild Horse Preservation Campaign
Target: U.S. Congress
Sponsor: AWHPC, American Wild Horse Preservation Campaign




STOP THE WILD HORSE WIPE-OUT – http://www.wildhorsepreservation.org/

America’s wild horses are being eradicated in violation of the Wild Free-Roaming Horse & Burro Act, which protects them as “living symbols” of our Nation's spirit. From over 2 million in the 1800s, fewer than 25,000 remain on our public lands. There are now more wild horses in government holding pens than remain in the wild. Still, the round-ups continue, and a recent change in the law opens the door to thousands being sent to slaughter.

Although in-the-wild management would save millions of tax-dollars, special interests have been successful in pressuring the government to systematically remove wild horses from public lands - specifically corporate cattle interests who want our horses replaced with private cattle for subsidized grazing.

AWHPC is coordinating a letter-writing campaign: In addition to signing this petition, it is important that you please send individual letters to your federal legislators calling for a Congressional inquiry into the government’s wild horse management practices. Tell them that our national heritage does not belong on European dinner tables.

For more information and to sign up for email updates, please visit www.wildhorsepreservation.org

Mayor to animal rights group: Leave us alone

KIDAPAWAN CITY, Philippines — Leave us alone!

This in essence was the message Mayor Christobal Cadungon of Antipas,
North Cotabato, sent to animal rights advocates who had slammed the
penchant of his constituents for horse fighting.

Earlier, the Manila-based Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS)
called for an end to horse fighting, saying it was a violation of
animal rights.

But Cadungon said the people of his town and other parts of North
Cotabato continue to patronize horse fighting because it is part of
their customs and tradition.

He said horse fights are specifically staged during fiestas and
foundation anniversaries.

--
full story:
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/regions/view/20091010-229367/Mayor-to-animal-rights-group-Leave-us-alone

SKIN TRADE-THE MOVIE

Click to view this email in a browser
http://hosted.verticalresponse.com/225224/10d8bddb73/270000301/ebec2be806/
FALL 2009
Hello Supporters!
You wont believe what we've been up to since we last sent out a newsletter!! Thanks to your support, our new feature documentary on the fur and fashion industry called "Skin Trade," is ALMOST complete! With the help of producers John Feldmann (lead singer of Goldfinger and famed music producer), Jennifer Lee Pryor (widow of the infamous Richard Pryor and amazing activist) along with Gene Blalock and The Faded, and title theme by Duran Duran, this film will shatter the fashion industry!
http://cts.vresp.com/c/?UncagedFilms/10d8bddb73/ebec2be806/f1e5d24942
After learning about the film through the trailer and website, more celebrities have contributed their time and voices to this film! James Cromwell, star of "Spiderman 3," "Babe," and "Six feet Under," Rikki Rockett, drummer for Poison, Todd Oldham, infamous fashion deisgner, Patrick Byrne, CEO of Overstock.com, and Ashley Paige, world-renowned fashion designer, just to name a few!
BUT we still need YOUR help! This film is being made through contributions to our non-profit ARME (http://www.arme.tv/) .
Without more contributions, it will be difficult to get the film in theatres. Now is the time to really step up and help us get the media we need as well as funding for our MPAA rating so that we can get this into mainstream theatres, which is where it needs to be! Imagine..... "Skin Trade" playing at the Arclight, The Mann's, or even the Pacific Theatres!
IF THIS CAN'T END THE FUR TRADE, NOTHING WILL! Please send your DONATION today! You get a tax write-off and you are directly helping to stop the fur trade!
CLICK HERE TO DONATE.<
http://cts.vresp.com/c/?UncagedFilms/10d8bddb73/ebec2be806/85741cb6c6
We have a new THEATRICAL trailer and new website up to check out. Click below to see the new trailer and go to the website at: www.skintradethemov ie.com. Also check out our new youtube channel at: http://www.youtube.com/uncagedfilms and vote/comment on the trailer. http://cts.vresp.com/c/UncagedFilms/10d8bddb73/ebec2be806/18dc2b6b51/v=uQHx8NQ2bKU ARME has new gear! In order to help fund "Skin Trade," we have "Anti-Fur Mafia" tees, tanks, and hoodies, featuring the animated characters in the film. SHOW EVERYONE FUR SUCKS! Get yours now! Click below. <
http://cts.vresp.com/c/?UncagedFilms/10d8bddb73/ebec2be806/44b38caddb
http://cts.vresp.com/c/?UncagedFilms/10d8bddb73/ebec2be806/3a77034e48
Remember to check the SKIN TRADE
http://cts.vresp.com/c/?UncagedFilms/10d8bddb73/ebec2be806/878fb86769
website regularly, as updates are being added costantly!
http://cts.vresp.com/c/?UncagedFilms/10d8bddb73/ebec2be806/256d1cb8fd http://cts.vresp.com/c/?UncagedFilms/10d8bddb73/ebec2be806/30a2a620bf/cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=8560405
Skin Trade features music by Duran Duran! Original score by The Faded
http://cts.vresp.com/c/?UncagedFilms/10d8bddb73/ebec2be806/93c3827ae6
Pictures from the studio recording for the soundtrack for Skin Trade Now is the time to promote this film! We need to get the trailer in theatres and get the message out! Fur season is around the corner. Let's stop it in it's bloody tracks! Even if you cannot afford to donate, please spread the message. Post and forward this newsletter and the trailer and website to everyone you know. We can't end the fur trade without you - we are the animals' only voice.
THANK YOU!
Forward this message to a friend
http://oi.vresp.com/f2af/v4/send_to_friend.html?ch=10d8bddb73&lid=270000301&ldh=ebec2be806

