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ANIMAL MEDIA ALERTS -- JUNE 2004
COLUMN ON SCHWARZENEGGER AND SHAC TACTICS IN LOS ANGELES TIMES Patt Morrison's
column about the Schwarzenegger reversal, in the Wednesday, June 30, Los
Angeles Times, is of interest to the animal protection movement for
various reasons. It reaffirms the power of the press, it provides new
information on Schwarzenegger's 'quick' turnaround, and it offers an interesting
take on SHAC tactics such as home demos. http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-sinclair28jun28,1,236956.story There is irony here: Morrison has noted Mayor Hahn's strong pro shelter animal stance. Those familiar with the Los Angeles scene know that Hahn's administration has been under intense pressure from the Animal Defense League of LA, whose tactics, similar to those used by SHAC, seem to have forced Hahn's hand-picked LA Animal Services General Manager, Jerry Greenwalt, to resign. (See http://www.animaldefense.com).
One might speculate that Hahn would like to stay out of ADLLA's
firing line.
SCHWARZENEGGER BACKS OFF SHELTER SCHEME The headline on the front page of the Saturday, June 26, Los Angeles Times read, "Pet Lovers Howl, So Governor Rolls Over." The story was also on the front page of the San Jose Mercury News and of the Modesto Bee, and on page 2 of The Washington Post. It has been featured on the major news networks and on scores of local news broadcasts across the country. Schwarzenegger is quoted as saying that his proposal, to reverse the Hayden Act, which gives dogs and cats a mandatory five or six days of life before they are killed at 'shelters' was a mistake. He says that he is an animal lover, and that his daughter made him realize his mistake. However, the Los Angeles Times tells us, "Schwarzenegger's about-face came a day after animal rights groups began besieging the Capitol upon learning that the governor wanted to cut back a six-day holding period for animals at shelters." Richard McLellan (head of the Animal Legislative Action Network) sent out an update on the web, in which he wrote "The reason why the Governor has changed his mind is because those of you who put your personal lives aside for just long enough to connect with your legislative representatives and the Governor, made thousands of phone calls, over whelmed fax machines and brought state government to a momentary stand still while the Governor tried to figure out what had happened. An aide with many years experience in the Capitol said, 'No one has ever seen anything like it'”. McLellan, however, has a less than exuberant quote in the Saturday LA Times article: "It's a victory when we make progress, not defend something we had already achieved." True in ways. But there is a victory in learning and demonstrating the strength we can have as a movement. Sadly, people tend to care more about dogs and cats than pigs and chickens, so the 'humane' (a euphemism for dog and cat) advocacy movement is far greater in number than the the animal protection movement. Still, we can be encouraged by what happened on Friday. And we can use it to further our cause. Letters based on front page stories will get printed -- as will letters about any story that generates many original letters (as opposed to form letters). So please take this opportunity to send a letter to the editor regarding companion animal population and the importance of spay/neuter. The letters section is one of the most read sections of many major newspapers. I will paste below links to some of the relevant follow-up stories, and contact information for letters to the editor. If you saw that your paper covered the story, please write to your paper, and don't hesitate to ask me for help if you have trouble locating the email address for a letter to the editor. Also, I am always happy to look over and edit letters before they are sent. Every good writer benefits from editing. will paste below links to some of the relevant follow-up stories, and contact information for letters to the editor. If you saw that your paper covered the story, please write to your paper, and don't hesitate to ask me for help if you have trouble locating the email address for a letter to the editor. Also, I am always happy to look over and edit letters before they are sent. Every good writer benefits from editing. Los Angeles Times: "Pet Lovers Howl, So Governor Rolls Over." Page 1A. The Los Angeles Times takes letters at: letters@latimes.com San
Jose Mercury News: "Pet
plan bites dust after outcry." Page
1A. The Mercury News takes letters at: letters@mercurynews.com Washington Post: "Schwarzenegger Backs Off From Stray Pet Crackdown". Page A2 The Washington Post takes letters at: letters@washpost.com
Always
include your full name, address, and daytime phone number when sending
a letter to the editor. Shorter letters are more likely to be published.
