———- Forwarded message ———-
From: DawnWatch – news [at] dawnwatch.com
Date: Jan 30, 2007 5:11 PM
Subject: DawnWatch: AJC front page story on aquarium deaths and debate 1/30/07

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has a front page story, Tuesday January 30, headed,
“Aquarium deaths reopen captivity debate; Critics condemn facilities, but scientists say they help advance studies of rare animals.”

The Atlanta Aquarium recently euthanized Gasper, an ailing beluga whale, and nine days saw the death of Ralph, a marquee whale shark.

The article notes, “The back-to-back deaths have prompted protests from private citizens and national organizations. They range from reasoned to outraged.”

A Florida activists, Russ Rector, is quoted:

“If they’d never put whales or whale sharks there, then people never would miss them. It went from an aquarium to a prison.”

And Naomi Rose of the Humane Society of the United States is quoted:

“These big swimmers aren’t adaptable to confinement. I really resent that they’re exploiting these animals’ lives.”

(more…)

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: DawnWatch – news [at] dawnwatch.com
Date: Jan 30, 2007 5:06 PM
Subject: DawnWatch: Barbaro dies – a look at horseracing in the New York Times editorial 1/30/07

Barbaro was euthanized yesterday, Monday January 29, eight months after suffering grave injury at The Preakness. His injury brought world-wide media attention and an outpouring of emotion since he had won the Kentucky Derby and looked like he could possibly win the Triple Crown.

The story is in every paper. The New York Times has run a sensitive editorial headed, “One Horse Dies” (January 30, pg 20).

It opens:

“Why should we feel so much grief at the loss of one horse? After all, this is a world in which horses are sacrificed again and again for the sport of humans. Barbaro was euthanized yesterday, eight months after he shattered his right hind leg at the start of the Preakness Stakes. After an injury like that, most racehorses would have been put down minutes later. But every race is a complex equation — a balance of economics, athleticism, equine grace and conscience. Conscience often comes in last, but not in this case. Barbaro’s owners gave that horse exactly what he had given them, which is everything. It was the very least they could do, and yet it seemed truly exceptional in a sport that is as often barbarous as it is beautiful.”

It discusses Barbaro’s grace, and comments, “And if his life caused us to pay attention to the possibilities of all horses, his death should cause us to pay attention to the tragedy inherent in the end of so many horses. Barbaro’s death was tragic not because it was measured against the races he might have won or even against the effort to save his life. It was tragic because of what every horse is.

“You would have to look a long, long time to find a dishonest or cruel horse.”

(more…)

“We, like the people of the early 1800s, could be living through a period of slow but profound ideological change. To the people of their own time, men like Granville Sharp and Thomas Clarkson — early abolitionists and the founders of the first human rights movement — seemed as impractical, as demanding, as self-righteous and as obsessed as many animal rights activists seem to us today. In the future, right-thinking people might look back at us meat eaters with the same disapproval we heap on those who considered slavery acceptable 200 years ago.”

- Laura Miller, in a Salon review of Tristram Stuart’s The Bloodless Revolution

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Tagged: animals animal rights animal welfare The Bloodless Revolution Tristram Stuart Salon quote Laura Miller vegetarian vegetarianism slavery parallel oppressions

According to Michael Greger, Director of Public Health and Animal Agriculture at The Humane Society of the United States and M.D. (and author of Bird Flu, which I recently reviewed here), people are, shall we say, quite lax when it comes to washing their hands. Given that handwashing is one of the most effective ways to protect against infectious diseases such as Ebola and – yes! – avian influenza, findings such as these

Ninety-five percent say they wash their hands after using a public toilet, yet the American Society for Microbiology published a survey of almost 8,000 people across five U.S. cities and found the true number to be only about two-thirds. Chicago topped the list at 83%; in New York City, the actual number fell to less than half.

are a wee bit problematic.

The experts say that:

Proper hand washing, according to the director of clinical microbiology at Mount Sinai, involves lathering with plenty of soap for 20 to 30 seconds (about the time it takes to sing the “alphabet song” three times at a fast tempo), rinsing, and then repeating for another 20 to 30 seconds. CDC guidelines are similar, with additional reminders to wash between fingers and under the nails, and to soap into the creases around knuckles.

and:

At a minimum, experts advise, hands should be washed after every cough, every sneeze, and every time we shake hands with anyone. These simple recommendations may decrease the number of colds we get every year, the number of work days we miss, and the number of days we are laid up in bed. During a pandemic, they may even save your life.