BOYCOTT BOSLEY's PET STORES-PETITION TO SIGN!

Target:BOSLEY's PET STORES

Sponsored by: Rabbit Advocacy, Vancouver Animal Defense, Fur FreeProvince Wide Boycott of all Bosley's Stores.
Bosley's sells REAL dead rabbit, REAL cat and REAL dog fur on their toys for your pets and they refuse to stop their insane and unethical business practices. They refuse to send these products back to China.
We do not want our pets playing with dead animal parts. We do not want any products that have fur from animals on them. These dead animals have been tortured for their FUR, often skinned alive.
- WE ARE NOT PUTTING UP WITH THIS IN BC. STOP SHOPPING AT ALL BOSLEY's. Bring your business elsewhere until they remove all these

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/boycott-bosleys-pet-stores

Dog carpets as "art"-Archives

What is this project about?

Ondrej: The dog carpets are essentially about society’s hypocrisy. It questions the special status that dogs and cats have in our, western society. Although we can see that in China, despite the local culture and cuisine, the pet culture is on its rise as well. The Bolivian experience was about hypocrisy as well, but it involved on a larger and direct scale mechanisms and structures within the society.

Kristofer: It’s about the tradition of producing carpets with wild animals as a hunting fetish. But in this case we were using an inappropriate animal, a pet - and like this we wanted to question the values behind this tradition. Ondrej was speaking to me about this idea already before the Bolivia show, but when I got the opportunity to participate in that show I thought it would be interesting to realize the dog carpets there with Ondrej, mainly for three reasons: more adventure, lower production costs and the problem of street dogs in South America (in contrast to the beloved inhouse pet in North America and in most European countries).
Full interview:

http://www.brodypaetau.com/?page_id=119

PETITION: Obama's National Hunting & Fishing Day offends Buddhists,

PETITION: Obama's National Hunting & Fishing Day offends Buddhists,
other religions,promotes animal cruelty


http://www.change.org/actions/view/obamas_national_hunting_fishing_day_offends_buddhists_other_religions_promotes_animal_cruelty


Please sign-will be sent to your federal representatives and President
Obama: Obama has created a National Hunting & Fishing day which
promotes animal cruelty, and is offensive to Buddhists, Hindi, and
Seventh Day Adventists.

President Obama Proclaims Sept. 26, 2009, National Hunting and Fishing Day.*

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/Presidential-Proclamation-National-Hunting-and-Fishing-Day/

*Send comments to the President at:*

http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/

Animal Rights Protesters Face Higher Sentences than Racist Cross Burners

Sep 30th, 2009 by Will Potter

Four animal rights activists are facing charges under the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act for chanting, demonstrating with masks covering their faces, and chalking defamatory slogans on the sidewalk. If convicted, the “AETA 4,”—Joseph Buddenburg, Maryam Khajavi, Nathan Pope, and Adriana Stumpo—could be sentenced to 5-10 years in prison.

The AETA 4 case is a startling example of how federal terrorism laws are being used to create new crimes targeting political activists, and astronomically increase sentences for existing crimes. For instance, Marie Mason was sentenced to nearly 22 years in prison for setting fire to empty buildings and taking precautions to not harm anyone.