SCHWARZENEGGER'S PLAN TO REPEAL THE HAYDEN ACT California's high profile new governor is not going out of his way to ingratiate himself with the animal protection community. His proposed repeal of the Hayden Act is on the front page of the Friday, July 25, Los Angeles Times. The article, by Robert Salladay, is headed: "Pet Lovers Irate About Governor's Idea for Strays; He wants to save money by making it easier for municipal shelters to put animals to death." Salladay gives us some details:
And, "As
proposed, shelters would be allowed to kill dogs and cats after holding
them just 72 hours, regardless of whether the shelters are open to the
public during those three days." You can read the full article on
line at: You can learn more about the proposed repeal of the Hayden Act and how you can help at: This front page story in one of the country's biggest newspapers gives animal advocates a superb opportunity to address, with letters to the editor, the issues that have led to the companion animal population crisis and ensuing questions about how quickly we should kill excess animals in the state's pounds. (I will not call those places, where the majority of animals admitted are killed, shelters.) Please consider a letter to the editor discussing the importance of spay-neuter and the oxymoron of "responsible breeding" in a state where we kill hundreds of animals every year. The Los Angeles Times takes letters at letters@latimes.com and suggests, "Letters should be brief (250 words or less) and are subject to condensation. They must include a full name (initials and pseudonyms will not be used) and a valid mailing address and telephone number. Unpublished letters cannot be acknowledged."
PARENTING MAGAZINE ON KIDS DECIDING TO GO VEGGIE It is common for children, on making the connection between the animals they adore and the food on their plates, to announce a decision to stop eating meat. Traditionally, such pronouncements have been met with concerned and discouraging words, if not outright forbiddance. Parental and societal indoctrination against vegetarianism is effective -- just a few percent of the population return to their childhood concerns and choose a vegetarian diet when they are in their own homes. How wonderful, therefore, to see a magazine that circulates to over 2 million homes with children, recommending that parents support attempts made by their offspring to adopt vegetarian diets. The July edition of Parenting Magazine has a story in it's "Ages" section, under "Ages 8-12," headed "Deciding to go veggie." (Page 156.) It is by Jacqueline Byrne. The story is accompanied by a picture of a baby chick in the hands of a child, with the caption, "How can we eat his mommy?'" The article is brief, so I will paste it below. Please send Parenting Magazine some positive feedback. Parenting takes letters at: youtellus@parenting.com and says, "We would love to hear your thoughts about our articles or any questions you have. Letters, emails, and photos should include your name, address, and daytime and evening phone numbers. Letters may be edited for length and clarity." --------------------------------------------------------------------- Ages+Stages. Ages 8-12 DECIDING
TO GO VEGGIE
NEW YORK TIMES OP-ED ON TERRORISM New York Times op-ed columnist Paul Krugman has written a piece about John Ashcroft's anti-terrorism efforts. It is headed 'Noonday in the Shade' (Tuesday, June 22, pg A19). It discusses Ashcroft's failure to publicize a case in which a white supremacist was found with 60 pipe bombs and a cyanide bomb. Krugman writes, "In this case, it sounds over the top to accuse Mr. Ashcroft of trying to bury news about terrorists who don't fit his preferred story line." But Krugman appears to be accusing Ashcroft of doing just that. Of particular importance to animal rights activists is this paragraph: "The discovery of the Texas cyanide bomb should have served as a wake-up call: 9/11 has focused our attention on the threat from Islamic radicals, but murderous right-wing fanatics are still out there. The concerns of the Justice Department, however, appear to lie elsewhere. Two weeks ago a representative of the F.B.I. appealed to an industry group for help in combating what, he told the audience, the F.B.I. regards as the country's leading domestic terrorist threat: ecological and animal rights extremists." Krugman goes on to discuss Ashcroft's close ties with, and extensive protection of, the gun lobby. Given that neither the Earth Liberation Front, nor the Animal Liberation Front, has been responsible for a single human death, or even human injury in the United States, the FBI labeling those groups as the the leading domestic terrorist threat is bizarre. (And Krugman seems to realize that.) It suggests, at least in those instances, a focus on protecting American animal abuse industries, rather than protecting the American people. Whatever one's opinion of John Ashcroft might be, Krugman's column presents a great opportunity for any animal rights activists to send a letter to the New York Times questioning the animal rights terrorist label. You can read Krugman's whole piece on line at: The New York Times takes letters at: letters@nytimes.com
Always include your full name, address, and daytime phone number when sending a letter to the editor. Shorter letters are more likely to be published.
