A n i m a l
W r i t e s © sm
The
official ANIMAL RIGHTS ONLINE newsletter
Publisher ~ EnglandGal@aol.com
Issue # 03/17/02
Editor ~ JJswans@aol.com
Journalists ~ Park StRanger@aol.com
~
MichelleRivera1@aol.com
~ sbest1@elp.rr.com
THE NINE ARTICLES IN THIS ISSUE ARE:
1 ~ A Personal Connection
2 ~ WWAIL 2002
3 ~ Iditarod
4 ~ Free Computers
5 ~ Appointment At The End Of The World
6 ~ Celebrate Easter Without Eggs
7 ~ Job Opportunities
8 ~ Questions From A Caring and Compassionate Heart and Soul
9 ~ Memorable Quote
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~1~
A Personal Connection
http://www.primatefreedom.com/Ican'tsleep.html
By Rick Bogle
I
turn over in bed in the middle of the night and hear the soft jingle of my
Primate Freedom Tag sliding along the chain around my neck; at times it seems
more the plaintive cry of a monkey than the sound of stainless steel against
chain.
When I talk to people about the primate labs and the horror the victims
experience, they are often overcome with a sense of helplessness and futility.
After all, almost 60,000 monkeys are attacked by U.S. scientists each year. Who
could be expected to feel much hope or power?
But when people can connect with one victim, one particular monkey prisoner,
they see that they might be able to make a difference, and the problem becomes
more manageable. Now, as they write to a Primate Center or call them on the
phone, the things they can ask are more personal. No longer do they have to
discuss the entire subject of animal experimentation or try to become
scientifically sophisticated; now they can call and ask what is happening to a
particular monkey.
And this has always been the real point. This is the question the Primate
Centers dread. They can always argue from the global perspective, but when
someone asks them about a certain monkey, who was born on a certain date, and
has a certain number tattooed on his or her chest, they can't answer globally.
Now the researchers are forced to explain why hurting or killing one particular
monkey is necessary and not an immoral and criminal act.
I hate my tag. I hate hearing it in the still of the night as I turn over, but
more, I am sickened by what it represents. One day it will be impossible to
print any more Primate Freedom Tags because the labs will be closed; maybe then
I will get a good night's rest.
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~2~
WWAIL 2002
World Week For Animals In Laboratories
April 20 -
28, 2002
From In Defense of Animals - ida@idausa.org
An estimated 30 million animals are tortured and/or
killed in U.S. labs every year.
Now is the time to speak out and fight back.
In addition to encouraging concerned citizens everywhere to participate in
events against vivisection wherever it exists, In Defense of Animals WWAIL 2002
will target the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
The EPA requires more chemical toxicity tests on animals than any other federal
agency. These tests involve forcing animals to eat, inhale, or be injected with
chemicals. An undisclosed number of animals -- likely to be in the millions --
die slow and painful deaths in these tests. And with all that, the EPA has not
banned a single industrial chemical in more than 10 years.
Rather than working to reduce emissions and prevent human and environmental
exposures to toxic chemicals, the EPA has instead chosen to establish
"acceptable" exposure levels based on the results of misleading
animals tests.
The EPA pours millions of taxpayer dollars into cruel and wasteful animal
experiments, while spending virtually none of its $500 million annual research
budget on the development of non-animal test methods.
It's time for change.
Speak out by protesting the EPA's animal tests by participating in an event in
your area. IDA will provide brochures and posters specific to the EPA animal
testing programs.
EPA's offices and laboratories are located throughout the U.S. Some of these
locations include:
Washington DC (headquarters)
Boston
New York City
Philadelphia
Atlanta
Dallas
Kansas City
Denver
San Francisco
Chicago
Cincinnati
Seattle
Las Vegas
In Defense of Animals urges you to become involved in speaking out for the
millions of animals burned, blinded, drugged, poisoned, addicted, starved,
shocked, irradiated, driven insane, and surgically mutilated by participating
in World Week for Animals in Laboratories 2002.
No matter what your focus might be this year: dog labs, primate experiments,
xenotransplantation, genetic engineering, or any specific vivisection
experiments, IDA will help you coordinate and publicize your events for WWAIL
2002.
Now is the time to Fight Back.