Meanwhile, during a Congressional hearing on the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act, the Justice Department proclaimed “we are apolitical in this.” But this is anything but apolitical. Animal rights activists could receive 5-10 years in prison, as terrorists, for not harming anyone or attempting to harm anyone. Meanwhile, take a look at what some others are facing for much more serious crimes:

Burning at a cross at the home of an African-American man, close to his home, while his family is inside: 3.5 years.
Threatening president-elect Obama with statements including, “I’m going to assassinate the new president of the United States of America. PS you have 48 hours to stop it from happening”: four years probation.
Setting fire to a hotel with people inside: 1 year.
Police officer rapes a girl in juvenile custody: 8 months.
Assaulting black men on election night because Obama was elected president: about 5 years.
Enron exec guilty of $7 million in wire fraud and securities fraud: 16 months.
Possessing child pornography: 4 years.
Tying up a black student and taunting him with racial epithets as part of a high school graduation party: six months.
Mailing anthrax threats to the IRS: one year.
“Using the Internet to threaten to destroy buildings of the Federal Bureau of Investigation by fire or explosives”: one year.
Cleveland Browns wide receiver Donte Stallworth kills a construction worker while driving drunk: 30 days.
Threatening to bomb an Air Force base: one year.
Drunken man drives over his brother during an argument: 1.5 years.
Scheming to defraud an insurance company through arson: 2 years.
Mailing anthrax threats to an assistant U.S. attorney: up to 5 years.
Manufacturing and selling home-made explosive devices: 5 years probation
Sending 65 anthrax hoax letters: four years.
Dumping nearly 13 million gallons of untreated liquid waste: 15 months.
Threatening to bomb the Oklahoma city federal building: up to 5 years.
Setting a dog on fire and burning 50 percent of his body: 45 days.
According to the government, high sentences for animal rights activists are intended as a deterrent, they are intended to send a message.

What kind of message do you think this sends?

Note: Funds are needed for the AETA 4 legal defense. Please make a contribution. Go to Paypal.com and send a donation to support@aeta4.org
Or you can make a tax-deductible donation through the National Lawyers Guild Foundation. The mailing address is 132 Nassau Street, Suite 922, NY, NY 10039, please indicate AETA Defense Fund on your check.
http://www.greenisthenewred.com/blog/aeta-4-protesters-higher-sentences-than-cross-burners/2240

Killing One Primate to Save Another: The Ethics of Animal Rights

A disturbing story emerged this week of a scientist leaving his
research out of fear for his and his family's lives. What are our
responsibilities in this area and what do our traditions have to say
about it?
...
A fire-bomb is left (undetonated) on the porch. Lives and careers
shift. Laws are made and broken. What is it? Religious conflict?
Ideological rifts? Kind of.

In this week's Nature, the scientist Dario Ringach tells the
disturbing story of how, because he did research on primates, he was
targeted for violent treatment by so-called ‘animal rights
extremists’; how after the fire-bomb incident (the bomb was
accidentally left on the wrong scientist’s doorstep), for fear of his
and his family’s safety, he discontinued his animal research; how he
is speaking up now, three years later, because “we’re getting awfully
close to the situation where somebody may be killed. There is a
general trend toward polarization in our society. . .”
...
When I teach research ethics to the future scientists of the
world—graduate students and post-doctoral fellows—we spend a lot of
time talking about this. Not just the important party line of the
special offices at research facilities devoted to animal care:
“refine, reduce, and reuse.” But also about deeper questions: should
we do research with animals at all? With certain animals and not
others (much of basic research is done on yeast, worms, fruitflies,
and mice)? And what kinds of research (research that might cause pain
or even death, observational research, etc.)?
...
There are, after all, more than enough rich and important questions to
chew on: (1) one day—a day some (not me) believe is nigh—we will no
longer need animal models at all; we will develop artificial models
which will work as well to accomplish our goals and test our ideas for
basic knowledge, drugs, and other therapies; (2) another animal we do
a lot of testing on is ourselves, humans; if we’re going to raise
questions about research on animals, we must carefully examine
research on humans; (3) and a final irony: the more research we do on
animals, the more we discover, for better or worse, just how similar
they are to us.

--
full story:
http://www.religiondispatches.org/archive/scienceenvironment/1851/killing_one_primate_to_save_another:_the_ethics_of_animal_rights

Los Angeles Zoo elephant lawsuit moves forward

A lawsuit charging the Los Angeles Zoo with abusing elephants will be
allowed to go to trial, a three-judge panel of California's 2nd
District Court of Appeal ruled on Wednesday.

A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge had initially ruled that the
issues raised in the suit were political and not for a court to
decide.

