DawnWatch Illinois

DawnWatch Illinois: "Vegan shoppers can rejoice over range of stylish options" in Chicago Tribune 8/12/07

2007-08-13T00:11:38Z

Hey there Chicago Folks,
Please take the opportunity presented by the fun article in the Sunday August 12 Tribune, to send an appreciative animal friendly letter to the editor. The Chicago Tribune takes letters at http://tinyurl.com/4lsug
Always include your full name, address and phone number.

Chicago Tribune
August 12, 2007 Sunday

Vegan shoppers can rejoice over range of stylish options

By Erin Wade, McClatchy-Tribune newspapers

Section Q ; ZONE C; Pg. 4

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The new stylish living goes beyond big-name designers. Cruelty-free is what's in fashion now.

Feet forward

Walk on the wild-friendly side in shoes from Simple's Green Toe line. They're made with sustainable materials: jute shoelaces, recycled car-tire soles, cork insoles and bamboo-fabric lining. Some styles are made with wool felt as well, but if you're vegan, you can choose the shoes without it. Women's GT Jane in tendril sunset gold ($85) and men's Stop Global Warming Toepeeka ($65) are light and fun for summer. Find them at simpleshoes.com.

Feeling fruity

If you really want to feel fresh and clean in the tub, add some products from 100 percent Pure to your bathroom. The company's shower gels, scrubs, lotions and butters are all organic and come in flavors so yummy you could just eat them (but don't). Almost all products are vegan except for the ones made with honey. The vegan options we love are the organic Juicy Pineapple shower gel ($13.50) and the organic Strawberry Butter body scrub ($19). 100 percent Pure products can be found at Bath & Body Works. Find out more at puritycosmetics.com.

Green and clean

Lush Cosmetics' handmade products are so natural that many even have expiration dates. But the company also has a strong stance against animal testing and includes many vegan products in its catalog. The Veganese lemon-scented hair conditioner ($24.95) is made with a seaweed-gel base instead of animal-based glycerines. We also love the Lip Lime balm ($7.95), which is made with mango and avocado butters. Find these products at Lush.

Face first

Beauty company Smashbox has created two eye shadow Palettes for PETA in Earth Mother and In the Wild. The limited-edition shadows are 100 percent vegan and have never been tested on animals. $34 each at Sephora.

What is vegan?

The basics are obvious: no meat, eggs, honey, gelatin, etc. But animal byproducts are present in our everyday lives beyond the kitchen. Many vegans ban clothing and personal-care products made with leather, silk and even wool and down, plus any product tested on animals, according to Vegan Action. Visit vegan.org to learn more about veganism and easy steps toward living vegan.

Bag it up

Some of the stylish and animal-friendly bags by Christian Livingston look, feel and even smell like soft leather but are actually made from PVC. A toggle tote ($85) is supple and handy with lots of pockets and details. The line also includes hip nylon bags ($67) for another leather alternative.
(End of Chicago Tribune article)
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Date: Mon Aug 13 00:11:38 2007

DawnWatch Illinois: Foie gras ban in trouble 9/12/06

2006-09-12T15:36:16Z

Hello Illinois:
Please forward this to all animal advocates in the Chicago area.

Today's Chicago Tribune includes an article, headed, "Lovers of liver may taste victory after all" about a move to repeal the foie gras ban. And the Chicago Sun Times includes a featured letter from Farm Sanctuary founder Gene Bauston, in favor of the ban. I will paste both below. You can respond to the Tribune at http://tinyurl.com/4lsug and to the Sun Times at http://www.suntimes.com/geninfo/feedback.html

Please also, immediately, send brief faxes to Aldermen Bernard Stone (50th) and Burton Natarus (42nd) who originally voted in favor of the measure and are now heading up the repeal effort. Ask them to withdraw their proposal.
Stone: Fax -- 312-744-2328
Natarus: Fax -- 312-7441728
And please also send a note to your own Alderman making it clear that you are a constituent and that you support his/her vote in favor of the ban on foie gras. (The vote was unanimous.) If you dial 311, the city help line, you will be able to get your Alderman's contact information.
A brief heartfelt note to your legislator is by far the most effective -- handwritten is wonderful, making it clear you haven't just printed somebody else's letter. But Bauston's Sun Times letter at the bottom of this alert might give you an idea of the kind of point you can make in your note to your legislator.

Here are the articles:

Chicago Tribune
September 12, 2006

Lovers of liver may taste victory after all

2 aldermen seek to end foie gras ban

By Gary Washburn and Mark Caro
Tribune staff reporters

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/nearwest/chi-0609120246sep12,1,6554741.story?coll=chi-newslocalnearwest-hed

As Mayor Richard Daley vetoed a controversial ordinance on Monday, two aldermen said they are seeking to repeal another: Chicago's ban on foie gras.

Ald. Bernard Stone (50th) and Burton Natarus (42nd) originally voted in favor of the measure when it was approved by the City Council in April. But both since have had second thoughts.

Stone contended that Chicago has become a national laughingstock since outlawing the delicacy, which is made from the livers of geese and ducks.

He acknowledged that inserting long tubes down the bird's neck and force-feeding it to produce foie gras is torture to the animal. And "in principle [the ordinance] is probably correct," he said.

But "anybody who has traveled anywhere in this country knows that people are just laughing their heads off at us," Stone said.

Natarus, who said he isn't worried about ridicule, favors repeal as "a matter of logic. It is a matter of reasonableness."

The council "can't do every single thing in terms of regulating our lives," he said. "People should be able to exercise choices. If they feel the creation of this liver dish is an irresponsible thing, they shouldn't eat it."

And, "quite frankly," Natarus added, "we do an awful lot of things to animals and to fish. I think the fly fishermen who catch fish for sport and take the hook out and put the fish back are just as irresponsible as is this foie gras situation."

The aldermen's disclosure of their repeal proposal came on the same day that Daley vetoed the hotly contested "big-box" minimum-wage ordinance.

Daley, who enjoys foie gras, is no fan of the ban measure, either. He has called the council's prohibition the silliest law to come down the legislative pike at City Hall.

"Hallelujah!" declared Chris Robling, an industry spokesman, after hearing of the repeal attempt. "This is wonderful.

"My fingers were crossed," said Robling, who speaks for Artisan Farmers Alliance, which represents North America's foie gras producers and some distributors. "That's great news."