For further information contact:
Barbara Stagno
In Defense of Animals
bstagno@idausa.org
www.vivisectioninfo.org
or call
(914) 693-6559
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~3~
Iditarod
From SledDogAC@aol.com
The
Iditarod race is condemned by animal protection groups and concerned animal
lovers across the United States. Mushers treat their dogs abominably. In
the Iditarod, dogs are forced to run 1,150 miles over a grueling terrain in 9
to 14 days, which is the approximate distance between Orlando and New York
City. Dog deaths and injuries are common in the race. USA Today sports
columnist Jon Saraceno called the Iditarod "a travesty of grueling proportions"
and "Ihurtadog." Fox sportscaster Jim Rome called it
"I-killed-a-dog." Orlando Sentinel sports columnist George Diaz said
the race is "a barbaric ritual" and "an illegal sweatshop for
dogs." USA Today business columnist Bruce Horovitz said the race is a "public-relations
minefield."
Please visit the Sled Dog Action Coalition website http://www.helpsleddogs.org
to see pictures, and for more information. Be sure to read the quotes on
http://www.helpsleddogs.org/remarks.htm. All of the material on the site is
true and verifiable.
At least 117 dogs have died in the Iditarod. There is no official count of dog
deaths available for the race's early years. In WinterDance: the Fine Madness
of Running the Iditarod, Gary Paulsen describes witnessing an Iditarod musher
brutally kicking a dog to death during the race. He wrote, "All the time
he was kicking the dog. Not with the imprecision of anger, the kicks, not kicks
to match his rage but aimed, clinical vicious kicks. Kicks meant to hurt
deeply, to cause serious injury. Kicks meant to kill."
Causes of death have also included strangulation in towlines, internal
hemorrhaging after being gouged by a sled, liver injury, heart failure, and
pneumonia. "Sudden death" and "external myopathy," a fatal
condition in which a dog's muscles and organs deteriorate during extreme or
prolonged exercise, have also occurred. The 1976 Iditarod winner, Jerry Riley,
was accused of striking his dog with a snow hook (a large, sharp and heavy
metal claw). In 1996, one of Rick Swenson's dogs died while he mushed his team
through waist-deep water and ice. The Iditarod Trail Committee banned both
mushers from the race but later reinstated them. In many states these incidents
would be considered animal cruelty.
In the 2001 Iditarod, a sick dog was sent to a prison to be cared for by
inmates and received no veterinary care. He was chained up in the cold and
died. Another dog died by suffocating on his own vomit.
Tom Classen, retired Air Force colonel and Alaskan resident for over 40 years,
tells us that the dogs are beaten into submission:
"They've had the hell beaten out of them." "You don't just
whisper into their ears, ‘OK, stand there until I tell you to run like the
devil.' They understand one thing: a beating. These dogs are beaten into submission
the same way elephants are trained for a circus. The mushers will deny it. And
you know what? They are all lying." -USA Today, March 3, 2000 in Jon
Saraceno's column
Beatings and whippings are common. Jim Welch says in his book Speed Mushing Manual,
"I heard one highly respected [sled dog] driver once state that
"‘Alaskans like the kind of dog they can beat on.'" "Nagging a
dog team is cruel and ineffective...A training device such as a whip is not
cruel at all but is effective." "It is a common training device in
use among dog mushers...A whip is a very humane training tool."
Mushers believe in "culling" or killing unwanted dogs, including
puppies. Many dogs who are permanently disabled in the Iditarod, or who are
unwanted for any reason, are killed with a shot to the head, dragged or clubbed
to death. "On-going cruelty is the law of many dog lots. Dogs are clubbed
with baseball bats and if they don't pull are dragged to death in
harnesses....." wrote Alaskan Mike Cranford in an article for Alaska's
Bush Blade Newspaper (March, 2000).
Jon Saraceno wrote in his March 3, 2000 column in USA Today, "He [Colonel
Tom Classen] confirmed dog beatings and far worse. Like starving dogs to
maintain their most advantageous racing weight. Skinning them to make mittens.
Or dragging them to their death."
The race has led to the proliferation of concentration-camp-like dog kennels in
which the dogs are treated very cruelly. Many kennels have over 100 dogs and
some have as many as 200. It is standard for the dogs to spend their entire
lives outside tethered to metal chains that can be as short as four feet long.
In 1997 the United States Department of Agriculture determined that the
tethering of dogs was inhumane and not in the animals' best interests. The chaining
of dogs as a primary means of enclosure is prohibited in all cases where
federal law applies. A dog who is permanently tethered is forced to urinate and
defecate where he sleeps, which conflicts with his natural instinct to
eliminate away from his living area. Because he is close to his own to his own
fecal material, a dog can easily catch deadly parasitical diseases by stepping
in or sniffing his own waste.
