A n i m
a l W r i t e s © sm
The
official ANIMAL RIGHTS ONLINE newsletter
Publisher ~ EnglandGal@aol.com
Issue # 05/30/01
Editor ~ JJswans@aol.com
Journalists ~ Park StRanger@aol.com
~
MichelleRivera1@aol.com
~
sbest1@elp.rr.com
THE ELEVEN ARTICLES IN THIS ISSUE ARE:
1 ~ Animals' Agenda - Editor's Agenda
by Kim Stallwood
2 ~ Great Outdoor Sports by KMBWolf
3 ~ We Are Their Heroes by Jim Willis
4 ~ Congressional Awards Banquet
5 ~ Colorado Horse Rescue Poisons Hundreds of Prairie
Dogs
6 ~ Veganopoly
7 ~ AVAR E-Groups for Students
8 ~ China Develops World's First "Soybean"
Garment
9 ~ Helpful Website
10 ~ The Egg Machine by WantNoMeat@aol.com
11 ~ Memorable Quote
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Animals' Agenda -
Editor's Agenda
by Kim Stallwood
If tobacco companies such as R.J. Reynolds,
Philip Morris, and Brown & Williamson can be held responsible for the
smoking-related deaths of millions of people, why can't the likes of
McDonald's, Burger King, Tyson, and Perdue be held similarly liable for
people's strokes and heart attacks
related to meat consumption?
The wealth of transnational corporations enables them to employ shady
scientists, scurrilous spin doctors, amoral attorneys and advertisers, and
loathsome lobbyists. If you grease enough palms, the finger of
accountability rarely points to you.
Take, for example, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD), a rare and fatal
neurological illness that does not normally occur until middle age. But
94 people of various ages in Europe have died from a new variant of the disease
(nvCJD) which has been linked to the consumption of cattle with mad cow disease
(bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or BSE). Such cattle become infected
after eating feed containing the remains of other infected cows.
The first case of BSE was reported in England in 1984, and nearly 200,000
cattle have suffered and died. It was not until 1995 that British
agribusiness stopped exporting possibly contaminated feed to more than 80 countries.
Consequently, millions of people throughout the world may have eaten
infected beef. The long-term implications of this medical crisis have yet
to be fully understood, and the American Red Cross has taken the
"precautionary measure" of not accepting blood donated by anyone who
spent six months in the United Kingdom between 1980 and 1996.
By thumbing their noses at nature, farmers and feed manufacturers placed
profits before people. Now agribusiness finds itself suffering from
"foot-in-mouth disease" as foot-and-mouth disease spreads from
Britain to elsewhere in Europe and possibly the rest of the world.
Such calamity is certainly not the fault of the animal rights movement, which
for many years has warned that meat and dairy products harm human health. Is my naivete on public display when I
simply believe the mission of animal advocates is to educate people about
animal exploitation and the many benefits of a vegan, cruelty-free
lifestyle? And why are animal rights supporters continually accused of
"endangering" society when the public is literally being poisoned by
subsidized industries?
Take, for example, the recent efforts in the United States to criminalize some
animal rights activities. The state legislatures in Iowa, Oregon, and
Utah are currently considering bills that toughen penalties for
"commercial terrorism" by animal rights activists.
Astonishingly, when the Utah legislature was considering a bill in the House of
Representatives to protect farmers and ranchers from acts of terrorism, the
Senate rejected a bill to stiffen penalties for acts of racist violence.
On the one hand corporations receive government subsidies to commercially
breed, mutilate, and kill animals to produce food that kills people, but on the
other hand animal activists are interrogated, investigated, called before grand
juries, and labeled as terrorist for trying to expose and/or alleviate animal
suffering and related issues of food and environmental contamination.
The Animal Rights Network Inc., which publishes The Animals' Agenda supports
only nonviolent actions for animals. We acknowledge that there exists in
our movement a faction of people who are so outraged and frustrated by the
prevalence of animal suffering that they sometimes act outside of the law (and
sometimes in contradiction to the values of compassion, responsibility, and
nonviolence to all beings). And although we believe there is no excuse
for harming, or threatening to harm, any human or
animal life, that same principle -- and the social moral, and legal support of
such ethics -- should make meat and dairy producers accountable for the damage
they do. BSE has already killed more people and placed millions more at
risk than the combined actions of all animal advocated since time began.
