A n i m a l
W r i t e s © sm
The
official ANIMAL RIGHTS ONLINE newsletter
Publisher ~ EnglandGal@aol.com
Issue # 06/13/01
Editor
~ JJswans@aol.com
Journalists ~ Park StRanger@aol.com
~ MichelleRivera1@aol.com
~ sbest1@elp.rr.com
THE EIGHT ARTICLES IN THIS ISSUE ARE:
1 ~ Animal Testing Is A Disaster by
Jerome Burne
2 ~ The New Zone by Robert Cohen
3 ~ Honey by Rick Bogle
4 ~ Freedom At Last by Melissa Waz
5 ~ Summer Picnic Ideas by VegeTexan@aol.com
6 ~ Be Kind To Yourself by Laurelee Blanchard
7 ~ On The Fur Fan by Pauline Dubkin Yearwood
8 ~ Memorable Quote
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Animal Testing Is A Disaster
by Jerome Burne
Guardian
Unlimited | The Guardian | Animal testing is a disaster
http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,3604,495634,00.html
Thousands
of people have been injured or killed by drugs that were found to be safe for
other species
What do you feel is more important -- the life of your child or the life of a
few rats? Such stark contrasts are common currency in the heavily polarized
debate about experiments on animals. On the one side the misguided
sentimentality of the animal rights campaigners, on the other side the tireless
pursuit of human happiness and health by the researchers.
But since those wide-eyed activists have put animals' rights somewhere on the
election agenda, you may be interested to know that there is a totally
hard-headed and rational case to be made for saying that animal experimentation
has been a scientific and medical disaster. That far from saving lives, it has
caused injury and death to thousands and that time and again it has led both
researchers and legislators into a blind alley.
But surely, you cry, we need animal experiments to discover how safe new drugs
are before we give them to humans? Well, the combination of fenfluramine and
dexfenfluramine, touted as the answer to a dieter's prayer a few years ago, was
extensively tested on animals and found to be very safe. Unfortunately it
caused heart valve abnormalities in humans. Or how about the arthritis drug
Opren? Tests on monkeys found no problems but it killed 61 people before it was
withdrawn. And as for having to choose between rats and your child, Cylert,
given to children with attention deficit hyperactive disorder, was fine for
animals but caused liver failure in 13 children.
The problem is not a new one, in fact it is blindingly obvious -- animals are
not the same as humans, so drugs that affect them in one way may well affect us
differently.
Now this is usually presented as a solvable problem by researchers. We can get
an idea of the mechanism from animals and then fine-tune with humans, they say,
but it doesn't work like that. Species, even those that seem closely related,
may function quite differently at a molecular level,
and there is no way of predicting what the differences will be.
Rats and mice, for instance, look pretty alike to us, but when it comes to
something as basic as whether a chemical causes cancer or not, the results may
be totally contradictory. Out of 392 chemicals tested for carcinogenic effects
at the American National Institute of Environmental
Health Sciences, 96 were positive in the rat and negative in the mouse or vice
versa. So which of those are harmful to humans? The institute can't say.
For 30 years they fed high doses of a range of new chemicals to animals to
discover if they caused cancer or other damage. The results are recorded in
blue books that take up 10 feet of shelving in the institute. But ask how many
of the substances might produce tumors in humans at normal levels and no one
knows. So what about the ones that didn't harm rodents, how many of them might
harm humans? They don't know that either.
The lack of predictable differences between animal and human reactions is
something that has bedeviled Aids research. Aids is a high profile disease with
a lot of research money available, so it surely makes sense to ignore ethical
objections and use chimpanzees. It is surely precisely
because their genome is identical to ours, give or take a few percentage
points, that they should yield more accurate results than rodents.
Well, no, actually. Out of approximately 100 chimps infected with HIV over a
10-year period only two have become sick. Chimp vaccine trials have proved
unreliable too because they don't show the antibody or cell-mediated response
to HIV that humans do. Animal experimentation has played only a small role in
developing drug treatments to the greatest plague of our time.
And the list could go on. There are drugs that have been held back because they
caused dangerous reaction in animals, such as beta blockers and valium, but
then turned out to be safe for humans. Legislation to halt the use of asbestos
was held up for years because it didn't cause
cancer in animals, while the carcinogen benzene continued to be used long after
clinicians were worried because it didn't cause leukemia in mice.
