A n i m a l W r i t e s ©
sm
The official ANIMAL
RIGHTS ONLINE newsletter
Established 1997
Editor ~ JJswans@aol.com
Issue # 02/08/04
Publisher ~ Susan
Roghair - EnglandGal@aol.com
Journalists ~ Greg Lawson -
ParkStRanger@aol.com
~ Michelle Rivera - MichelleRivera1@aol.com
~ Dr. Steve Best -
sbest1@elp.rr.com
THE ARTICLES IN THIS ISSUE ARE:
1 ~ Tragedy Hits One Of Our Own
2 ~ Why I'm For Kucinich
3 ~ Great Ape Census Book
4 ~ First Wolves Die In Alaska Aerial Gunning
5 ~ Toxoplasmosis
6 ~ ACT Radio
7 ~ The Animals' Savior
8 ~ Memorable Quote
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~1~
Tragedy Hits One Of Our Own
We at ARO are saddened to hear of the tragedy that hit one of our
frequent contributors. Most of us who have companion animals are struck with
the nightmarish thought that something could happen to our dogs and cats while
we are away from home. Recently that very thing happened to the author of so
many great poems and prose, and a real champion for the animals.
Jim Willis, of the Tiergarten Trust Sanctuary, was in a restaurant
with friends, enjoying his birthday lunch, when he saw fire trucks rushing
past. Later, as he approached home, he realized it was his house that the fire
trucks had rushed to. He lost 9 dogs and 4 cats in the inferno, and was able to
break away from the firemen's restraint in order to rescue one of his surviving
dogs, that had tried to run back into the rubble that had been her home. Six
dogs survived that day, but all else was lost.
Anyone wishing to send messages of support or condolences, or donations can do
so at the following address:
The Jim Willis Fire Fund
% National City Bank
1803 Main St.
Burgettstown, PA 15021
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~2~
Why I'm For Kucinich;
or How I Learned to Stop Worrying
and Love the Primaries
by Ann M. Seidl
From marr@vegsource.com
Let's start with that most aggravating of all
election-year edicts: "He's got to be electable before I'll vote for
him."
Okay, let's solve this once and for all. What exactly is electability? I think
we can agree that in the current primary season, it means someone who can beat
Bush in November.
Fine. But, first, what makes Bush so all-fired electable? Lest we forget, this
country didn't elect him president in 2000, so what makes people think he's
going to be elected in 2004?
Slightly fewer than 1 in 4 Americans of voting age cast their ballot for the
current White House occupant. That means that 75%, or 3 out of every 4
Americans running around did NOT vote for the man. And this is the guy who's
responsible for instilling in the Democratic Party an unadulterated terror of
electability? Please. Even the Republicans who supported him then are disgusted
with him now. It's hard to imagine a bigger betrayal in the eyes of a
right-of-center fiscal conservative than a $477 billion record deficit. And
many, many Americans are deeply concerned about the needless and dangerous
invasion of Iraq and the more than 500 dead.
"Well," some say, "I know what I want, but what about the guy in
Peoria? He's too stupid to see through George W. Cheney's act, so I better vote
for the most serious challenger or we'll get stuck with Dubya for four more
years." The trouble is, the guy in Peoria is a chimera created out of
whole cloth by the media. He doesn't exist, and no such voting pattern exists.
Don't believe this oversimplification perpetuated by the hamstrung press. And
who is the most serious challenger? I'll tell you who: Dennis J. Kucinich.
Dennis Kucinich is a 55-carat diamond. You know about diamonds. They're the
hardest substance on earth, and nothing else refracts light with such clarity.
And a diamond is only forged over eons of time under great pressure. When you
bring a diamond in contact with any other material – rock, metal, glass – the
diamond can cut it. The diamond itself is not changed, never diminished. It is
always and everywhere a diamond.
So it is with Dennis John Kucinich, kid mayor and dyed-in-the-wool progressive.
He reflects back to us the best in ourselves. His life has forged a great and
good core, under some extreme conditions and over a long period of time. His
life and his politics shine dazzlingly when exposed to the light of ordinary
people's aspirations, their hopes, and their needs. The other candidates are
cubic zirconium, but people can get confused by shiny things.
For months, the media has been keeping all available light away from Dennis
Kucinich in the hope that no one will witness his diamond-like brilliance. The
corporate media owners are reasonably terrified that under the Kucinich
administration they'll have to start actually doing their jobs and/or they'll
have to pay a true price for the natural resource that is the public airwaves.