I could go on about holding corporate interests, government officials, and
elected representatives accountable for actions that place humans at risk and
result in injury and death. But the reality is that we're all responsible
for the world we live in, even when we boycott products of animal
exploitation. It's just that (to paraphrase George Orwell) everyone is
guilty, but some people are more guilty than others.
You have only got to see Michael Mann's film, The Insider, which dramatically
portrays how far Brown & Williamson went to stop 60 Minutes from
broadcasting an interview with a scientist fired for blowing the whistle on Big
Tobacco, to understand the power that industry has to protect its
interests. It doesn't matter whether the "product" is inhaled or
consumed; without government oversight and accountability, greedy industries
are free to blow the smoke we all choke on.
“Reprinted with permission from The Animals’ Agenda, P.O. Box 25881,
Baltimore, MD 21224; (410) 675-4566; www.animalsagenda.org.”
Email: office@animalsagenda.org
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Great Outdoor Sports
by KMBWolf@aol.com
The referee comes up to the mic in
front of the video camera in the clearing of a forest. A small audience
gathered around the clearing claps and whistles.
"Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to Great Outdoor Sports!
Thank you for joining us today on this lovely afternoon. Now let's meet our
players. Our first player comes from Allsburg. Please meet John Rethun!"
John comes toward the referee, waving and smiling. The audience
roars with applause and a few random shouts. John shakes hands with the
referee.
"John," the referee says. "It's good to have you
here."
"Good to be here," John replies.
The referee turns back to the camera. "Our second player
comes from this very forest. Please meet a deer!"
The deer slowly comes up to the referee, looking around,
obviously in a state of confusion. The audience applauds and whistles.
"What's going on? Who are these
people?"
"Deer, its good to have you here today," the referee
says, giving the deer a pat on the shoulder.
"Good to have me where?" the deer says, looking around.
"Ok, lets get down to the game," the referee says.
"You both know the rules. Or one of you does, that is."
"Game? What game?" the deer asks in his perplexity.
The referee explains. "John here is going to chase you. He
is going to try to kill you."
"Kill me? What the..what kind of game is this?"
"If you outrun him, you can live, unless he finds you,"
the referee continues. "If, or rather, when he kills you, he wins your
body to do with as he wants. He might want to hang your head on his wall, eat
your flesh, wear your hide, whatever."
"Yes," John says. "I have a beautiful spot above
my fireplace for your head. And I have always wanted to make my own deer skin
wallet, so I will be using your hide for that."
The deer steps back in horror. "You people are sick! I can't
believe this!"
The referee replies. "This isn't sick. This is a sport. It's
completely acceptable, right folks?"
The audience wildly applauds and shouts.
"I have studied deer for 5 years," John tells the
referee. "I know all about their mating habits, I can mimic their calls,
and I know where and when to find them. I have come to respect deer very
much."
"Respect?! You respect me so you want to kill me? What kind
of logic is that?!"
"If the deer lives," the referee says, "he wins
his life, at least for today. If John
wins, he wins the deer."
"This is insane!"
"John, here is your weapon." The referee hands
John a rifle.
"He gets a gun?!" the deer cries out.
"That's not fair! What kind of sport is this!?"
"Now on my signal, deer, you start running," the
referee says.
"No! I don't want to play this stupid sport! I didn't ask
to!"
"You don't have a choice, my friend," the referee says.
"Now...go!"
The deer bursts off in a sprint for his life. His heart is racing
as he dodges trees and brush.
"This isn't happening to me! I can't believe this!"
After several minutes of running, the deer tires out, slowing to
a mild trot. Finally he stands still,
his chest heaving with heavy breathing. He holds his breath to listen for sounds
of chase. An eerie silence fills his ears.
The deer laughs shakily to himself. "Hey, maybe I
outran--AAHH!!"
A piercing pain runs through his heart. He falls to the forest
floor. He feels his own blood pour from his side, trickling down his thigh. He
gasps for air, each breath searing with pain.
The referee, still at the clearing, pulls John's arm up.
"The winner!"
John smiles and waves the still smoking rifle in the air
triumphantly.
The audience roars in cheers and applause. Some start chanting
John's name.
The deer, in excruciating pain, speaks with his final breath
before succumbing to death.
"I...lost..."
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We Are Their Heroes
Copyright Jim Willis 2001
If
you worry that you have not made a difference, you have, for only those who do
not worry about it have not. If you feel overwhelmed, if the weight of
problems is too heavy to bear, remember it is a shared burden and the strength of
numbers can accomplish much.