Please be careful not to use any of my exact phrasing when writing. If multiple letters in response to an article are received, the chances of one or two being published are good. But if those letters have similar wording, and therefore appear to be part of a campaign, the chances are weakened considerably.
FULL PAGE NEW YORK TIMES AD SLAMS AVMA ANTI ANIMAL POLICIES There is a full page advertisement in the A section of the Monday, June 21, New York Times, headed, "Has anyone betrayed more animals than the American Veterinary Medical Association?" I will paste the text of the advertisement below. The ad includes disturbing photographs of sows in gestation crates, a veal calf in a crate, and a hen with a deformed amputated beak. You can view the full ad at the Animal Rights International website at http://www.ari-online.org/campaigns.html. You can download it from that site. The ad is not copyrighted -- anyone can copy it or use it as they wish. Ideally, ARI would like people to show it to their vets and get their vets to protest to the AVMA. If you would like to use it for that purpose, and have any trouble downloading it, I am happy to email you a file with the ad, which you can print. This ad focuses on animals traditionally viewed as 'livestock." Also of interest is the AVMA's current opposition to the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act. When one learns of the AVMA's other policies, that opposition is less of a surprise. For an extensive discussion of AVMA anti animal policies, you can listen to the June 7 edition of KPFK's Watchdog, in which I interviewed Professor Peter Singer (who heads up ARI), Karen Davis PhD, president of United Poultry Concerns, and AVAR consultant veterinarian Dr Holly Cheever. It is archived on line. Go to http://www.DawnWatch.com/Watchdog.htm and click on "AVMA - June 7."
Yours
and the animals', Karen
Dawn Here is the text of today's New York Times ad: ----------------------------------------------------- Has anyone betrayed more animals than the American Veterinary Medical Association?
Betrayed is a
strong word. But look at the facts. AVMA: Beholden
to Industry, not Medicine Contact the
AVMA by writing to:
ZOO ISSUES MAKE FRONT PAGE IN DALLAS AND SAN FRANCISCO The issue of zoos, and the ethical question of keeping wild animals in captivity for human entertainment, is making major mainstream news. The Monday, June 21, San Francisco Chronicle front page has a story headed, "Living large with room to roam; S.F. Zoo elephants ready to retire to one of two U.S. sanctuaries." The Sunday, June 20 Dallas Morning News front page read, "The beastly problems plaguing the Dallas Zoo As campaign tries to shift funding to county, deterioration persists." The Chronicle story focuses on elephants. The Dallas Morning News focuses on gorillas, since it was at the Dallas Zoo that Jabari was shot, in March, after escaping from an enclosure. But that story also takes a wider look at the ability of the zoo to provide for wild inhabitants. The Chronicle story discusses the San Francisco Zoos decision to release its two surviving elephants, Tinkerbelle and Lulu, to sanctuary. Unlike the Detroit zoo, the San Francisco zoo has not committed to closing its elephant habit but rather to rebuilding it before acquiring more elephants. However the article reveals the strength of the stance taken by Zoo director Manuel Mollinedo, against the AZA, which has attempted to bully him into sending Tinkerbelle and Lulu to other zoos despite the elephants' failing health. Patricia Yollin writes: "Facing
escalating pressure from animal rights activists and politicians after
the deaths of two other elephants earlier this year, San Francisco Zoo
director Manuel Mollinedo decided on June 2 to send Lulu and Tinkerbelle
to San Andreas or Hohenwald -- defying the powerful American Zoo and
Aquarium Association, which had recommended other zoos instead. The
story provides sweet descriptions of life for elephants at the PAWS
sanctuary in California and Carol Buckley's sanctuary in Tennessee.
You can read it on line at: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2004/06/21/ELEPHANTS.TMP The Sunday, June 20, front page Dallas Morning News story, by David Flick, focuses on the negative attention the Dallas Zoo received after the escape and shooting of the gorilla Jabari. It discusses problems at the zoo, and includes negative comments, not from animal rights activists, but from zoo supporters and visitors, such as: "It's
pitiful. It doesn't seem like there's adequate space for the animals.