Didn't we see this acuity during the Ted Koppel debate? He was so plain about
it, so elegantly plain. No hysterics, not even a personal accusation against
Koppel, Dennis just threw a spotlight on the media's superficiality: "I
want the American people to see how the media does things. First we talked
about endorsements, then about polls, and now we're on to money. When you do
that, you don't need to talk about the issues." He was perfect. And were
not the other candidates emboldened by his attachment to principles? The score
that evening quickly became Democrats, 1, the media, zero. Dennis has been a
leader of the other candidates throughout this whole primary season. His
principles have an authority, a currency that emboldens me.
Dennis Kucinich, who was a communication major at Case-Western Reserve
University and a copyboy at the Cleveland Plain Dealer, knows the Radio Act of
1927, and its 1934 amendments, by heart. He knows that the media are supposed
to serve three masters: the public interest, the public necessity and the
public convenience. This "stewardship" model for broadcast licensees
has been so flouted as to make it farcical, but folks, that's about to change
under Dennis's presidency.
I'm for Dennis because he isn't afraid of anything. He is thoughtful, intrepid,
consistent and tenacious as a bulldog. His "Prayer for America,"
delivered in February 2002, will stand next to "Nothing to Fear but Fear
Itself" in political speechmaking, mark my words.
I'm for Dennis because you can count on him. In the height of the anthrax
attacks and all of Congress was running for their lives and signing anything
that saluted, Congressman Kucinich took time to read the noxious Patriot Act
and see it for what it is. He is the only candidate to have voted against it.
He keeps his wits about him. While others hop on whatever political train (the
war, the Patriot Act, gay marriage) looks like it has the most momentum,
regardless of the direction it's headed, Dennis isn't swayed but remains calm
and thoughtful to the last. Of all the candidates, to me he is by far the most
presidential.
I'm voting for him because Dennis is the one person since I was 18 years old
(my entire voting life) to ever, ever talk about cutting the Pentagon budget. I
mean, why, exactly, do we need more weapons systems that don't work? It's as if
I, on a salary of, say, $35,000, were to spend $17,000 on an SUV…every year.
And I've already got 10. And 4 of them don't even start. No wonder I can't send
my kid to college or afford to go to the doctor. Now, I wouldn't live my life
like this, but we as a nation do.
Kucinich will tame that beast, and no joke. None of the other candidates is
even touching this sacred cow.
I'm for Dennis because he's authentic. I met him for the first time on August
5, 2003, when I drove to a campaign stop in Illinois from my home in Madison,
WI. I brought him a couple of books I thought he'd find useful. He asked me to
write down my name and address, but I said, "Oh, Dennis, it's not
important. You don't have to thank me and I'm already on your volunteer
list." He looked me straight in the eye and said quietly, "It's
important to me." As Studs Terkel concluded, Kucinich is the One.
I'm for Dennis Kucinich because he's the smartest person in the race. My
heavens, but Dennis Kucinich is smart. He was right about WMD (there weren't
any), he's right about the war (get the UN in and the U.S. out now), and about
single-payer health care (what choice do we have – pay 40 or 50% of our income
on health insurance in five years? `Cause that's where we're headed), and he's
right about canceling NAFTA and the WTO and about free college tuition and the
racist war on drugs and don't even get me started on his unparalleled humanity
with respect to Israel and Palestine. And there's so much more. Check this out,
for instance: he's got a plan to make zero- interest, 30-year loans to states
and cities to repair their roads, schools and water systems. Apparently, the
money in regular circulation cycles at the Federal Reserve could serve to fund
local infrastructure projects (woefully outdated) and put people to work at the
same time. See what I'm saying about smart?
George W. Rove's gargantuan war chest is sitting there like a time bomb. Can
you imagine the havoc that money is going to wreck on a Howard Dean? A John
Kerry? A John Edwards? Wesley Clark?! But it can't touch a Dennis Kucinich.
He's bulletproof, he's Teflon. What are they going to say? That he's a vegan?
Great. We'll trot out Cheney's personal emergency room in the Vice Presidential
residence and that will be that. That he's a hippie tree-hugger? Fine. He'll
show you how environmentally safe stewardship by family farmers and small
businesses have actually increased their bottom line. I can only pray they
bring up Cleveland.
