A n i m
a l W r i t e s © sm
The
official ANIMAL RIGHTS ONLINE newsletter
Publisher ~ EnglandGal@aol.com
Issue
# 02/04/01
Editor ~ JJswans@aol.com
Journalists ~ Park StRanger@aol.com
~
MicheleARivera@aol.com
~ SavingLife@aol.com
THE NINE ARTICLES IN THIS ISSUE ARE:
1 ~ Lights, Camera, Activism!
2 ~ Texas Links To Mad Cow Disease
3 ~ Talk Back To "The View"
4 ~ Job Opportunity
5 ~ WWAIL 2001
6 ~ Animal
Communications Workshop
7 ~ More Evidence That Hunting is Not
Necessary for Population Control
8 ~ God,
Are You Real?
9 ~ Quote To Remember
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Lights,
Camera, Activism!
by Christine A. Dorchak
From The Animals' Agenda - Volume 20 * No. 6
Television's
commercial environment depicts nonhuman animals as products for consumption,
but community television offers a platform for advocating change. Such
was my motivation for creating the Boston-based program, Animal Agenda
(not affiliated with this magazine).
In 1995, Animal Agenda debuted in the city of Cambridge as a live talk
show. Today it is produced as a monthly documentary that broadcasts
throughout the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. As the researcher and host,
I examine the roles of nonhuman beings in today's anthropocentric
society. I expose the industrialized cruelty of factory farms, biomedical
labs, fur farms, puppy mills, circuses, zoos, and racetracks. With each
program, I try to inform viewers about humane living, and show them ways they
can help animals in their daily lives.
The mission of community television in general is to give voice to alternative
perspectives, and although controversial subjects are welcomed, certain
discussions can still be censored. Earlier this year, Gail Eisnitz of the
Humane Farming Association was interviewed about the conditions found inside
slaughterhouses. Shock waves crossed Massachusetts as viewers from Newton
to Cape Cod demanded that the show, which contained some graphic footage, be
pulled. It seems that we had hit a nerve! Despite the fervor, my
producer Diana Cartier of NewTV mustered the advocacy of the
Cablecasters Association and Animal Agenda remained on the air.
Evolution through education is the goal of our show, and you can do it
too! By giving your audience the opportunity to explore and learn about
animals, you can directly affect the way people view animal rights.
Effectively presenting complex subjects such as in vitro vs. in vivo
research will require preparation; however, such issues are rarely covered elsewhere.
You can start your broadcasting career by checking out the program currently
carried by your local cable access channel. Then make an appointment with
the station manager to discuss proposed concepts and goals. You will be
given a tour of the studios, asked to become a member of the station, and then
to submit the proper application forms. Remember, as an area resident,
you have the right to use the facilities; a basic orientation and an
introduction to specific broadcast requirements should be the only conditions
for placement on the schedule. It doesn't take a college degree or
previous experience, just a willingness to learn the basics of cable
television, an understanding of the issues, and the courage to make a few
mistakes.
While generating an initial roster of guests, it is advisable to find a partner
who can help with camera work, editing, and production. You should each
register for some short courses on cable broadcasting, production, and
delivery. Knowing how to use the local cable studio's equipment correctly
is a must! Many of these classes are conducted by other station members,
so there is often a great deal of flexibility and personal interaction with
instructors. Digital equipment is used in many localities, but you should
be prepared to deal with video and audio tape as well.
Documentary roll-ins, available from groups like People for the Ethical
Treatment of Animals, Farm Sanctuary, or In Defense of Animals, can provide
good background material for interviews. These are usually provided
without charge to broadcasters, so don't be afraid to ask.
Discussions with animal-friendly business owners or area shelter managers make
interesting first shows. Inviting ordinary folks to visit your stage with
their dogs or cats is an excellent way to establish community ties and build a
solid viewership as well. Once your program is established, it may be
possible to ask well-known advocates to appear. I have had the good
fortune to interview Peter Singer, Jim Mason, Karen Davis, Howard Lyman, Steven
Wise, and Neal Barnard.
Cable access provides us a golden opportunity to introduce new thoughts and new
ideas into the minds of the general public. So be informed, be
professional, and give your audience the power to participate in change!
“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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Texas Links To Mad Cow Disease
from Ahimsa Netwrk
Today CNN and the Houston Chronicle reported 39
cases of meningitis in Houston. France and Italy have shut down slaughterhouses
to investigate Mad Cows' Disease. McDonald's Italia's 300 outlets are
supplied by one of these.
In the US, because of the power of the meat industry to influence politics, the
Centers For Disease Control, NIH, the FDA, the USDA, and the GOP, Mad Cows'
Disease deaths have been labeled meningitis or leukemia, cancer or Jakob
Cruetzfeld Disease. Autopsies should be done on the brains of all dying of
meningitis, since the brain tissue of MCD victims will be spongy (bovine
spongiform encephalopathy). The source of MCD has been the meat industry's turning
animals into unwitting cannibals, as sheeps' brains were fed to cows in the UK.