There should be more variety." and ""They need to build new and better exhibits. It breaks my heart to look at the lions and the elephants." The article also includes this encouraging quote from Terry Maple, Atlanta Zoo director emeritus and a psychology professor at Georgia Tech: "Television had provided images of wildlife that were exciting for viewing animals, more so than seeing them in cages." Maple notes that animal activists are challenging existing enclosures and treatment of animals
"The Fort Worth Zoo, on the other hand, has a distinct theme-park feeling. There is a 3-D Virtual Safari ride, a rock-climbing exhibit and a faux Texas town, which features a food court and a special-effects theater that drops artificial rain and hailstones on the audience." It is interesting to learn that a zoo with less focus on imprisoned animals is having greater success. Both of these front page stories provide excellent opportunities for letters questioning the imprisonment of wild animals for human entertainment. I hope Texans will recommend that the Dallas Zoo follow the lead of other zoos, which are closing exhibits that cannot provide adequately for the animals. The San Francisco Chronicle takes letters at: letters@sfchronicle.com and instructs, "Please limit your letters to 200 or fewer words ... shorter letters have a better chance of being selected for publication." Always include your full name, address, and daytime phone number when sending a letter to the editor. The Dallas Morning News takes letters at:
NEW YORK TIMES ETHICIST SLAMS SWIM WITH DOLPHINS PROGRAMS Randy Cohen, who writes 'The Ethicist' column in the Sunday New York Times Magazine, has again turned his attention to an animal rights issue. Recently, in March, he covered fur -- coming down strongly against it. The Sunday June 20 column deals with 'swim with dolphin' programs. He writes that vacation fun is no excuse for exploiting animals. And with regard to all the human ills that encounters with dolphins are said to cure, he writes, "This is not alternative medicine; it's hucksterism." You can read the whole piece on line at: http://www.nytimes.com/2004/06/20/magazine/20ETHICIST.html Now here is the bad news: As he argues against the exploitation of nonhuman animals for vacation fun, he writes, "There are times when we may, indeed must, exploit animals -- for example, for food (although vegetarians will argue this point) or essential medical research -- but vacation fun is not such a case." The plight of dolphins in swim programs is horrendous and should be alleviated. But whereas many thousands of animals suffer in those programs, tens of billions are tortured on factory farms every year. I was saddened by the suggestion that their suffering, their exploitation, is necessary. Though the majority of people choose to exploit animals for food, could it really be only vegetarians who would argue the point about it being a necessity? There are places in the world where it is necessary, but the Sunday New York Times is generally not read in those places. So it is ridiculous for Cohen to suggest to his readers, New York Times readers, that animals 'must' be exploited for food. His suggestion that they must be exploited for "essential medical research" is also contentious. (See http://www.CureDisease.com ) It is wonderful that Cohen is beginning to address animal rights issues. He has done the dolphins a great service with this column, as he did fur bearing animals back in March. So I strongly discourage any notes to him that take an angry tone. Cohen is clearly a thoughtful person, who, for the sake of the animals, we should be doing everything we can to befriend and educate. I hope people will send notes that express great appreciation for his dolphin and fur stances while questioning the idea that only vegetarians would doubt the necessity of exploiting animals for food. The column advises: Send your queries to ethicist@nytimes.com However, letters sent to the editor of the Magazine may be published for all to read, so I recommend sending pro-veggie letters in response to The Ethicist, to Magazine@nytimes.com . Please be careful not to use any of my exact phrasing when writing. If multiple letters in response to an article are received, the chances of one or two being published are good. But if those letters have similar wording, and therefore appear to be part of a campaign, the chances are weakened considerably.
Always
include your full name, address, and daytime phone number when sending
a letter to the editor. Shorter letters are more likely to be published.