If you think society and government are blind, it only serves to remind that we
need to change one mind at a time, one law after another. We effect
change by cooperation, not by isolation. If you consider that we cannot save
them all, and what difference does one make?, you ought to know the joy of the
one who is saved. Mourn those we cannot save. It is a eulogy to their
being. Do not let their loss be in vain.
Be kind to yourself, remember your needs and those of your family and friends
of every species. If you give everything, what will you have left for
yourself, or for them? Strive to be happy and healthy. You are
needed. Achieving balance in life is a lifelong struggle. We who
help those who do not have all that they need should be among the most grateful
for what we have.
Be proud of your accomplishments, not your opinions. The quality of your
efforts is more important than the quantity. Forgive your own
deficiencies -- sometimes your caring is sufficient. Everyone can do
something, it is up to you to do the thing you can. A kind word and a
gentle touch can change a life.
If a seething anger wells up within you, because people are the problem,
remember your humanity and that people are also the solution. Concentrate
on specific needs, pay attention to the individual -- they make up the whole.
See beyond the unlovable, the unattractive, the impure and the wounded -- see
that their spirit is as deserving as the rest. Help them heal. Their eyes
are windows to their soul and the mirror of your sincerity. All species,
all beings, share this Earth in a chain of life.
Care more about what makes us alike than what separates us. Policies,
rules and regulations are not infallible. Apply them judiciously, interpret
them wisely. No decision based purely on money is ever the right
one. Listen to your heart.
Sometimes we have to do that which we are most afraid of. Be true to
yourself and your beliefs. Family may abandon you, friends may disappoint
you, strangers will ridicule you. People shun what they do not
understand. Help them to understand -- kindly, softly, gently.
Those who do not respect all life are to be pitied. Often the wrongdoer
is as in need of help as his victims. Forgive, then teach by example.
Educate yourself or you cannot hope to teach others. No action based in
hatred is ever right and anger drowns out wisdom. Yours may be a voice
crying in the wilderness, make it a voice to be respected. Listen more
than you talk, be courteous and reliable. Learn to ask for help. Never
waiver from the truth. Know that it takes a lot of strength to cry and
with every defeat, we learn.
All Creation celebrates that which is in its own best interest. The
Children are our hope -- nurture them. Nature is our legacy -- protect
it. The Animals are our brethren -- learn from them. Your rewards
will not be material, but they will be meaningful, and the courage of your
convictions can survive anything.
We are small boats cast adrift on a cruel sea, but someday the tide will turn
toward a safe harbor. No matter how dark the storm clouds, or deep the
pain of heartbreak -- never forget:
We are their heroes.
~ Dedicated to all who have worked for change. May your efforts be blessed. You
have made a difference.
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Congressional Awards Banquet
The
HSUS' first ever 2001 Humane Awards for Congressional and Corporate Champions,
cosponsored by The Fund for Animals, Farm Sanctuary, and The Animal Welfare
Institute, will be held September 19th at the Willard Hotel in Washington, DC,
to honor individual members of Congress who have made outstanding contributions
to the animal protection movement.
A special lifetime achievement award will also be presented to Christine
Stevens of the Animal Welfare Institute, who founded her group 50 years ago.
An illustrious roster of pro-animal celebrities, including Montel Williams,
Alicia Silverstone, Bill Goldberg, Greta Van Susteren, and DC United members,
are scheduled to attend. For tickets or more information, contact The HSUS'
Leigh Ann Schmidt at Lschmidt@hsus.org or (301)548-7708.
Source: MollyMcGee01@aol.com
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Colorado Horse Rescue
Poisons Hundreds of Prairie Dogs
http://www.peta-online.org/alert/00/356.html
On
May 8, Colorado Horse Rescue (CHR), a nonprofit group that rehabilitates
neglected and abandoned horses and promotes their adoptions, stunned local
community members, animal protectionists, and Boulder County officials by
poisoning hundreds of prairie dogs living on CHR's
50-acre site. A complaint from a whistleblower prompted county zoning inspector
Ed Meacham to visit its facility, where he immediately ordered contractors to
stop the poisoning. Volunteers from Rocky Mountain Animal Defense, PETA, and
Wild Places then spent hours digging out the poisoned burrows, trying to save
some of the animals, while CHR staff and volunteers stood by joking. No prairie
dogs, including this spring's babies, survived the assault.