His critics have exactly two things against him. First, the Cleveland Default
of 1978 and second, his change of heart on the right-to-choose debate. In both
cases, it boils down to "bring `em on." With the first, we (his
supporters) get to brag about his integrity in the face of corporate greed,
conflicts of interest and scare tactics. In the second, we get to tout this as
an example of how he listens, how he evolves and in the last analysis, how he
can put aside his personal convictions for the sake of the
greater good. Trust me, Dennis is the guy we want going against BushCo.
A contemporary Buddhist philosopher, Daisaku Ikeda of Japan, once planned to go
to the Soviet Union in 1974, when relations between Japan and the USSR were at
a complete standstill. When asked why he was making the trip, he replied,
"Because there are people there." That's the kind of spirit I see in
Dennis Kucinich.
Okay, so if I'm doing the math right, we have in the Nay category, one reason:
"I can't vote for him because he's not electable." (Translation: I
can't vote for him because I don't have the political huevos or moral will to
vote my conscience.)
On the other hand, here are numerous reasons to vote for Dennis, any of which
is a sure bet to increase your confidence and dispel your fear. 1. "I will
vote for him because if I do he becomes electable." (Well, yeah, duh.) 2.
"I'll vote for him because he's the only one who'll get us out of a
Vietnam-style perpetual and costly war in Iraq." (Dennis's plan will get
the UN in and the US out in a matter of weeks.) 3. "I'll vote for him
because, unlike Howard Dean, he's won his last four elections with
progressively larger percentages of the vote, and unlike John Kerry, he knows
what it's like to be broke and still have to fill the car with gas." This
is an ordinary guy – he gets it. 4. "I'll vote for him because he's the
only one who can beat Bush." (The others are simply not strong enough or
different enough than politics-as-usual, and lots of people would end up
staying home again. With Dennis, we'll get Greens, Hispanics, Libertarians,
Natural Law Party members, and, oh yes, Democrats. Can you say
"landslide?")
And the number one reason to vote for Dennis Kucinich, "I'll vote for
Dennis because he best represents my principles and that's the only reason to
vote in the first place."
C'mon, people, let's turn on the light and see for ourselves that the monster
in the corner is only a hat rack. Bush is not the Terminator, the
Indestructible Man. George W. Rumsfeld is only frightening when we as Americans
fail or refuse to trust our own instincts and our own consciences. I feel good,
correct if you will, knowing I'm supporting Dennis Kucinich, Congressman from
Ohio. It's just the right thing to do. And after all, what else is there?
Merely politics.
You'll see. Take a deep breath and go ahead and support Dennis. You will be
rewarded because he will continue to climb, he'll stay in the race and keep
fighting for you and me. The tipping point with Dennis is going to be a thing
of beauty, historic, monumental. Ultimately, we/he will prevail in the
nominating process, and the world will be safer, brighter and truer. As Diamond
Dennis himself says, "It's inevitable, really." Because this is the
moment.
To read DK's inspiring speeches & his platform, go to:
http://www.kucinich.us
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~3~
Great Ape Census Book
GREAT APE PROJECT RELEASES CENSUS BOOK, REVEALS 3,100
CAPTIVE APES IN U.S.
Portland, Oregon – After two years of research, record-keeping and volunteer
reports, the Great Ape Project today released the Great Ape Project Census:
Recognition for the Uncounted, a book that stands as the first comprehensive
tally of the captive chimpanzees, gorillas, orangutans and bonobos in the
United States.
The Great Ape Project Census reveals over 3,100 great apes living in captivity,
ranging from modern zoos and sanctuaries to squalid carnivals and cruel
laboratories. The Census reflects as much personal information as possible
about each great ape, including name, age, sex, location and whether he or she
was born in captivity or captured in the wild.
The Great Ape Project Census comes a decade after the publication of The Great
Ape Project, the ground-breaking book that helped revolutionize mankind’s
consideration of great apes. The Great Ape Project Census includes photos and
profiles of numerous great apes, along with essays by noted primatologists and
experts such as Jane Goodall, Birute Galdikas, Marc Bekoff, Francine Patterson
and Roger and Deborah Fouts. Great Ape Project president Peter Singer
contributed the foreword.