PLIGHT OF THE MOON BEARS, FARMED FOR BILE, ON 'LIVING ON EARTH' On its June 18 show, airing on over 300 National Public Radio affiliated stations this weekend, Living On Earth has covered the plight of the Moon bears in China. They are farmed for their bile. Steve Curwood interviewed Jill Robinson, head of Animals Asia (http://www.AnimalsAsia.org ) who has a sanctuary for rescued bears and who is working to end the barbaric bear bile industry. It is a wonderful, in depth interview, fifteen minutes long. If you go to http://www.loe.org and click on "Plight of the Moon Bear" you will be able to listen to the story on line, or read the transcript. And the page has photos, including a shocking photo of a bear being kept in a cage no larger than her body (similar to the way billions of sows are housed on factory farms throughout the world). There is also a happier photo, of a rescued moon bear at the sanctuary. The following link should take you straight to the Moon Bear page on the Living on Earth website: http://tinyurl.com/2vm6a I will share part of the interview, where Robinson discusses the suffering of the bears on the farm. If you listen on line to the interview, you will hear how choked up she gets when she describes the incident with the "unknown ambassador" who she was unable to save. "ROBINSON:
Well, it’s what we’re seeing today. I mean, we’ve started the rescue
and we’re getting dozens and dozens of bears coming into our rescue
center. But I actually won’t forget that first time that I ever saw
my first bear on a bear farm. They’d grown into the cage bars, so that
meant that they had scars running three to four feet in length across
their bodies. They had teeth that had been deliberately cut back by
the farmer to the gums, so it was exposing the pulp. They had paws that
had been deliberately de-clawed, and I don’t mean just trimming the
claws, I mean cutting the end digits off of the fingertips of their
paws so that those claws will never grow back again. And this is to
take away their defenses and make them easier to milk. They had urine
and fecal burns across their bodies where they couldn’t obviously groom
properly. They had head wounds from where they’d consistently banged
their heads against the bars of the cage because they had literally
gone cage crazy. They were completely frustrated, and stereotypic bears,
stereotypic animals. And last, and definitely not least, they had gaping
infected holes in the middle of their abdomens. Living on Earth is terrific show, mostly focusing on environmental issues. Please send the producers a big thank you for this story focusing on animal suffering. Positive feedback will encourage similar coverage. Living on Earth takes feedback, and also asks for story ideas, at http://www.loe.org/ I send a huge thank you to activist Laura Slitt who made sure we knew about this coverage.
ABC WORLD NEWS TONIGHT ON ELEPHANTS IN ZOOS ABC World News Tonight covered the Detroit Zoo's decision to close its elephant exhibit and the possibility that other zoos will follow suit. Ron Kagan, the director of the Detroit Zoo, was interviewed, as was Wayne Pacelle, CEO of HSUS. The argument against keeping elephants on show in captivity was presented. ABC World News Tonight is historically the most animal friendly evening news show. It has won multiple Genesis Awards for animal friendly coverage. This story continued that tradition. Please thank World News Tonight for the coverage. Positive feedback will encourage more coverage of animal issues. World News Tonight takes feedback at: http://www.abcnews.go.com/sections/wnt/WorldNewsTonight/WNT_newemail_form.html
CBS EVENING NEWS ON HORSE SLAUGHTER On Wednesday, June 16, CBS Evening News looked at the issue of slaughter. You'll find a text version of the story on the CBS News website at: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/06/16/eveningnews/main623549.shtml Please thank CBS for bringing the issue to America's attention. Positive feedback for animal friendly coverage will definitely encourage more of it. CBS Evening News takes comments at: evening@cbsnews.com For the latest on HR 857, the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act, which is currently languishing in the House Agricultural Committee, go to:
CSM FRONT PAGE ON CHANGES IN ZOOS AND IN ATTITUDES TO ANIMALS The front page of the Christian Science Monitor has a story headed, "It's no longer a (traditional) zoo out there." Despite the paper's name, maintained to honor the wishes of its founder, the Christian Science Monitor is not a religious paper. It has a circulation of 70,000 generally wealthy and highly educated people, 40% of whom hold post-graduate degrees. It is heartening to see this influential paper place on its front page a story on the shift in attitudes towards members of other species Amanda Paulson opens by mentioning that the Detroit Zoo is closing its elephant exhibit and sending Wanda and Winky to sanctuary. Then she writes: "Zoos nowadays are as apt to evoke sympathy for the caged creatures as curiosity. People are both more aware of animals' needs - emotional and physical - and less willing to tolerate abuse. Between vocal animal rights campaigns and hit films like 'Free Willy' and 'Finding Nemo,' a fundamental shift is taking place in public consciousness: Animals are being treated, essentially, more like humans." She quotes Tom Regan, whose new book