Copperblue executive chef and owner Michael Tsonton, who last week became the second restaurateur cited by the city for serving foie gras after the ban went into effect, also cheered the move by Natarus and Stone.

"The foie gras thing was beyond silly," Tsonton said. "It was irresponsible."

But Gene Bauston, president of Farm Sanctuary, a farm-animal protection organization, contended that "animal cruelty should not be a choice."

"We have many laws that regulate our behavior," he said. "Beating children is not allowed. Eating cats and dogs is not allowed, and eating foie gras should not be allowed."

Chicago a laughingstock?

"Chicago has set a humane example, and it should be proud," Bauston said. "There are millions of people across the U.S. who are looking to Chicago as a shining star."

Ald. Joe Moore (49th), who sponsored the foie gras measure, said Monday that it "is simply an ordinance that tried to stop the practice of animal torture, pure and simple.

"My reaction is the City Council had a vote," Moore said. "It was 48-1 in favor. Time to move on."

The Stone-Natarus proposal will get a hearing in the council's Health Committee. If it wins a majority of votes there, it goes to the full council. Repeal would require a simple majority of votes at a council meeting.

"Some of my friends, chefs outside Illinois, have named Chicago the `Nanny City'--nanny, like the person who takes care of your children," said Allen Sternweiler, executive chef at Allen's--The New American Cafe, 217 W. Huron St. "I've gotten a few letters, with people saying, How would you like a tube stuck down your throat?

"My throat is not like a duck's throat. If you have some tragedy like an oil spill or a fire around a wetland, they would be using an exact same feeding tube to feed those injured ducks."

Colleen McShane, president of the Illinois Restaurant Association, applauded the Stone-Natarus measure.

"Given the full facts of the issue--for instance, the fiscal impact, the image damage--I think that the majority of the aldermen would probably consider repealing this," she said. "This foie gras [ban] turned Chicago, which is a great food city, into a mockery."

But repeal proponents can expect a fight.

"We are going to be monitoring the situation closely and vigorously oppose efforts to undo this humane ordinance," Bauston said.
(END OF CHICAGO TRIBUNE ARTICLE)
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Chicago Sun-Times
Tuesday, September 12
Featured letter

Chefs just wrong on foie gras ban

http://www.suntimes.com/output/letters/cst-edt-vox12a.html

There are, it has been observed, four stages to all social reform: First the critics ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, and then you win. In Chicago, we are seeing this scenario played out in full over the issue of cruelty to animals in the making of foie gras.

Chicago's City Council, led by Ald. Joe Moore, voted to end the sale of foie gras last April after careful deliberation and after hearing evidence presented on both sides of the issue. It was a sound, thoughtful and compassionate decision that put Chicago in good company with at least 12 countries, as well as the state of California, that have taken a stand.

But a few Chicago chefs are still griping and trying to undo this humane ordinance. They have derided lawmakers for not fighting for more "meaningful" social causes, as if preventing animal cruelty somehow prevents us from addressing other problems. Discussing other issues is an obvious attempt to draw attention away from the topic at hand, which is animal cruelty.

Of course, now that the ordinance has been passed and the Council has long ago moved on to other business, the chefs and connoisseurs are the ones who now seek to distract us all with their petty concerns. Here are people whose greatest passions in life are pastries and pate, and they're going to lecture the rest of us on the big and ''meaningful'' things in life. Please, someone tell the chefs to hold the sanctimony.

As they know perfectly well, the production and sale of foie gras involves grotesque and gratuitous animal abuse at its worst. Sorry if that fact interferes with their preferred fare, but it's a fact all the same, and -- like any other issue of cruelty to animals -- a serious issue of public policy.

To produce foie gras, ducks are force-fed as a pipe is shoved down their throats to pump in enormous quantities of food -- one-third of their body weight each day. This causes the birds' livers to expand up to 10 times their normal size, making it difficult for the birds to walk or even breathe normally. Even by the account of most farmers, this type of animal abuse is outside the bounds of decent and respectable animal husbandry.

In no other agricultural industry, except for the equally abhorrent treatment of veal calves, is it permissible for the animals to be made deathly ill and then slaughtered for the sake of an obscure, high-priced "delicacy."

The foie gras industry's claim that prohibiting the sale of this appetizer in Chicago will cost "more than $18 million" is absurd, and easily refuted. Only a few restaurants in Chicago sell foie gras, and one of its largest purveyors, Didier Durand, told the City Council that he only sells 30 servings of foie gras a week, worth about $450. Foie gras promoters have made many such spurious claims, such as that eating foie gras helps lower the risk of heart disease.

"Fatty liver," we're assured, is actually good for the heart. Doubtless we'll hear next that strangling and torturing the birds is good exercise for the farmhands.

Laws codify societal values, and we as a society oppose animal cruelty. The Chicago City Council acted in a sensible and appropriate manner, and it is to be commended for setting a humane example. The law has spoken. And now, without further whining from touchy gourmands, it is time for this good law to be observed and enforced.

Gene Bauston, president,

Farm Sanctuary,
Watkins Glen, N.Y.

(END OF SUN TIMES LETTER)
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(DawnWatch is an animal advocacy media watch that looks at animal issues in the media and facilitates one-click responses to the relevant media outlets. You can learn more about it, and sign up for alerts at http://www.DawnWatch.com. To unsubscribe, go to http://www.dawnwatch.com/cgi-bin/dada/dawnwatch_unsubscribe.cgi You are encouraged to forward or reprint DawnWatch alerts but please do so unedited -- leave DawnWatch in the title and include this tag line.)

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Date: Tue Sep 12 15:36:16 2006

DawnWatch Illinois: Tribune advertises places with foie gras 8/11/06

2006-08-11T16:09:31Z

Illinois,
This Chicago Tribune article, which directs people to restaurants they can get foie gras this week, calls for letters to the editor. The Tribune takes letters at:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/services/site/chi-lettertotheeditor.customform OR http://tinyurl.com/4lsug
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Chicago Tribune
August 10, 2006 Thursday
Chicago Final Edition
AT PLAY ; ZONE C; Pg. 1
FOIE GRAS FINALE?; CHICAGO'S BAN ON THE DINING DELICACY IS SCHEDULED TO START AUG. 22.

By Phil Vettel and Mark Caro, Tribune staff reporters

On Aug. 22, foie gras is scheduled to become avis non grata. That's when the Chicago City Council's ordinance banning foie gras, a delicacy consisting of the engorged livers of ducks and/or geese, is set to go into effect.