In the US, dogs from animal shelters are sent to 'rendering' plants and
sometimes put into cow, pig, sheep and chicken food. (Feed is a
chauvinist term.) While dogs are fed to
cows, cows also are put in pet food. Gelatin (Jell-O) like all animal products
should be avoided for protection.
Howard Lyman's attempt to publicize this danger resulted in Amarillo cattlemen
suing him and Oprah Winfrey. These cattlemen received the support of
George Bush and the GOP. The undersigned want the truth told about Mad
Cows' Disease in the US, as well as an end to subsidies for the meat industry,
an end to grazing on federal lands, an end to animal product promotions in the
schools through the WIC and other programs.
PLEASE, SIGN THE PETITION : http://www.ethepeople.com
( Please see the right side " most recent petitions section
"
then click "Texas Links to Mad Cow
Disease." )
References :
http://www.madcowboy.com
http://www.pcrm.org
http://www.chron.com (charges for archive search)
http://www.cnn.com/2001/HEALTH/01/22/menigitis.02/index.html
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Talk Back To "The
View"
From: etvnews@abcetv.go.com (ABC's Enhanced TV)
Stop
shouting at your TV! The Ladies of "THE VIEW" can't hear you...
but with ABC's Enhanced TV, NOW they can! http://etv.go.com/viewred
February is "TALK BACK TO THE VIEW" MONTH on ABC! Log on to http://abc.go.com and
click on the Enhanced TV logo during the show.
February 5th - February 28th ABC's Enhanced TV will offer LIVE interactive programming
- so you can "TALK BACK TO THE VIEEW." We'll take your comments and
show them to the world on our interactive application, provide you with
real-time content you can't get from watching the TV alone...and even poll the
Enhanced TV audience and show your votes ON THE AIR!
Check your local listings for air times and log on to ABC's Enhanced TV... it's
time for your voice to be heard at http://etv.go.com/viewred !
Find out how you can appear on "THE VIEW's Segment 5" and dish with
the co-hosts live! Visit http://abc.go.com/theview/main.html
for details on the Talk Back to "The View" contest.
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Job Opportunity
In
Defense of Animals, a national animal rights organization, seeks experienced
communication director to manage media, publications, and public relations.
Exceptional written and oral skills are a must. The individual will be
responsible for development and coordination of marketing, writing press
releases, advertising, supervision of media relations, coordination of website
and newsletter editing and production. Salary DOE.
Mail/FAX resume and writing samples to:
In Defense of Animals
Attn: Human Resources
131 Camino Alto
Mill Valley, Ca 94941
FAX (415) 388 - 0388
email: ek@idausa.org
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WWAIL 2001
World Week for Animals in Laboratories
April 21 - 29, 2001
From: wwail2001@wwail.org
Listen
Closely:
No matter where you live in the United States, from Puerto Rico to Alaska, from
Hawaii to Boston, from New Orleans to Madison, Wisconsin, if you listen
carefully with an open your heart, you can hear the cries, whimpers and moans
from the millions of animals locked away in our nation's laboratories.
If you live in North Carolina you may have difficulty sleeping once you hear
the wails from the thousands of animals being experimented on at Wake Forest
University.
Perhaps you can hear the dogs in Che-Ping Cheng's experiments when they awaken
from the surgery that has turned their bodies into fully instrumented living
laboratories. The conscious dogs will be experimented on for eight months
before they are killed to explore why chronic alcohol consumption can damage
the heart.
If you walk down Medical Center Boulevard and listen carefully, you may be able
to hear the moans coming from all the cocaine and heroin addicted monkeys
locked away in the Center for the Neurobiological Investigation of Drug
Abuse
Thousands of animals are under attack at Wake Forest; each and every one is
adequate justification for loud and critical protest across the nation against
the callousness of a system unconcerned with their suffering and dismissive of
your indignation.
Now is the time to begin considering what you will do to educate and alert the
public about the plight of the animals being sacrificed at the foot of $cience
in laboratories in your neighborhood and around the world.
Now is the time to begin planning events in your area.
As you consider, plan, and act, In Defense of Animals (IDA) will be there to
help you. IDA can help you promote your events and actions by:
1. Preparing fact sheets to hand out at your events. If you have a
university in your area it is very likely that animals are under attack in
those labs. We can help you find out what is being done to them and who is
doing it. Request this service early; demand is likely to be high.
2. Promoting your events on our WWAIL website. Last year, in the build up
to WWAIL, our site received half a million hits. The public, the media,
other activists, and the vivisection community can learn that efforts are
growing and our resolve is strengthening.
3. Helping to place ads in campus and community newspapers. IDA will
match up to $250 for placement of ads the week before your events. We can
provide ready-made ads of any size. Place your organization's name next to ours
and show that we stand together, unified and resolute.
4. Assisting you with news releases. IDA has worldwide faxing capability
and literally thousands of media contacts in our database. Request this
service early to assure you are served on time.
Big business and big $cience have consumed compassion. Now is the time to
begin planning for WWAIL 2001. Fight back.