The massacre was hideously cruel. Graham Billingsley, director of the county's
Land Use Department said contractors hired by CHR stuffed the prairie dog holes
with newspaper soaked with poison. The exterminators then packed the holes with
rocks and dirt, trapping the animals underground. The poison, aluminum
phosphide, causes the animals to bleed internally and die in excruciating pain
over the course of several days.
CHR received approval from Boulder County to move their operation to the site
on the condition that the land would be revegetated to prevent dust and soil
erosion, conditions worsened by horse grazing. Officials from the Colorado
Division of Wildlife said they believed that the prairie dogs would be
protected on the property‹as part of an officially supported revegetation
project, the state spent more than $2,300 reseeding 35 acres with native
grasses and trees last summer. The project was meant to create wildlife habitat
for deer, rabbits, foxes, and prairie dogs. Astonishingly, many of the animals
who were poisoned had been previously relocated on the property in order to
make room for CHR's new buildings.
Prairie-dog populations in the U.S. have plummeted to 1 to 2 percent of their
original numbers as a result of rampant poisoning and bulldozing, unrestricted
development, and hunting. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has declared
prairie dogs "warranted" for listing under the Endangered Species Act
but "precluded" from listing because of other priorities (and
politics).
CHR officials claim that they cannot revegetate the property without killing
prairie dogs, however, Colorado Division of Wildlife officials are confident
that revegetation can occur without harming the animals. CHR representatives
also claim that horses can break their legs in prairie-dog holes.
However, no such case has ever been documented among grazing horses (i.e.,
horses who are not being ridden or driven).
For more information, please contact Rocky Mountain Animal Defense at
303-449-4422 or via e-mail at info@rmad.org
From:
tmchin@yahoo.com (Trevor Chin)
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Veganopoly
Would you like to kick back and spend a little
time playing board games with family and friends? Check out the following
website to the new Veganopoly game:
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AVAR E-Groups for Students
For
vets, vet nurses and vet students (especially students) here's a new list
that's just been started:
AVAR eGroup for Students
Susan B. Krebsbach, D.V.M.
Moderator, AVAR eGroup for Students
E-mail: DrSBK@prodigy.net
Founded May 2001
"A discussion group for the benefit of veterinary medical students,
veterinary technician students, and pre-veterinary students to address issues
that pertain to their education, particularly the use of nonhuman animals. However, other veterinary professionals are
welcome to participate.
We encourage the participation of all students and individuals involved in the
veterinary profession and who are interested in an opportunity to discuss ways
of improving it with respect to eliminating harmful and fatal use of
animals."
If you are interested in subscribing to this group please email Dr. Susan
Krebsbach at DrSBK@prodigy.net.
Cheryl Ross
Research Assistant
Animal Research Issues
The Humane Society of the United States
phone: 301-258-3042
fax: 301-258-7760
www.hsus.org/programs/research
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China Develops World's First
"Soybean" Garment
Chinese researchers have developed the world's
first cashmere-like garment, using protein fiber extracted from soybean.
http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200105/01/eng20010501_69095.html
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Helpful Website
from Penzelda@aol.com
The page below, on the ASPCA web site, is great.
By putting in your zip code, you will find e-mail addresses for newspapers in
your area, who your federal representatives are (and you can FAX all of them in
one step), and find out about legislation in your state.
http://www.aspca.org/help/lobby.html
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The Egg Machine
by WantNoMeat@aol.com
Behind wire mesh the tortured
stare
with no one outside them to care
The stench of decay fills the air
her every breath a nightmare
Most feathers lost she lies bare
her body infected from constant wear
In her swollen feet the wires tear
painful diseases are not rare
Her agony unjustifiable and unfair
her life has no compare
Illness destroys her beyond repair
of the dead and dying she is aware
Her own life's eye begins to glare
inside each egg is her why and where
For her eggs she suffers there
and her only hope doesn't despair
Because to see inside we do not dare
blind mankind holds the blame to share.
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Memorable Quote
"It is very significant that some of the most thoughtful and cultured men
are partisans of a pure vegetable diet."
~
Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948)
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Susan Roghair - EnglandGal@aol.com
Animal Rights Online
P O Box 7053
Tampa, Fl 33673-7053
http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/1395/
-=Animal Rights Online=-
&
Advisory Board Member, Animal Rights Network Inc.,
not-for-profit publisher of The Animals' Agenda Magazine
http://www.animalsagenda.org/
The
Animals' Agenda Magazine: WebEdition
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