As a result, Chicago has been experiencing a virtual feeding frenzy as diners -- whether in lip-smacking protest of the City Council's ban or in a last-gulp effort to enjoy the stuff while they can -- are ordering foie gras like never before.

Special "farewell to foie gras" dinners have drawn big crowds, despite price tags of $100 and up, and more such dinners are on tap in the next 12 days. Foie gras sales have tripled at Cyrano's Bistrot & Wine Bar and at mk restaurant, where executive chef Todd Stein offers an $82 foie-gras tasting menu.

"Not only are customers ordering the tasting in its entirety," says Stein, "but we're also selling the dishes a la carte. The whole thing is causing people to try it for the first time."

It's unquestionably the most fuss that's ever been raised Chicago about duck. And not the whole duck, just the liver. And not even all duck livers, but livers that have been fattened via force-feeding -- as they have been for thousands of years in a tradition that dates back to ancient Egypt.

(The ordinance applies equally to goose liver, but goose liver is almost never used for foie gras in the U.S.)

The ban could prove to be a boon for suburban restaurants, some of which are gearing up for diners like Evanston's Tod Willson, who says he prefers to eat in Chicago restaurants but has been "scoping out places in the suburbs" to eat foie gras.

Meanwhile, outraged Chicago chefs are quacking their defiance, planning to file suit against the city and vowing to continue to serve foie gras by exploiting perceived loopholes in the Chicago ordinance.

"We're not planning on taking it off our menu," declares Michael Tsonton, chef and partner of Copperblue restaurant. "It's been made clear to us from our lawyers and the Illinois Restaurant Association that the ordinance is poorly written. It has been set up so that we can charge for the garnish and give away the foie gras, and that's what we intend to do. My guests like it, they expect it to be on my menu and it's going to continue to be.

"If we're the first ones to be hauled off to jail, so be it."

Count Didier Durand, chef and owner of Cyrano's Bistrot & Wine Bar, among those loophole exploiters. "I'm usually serving the foie gras with some potatoes, salad and brioche," he says. "If we cannot sell the foie gras, I will be giving it away complimentary, and I will be charging $15.99 for the potatoes and salad and brioche."

Durand and Tsonton are co-founders of Chicago Chefs for Choice, which has been raising money to fund a legal challenge to the ordinance. Artisan Farmers Association spokesman Chris Robling says a lawsuit is being prepared on behalf of Chicago restaurateurs as well as producers and distributors.

"We have pulled together a pretty strong argument," Robling says. "We--the restaurateurs and the producers and the distributors--are committed to taking this action, and they are confirmed in their belief that the ordinance is out of bounds and violative of both Constitution and state law."

Allen Sternweiller of Allen's the New American Cafe on Huron Street, which hosted a fundraising dinner for the anti-foie-gras-ban forces in July, confirms that he will be the named plaintiff.

Marcus Henley, operations manager for Hudson Valley Foie Gras, the largest of three U.S. foie gras farms, questions "the ability of a jurisdiction to ban a product that's legally produced in all 50 states and Canada and France--and produced under federal inspection."

But Ald. Joe Moore (49th)--who proposed the foie gras ban in April 2005 after reading about Charlie Trotter removing the delicacy from his menu at his four-star, self-named restaurant--dismisses such concerns, saying he's not concerned about legal challenges to the city's action.

"It's the same argument they used on cigarettes too," Moore says. "That's what we're empowered to do. Simply because something is legal doesn't necessarily make it right. A lot of practices that are outlawed today that we would consider abhorrent were permitted years ago."

Still, city and suburban food-lovers are voicing concern and frustration with the ban.

"I would say it was entertaining if it weren't so annoying," says Ben Goldhirsh of Chicago, who recently got a foie gras fix at mk . "This is government run amok; it's them imposing their will on my appetite, and I love eating way too much to let someone do that to me."

"My wife and I lived overseas for a number of years, and we developed a taste for it," Willson says. "That may be anathema to others in Chicago, but we like it and now we're going to look for it."

That's music to the ears of suburban restaurateurs.

"I think we'll draw a little more, and I'll welcome those people with open arms," says Michael Lachowicz, chef and owner of Michael restaurant in Winnetka. "But the fact is, I'm surrounded by restaurants that do a fantastic job with foie gras; there are a lot of suburban options."

"I feel bad for the chefs downtown," says Roland Liccioni, chef at Le Francais in Wheeling. "If they can ban this, I wonder what's going to be next."

Rick Tramonto, chef and partner at Tru in Chicago, plans to open a new restaurant in Wheeling this fall--which will give him one restaurant where he can serve foie gras, one restaurant in which he cannot, and a big headache regarding creativity.

"It's like being a painter and having one of your colors taken away," Tramonto says. "Our four degustation [tasting] menus all have foie gras, and the a la carte menu has hot and cold foie gras dishes. We're going through 30, 35 lobes [a lobe of foie gras weighs 1-2 pounds] a week. [The ban] definitely will leave a big void. Scott Tyree [sommelier at Tru] isn't happy; he has to rework his whole wine program.

"I'll be going back and forth between the restaurants; maybe they'll be frisking me at the border."

With fines for selling foie gras ranging from $250 to $500, violating the ordinance could be an expensive proposition. But even enforcement of the ordinance remains uncertain. The Chicago ordinance bans the sale of foie gras but doesn't define it. Once it's cooked and on the plate, can anyone, even a Chicago health inspector, tell the difference between a regular duck liver and one engorged by force-feeding?

In the end, foie gras may become like pornography. Difficult to define, but you know it when you experience it. And if finding it entails a little extra travel, some people will always consider it worth the trip.

The final bites of foie gras

Looking for that last, legal foie gras fix? Here are some places to go:

Avenues, Peninsula Chicago Hotel, 108 E. Superior St., 312-573-6754. Chef Graham Elliot Bowles has amended his 12-course tasting menu ($145) with an all-foie gras option ($245), in which the dishes are enhanced with creative foie gras treatments. Available daily through Aug. 21.

Cyrano's Bistro & Wine Bar, 546 N. Wells St., 312-467-0546. At 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, the restaurant will host a Foie Gras Festival, featuring a multicourse menu with wines. Participating chefs include Jean Banchet, KiKi Cuisance, Didier Durand, Bernard LeCoq, Dominique Legai, Francis Leroux, Carlos and Debbie Nieto, Jean-Claude Poilevey and Dominique Tougne. Cost is $149, tax and tip included; proceeds will benefit Chicago Chefs for Choice. 312-467-0546.