For more information contact wwail2001@wwail.org
or call In Defense of Animals (415) 388 9641 x 21
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Animal Communications Workshop
From: amanda valencia
Taken from The Gentle Barn Sanctuary:
There is going to be an animal communications workshop from February 8th -
11th. It will be with internationally renowned animal communicator Jeri Ryan,
PHD. anyone interested should contact Gabrielle at 323 662-6724. She will share
more details with you.
I believe we all have an innate ability to communicate with all life, this is a
good opportunity to discover yours.
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More Evidence That Hunting
Is Not Necessary for Population Control
From: "Adam Weissman, Wetlands Preserve"
University
of Toronto - http://www.utoronto.ca/
Animals regulate their numbers by own population density. Zoologists from
the University of Toronto have cracked the ecological puzzle of how animals -
in this case the arctic ground squirrel - manage to control their own
population in the northern boreal forest of Canada.
In a study to be published in the Nov. 23 [2000] issue of Nature, the
researchers found that when arctic ground squirrel populations reached the
maximum limit the environment could support, the females severely reduced
reproduction and most died over winter during hibernation, thus controlling the
population.
"No population of organisms increases without limit. The central question
in population ecology is what regulates their numbers. And the answer often is:
the actions of the populations themselves," says Rudy Boonstra, a
professor of zoology in the Division of Life Sciences at the University of Toronto
at
Scarborough and co-author of the paper. "The populations themselves are
critical to preventing unlimited growth. There are obviously other processes
going on - predators and things like that - but the regulation that occurs in
arctic ground squirrels is mainly dictated by the number of fellow squirrels
that are around it."
"Animals can change their reproductive output depending on certain
environmental conditions. And one of those environmental conditions is
population density," notes Tim Karels, lead author of the paper who
conducted the research as part of his PhD thesis at U of T. "So if you
have lots of neighbors and you're competing for the same food, it can lower
reproduction. And that's what we saw. At very high population densities,
female ground squirrels basically shut down their reproduction, and that was
done in order to sustain their own survival. When conditions were better, they
would start reproducing again."
The arctic ground squirrel lives in the tundra, alpine and forested regions of
the Northwest Territories, the Yukon and Alaska and hibernates over
winter. Karels conducted the research between the spring of 1996 and
spring of 1998 at the Arctic Institute Base at Kluane Lake, about 200 km west
of Whitehorse.
Karels and Boonstra took groups of arctic ground squirrels that lived under
certain conditions - one group was protected from predators via an electric
fence, another was provided with food in the form of rabbit pellets, a third
group was both protected from predators and given food, and the last served as
the control group. In the spring of 1996, the food and protection were
cut off to see how the squirrel populations from these experimental groups
would respond.
"In high density populations - which resulted when the squirrels had both
protection and food - the first thing we noticed is that females stopped
reproducing. They got pregnant but terminated reproduction somewhere between
pregnancy and when the babies should have appeared above ground after
weaning," says Karels.
The researchers believe the female squirrels shut down reproduction in order to
increase their own chance of survival. The cost of reproduction is
extraordinarily high, they say, since the squirrel must provide nutrients for
itself as well as a litter. Without food provided by the researchers, the
squirrels had to forage as they would in their natural habitat.
Karels and Boonstra found that certain types of plants that normally feed the
squirrels were completely consumed in 1996. Although the squirrels looked
relatively healthy as winter came, the researchers were surprised to find that
93 per cent in the highest density population died that first winter. They
believe that the types of food needed to sustain certain types of body fat
throughout the winter were insufficient for the dense populations.
This study was funded by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council
of Canada.
CONTACT: Janet Wong
U of T Department of Public Affairs
(416) 978-6974
jf.wong@utoronto.ca
Rudy Boonstra
U of T at Scarborough Division of Life Sciences
(416) 287-7419
boonstra@scar.utoronto.ca
Tim Karels
University of Alberta Department of Biological Sciences
(780) 492-9878
tkarels@ualberta.ca
http://www.eurekalert.org/releases/ut-art112100.html
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God, Are You Real?
Author Unknown
Contributed by anh@bellatlantic.net (Aubrey Hamilton)
The child whispered, "God,
speak to me"
And a meadowlark sang.
The child did not hear.
So the child yelled, "God, speak to me!"
And the thunder rolled across the sky
But the child did not listen.
The child looked around and said,
"God let me see you" and a star shone brightly
But the child did not notice
And the child shouted,
"God show me a miracle!"
And a life was born but the child did not know.
So the child cried out in despair,
"Touch me God, and let me know you are here!"
Whereupon God reached down
And touched the child.
But the child brushed the butterfly away
And walked away unknowingly.
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Quote To Remember
"You
and I want to love and be loved; we really don't want to hurt, or violate, or
kill. We used to believe that we had to do that to live; we were trained to
accept violence as normal. Now we know there are alternatives. Now we can
leave behind our inherited patterns of brutality and domination, creating
together a better world for all beings."
~ Billy Ray Boyd
(For the 'Vegetarian in You')
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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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