is 'Empty Cages' (http://www.cultureandanimals.org/book.htm ): "It's like we're waking up from a deep cultural sleep. Animals are somebodies, not somethings. That's what I think we're waking up to." On the Detroit Zoo decision to relinquish its elephants, she quotes zoo director Ron Kagan: "It was really a natural progression of our effort to create a new, expanded environment for elephants. And it was the realization that nothing we could do could mitigate the severity of the winters, or the reality that elephants live in large groups, and don't breed well in captivity no matter where they are. It became a realization that improving things for elephants really meant not having them." And she writes more on the argument against zoos and circuses: "Getting elephants out of zoos (and circuses, where they have a much harder life) has long been a target of animal-rights groups. The animals are particularly ill-suited for confinement, the groups say, because of their social and habitat needs. Lack of exercise and years of standing on hard surfaces lead to chronic illnesses, and the elephants are often split up from longtime companions. "But Mr. Kagan's suggestion that elephants, along with dolphins and whales, may not belong in captivity at all is at odds with most in the zoo community. Nor does he does shy from detailing how zoos, as much as they've improved, still fall short." Arguments for zoos are also included in the piece, which is somewhat balanced, but does a very good job of questioning whether or not such institutions are appropriate. You can read the whole piece on line at: http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0615/p01s03-ussc.html The Monitor deserves some letters of appreciation for the coverage, letters that address the rights of members of others species to liberty, or that question their use as tools for human entertainment. The Monitor takes letters at: http://search.csmonitor.com/cgi-bin/encryptmail.pl?ID=CFF0C5E4
DOG'S LANGUAGE ABILITY MAKES FRONT PAGES EVERYWHERE Here's what the
press considers to be one of the number one stories in the world today
-- it's on the cover of many leading papers:
NEW YORK TIMES LEAD STORY ON PIGEONS BEING CAUGHT FOR HUNT The front page
of the Metro section of the Thursday, June 10, New York Times, has a thoughtful
article on a disturbing phenomenon. It is headed, "Who's Kidnapping
the Pigeons, and Who Cares?"
PAUL HARVEY SHARES PIG RESCUE STORY Wonderful news: During his Wednesday, June 9, noon broadcast, Paul Harvey told the story of the student who would not give her pig up for slaughter. And he promoted the beautiful film about Farm Sanctuary, 'Peaceable Kingdom.' ( See http://www.tribeofheart.org/pk.htm ) Harvey was recently described, by Larry King, as America's "most listened to broadcaster." I have heard that others have wider listenership, but Harvey is one of the leaders in the field. His network is comprised of over 1075 radio stations, an additional 400 stations of American Forces Radio around the world, 100 TV stations, and 300 newspapers. How wonderful to have a man with such influence choose to share his interest in factory farming cruelty. You can listen to his comments on line by going to http://www.PaulHarvey.com , clicking on the Wednesday noon show, and then scrolling to 5:54, when he begins the pig story. There is a break in the middle and he picks it up again at 9:20. You'll see a link right on that page from which you can email him. Please send a quick thank you for the beautiful coverage. Lots of appreciation will inspire more of it.
STUDENT RAISING PIG FOR SLAUGHTER HAS CHANGE OF HEART I missed the following story on Tuesday, when it appeared in the Orlando Sentinel (and thank Sherill Durbin for posting it to AR-news today) but wanted to share it now because it so moving. On the front page of the local and state section (B1) of the Tuesday, June 8, Orlando Sentinel, the story, by Noaki Schwartz, was headed, "Pig Bound for Slaughter Wins Heart, Then Freedom."
KSAT COVERS RELEASE OF 41 COULSTON MONKEYS TO SANCTUARY Beautiful news and wonderful coverage from San Antonio: KSAT ran a terrific story headed, "41 Monkeys Rescued From 'Living Hell'" The story opened with this frank description of the animal testing at the Coulston laboratory: "For three decades, they were poked and prodded, subjected to some of the cruelest animal testing in America." The macaques have gone to "Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation": http://www.wildlife-rescue.org/ You can read or view the story on line at: http://www.ksat.com/news/3380329/detail.html The station deserves many thank-yous for this coverage, which details the cruelties visited upon the monkeys and asks for donations to the center: KSAT takes feedback at: http://www.ksat.com/contact/index.html Please send an appreciative note.
FOIE GRAS BILL IN SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS The front page
of the B section of the San Jose Mercury News looks at the California
Bill aimed at banning foie gras. The article, by Scott Herhold,
is headed "Diners should settle dispute over foie gras." Unfortunately
Herhold focuses on the concerns of the owner of Sonoma Foie Gras, who
will eventually lose his business if the bill passes. But any press on
this issue, rather than silence, can be good for the animals. It gives
us an opportunity to tell the other side of the story. |