Fixture, 2706 N. Ashland Ave., 773-248-3331. Fixture features "Farewell to Foie Gras," a five-course tasting menu priced at $35. Dishes include a foie gras and mushroom terrine, and seared foie gras with strawberry-rabbit ragout. Cost is $35. Available daily through Aug. 21.

Hot Doug's, 3324 N. California Ave., 773-279-9550. The gourmet sausage stand features foie gras as an ingredient in such creations as its cognac-infused smoked-pheasant sausage with truffle-sauce moutard and foie gras butter. It also features as an occasional special, the "Joe Moore," named after the alderman who sponsored the ban; it's a duck sausage with foie gras and sauternes topped with foie-gras-truffle-Dijon-mustard sauce and marinated goat cheese.

mk, 868 N. Franklin St., 312-482-9179. Chef Todd Stein is offering an all-foie gras degustation, featuring three foie gras courses plus salad and dessert. The degustation is priced at $82; courses may be ordered individually as well. Available daily through Aug. 21.

676 Restaurant & Bar, Omni Chicago Hotel, 676 N. Michigan Ave., 312-944-7676. The restaurant will reprise its Outlaw Dinner, featuring once-banned and about-to-be-banned foods and preparations (with a special nod to foie gras) on Aug. 21 (this sentence as published has been corrected in this text). Seven-course tasting is $95; reservations available 7-10 p.m.

Socca, 3301 N. Clark St., 773-248-1155. On Aug. 21, chef Roger Herring will be joined by a dozen other Chicago chefs for a fundraising foie gras dinner. $100; benefits Chicago Chefs for Choice, an organization fighting the foie gras ban.

Tru, 676 N. St. Clair St., 312-202-0001. Foie gras appears on all of the restaurant's tasting menus (called Collections) and there are foie gras choices on the a la carte menu as well. Available through Aug. 21.
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(DawnWatch is an animal advocacy media watch that looks at animal issues in the media and facilitates one-click responses to the relevant media outlets. You can learn more about it, and sign up for alerts at http://www.DawnWatch.com. To unsubscribe, go to http://www.dawnwatch.com/cgi-bin/dada/dawnwatch_unsubscribe.cgi You are encouraged to forward or reprint DawnWatch alerts but please do so unedited -- leave DawnWatch in the title and include this tag line.)

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Date: Fri Aug 11 16:09:31 2006

DawnWatch Illinois: Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago Tribune and Sun Times 8/9/06

2006-08-09T12:53:06Z

Illinois:
The following articles from the Chicago Tribune and the Sun Times, on the Lincoln Park Zoo, present great opportunities questioning holding wild animals captive for human entertainment.
The Chicago Tribune takes letters at http://tinyurl.com/4lsug
The Sun Times takes letters at http://www.suntimes.com/geninfo/feedback.html

Chicago Tribune
August 9, 2006 Wednesday
METRO ; ZONE C; Pg. 3

Zoo fined over animal accidents;
Bad enclosures led to 3 monkeys' deaths

By Josh Noel, Tribune staff reporter.

The Lincoln Park Zoo has paid a $3,000 fine after the U.S. Department of Agriculture ruled the zoo responsible for a pair of high-profile mishaps last summer, one of which led to the deaths of three monkeys.

Levied in February, the fine was paid promptly, USDA spokesman Darby Holladay said.

"The matter is considered closed by the USDA," and no investigations into the zoo are ongoing, Holladay said.

The zoo has been the source of several pieces of bad news during the last two years, including the deaths of three elephants, two gorillas and a camel and an accident that led to a small ape having an arm amputated. The incidents sparked protests outside the zoo and led zoo President Kevin Bell to offer his resignation, which the zoo's board refused.

Though the USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service investigated on several fronts, it only blamed the zoo for the deaths of the three Francois langur monkeys in May 2005 and a gorilla attack on a keeper in July 2005.

The zoo was guilty of not having proper barriers in the gorilla habitat or improper enclosures for the monkeys, Holladay said.

Other complaints against the zoo, filed by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, were not "deemed valid," he said.

"They followed all regulations regarding all the other animal deaths," Holladay said.

Zoo spokesman Kelly McGrath said the zoo asked for the investigation to help with its own oversight.

"Obviously, the animals' deaths are a tragedy, and we're never going to feel good about that," she said. "But we do feel good that long before the report and fines, we resolved the situation and these issues."

The monkeys died, she said, after consuming leaves from a yew tree just outside their habitat. The tree was removed last year, and a full inventory was taken of all plants on the zoo grounds, McGrath said. No other plants were removed.

"We knew a mistake had been made, and we immediately removed the plant not only from the exhibit but from the zoo grounds," she said.

The zookeeper was bitten in an outdoor gorilla habitat as the result of an employee's error, McGrath said.

Two employees who work in the Regenstein Center for African Apes were suspended, but both still work at the zoo.

Chicago Sun Times
August 9, 2006 Wednesday
NEWS; Pg. 20
PETA reveals Lincoln Park Zoo's $3,000 fine: Feb. penalty for monkey deaths, gorilla attack

Andrew Herrmann, The Chicago Sun-Times

Lincoln Park Zoo has been fined $3,000 in connection with the deaths of three Vietnamese monkeys and an incident in which a gorilla attacked a keeper.

The fines were levied in February but were revealed Tuesday by the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals and confirmed by zoo officials.

U.S. Department of Agriculture inspectors found that the zoo failed to "protect three non-human primates from injury" in the case of the monkeys, called langurs, which died in May of 2005 after they ate some toxic yew plants growing near their exhibit.

THOUGHT PROBE WAS ONGOING

In July of 2005, the zoo, according to inspectors, failed to properly supervise its employees in a situation that led to a 450-pound gorilla attacking a 32-year-old zookeeper intern. Zoo spokeswoman Kelly McGrath said the zoo suspended two employees in that case. The intern suffered what were described as minor injuries at the hands of Kwan, a silverback gorilla.

McGrath said the zoo did not announce the fines in February because zoo officials thought the federal investigation into Lincoln Park practices was not complete. A spokesman for the Agriculture Department said its investigation is now finished and that there will be no more fines.