“There has been a dramatic change in the thinking of many people about great
apes,” Singer wrote, “but this has yet to be adequately reflected in changes in
the law, in the moral status we recognize them as having, and in the conditions
in which they live. Perhaps this book will bring those changes a step closer.”
The inspiration for the Great Ape Project Census came from the human census
being conducted in the U.S. at the turn of the century. The Census had four
basic goals: 1.) identify all great apes in the U.S.; 2.) report the conditions
in which they live; 3.) increase public awareness; and 4.) identify sanctuaries
that might be able to provide permanent refuge for those in need.
The Census found great apes in 37 states – including several, such as
Connecticut, where they were not previously known to exist – and a staggering
1,280 in biomedical research.
The Great Ape Project Census is priced at $14.95 and available on-line at the
Great Ape Project website (www.greatapeproject.org) or at select bookstores in
the Portland area.
For more information, please contact:
Great Ape Project
1-503-222-5755
gap@greatapeproject.org
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~4~
First Wolves Die In Alaska Aerial Gunning
Defenders of Wildlife Decries First Airborne Wolf Shooting Since
Late 1980s
ANCHORAGE, Alaska – Defenders of Wildlife today expressed outrage over the
confirmed killing of 14 [the count is now 30] wolves so far in Alaska's
Nelchina Basin by airborne private hunters. These are the first wolves killed
under Alaska's controversial new aerial gunning program, and the first since
the state legislature overturned 1996 and 2000 statewide referendums that
outlawed the practice.
"In statewide votes, Alaskans twice rejected aerial wolf gunning, and
twice the state legislature decided that wealthy sport hunters are more
important than Alaska voters," said Rodger Schlickeisen, president of
Defenders of Wildlife. "Governor Murkowski is backing the extermination of
wolves across an area the size of Texas, apparently with the goal of making it
so easy to bag a moose that any thrill-seeker from the Lower-48 can do it. It
gives a black eye to hunting traditions and values, and creates and image of
Alaska that is anything but welcoming to non-hunters."
Twenty-eight pilots obtained permits on January 22nd to kill wolves in this
area. No details are known at this point in regards to the number of hunters
that actually killed wolves. Plans call for up to 140 wolves to be killed in
this area by April 30th.
The objective of the program is to kill 80 percent of the wolves in an 8,000
square mile area through land-and-shoot hunting in an attempt to boost moose
populations for hunters, despite the fact that insufficient data have been
gathered on the number of wolves and moose in this area. Aerial gunners can
kill males, females and even wolf pups as part of the program.
Unlike regular sport hunting, aerial gunning involves either shooting from
aircraft, or land-and-shoot hunting in which shooters in aircraft chase wolves
or other wildlife in deep snow until the animals are too exhausted to move, and
then land nearby to make the kill.
"This aerial gunning program is designed to artificially boost game
populations, simply for the convenience of thousands of sport hunters who
descend on the Nelchina Basin every year," said Joel Bennett, a former
member of the Alaska Board of Game and a spokesman for Defenders of Wildlife.
"It's a triumph of raw politics over biology, and insults the voters of
the whole state."
The citizens of Alaska have twice voted in statewide measures (1996 and 2000)
to ban the aerial killing of wolves. Nonetheless, Governor Murkowski signed a
bill last June overturning the most recent ban.
Defenders of Wildlife is a leading nonprofit conservation organization
recognized as one of the nation's most progressive advocates for wildlife and
wildlife habitat. With more than 450,000 members and supporters nationwide,
Defenders is an effective leader on environmental issues. For timely
information on environmental issues, visit www.defenders.org and subscribe to
DENLines, a free e-mail alert newsletter.
Karen Deatherage
Alaska Program Associate
Defenders of Wildlife
308 G Street, #310
Anchorage, AK 99501
907-276-9453
907-276-9454 Fax
defenders@alaska.net
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~5~
The HSUS Reaches Out To Nation's OB-GYN's
On The Myths & Facts About Toxoplasmosis
HSUS Seeks To Dispel Misinformation That Leads Many
Pregnant Women To Give Up Their Cats
WASHINGTON (January 27, 2004) —Too often, cat owners who become pregnant give
up their feline family members out of fear of contracting toxoplasmosis, a
disease that can lead to serious birth defects in newborn babies. The Humane
Society of the United States (HSUS) is contacting more than 31,000
obstetricians and gynecologists nationwide with information to help them and
their patients understand the facts about the risks of toxoplasmosis, with the
message that pregnant women need not give up their cats.