As a true-green enviro, that strikes me as a crazy amount of water to be running through every day.

(more…)

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: DawnWatch – news [at] dawnwatch.com
Date: Jan 30, 2007 2:09 PM
Subject: DawnWatch tip: Boston Legal and animal rights activists — Tuesday, January 30, 2007

Thanks to Marsha Rubin for this tip about tonight’s (1/30/07) episode of Boston Legal, on ABC at 10pm (Check local listings):

“An irate Denny thunders to Bella’s aid when she is attacked by animal-rights activists, but the conflict becomes personal when his ex-girlfriend–Bella’s diminutive daughter Bethany–represents the protestors.”

(Note to those outside the US — I send this to my whole list, not just US, knowing that though the air dates differ, those in other countries also see Boston Legal and may wish to keep an eye out for this episode.)

Boston Legal has a message board where you can comment, here.

It would be nice to see lots of pro-AR comments up there.

I have no idea how this episode will go. We can be sure Denny Crane will be obnoxious, as his character always is (and generally funny too). But Boston Crane has a good history on animal issues, having done a superb job in 2005 of calling attention to the government’s Mad Cow cover up. (Click here for a detailed DawnWatch alert on that episode.) Animal rights issues might get a decent hearing in tonight’s episode — or not — we’ll see.

(more…)

UPDATE, 2/9/07, via the Center for Biological Diversity:

Under fire from the Center for Biological Diversity, the Natural Resources Defense Council and American Indian groups, the Salt River Project announced on Feb. 7 it is abandoning plans to reopen the Mohave Generating Station, which would have revived the notorious Black Mesa coal mine in Arizona and its 273-mile pipeline to Nevada. Black Mesa was one of the largest strip-mining operations in the country. The project threatened to deplete aquifers linked to the Navajo and Hopi’s sacred springs, using pristine, high-quality groundwater to pump coal slurry across the arid desert.

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UPDATE, 2/1/07:

The Center for Biological Diversity also sent out an action alert on this issue:

Help Keep the Notorious Black Mesa Mine Closed!

The Black Mesa strip mine is one of the most infamous strip-mining operations in North America. The mine is owned by Peabody Coal Company and is operated on long-term leases from the Office of Surface Management and the Navajo and Hopi Nations. The indigenous people on the two reservations have protested these mines for decades because of the relocations, water withdrawals, and damage to local springs the mining has caused.

Mining stopped two years ago because of environmental violations at the coal-fired Mohave power plant that’s operated with coal from the Black Mesa mines. But now the Office of Surface Management wants to re-open the mine and re-open the power plant to fuel suburban growth in Phoenix.

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Via the Natural Resources Defense Council:

Speak out to protect Native American sacred springs from destructive coal mining

The Interior Department is currently accepting comments on a request from the Peabody Western Coal Company to extend its Arizona mining operations, which have removed billions of gallons of precious groundwater from local Hopi and Navajo lands.

Send a message right away urging the agency to consider less destructive alternatives to Peabody Coal’s proposed mining.

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Tagged: environment environmental environmentalism environmentalist action alerts nrdc Natural Resources Defense Council Peabody Western Coal Company Arizona mining groundwater Hopi Navajo center for biological diversity

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: DawnWatch – news [at] dawnwatch.com
Date: Jan 29, 2007 5:36 PM
Subject: DawnWatch: Wash Post on fight to save pet pig 1/29/07

There is a charming story in the Monday, January 29 Metro Section about a woman fighting for the right to keep her pet pig. The piece, by Bill Turque, is headed, “Home Is Where Her Hog Is” and subheaded, “A couple of years ago, a petrified little pig escaped the butcher, thanks to its new owner. Now the Herndon woman is fighting a zoning law to keep her 140-pound pet at her house.”

We read:

“Last summer was the fat time for Bacon, a 3-year-old Vietnamese potbellied pig who moved into a house along a Herndon cul-de-sac with her owner, Bridgette Suder. Neighbors lined up to get a look at the sweet-natured 140-pounder with a bristly white coat and enormous pink-and-black snout that is the texture of ‘one big lip,’ according to Suder, who smooches it regularly. Kids came by to visit as Bacon cooled herself in the toddler wading pool that Suder set up in the back yard.

“‘We had a house full of people petting Bacon,’ said Suder, 23, a former kindergarten teacher who works for her father’s educational consulting firm.

“Then someone squealed. That started the lean times.