'WANT . . . NEW MANAGEMENT'

McGrath said the zoo is still awaiting the final report. Agriculture Department spokesman Darby Holladay would not immediately provide a copy of the report.

PETA director Debbie Leahy accused the zoo of trying to hide "bad news" from the public and, while calling the fines "a slap on the wrist,'' said they indicate poor management of the North Side facility.

"Negligence played a part in the deaths of these animals,'' said Leahy, calling for the resignation of zoo president Kevin Bell. "We want to see new management.''

The zoo has been the subject of intensive examination and criticism by animal rights groups following a rash of animal deaths there, including three elephants. Following the deaths of the langurs, Bell offered to resign but the zoo board asked him to stay.
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(DawnWatch is an animal advocacy media watch that looks at animal issues in the media and facilitates one-click responses to the relevant media outlets. You can learn more about it, and sign up for alerts at http://www.DawnWatch.com. To unsubscribe, go to http://www.dawnwatch.com/cgi-bin/dada/dawnwatch_unsubscribe.cgi You are encouraged to forward or reprint DawnWatch alerts but please do so unedited -- leave DawnWatch in the title and include this tag line.)

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Date: Wed Aug 9 12:53:06 2006

DawnWatch Illinois: Lab-grown meat in Chicago Sun Times -- letters opportunity -- 7/16/06

2006-07-16T17:07:39Z

The issue of lab-grown meat is in the Sunday, July 16, Chicago Sun Time presenting a great opportunity for veg-freindly letters to the editor on the way human society treats animals being raised for food. The Chicago Sun Times takes letters at http://www.suntimes.com/geninfo/feedback.html

Chicago Sun Times
July 16, 2006 Sunday
CONTROVERSY; Pg. B05

Would you eat lab-grown meat?: You may choke on the idea, but the animal rights crowd loves it

Traci Hukill, The Chicago Sun-Times

As I type these words, men and women of science are growing meat in a laboratory. That's meat grown independently of any animal. It isn't hatched or born. It doesn't graze, walk or breathe. But it is alive. It sits growing in a room where somebody has called it into existence with a pipette and syringe.

"Cultured meat," it's called, and it is supposed to save us from the execrable pollution and guilt of factory farms while still allowing all 6.5 billion of us to stuff our gullets with ham sandwiches whenever we want to. It already exists in ground or chipped form. What Dutch scientists are working on now is a product that costs a few dollars per pound instead of a few thousand. It could be as little as five years away.

The concept is as simple as it is horrifying. Take some stem cells, or myoblasts, which are the precursors to muscle cells. Set them on "scaffolding" that they can attach to, like a flat sheet of plastic that the cells can later be slid off of. Put them in a "growth medium" -- some kind of fluid supplying the nutrients that blood would ordinarily provide. "Exercise" them regularly by administering electric currents or stretching the sheets of cells mechanically. Wait. Harvest. Eat.

AN OLD IDEA

It seems like something out of a chilling sci-fi future, the very epitome of bloodless Matrix-style barbarism. But growing flesh in a petri dish is an old idea from the early 20th century that received a fresh infusion of, how you say, growth medium in 2002. As part of a NASA-funded experiment to find a portable source of animal protein for astronauts, Touro College biology professors Morris Benjaminson and James Gilchriest sliced a bit of muscle from the abdomen of a goldfish and set it in a saline solution enriched with fetal calf serum. Over several weeks, the muscle grew about 15 percent. Another muscle growing in a maitake mushroom solution did almost as well.

To determine whether the product was remotely appetizing or would be too repulsive even for space station humanoids to eat, Benjaminson and Gilchriest convened a panel of female employees, chosen for their gender's presumed pickiness and demonstrably superior sense of smell. Gilchriest, who used to be a professional chef ("He makes great calamari," said Benjaminson), breaded the tiny filet and sauteed it in extra virgin olive oil. He finished with a squeeze of lemon and a dash of pecorino cheese.

"And it smelled good to them," Benjaminson says. Understandably, the ladies were not asked to eat the "fish."

Whatever one's response to the idea of meat grown in a petri dish -- revulsion seems to be a common one -- there are also some compelling reasons in favor of it.

"It's cleaner, healthier, less polluting and more humane," said Jason Matheny, a doctoral student in agricultural policy at the University of Maryland who sits on the board of New Harvest, a research organization for in vitro meat.

Meat grown in the sterile environment of a laboratory wouldn't harbor zoonotic diseases like avian flu or contribute to antibiotic resistance, Matheny said. As for human health, artery-clogging beef fat could be swapped out in vitro for salmon fat, for example, with its salubrious omega-3 fatty acids. And the squalid misery of factory farms could be bypassed altogether. No river would be fouled with manure and no chicken's beak would be clipped in the making of dinner.

These are important considerations. All the problems associated with modern meat production -- like the 64 million tons of manure excreted each year by factory farmed animals in the United States alone -- are poised to worsen as the Earth's population heads toward 9 billion people by 2050. As up-and-coming nations like China and India develop large middle classes that adopt Western habits of consumption, that translates to an exponential rise in meat eaters and factory farms over the next 45 years.

A SPLENDID IDEA

Add it all up, and some people find cultured meat a splendid idea.

Bruce Friedrich, vice president of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, calls it "the best thing since sliced bread." Friedrich, who energetically denounces the eating of "animal corpses" every chance he gets, says that "anything that takes the cruelty out of meat-eating is good."

There are a couple of serious problems with cultured meat, though, starting with the fact that people seem to find the idea repellent. "Yeah," Matheny admits. "There's a 'yuck' factor involved with producing any novel food."

Presented with the argument that cultured meat just ain't natural, Matheny gamely counters that wine and cheese are engineered products, too.

"And I would say cultured meat is not inherently more unnatural than producing chicken meat from tens of thousands of animals raised intensively in their own feces and fed antibiotics," he said.

That is a very good point. But then Matheny, who is vegetarian, probably won't be eating much cultured meat, either. Nor will Friedrich, who said he had done just fine without eating animal flesh for 18 years and planned to stick with his program.

As for Benjaminson, when asked if he finds the idea of cultured meat appealing, he answered, "From an esthetic standpoint? No. It would have to taste palatable, and that would require a lot of tissue engineering."