All these examples, and many more, have been written up in the specialist
journals but until last year they had been scattered. Then a man called Ray
Greek, an American medical doctor who specialized in the highly technical field
of anesthesia collected them in a book called Sacred Cows and Golden Geese. He
gave a talk in London about it last night.
So was this scientific, rational contribution to the debate about animal
experiments warmly welcomed, so medical research could be improved? Supporters of animal experiments are always
calling for more public discussion and education.
Of course not. It was ignored.
• Jerome Burne is editor of the monthly newsletter Medicine Today
www.medicine-today.co.uk
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The New Zone
by Robert Cohen - i4crob@idt.net
http://www.notmilk.com
Have you noticed those glass cages at
airports? Addicts pace inside, puffing on cigarettes, while enormously
efficient fans atop terminal buildings suck out carbon monoxide and other
noxious fumes.
Airports have been declared smoke-free zones, and with good reason. Cigarette smokers offend non-smokers, and
those who continue the practice are placed in see-through glass cubicles for
other passengers to gawk at. Cigarette smokers are a dying breed in more
ways than one.
Five hundred years from now, when starships are no longer science fiction, and
when man evolves into the spiritual being that he was always fated to become,
would you imagine that he will still be killing animals to provide for his
sustenance?
With delicious and nutritious soy and wheat analogues, twenty-first century man
has eliminated that desire for chicken and cow flesh among millions of people
who have become vegetarians and vegans. Further advances in nutritional
science will one day replicate exactly the textures of foods that omnivores
find appealing. The seeds of the earth and the fruits of those seeds will
supply mankind with all of its food needs, and do so in a manner in which every
meal becomes a culinary delight.
On that day, all of planet Earth will become a meat-free zone.
Historians may very well identify a moment in time in which the first step to
the creation of a universal meat-free zone began.
Folks, we are witnessing history. Join me in welcoming the origin of the
meat-free-zone movement.
Andy Glick and Jerry Cook, both members of
EarthSave International's board of Directors, have turned Glick's original
concept into reality.
Long ago, peer pressure was placed upon those who would not puff upon
cigarettes. Today, cigarette smokers have become society's pariahs. So,
too, will meat eaters one day be considered more than pariahs. The last
of the meat eaters will be ridiculed as unhealthy savages who torture and kill
gentle creatures, and, in doing so, saturate their own bodies with dangerous
animal fats and cholesterol.
Together, Glick and Cook have clicked and look forward to a world in which
meat-free zone signs are posted in homes and restaurants. Today America,
tomorrow the world!
I myself have ordered the first run of t-shirts and bumper stickers in support
of this program. I hope that you do the same.
Join the movement. Andy and Jerry have dug deep into their pockets, and are
offering free beginner kits:
http://www.meatfreezone.org./Free_MFZ_Kits/free_mfz_kits.html
Do
whatever you can to help take this message to millions of people. One day, the
meat-free-zone signs will be taken down, for that is mankind's destiny.
On that day the animals will earn a right that mankind has denied them; the
unalienable right to live their lives without pain.
Help to accelerate that moment.
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Honey
by Rick Bogle - rbogle@sonic.net
The
following is from activist Rick Bogle. He has written to the Kiss My Face
corporation regarding their use of honey in their soaps.
Date: Sat, 09 Jun 2001 17:21:28 -0700
From: Rick Bogle
Subject: honey
Dear Bob,
I was recently forwarded a comment from the KMF webpage, or perhaps from you,
concerning honey and KMF's belief that honey harvesting does not harm bees.
I am a vegan who once raised bees and who has visited the apiaries of other bee
keepers and who has a personal friend who once commercially transported bees to
various agricultural fields for pollinating needs.
I have read extensively concerning raising bees and have built hive bodies and
supers for other bee keepers. I know a bit about the honey bees, their natural
history, commercial honey production, and hobby bee keeping. Frankly, I love bees.
I have sat in front of a hive on many a summer afternoon with my nose to the
hive opening breathing in the scent of the hive -- it is a wonderful
aroma. The bees I have known have been
well-mannered and remarkably permissive of my careful intrusions.