The Alaska SPCA has called for an end to the breeding and culling (killing) of
these dogs. Iditarod dogs are unhappy prisoners with no chance of parole.
What you can do: Go to
http://www.helpsleddogs.org/help.htm and follow the links to addresses where
you can write to protest sponsorship of this cruel race. These kind of
educational letters are the only hope the Iditarod dogs have. Please send
all the letters you can.
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~4~
Free Computers
Computers
offered to nonprofit organizations
Gateway will donate up to 4,500 computers to non-profit organizations.
Application: http://www.gateway.com/olympics/donations.shtml
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~5~
Appointment At The End Of The
World
By Valerie Macys
http://www.animalsvoice.com/PAGES/poetry/macys.html
Excerpt of prose from the Animals Voice website.
http://www.animalsvoice.com
I
arrived at the house on a late October afternoon. The fall leaves were in full
blazing glory, and I noticed that the cows were even closer to the house than I
had expected. I could actually hear them before I got out of my car. When I
turned off the engine, I knew immediately that something was terribly wrong. I
witnessed a scene of chaos. Cows bellowed and stomped, staggering around the
fields. They banged into each other and pushed against the fence, located
approximately 20 feet from my car. Dozens of them stood wild-eyed, snuffing the
air, shrieking horribly. Unfortunately, I knew all too well what their
confusion and turmoil was about.
I have lived near a farm for the past four years. I was told by my veterinarian
what those harsh October cries meant the first time I'd heard them. I had been
alarmed by the cows' unusual moans and their evident distress one fall morning,
so I called my vet to ask if there was something I should do, perhaps call the
farmer or even a humane society. She told me to do nothing, that such action
was normal for the time of the year.
I was therefore able to recognize what all the blustering on this day was
about, although I had never had it smack me so wickedly in the face. I had
never been so close before.
"They've taken your babies," I said sadly, looking directly into one
cow's mournful eyes. They rolled back in her head as she bellowed anew. Feeling
sick to the pit of my stomach, I entered the house and spoke to the curator,
who also lives there. Her name is Mary.
"Those cows are frantic," I said. The wailing penetrated even inside.
I had never heard anything like it. "How long will this go on?" I asked.
"Until tomorrow," she replied. "Then more slaughter trucks will
come for them, and it will all be over."
I thought my heart would hit the floor. I recalled the intense moment when I
had stared at the woeful mother cow, practically eyeball to eyeball.
I went to my room and quietly unpacked my bags. The grotesque rhythm of the
cries outside never ceased. I left the house for a while and went into town to
have dinner. It was dark when I returned, but the moaning and bellowing
persisted. I got out of my car and shuddered, feeling the warm bodies of so
many agitated mothers, pressing close to the fence. At one point, I heard wood
splintering and feared they might break free. I half-hoped they would.
........I stopped eating meat after I returned from West Virginia. If ever the
opportunity presents itself again, I want to look at those creatures in peace
because I am no longer eating their flesh. I had been working toward that end
for many years, but there was nothing like witnessing such full-blown horror to
convince me that the time was at least upon me. I simply had no choice.
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~6~
Celebrate Easter Without Eggs
By Renee Wheeler for United Poultry Concerns
http://www.upc-online.org/s97hunteggs.html
You
can have all the pleasure and surprise of a Spring Celebration and Easter Egg
Hunt without using eggs. Most of the supplies listed here can be found at any
large craft store. Some are stocked only around Easter. By checking yearly you
can gather an assortment of Easter decorations to be used again and again.
Ideas for Replacing Hen Eggs
Craft stores offer a variety of "eggs" such as plastic, paper mache,
wood, even glass. For young children and a fun party, use plastic eggs and
colorful stickers appropriate for Easter. Card shops, fabric shops, even
supermarkets, carry fake eggs and Easter decorations. Children can put stickers
on these eggs, which can be hidden as is, or small trinkets or other treats can
be placed inside. More artistic eggs can be created using paper mache, wooden
or glass eggs. Most wooden and paper mache eggs are brown so you may want to
paint them with a coat of white paint. (Tempera or craft store paint works
fine.) After painting the eggs white, they can be further decorated with
paints. There are all kinds of paint ranging from poster paints to t-shirt
paints, which puff up when used. Fabric scraps, fake stones, and glitter can be
glued on, and colorful pictures can be cut out and pasted on the eggs.
Children as young as 2 enjoy painting, gluing, and pasting on glitter. As you
look around the craft shop notice all the different "eggs" you can
display, "hunt," and give as gifts. Parents can choose to save 1 or 2
eggs their children decorate each year. You can't do that with hens' eggs.