What a lot of trouble to go to for a solution that is frankly nightmarish (especially the "exercising" of the disembodied muscle by means of electrical shocks). All cultivation is a form of enslavement, however benevolent or necessary, but harnessing the manic energy of stem cells takes that dynamic into a realm where the side effects -- the "equal and opposite reaction" promised by Newton -- play out perilously close to the life process itself. If synthetic fertilizer, which seemed like such a great way to boost plant fertility, can create a dead zone the size of Maryland at the Mississippi Delta, wiping out a totally different link in the food chain, who's to say what would come of overexploited RNA or mitochondria?

Fred Kirschenmann of Iowa State University's Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture just hopes there will be plenty of testing. "I'm not saying some of these new ideas can't be done and they won't work at some level, but every time we mess around with our ecological heritage there are always unintended side effects that come from it," he said. "We have a long history of unintended consequences.

"We've got all these animals out there right now, and if we suddenly decide we don't want to raise them, what does that do to the larger ecology?"

RAISE ANIMALS MORE HUMANELY

Here's an idea: Instead of safeguarding our appetites and engineering our meat, let's safeguard our meat and engineer our appetites. What if real animals were raised humanely and in sustainable numbers, so that their meat cost more -- maybe even a lot more? What if people only ate it on special occasions? What if, instead of deciding that the most important thing was to be able to satisfy every idle hankering for a cheeseburger, humanity assessed the resources and made a rational decision about protein acquisition that did not involve divorcing its food source from the life cycle? What if we took the invisible hand of the market, which has all the self-discipline and foresight of a 14-year-old boy, off the job and put a grown-up in charge?

One of the many people who has already thought of this is Robert Lawrence, director of the Center for a Livable Future at Johns Hopkins University's Bloomberg School of Public Health. Although Lawrence sits on New Harvest's board, he's skeptical about the possibilities for cultured meat.

"I think it's an interesting idea," he said. "I think in some situations it might have real value as an important bioavailable form of quality protein. But there are other more straightforward and readily available solutions."

The most obvious one is moderating intake, both frequency and portion size. The Center for a Livable Future sponsors a Meatless Mondays campaign that has attracted interest from public school systems in New York and Maryland. But as wild a suggestion as Meatless Monday is (Meatless Monday through Thursday would be a lot closer to the mark) it has provoked what Lawrence calls a "backlash" by the meat industry.

"They called me an environmental extremist," he said with a laugh.

That bit of hysteria reveals volumes. It could be a long time before people smell the legume blossoms and start eating lower on the food chain. Matheny thinks cultured meat can be "a stopgap measure" aiding that process, methadone for meat eaters to ease the transition out of the era of 72-ounce steaks and into the days of dollops of hummus.

Maybe he's right. Maybe in vitro meat can serve that purpose. Or maybe it will work in a different way -- by so thoroughly grossing people out that they'll gladly reduce their meat consumption just so they lessen the risk of accidentally eating a meatri burger.

That's how it's working on me.

AlterNet.com
(END OF CHICAGO SUN TIMES PIECE)
--------

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Date: Sun Jul 16 17:07:39 2006

DawnWatch Illinois: "PETA ranks veggie offerings at Sox Park among top 10 in baseball" Sun Times 7/13/06

2006-07-14T15:28:02Z

This fun article presents a great opportunity for animal friendly letters to the editor. The Chicago Sun Times takes letters at http://www.suntimes.com/geninfo/feedback.html

Chicago Sun Times

July 13, 2006 Thursday
NEWS; Pg. 04
Field of Greens: PETA ranks veggie offerings at Sox Park among top 10 in baseball

Janet Rausa Fuller, The Chicago Sun-Times

U.S. Cellular Field is more than just home to the World Series champion White Sox.

The South Side stadium also is one of the top 10 vegetarian-friendly ballparks in the nation, according to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.

"The Cell" came in ninth on PETA's annual rankings for offerings such as veggie hot dogs, veggie burgers, fruit cups and "corn-off-the-cob," said Dan Shannon, the group's manager of youth campaigns.

"There are more vegetarian options on the menu at U.S. Cellular Field than there are White Sox on the All-Star team," he said.

Still, that doesn't quite top the "inspired items" at No. 1-ranked AT&T Park in San Francisco, Shannon said. There, Giants fans can nosh on edamame, grilled veggie kabobs and baguettes, and vegetarian sushi.

Making the list for the first time is Petco Park, home of the San Diego Padres, where fans can choose salads, veggie burritos and a pasta bar.

CUBS NEVER MADE VEGGIE LIST

PETA's rankings are based on the variety and availability of vegetarian options in the main concessions. The Cell has consistently ranked on the list.

Wrigley Field has never cracked the top 10.

"So," Shannon said, "the crosstown rivalry is heating up" -- though most baseball fans tend to agree the Sox rule when it comes to food.

New York-based Delaware North Companies SportService manages concessions at the Cell. Chicago-based Levy Restaurants handles the rest of food operations for the Sox and the Cubs.

Levy took over concessions at Wrigley last year, revamping what was generally seen as average fare and adding more, albeit meat-heavy, sandwiches.

New items last season included calzones and pork chop sandwiches with caramelized onions.

Officials with Levy and SportService were unreachable Wednesday.

MORE THAN PEANUTS AND POPCORN

Shannon said more ballparks are going the way of the Sox and the Giants with options beyond the "vegetarian by default" items such as peanuts and popcorn.

Other stadiums noted for their vegetarian offerings include the Tampa Bay Devil Rays' Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla., which sells black beans and rice and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, which offers a cheeseless gourmet tomato pizza.

Steve Sciuto, 43, a vegetarian and cook at Victory's Banner, a vegetarian restaurant in Roscoe Village, said he still feels "limited to pretzels or hot dog buns or nachos" when he goes to a baseball game.

The last game he attended was a Cubs-Cardinals game at Wrigley last year. He couldn't recall what he ate then.

"That's probably a good thing, I think," he said.

jfuller@suntimes.com
(END OF CHICAGO SUN TIMES PIECE)
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Date: Fri Jul 14 15:28:02 2006

DawnWatch Illinois: Chicago Sun Times on veg celebs 7/9/06

2006-07-09T16:01:35Z

This little fluff piece on vegetarian celebrities presents a great opportunity for veg-friendly letters to the editor, perhaps talking about factory farming (see www.factoryfarming.com) or singing the praises of a veggie diet. The Chicago Sun Times takes letters at http://www.suntimes.com/geninfo/feedback.html

Chicago Sun Times
July 9, 2006 Sunday
FLUFF; Pg. 12

Meat-free zone: With so much else on their plates, these vegetarian celebs don't have room for animal products

Paige Wiser, The Chicago Sun-Times

If you always assume celebrities are slim because they don't eat, you're wrong. They do eat. Vegetables. Raw, for the most part. Who's

maintaining a meat-free lifestyle? Read on.