--
full story:
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2009/09/los-angeles-zoo-elephant-lawsuit-moves-forward.html

Military Pull Activist Into Unmarked Car at G20 Protests

Sep 25th, 2009 by Will Potter


Police in Pittsburgh have been rolling out their new toys and dressing up like stormtroopers at the G20 protests. (Much more at Pittsburgh Indymedia).There have been reports of direct action in the streets, with activists rolling dumpsters into the paths of oncoming riot police and police pepper-spraying, beating, arresting, and surveilling activists. The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports police following activists in unmarked cars, but that’s clearly not the full scope of what is going on right now in Pittsburgh.

Check out this video of two men in military fatigues grabbing an activist out of the crowd, throwing him into an unmarked car, and driving on through the lines of riot police.

I’ve reported previously on local police buying tanks, and an influx of “anti-terrorism” money being used to militarize local police departments. And in the RNC 8 case, police and attorneys used “anti-terrorism” resources and rhetoric to target protest organizers. It should be strikingly, undeniably clear by now that the lines between police and military have been completely eroded. The police have been militarized, the military is policing.

There is a reason police and military operations are separated. It’s the same reason that the foreign intelligence operations of the CIA are kept separate from the domestic intelligence operations of the FBI: Even if you believe that the tactics, violence, and black ops used abroad are justifiable, they have no place at home. They are incompatible with any semblance of a democracy.
Full article:
http://www.greenisthenewred.com/blog/military-pull-activist-into-unmarked-car-g20-protests/2247

Urge ASPCA to Make Kapparot Chicken Abusers Give Water and Food toCrated, Suffering Chickens.

A Post from NYC resident Rina Deych
Dear Friends,
I did a little one-woman demo outside some places where they are doingKapparot. In case you are not familiar with it, here are two articles onthe subject, one by me and one by Richard Schwartz:
http://rrrina.com/kaporot.htm


The raw footage is on my YouTube page (I didn't get any of them killingthe birds, because, in each case I got kicked out before I had a chance...one slaughterer stopped himself right before he made impact):
http://www.youtube.com/user/rrrina

Through the years, I've done one-person demos outside these places. Mygrandfather, a kosher butcher (who, in his final year of life was sorevolted by what he witnessed when he had occasion to visit aslaughterhouse that he gave up his business and went vegetarian), was opposed to Kapparot. He was known throughout the neighborhood as aTzadik (righteous man), who rescued abandoned cats, dogs, and eveninjured birds, gave free food away to the poor, and allowed homelesspeople to sleep in his store. Growing up, I remember a series of"borders," as he called them, homeless people whom he would allow tostay in a room on the top floor of his home, until he was able to helpfind them jobs so they could afford to live in an SRO (single room occupancy).
My grandfather denounced the practice of Kapparot as cruel, unnecessary,and, in fact, un-Jewish. He said that it was not in the Torah or theTalmud, and that for those who felt the need to do the ritual, it couldbe done with an inanimate object (money).
Kapparot takes place during the week between Rosh Hashanah and YomKippur. Being around the places where they do this obscene sacrifice isbone-chilling. The stench of fear and blood permeates the entireneighborhood. The birds are left, packed tightly in crates, with no foodand no water for the entire week. The "unused" birds are often left inthe crates in the heat and cold, starving amid the excrement, until theycan be picked up. Some, in desperation, pluck each others' eyes out.
About a year ago, some orthodox rabbis had a meeting about the practice.It was decided that there needs to be closer monitoring and regulationof Kapparot. Until last year, I used to see some of the slaughterersthrow the birds into garbage bags (contradicting their claim that themeat is donated to the poor). This year, while I didn't get to film it,I found one place actually taking the dead birds, plucking them, andpreparing them for donation. Still this is a heinous practice that needsto be abolished.
Yesterday, I called the ASPCA to report that the animals had no food orwater and were packed tightly in crates (stacked on top of each other),left in the hot sun.
Please call and complain... they WILL come. The more people who call,the more seriously they will take the complaints.
The ASPCA cruelty division number is: 212-876-7700, ext. 4450. Ask tospeak to the ASPCA's Law Enforcement Department Supervisor, Gerry Conway.
So far, I found three places where it is being done in Boro Park,Brooklyn:
- 43rd Street, between 13th and 14th Ave., closer to 13th, next to asynagogue.
- 50th Street, between 13th and 14th Ave, closer to 14th, outside aschool.
- corner of 49th Street and 14th Ave, next to the YM-YWHA.
Please call and complain that these animals have no food and water.
Thanks so much!!!
Rina DeychNew York City Resident
For more information about kapparot, visit
http://www.upc-online.org/kaparot

--United Poultry Concerns is a nonprofit organization that promotes thecompassionate and respectful treatment of domestic fowl.Don't just switch from beef to chicken. Go Vegan.
http://www.UPC-online.org

http://www.upc-online.org/
Order Today:
http://www.upc-online.org/merchandise/book.html

PrisonedChickens, Poisoned Eggs: An Inside Look at the Modern Poultry Industry(2009 Revised Edition)

Sharpshooters begin destroying elk herd

Glen Stubbe, Star Tribune

Elk at the farm.