I do not eat honey now nor do I use products containing honey. Although it is
at least theoretically possible to harvest honey without harm to any of the
bees in a hive, I am aware of no one doing this. To harvest the honey or any
bee product in a cruelty-free manner one would have to move very slowly and
carefully to avoid hurting any of the hundreds of bees who will crawl over the
combs as they are being removed from the hive. Very slowly indeed.
I do not believe that a bee keeper with more than one or two hives to work
through would be willing to take the necessary time. Instead, and
typically, bee keepers are gloved and netted to avoid stings (nearly every bee
who stings will die due to her entrails being pulled from her body attached to
her stinger). Then the hives are opened as quickly as possible and the bees are
"smoked." Smoke from a smoldering fire carried in a
"smoker" is pumped into the hive and the bees are "calmed."
In spite of this, the combs are pulled quickly and many bees are crushed in the
process. When a bee is hurt she releases a chemical message that alerts and
activates the hive members who proceed to attack the intruder -- giving their
lives in the process.
I cannot imagine a way to produce any commercially meaningful quantity of honey
that does not entail hurting and killing bees.
I love honey, have interacted with many bees, and as a matter of principle --
the same principles in fact that lead me to choose KMF products -- now forego
the consumption of any bee produced product.
I urge you and the senior KMF staff to personally visit an apiary during honey
harvest, assist in the harvest, and then decide whether the many bee deaths and
injuries can be truly characterized as cruelty-free.
Sincerely,
Rick Bogle
Goleta, CA 93117
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Freedom At Last
by Melissa Waz of ADAPTT-Tampa - mlwspider@aol.com
Over
a year ago, while learning to speak Spanish at a school in Mexico, ADAPTT-Tampa
co-coordinator Karen Lybrand (liltycat@aol.com) came across an enslaved, caged
lion. Her class took a city tour one day and passed him along the
way. "Solomon" is his name. He lived in a small cage
(barely large enough to turn around) outside the residence of a man named Diego
Gaona.
For an entire year, Karen thought about Solomon and wondered what we could do
to get him out of there. She wasn't even positive about his exact
location, but she did know the name of the small town (Cholula). Finally,
in February of this year Karen and I (Melissa) took a trip back there.
We found him. He was still there. Pacing back and forth. Sadness
and despair in his eyes. He stared at us, as if to say "Please don't
leave me here." We promised him that we would be back.
Immediately when we got back into the United States, we began our
investigation. We learned that Solomon existed for one purpose. To
bring "luck" to Diego Gaona. He was a symbol of
"pride" to this man (who was a witch with 18 wives), his cage had
barely enough shelter to keep the rain out. Concrete floor. He was
4 years old ... and never once did he step foot outside of his cell. He
ate raw chicken every other day.
After three months of negotiations with U.S. and Mexican government officials,
wildlife officers, customs and immigrations and permits offices, we got our
final authorization to remove him from his lifetime of misery. Beginning
on June 3, Karen spent six days in Mexico -- taking a bus back
and forth between Puebla and Mexico City obtaining the remaining signatures and
finalizing the paperwork.
On June 8, Pat Craig, Director of the Rocky Mountain Wildlife Conservation
Center arrived in Cholula to meet her, with his truck and transport container.
It is with great humbleness and pride that I announce: Solomon arrived at
his new home today, Sunday, June 10.
After driving 1700 miles from Cholula, Mexico, to Denver, Colorado, Solomon was
introduced to 115 acres of paradise. He will start his new life at the
Rocky Mountain Wildlife Conservation Center leaving a lifetime of suffering and
loneliness behind him.
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Summer Picnic Ideas
from VegeTexan@aol.com
Sub Sandwiches
Slice a fresh loaf of bread sideways and fill with Yves brand vegan Canadian
Bacon, salami or other vegan slices such as LightLife brand, tomato, leaf lettuce,
horseradish, olives, sliced peppers or other condiments as desired. I
like to use Vegenaise brand vegan mayo. These products may be carried by your
local health food store or visit these webpages...
Vegenaise
Follow Your Heart
http://www.followyourheart.com/
Yves Welcome to Yves Veggie Cuisine
http://www.yvesveggie.com/
LightLife Lightlife http://www.lightlife.com/
Coleslaw
a medium size cabbage
a large carrot
1 small red bell pepper, finely chopped
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/8 cup, more or less, unrefined sugar, cane juice or other sweetener to
taste teaspoon salt
fresh black pepper
1/3 cup or so Vegenaise
Grate the cabbage and carrot with a food processor and place into a large bowl.