ALICIA SILVERSTONE

Specifics: She doesn't eat meat, doesn't eat dairy, and prefers "pleather" to leather.

The proof: She tries to mention vegetarianism and animal rights in every interview she gives, and was voted Sexiest Female Vegetarian in 2004.

Quote: "I did it for political, moral reasons thinking that I was making this great sacrifice, but it was absolutely necessary; I was not going to contribute to the violence in the world anymore."

JOAQUIN PHOENIX

Specifics: Doesn't eat or wear any animal products

The proof: Hasn't eaten meat since he was a kid. On the set of "Gladiator," he only wore fake leather outfits. He starred in PETA's first-ever vegan commercial, asking store shoppers to spare turkeys at Thanksgiving.

Quote: "When I [modeled for] the Prada campaign, the stylist wore the [leather] shoes. They did a separate shot of the shoes, and it wasn't me."

PINK

Specifics: An animal lover to the point that she brags about kissing her bulldogs.

The proof: She wrote to Prince William after he reportedly speared and killed a miniature antelope in Africa. "Why?" she wrote. "Was it some kind of 'trying to prove you're a man' trip?"

Quote: "I've always felt that animals are the purest spirits in the world. They don't fake or hide their feelings, and they are the most loyal creatures on Earth. And somehow we humans think we're smarter -- what a joke."

PAMELA ANDERSON

Specifics: She doesn't eat meat, eggs or dairy.

The proof: She famously posed for a PETA poster wearing a bikini made

of lettuce. She has even suggested that animal rights are more important than human rights, saying we should test products on criminals instead of animals.

Quote: "Every time we go by KFC, my kids ask me to honk, and they yell 'Boo!' out the window."

MOBY

Specifics: He started out vegetarian (no meat) and then went vegan (no meat, no dairy; some vegans don't even eat honey).

The proof: He named his 1996 album "Animal Rights," and sold every copy of his 1999 album "Play" with a vegan informational pamphlet.

Quote: "There are viable [and usually better] alternatives to the use of animals for food, sport, clothing and experimentation. I beg you to discontinue any actions that might cause or condone animal torture, abuse or destruction."

OTHER CELEBRITY VEGETARIANS

Richard Gere

Pauly Shore

kd lang

Nelly

Chrissie Hynde

Daniel Johns

Alanis Morrissette

Brandy

Claudia Schiffer

Meatloaf

Alyssa Milano

Common

Angela Bassett

Reese Witherspoon

Alec Baldwin

Russell Crowe

Seal

Shannon Elizabeth

Tobey Maguire

Avril Lavigne

Woody Harrelson
(END OF CHICAGO SUN TIMES ARTICLE)
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Date: Sun Jul 9 16:01:35 2006

DawnWatch Illinois: Chicaga Sun Times article on foie gras 4/30/06

2006-04-30T14:04:31Z

The following article in the Sunday, April 30, Chicago Sun Times, presents a good opportunity for letters to the editor. The Chicago Sun Times takes letters at http://www.suntimes.com/geninfo/feedback.html

Chicago Sun Times
April 30, 2006 Sunday
NEWS; Pg. 08

Ban foie gras in New York City restaurants? Fuhgeddaboudit!

Shamus Toomey, Special to The Chicago Sun-Times

Chicago aldermen may have endeared themselves to animal lovers by banning foie gras last week, but in New York, their counterparts are getting a good laugh.

"I thought we were out of our minds, so I thank Chicago for what they did because it makes our council look extra ordinary," said Brooklyn Councilman Simcha Felder, who heads the New York City Council's Consumer Affairs Committee, according to the New York Daily News. "If anyone tried to do it here, I would bring chopped liver in every day."

Chicago's City Council voted Wednesday to ban foie gras, a pricey delicacy made from the livers of geese and ducks.

Veterinarians and animal rights activists say the birds suffer while being force-fed to enlarge their livers.

Mayor Daley ridiculed the vote, grousing: "We have real issues here in this city. And we're dealing with foie gras? Let's get some priorities."

Members of the New York City Council, which has a history of passing offbeat bills, seemed to share Daley's take.

"I don't know how long this Council can duck this issue," said Queens Councilman Peter Vallone, according to the Daily News.
(END OF CHICAGO SUN TIMES PIECE)
---------------
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Date: Sun Apr 30 14:04:30 2006

DawnWatch Illinois: Chicago Tribune on animal free circuses 4/10/06

2006-04-10T13:27:39Z

Illinois,
This article from today's Chicago Tribune presents a great opportunity for supportive letters to the editor against the use of wild animal in entertainment. The Chicago Tribune takes letters at http://www.chicagotribune.com/services/site/chi-lettertotheeditor.customform
A great source of information is www.Circuses.com

Chicago Tribune
April 10, 2006 Monday
Pg. 4

Lawsuit claims big top is elephants' nightmare
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0604100150apr10,1,7430800.story?track=rss

By Vincent J. Schodolski, Tribune national correspondent

LONG BEACH, Calif.

There was the big top, a giant blue tent. There were acrobats, a trapeze and even a couple of clowns. There were hot dogs and popcorn and lots of overpriced souvenirs.

But there were no animals, and that kind of spectacle may be coming to your neighborhood if animal-rights activists and the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals have their way.

Cirque du Soleil is world-famous for its innovative approach to circus performance, and many conventional circuses may start looking more like Canada-based Cirque as communities across the U.S. ban, or seek to ban, circuses with exotic animal acts--especially those involving elephants.

About 15 U.S. cities have ordinances banning circus acts that involve animals, and a measure is pending in the Chicago City Council to require that each elephant within city limits have at least 10 acres of personal space.

While activists express concern about all exotic animals in circuses, there is special worry about elephants. The animals often spend as many as 22 hours a day tethered, usually with chains on their ankles, said Colleen Kinzley, curator of the zoo in Oakland, who has worked extensively with elephants.

In the wild they roam and forage for as many as 18 hours a day, experts say.

The ASPCA is one of four plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus and Feld Entertainment, the company that owns the giant circus.

Using the federal Endangered Species Act, the plaintiffs argue that the way elephants are trained and housed by Ringling Bros. violates the law.