“Misinformation about toxoplasmosis is widespread,” said Dr. Patrick Duff,
residency program director of the department of obstetrics and gynecology at
the University of Florida. Dr. Duff penned the cover letter that accompanies
the new HSUS brochure, “Your Baby & Your Pet,” which will be mailed to
members of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. “It is
important that physicians provide the correct information, which will help our
patients remain healthy during pregnancy and their cats to remain members of
their families,” he said.
Toxoplasmosis is a rare disease in the United States, with approximately 3,000
newborns per year suffering from birth defects after their mothers acquired the
infection, according to a 1999 study referenced in “Toxoplasmosis: A Practical
Guide for the Clinician,” written for The HSUS by Dr. Jeffrey D. Kravetz of the
Yale University School of Medicine. The disease-causing parasite is found in
the feces of cats who ingest raw meat, birds, mice or contaminated soil. Duff
notes that it is extremely
unlikely that a cat kept indoors will carry toxoplasmosis. Outdoor cats have a
slightly higher risk.
“A pregnant woman should stay away from cleaning the cat’s litter box if
possible,” Duff said. “If she must clean the litter box, careful instruction
and proper hygiene will be the keys to prevention.”
What many people do not know, is that toxoplasmosis is more commonly found in
uncooked or undercooked meat and that avoiding the disease is very simple:
• Don’t handle or eat uncooked or undercooked meat
• Keep your cat safely indoors and away from wildlife
• Have someone else clean the litter box daily
• Wear rubber gloves and follow with a thorough hand washing if you must clean
the litter box. Scoop feces as soon as you can, and at least daily, since it
takes one to five days for feces to become infectious.
• Feed cats only commercially prepared cat food
The HSUS is distributing its patient brochure “Your Baby & Your Pet,” and
Dr. Kravetz’s guide for clinicians, to doctors as a part of its Pets for Life™
program, which provides information to help people resolve obstacles with pets
to keep pets in the family for a lifetime.
The “Your Baby & Your Pet” brochure includes valuable information to help
pet owners prepare pets for the new baby’s arrival and to help acclimate pets
once the baby comes home. For more tips from the Pets for Life program, go to
www.petsforlife.org.
“Bringing home your new baby need not mean the end of your relationship with
your “first baby” – your pet,” said Nancy Peterson, companion animals issues
specialist for The HSUS. “Healthy children and pets can live together safely
and happily. Just ask any adult who shared his childhood with a beloved pet.”
For more information on toxoplasmosis, go to The HSUS Web site at
http://www.hsus.org/ace/19108.
For a copy of the “Your Baby & Your Pet,” contact
Karen L. Allanach at kallanach@hsus.org or 301-548-7778.
B-roll is also available for broadcast use.
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~6~
Act Radio
Be sure to listen to Act, Animal Concerns of Texas with cohosts
Greg Lawson, Steve Best and Elizabeth Walsh tonight at 7:30pm Mountain time.
Tonight we feature a second conversation with Kevin Jonas of SHAC, Stop
Huntingdon Animal Cruelty.
Act can be heard on the web with Real Radio, which is a free download.
Click here to listen to Act.
http://www.ktep.org/program_detail.ssd?id=103
El Paso NPR - KTEP 88.5
: National Public Radio for the Southwest
Click here for information on how to get Real Radio and for a link to the
archive of our past shows.
http://utminers.utep.edu/vsep/actradio
ACT Radio
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~7~
The Animals' Savior
Copyright Jim Willis 1999
I looked at all the caged animals in the shelter...the cast-offs of human
society.
I saw in their eyes love and hope, fear and dread, sadness and betrayal.
And I was angry.
"God," I said, "this is terrible! Why don't you do
something?"
God was silent for a moment and then He spoke softly.
"I have done something," He replied.
"I created You."
How Could You?
http://jimwillis0.tripod.com/tiergarten/
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~8~
Memorable Quote
"A man is ethical only when life, as such, is sacred to him,
that of plants and animals as well as that of his fellowman, and when he
devotes himself helpfully to all life that is in need of help."
~ Dr. Albert Schweitzer (1875-1965)
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Susan Roghair - EnglandGal@aol.com
Animal Rights Online
http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/1395/
-=Animal
Rights Online=-
«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»
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