Add salt and vinegar and toss. Cover and refrigerate for several hours or
overnight. It helps to toss every now and then. Pour off the liquid and
then stir in chopped red bell pepper, sweetener, Vegenaise and a dash of black
pepper. Chill for another hour or more before serving. Keeps several
days.
Potato Salad
3 or 4 large red potatoes cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1/3 cup chopped red bell pepper
1/3 cup chopped celery (use some of the leaves too)
1/3 cup chopped red onion (replace or augment with green onions)
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
3 tablespoons chopped green and/or black olives
2 tablespoons pickle relish
optional: capers, artichoke hearts or whatever else your heart desires and
also for your heart, Vegenaise 1/4 to 1/3 cup to taste
Steam or boil the potatoes until they start to soften, then rinse with cold
water to stop the cooking and drain. Be careful not to overcook. In a
large bowl toss the potatoes with the other ingredients, cover and chill for an
hour or more.
Egg Salad
1 box Mori-Nu
Tofu http://www.morinu.com/, chopped or roughly mashed
with a fork, be sure to remove box
1 package Fantastic Foods
http://www.fantasticfoods.com/ brand Tofu
Scrambler
1/4 cup chopped green or red bell pepper
1/4 cup onion
two tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
two tablespoons pickle relish
two tablespoons sliced olives
other condiments as desired
3 or so tablespoons Vegenaise
In a large skillet, crumble tofu and add a couple of tablespoons water,
contents of Tofu Scrambler package and simmer for a few minutes. Add onions and
bell peppers and simmer for another couple of minutes. Remove from heat,
add all other ingredients and chill. Serve on whole grain rolls.
Tuno Salad
1 can Natural Touch Tuno drained
Worthington
Foods Product Profiles Product: Natural Touch Tuno http://www.kelloggs.com/products/morningstar/catalog/profiles/naturaltouch/tuno.html
1/4 cup chopped green or red bell pepper
1/4 cup onion
1/4 cup chopped celery
two tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
two tablespoons pickle relish
two tablespoons sliced olives
other condiments as desired
3 or so tablespoons Vegenaise
In a bowl combine all ingredients. Serve on whole grain rolls or as stuffing
for steamed artichokes.
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Be Kind To Yourself
by Laurelee Blanchard
We
owe it to the animals not to turn a blind eye to their suffering, but we must
be careful to avoid becoming overwhelmed with sadness to the extent that we no
longer have the energy to fight for their protection. Our knowledge about
the immense cruelty and pain that exists in our world makes us vulnerable to
depression. As a result, animal abusers succeed not only in harming animals,
but in hurting us, too, and in reducing our effectiveness.
I went through a time when I found it difficult to appreciate or enjoy anything
about life, as my mind was focused on the billions of animals in agony. Even though I had so much for which to be
grateful, I felt guilty about being joyful while the animals were
miserable. My hopeless attitude wasn't benefiting the animals; it was
reducing my productivity.
When I told my boss about my bad mood, he offered some helpful advice:
"Don't think so much about the big picture; just focus on
your work and be glad that you are part of the solution."
His suggestion to not dwell on the suffering persuaded me to allow myself some
happiness. When my attitude improved, I felt more energetic, and I was
able to conduct my daily tasks with enthusiasm about the difference I was
making for the animals.
Kindness toward animals means being kind to ourselves, too. The animals
don't want us to suffer with sadness. We aren't guilty of the cruelty
inflicted upon them, so let's not permit the animal exploiters to succeed at
making us miserable, too. If we can educate society about the facts of
[animal suffering], while trying our best to be happy about the good things in
life, our world will be a better place.
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On The Fur Farm
©2001 Pauline Dubkin Yearwood - Ahimsa2000@aol.com
The coat took 40 of them,
Raised to cover someone else’s back.
Not for them the dewy grass under their paws,
Sighting prey, the long chase,
The cold air, the brambles,
Morning sun warming wet fur.
Their paws felt only cage wires,
Boxes too small to stretch in,
Smelling of three weeks worth of dung.
The end came, but not quickly enough.
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Memorable Quote
"Vegetarianism serves as the criterion by which we know that the pursuit
of moral perfection on the part of humanity is genuine and
sincere.
~ Leo Tolstoy
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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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