Upcoming Special Days
St. Patrick's Day
http://www.pcrm.org/health/Recipes/st_patty.html
Passover Seder Ideas
http://www.vrg.org/recipes/passover.htm
Vegan Easter Goodies & Ideas
http://www.veganfamily.co.uk/easter.html
General Vegan Recipe Links
http://www.theanimalspirit.com/vl.html#recipes
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~7~
Job Opportunities
EXECUTIVE/LEGAL ASSISTANT – Wanted to perform all
administrative duties in President’s office. Excellent qualifications and solid
experience required. Meticulousness, reliability, confidentiality,
respect for animals. Competitive salary/benefits. Apply : PETA, Attn: Human
Resources, 501 Front Street, Norfolk, VA 23510; fax: 757-628-0789.
ONLINE OUTREACH COORDINATOR – International nonprofit seeks experienced
candidate to develop and implement all online marketing and promotion efforts
for PETA in conjunction with other members of the Web team. Candidate
must have a Bachelor’s degree in communications, marketing, or a related field;
one to three years’ experience in online marketing and promotion; and excellent
interpersonal skills. Strong computer and Internet skills are required,
including familiarity with databases and Web statistical analysis. Animal
friendly. Competitive salary and benefits. Send cover letter and
resume to PETA, Attn: Human Resources, 501 Front Street, Norfolk, VA
23510; or fax to 757-628-0789.
PRINT BUYER - Seeking experienced print buyer to buy print for large
non-profit organization. Should have a minimum of 1 to 3 years’
experience in a fast-paced production environment such as an advertising
agency, design firm, or corporate merchandising group with responsibilities
that included production and print buying. Position requires an individual with
a flexible approach who is willing to buy in a variety of processes including,
but not limited to web, sheet fed, "instant" printing, premiums and
merchandise. Primary responsibilities will include researching suppliers,
bidding projects, scheduling and tracking of all jobs during the printing
process as well as technical proofing. Send cover letter and resume to
PETA, Attn: Human Resources, 501 Front Street, Norfolk, VA 23510; or fax
to 757.628.0789.
SPECIAL ASSISTANT TO THE DIRECTOR OF RESEARCH AND INVESTIGATIONS – People
for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) seeks a special assistant for its
Norfolk, Virginia, headquarters to assist the director of the Research and
Investigations Department as necessary and to be responsible for providing
guidance to caseworkers. Candidate must be an excellent accessor,
analyst, and researcher and have familiarity with Research and Investigations
cases in progress. Must have a thorough knowledge of animal rights issues and
have the ability to support PETA’s philosophy and to professionally advocate
PETA’s position on issues. Previous supervisory experience desired.
Proven excellent written and verbal communication skills required. Animal
Friendly. Competitive salary and benefits. Send cover letter and
resume to PETA, Attn: Human Resources, 501 Front Street, Norfolk, VA
23510; or fax to 757-628-0789.
Kim DeWester
Human Resources Coordinator
The PETA Foundation Tel: 757-622-7382, ext. 1404
Fax: 757-628-0789
KimberlyD@fsap.org
www.PETA-online.org
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~8~
Questions
From A Caring
and Compassionate Heart and Soul
By Ashlie Wyman
Why is it that a caterpillar doesn't have the choice to stay
a caterpillar?
Crawling and weaving in and out of dew soaked leaves.
Tiny fur follicles brushing against it's yellow body;
small and unspoken.
What is it that says that it can't stay wingless in a tree;
hiding between bark and vine.
There will come a dreamless day when a creature
has a choice to speak out loud
through a human voice.
And who says that the elephant must be chained and broken?;
sad and mistreated in an unfamiliar scene,
ripped and stolen from it's hot savanna;
green and untouched.
But as all things change,
with the slow revolving of the earth..
A time will evolve out of the depths of a kind heart
when we will speak for those who have no voice.
Can it be that there is some unwritten law that states
that the fox or mink or raccoon should be
worn upon coats and mittens or hats,
skinned and electrocuted,
a tear in eye?
Who can be the judge for the fact of unnecessary death?
To rub ointments and products in a rabbit's eyes
till the point of swollen pores and unending tears.
To send primates to space
or fix a machine into the brain of a kitten?
And the day has come for when we all have united....
the few of us out there who
have a caring and compassionate heart and caring soul.
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~9~
Memorable Quote
"There are hundreds of paths to scientific
knowledge; the cruel ones can teach us only what we ought not to
know."
~~ George Bernard Shaw
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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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