“In early October, Suder received a letter from the town. It said that two inspectors ‘determined that you are keeping livestock, to wit: a Pot Belly Pig on the Property.’ They told Suder that swine are not allowed within the town limits.

“She appealed to the town’s Board of Zoning Appeals, and while the matter is pending, Suder and her neighbors have mobilized to save their Bacon.

“Suder was encouraged when she looked at Virginia law, which indicates that if Bacon is not destined to be bacon, or otherwise sold for profit, she qualifies as a ‘companion animal.’

(more…)

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Kinship Circle – info [at] kinshipcircle.org
Date: Jan 29, 2007 3:29 PM
Subject: LETTER/ Horse Slaughter Bill Renewed In 110th Congress

Kinship Circle Primary – PERMISSION TO CROSS-POST AS WRITTEN
(Please do not delete identity/disclaimer information)

1/29/07 — Horse Slaughter Bill Renewed In 110th Congress
KINSHIP CIRCLE ACTION CAMPAIGN

www.KinshipCircle.org

SOURCE OF INFORMATION:

Help Save Horses Right Out of the Gate

Court Declares Horse Slaughter in Texas Illegal

======================

SAMPLE LETTER & CONTACT INFO

Sample letters are prepared to give you ample background on an issue.

Try to change some words, pare down letters, and make them your own.

**DELETE ALL REFERENCES TO KINSHIP CIRCLE BEFORE SENDING**

======================

HSUS writes: Congress receives a lot of email. It is very important to edit the subject line and the letter below with your own words so that your legislators know the email came from a constituent.

To identify your federal legislators and find contact info, try:

* Congress.org: www.Congress.org
* USA Senate: www.senate.gov
* USA House of Representatives: www.house.gov
* Congressional Switchboard: 202-224-3121

(more…)

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: In Defense of Animals – takeaction [at] idausa.org
Date: Jan 29, 2007 11:44 AM
Subject: Writing Alert: Activists slam restaurant serving foie gras

The Chicago Tribune ran a story about a protest held this weekend in Chicago over city officials’ failure to enforce a ban on foie gras, a delicacy made from cruelly force-feeding ducks and geese. Please write a letter to the editor on the inherent cruelty of foie gras. Send letters to: ctc-TribLetter [at] Tribune.com.

Click here to read the article online.

Activists slam restaurant serving foie gras

By Jeff Long
Tribune staff reporter

Published January 28, 2007, 5:16 PM CST

Wayne Hsiung stood in the cold Sunday outside Bin 36, handing out pamphlets to the few passersby about the way geese and ducks are force-fed to make foie gras.

Holding banners that showed the process in graphic detail, Hsiung was among about a dozen animal-rights activists protesting the restaurant’s continued serving of the fattened goose- or duck-liver delicacy, which the Chicago City Council banned last year.

“I think that torturing a defenseless animal is wrong,” said Hsiung of Chicago.

(more…)

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: ASPCA – website [at] aspca.org
Date: Jan 28, 2007 5:00 PM
Subject: Federal Alert: Big News from D.C.–Horse Protection Bills Revived!

URGENT ALERT

Congress is back in session, and so are two crucial equine protection bills!

H.R. 503/S. 311 (The American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act) will prohibit the slaughter of American horses for human consumption. Americans don’t eat horses, but last year alone more than 100,000 U.S. horses were killed for their meat, which was exported to Europe and Asia.

H.R. 249 restores protections for wild horses and burros that were undone by the passage of the 2005 Burns Amendment to the Wild Free-Roaming Horse and Burro Act.

If you recognize these bills, it’s because both of them were introduced in the 109th Congress in 2006. Although both had strong support and advanced significantly through the committee process, Congress unfortunately recessed for the year before either bill could be passed.

Both have been formally reintroduced, but the approval process now must begin anew. If you believe that horses are American icons who deserve a better end than ending up on dinner plates abroad, please contact your senators and representatives today and ask that they support these important bills.

Ask your legislators to support the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act.

Ask your decision makers to support H.R. 249, legislation that would protect wild horses and burros.

Please visit ASPCA.org to take action on these initiatives today.

Thank you so much for your patience and your compassion.

Donate Now

Renew Your Membership

Tell-a-Friend

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© 2007 The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals®
424 E. 92nd St., New York, NY 10128
Visit us online at www.aspca.org

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Tagged: animals animal rights animal welfare action alerts aspca American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals horses burros horse meat horse slaughter American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act 110th congress