In January, a female at the farm near Pine Island was found to have CWD, a fatal brain disease. A USDA agency is killing all 700 elk.

By DOUG SMITH, Star Tribune
Featured comment

Unfortunate but the only way
There are some researchers at the University of Colorado who developed a test on a biopsy from a live animal but it is not 100 percent … read more reliable. Perhaps this new bio science center could develop a reliable test for CWD without destroying an animal. The direct payments to the elk owners won’t be the biggest expense of this ordeal. Perhaps 700 animals times 1500 or about a million. I would bet that the other costs will be 10 times that amount for laboratory services, diagnostic and reagent kits, and of course the sharp shooters. Then add the inefficient public administration of the whole project and we are talking some major money.
Federal sharpshooters have begun destroying a herd of about 700 elk on a farm in southeastern Minnesota where chronic wasting disease (CWD) was discovered this year.

Sharpshooters with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Wildlife Services shot elk Friday and Monday on the farm off Hwy. 52 near Pine Island, after the federal agency reached an agreement with the herd's owners concerning compensation and cleanup. A cow elk at Elk Farm LLC -- the largest such farm in the state -- was found to have the disease in January, and the herd has been quarantined since.

The 1,300-acre farm was purchased in 2006 by Tower Investments of Woodland, Calif., and is part of 2,300 acres the firm plans to develop north of Rochester for a bioscience research and manufacturing center called Elk Run. It would include 15 to 25 bioscience companies, as well as offices, shops and homes, officials say.

"This is very sad situation for all of us at Tower Investments," project manager Geoff Griffin said.

"But it's totally out of our control. The good thing is, it does not affect our development."

All of the elk will be killed over the next 10 days or so and tested for the fatal brain disease, then will be disposed of, said Paul Anderson, assistant director of the Minnesota Board of Animal Health. None of the meat can be salvaged for human consumption.

"There's no evidence that it causes disease in people," Anderson said, "but with a known infected herd, we just would not take any risks with humans."

Tower Investments will be compensated for the animals by the Agriculture Department. Federal officials said Monday that they're unsure what the total cost will be.

To prevent the spread of CWD to wild deer, the top couple of inches of topsoil on the farm will be removed and stored behind a fenced area for five years, Anderson said. Tower Investments will pay for that, he said. "Normally, we'd require that fences stay up [on a farm] for five years," Anderson said, "but because of the need to develop that land, they will remove the soil and pile it up behind a fence for five years."

3,000 deer to be tested

The Department of Natural Resources also plans to test 3,000 deer for CWD that are expected to be killed by hunters this fall in southeastern Minnesota. The testing, which will cost more than $200,000, was prompted by the presence of CWD at the Pine Island elk farm and by the proximity of deer in the region to Wisconsin, where wild deer have been infected with CWD, said Ed Boggess, DNR policy section chief. The U.S. Department of Agriculture will pay about $70,000 of the cost, he said.

Though no elk have escaped from the Pine Island farm, Anderson said two wild deer somehow managed to get inside the fenced farm and were destroyed. Since the disease was first found in the state in a captive elk herd in 2002, DNR officials have been concerned that it could spread to Minnesota's approximately 1 million wild deer. There are about 20,000 captive deer and elk in the state, and the disease can be spread through nose-to-nose contact. The infected elk at Pine Island was the sixth captive deer or elk in the state found to have CWD.

The DNR has tested more than 30,000 wild deer, and none has tested positive.

The Pine Island elk farm has been an icon in the area for years, and the elk often were seen by drivers on busy Hwy. 52. The farm was owned by brothers John and Karl Hoehne. Karl Hoehne declined to comment Monday, and John Hoehne couldn't be reached.

Though the long-standing elk farm would have been phased out as development occurred, Griffin, the project manager, said that Tower Investments had intended to keep some elk there, and that that still might happen, even after the herd is destroyed. "We're going to wait five years, just to be safe," he said, and possibly add elk later to some enclosures on the site.

Meanwhile, Griffin said water and sewer lines are being laid at the development and that the state is expected to let bids for a Hwy. 52 interchange there. He said construction of some bioscience buildings should begin next year.