"We allege that the way they train their elephants wounds them," said Kimberly Ockene, one of the attorneys in the case, which is in the discovery phase in federal court in the District of Columbia.

She said the use of a metal bull hook to train the elephants and the practice of separating baby elephants from their mothers too quickly causes the animals physical, emotional and psychological suffering.

Ockene said the suit, begun in June 2004, likely will go to trial sometime next year.

Ringling Bros. said their elephants live a pampered existence.

"Our animals are amongst the best cared for anywhere," said Thomas Albert, vice president for government relations and animal policy with Ringling Bros. "Sadly, our elephants are better cared for than many children in this country."

Under the Animal Welfare Act, the U.S. Department of Agriculture is charged with guaranteeing the welfare of exotic animals in zoos and circuses.

Albert said the USDA regularly inspects Ringling Bros. facilities and that the things the ASPCA and the other plaintiffs allege would make it impossible for the circus to continue with elephant acts.

"They are alleging that anytime we do anything with an elephant we are violating the Endangered Species Act," he said.

At any given time, Ringling Bros. has about 54 elephants. Three of the traveling circuses have nine or 10 elephants on the road with each of them. A smaller one-ring circus travels with just two, he said.

`Leaders in animal care'

Ringling Bros. does a great deal to benefit elephants and other exotic animals in its possession, Albert said.

"We have been the leaders in animal care for 136 years," he said. The circus' breeding program, Albert said, was responsible for 19 elephant births in the last 14 years, accounting for 45 percent of Asian elephant births in the United States.

The elephants not on the road are kept at a Florida facility where they rest and are involved in breeding operations.

In the suit, a former Ringling Bros. employee, Tom Rider, said that during his years caring for elephants with the circus he witnessed many acts that he considered cruel.

Rider, who also is a plaintiff in the suit, said he saw routine beating of elephants among other acts during his nearly two years with the circus.

"While working for Ringling Bros., Mr. Rider saw several of the other elephant handlers and `trainers' routinely beat the elephants, including the baby elephants, and he saw them routinely hit and wound the elephants with sharp bull hooks," the lawsuit states.

The suit also says that such actions were carried out throughout the country as the circus moved around.

Dan Stockdale, a consultant and exotic animal trainer who also has worked with Ringling Bros., said he had a different experience.

"I have found almost all of the facilities I have visited to be extraordinarily professional and well-managed operations," Stockdale said. "I have had the privilege of being behind the scenes with several organizations and have seen surprisingly clean conditions, excellent medical care and very creative ideas for daily enrichment."

Oakland Zoo curator Kinzley said circus conditions can cause problems for the animals.

"The biggest issue facing elephants in circuses is that they spend a lot of time contained and with ankle chains," she said.

She said such confinement could cause the elephants to gain excessive weight and engage in "swaying" where they move their bodies from side to side. "When they are in chains, this is the only motion they can do," Kinzley said.

Natural behavior suppressed

She said confinement also prohibits natural elephant behavior such as bathing and mud wallowing.

Anyes Van Volkenburgh, a veterinarian in Malibu, Calif., said it is unnatural for exotic animals to live in a circus environment.

"Circus animals are deprived of living their lives according to their nature," she said. "Their instincts are not honored, their natural needs are ignored. As a result their mental and emotional health suffers as signified by stereotypical behaviors like pacing."

Van Volkenburgh said that such behaviors weaken and suppress the animals' immune systems and make them more susceptible to disease.

Cirque du Soleil is far from the only non-animal, themed circus performing in the United States. Circuses.com, a Web site maintained by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, lists 25 animal-free circuses.

Among them are: Bindlestiff Family Cirkus--vaudeville-style acts; Circus Luminous--elaborate costumes and a turn-of-the-century look; Cloud Seeding Circus--works with schools and museums; Flying Fruit Fly Circus--circus, dance, theater and live percussion; and New Pickle Circus--choreographed adventure of acrobatics, aerial work, dance and clowning.

vschodolski@tribune.com
(END OF TRIBUNE ARTICLE)
-------------
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Date: Mon Apr 10 13:27:39 2006

DawnWatch Illinois: Chicago Tribune and Sun Times on elephant ordinance 2/24/06

2006-02-24T18:46:45Z

The following articles, from the Chicago Tribune and Chicago Sun Times, present great opportunities for letters to the editor about keeping wild animals captive for human entertainment. A great resource is www.SaveWildElephants.com

The Chicago Tribune takes letters at http://www.chicagotribune.com/services/site/chi-lettertotheeditor.customform
The Chicago Sun Times takes letters at http://www.suntimes.com/geninfo/feedback.html

Chicago Tribune
February 24, 2006 Friday
METRO ; ZONE NNW; Pg. 3

Doubts raised as aldermen consider zoo-elephant plan
By Gary Washburn, Tribune staff reporter

Chicago aldermen heard horror stories and tales of hope and liberation Thursday involving real-life characters with names like Winky, Wanda and Tarra.

All are elephants and all have spent what critics described as desperately unhappy stretches of their lives in zoos or circuses.

Details of their stories were laid out at a more than four-hour City Council committee meeting on a proposed ordinance that would impose new space and handling standards for pachyderms in Chicago.

No vote was taken when the testimony came to an end. And there were questions whether the measure ever would make it out of committee because of its impact on Lincoln Park Zoo, which would be unable to meet the proposed standard of five acres each of indoor and outdoor space per elephant on its compact lakefront campus.

The three elephants kept by Lincoln Park Zoo all have died since late 2004, sparking a wave of controversy. Zoo officials have said that no new animals will live at the facility pending completion of scientific research on elephants in zoos.

Part way through the debate, Ald. James Balcer (11th), a Vietnam veteran, appeared to question the council's priorities.

"We talk about mistreatment of elephants," he said. "This morning I just read in the paper [that] two people, their sons were killed in Iraq. They can't even find out ... how they died. That troubles me. Again, I am for this ordinance, and again--ahh, forget it."

And Ald. Emma Mitts (37th), who voiced support for the humane treatment of animals, nevertheless said she wondered "why we are [talking] about elephants when children are being abused."

But Ald. Richard Mell (33rd) said the council is known for taking on a wide range of issues, and animal-rights advocates at the meeting insisted the proper treatment of elephants merits the city's attention.

"When we make them suffer, our humanity is also diminished," said Dr. Keith Lindsay, a conservation biologist who began his work with elephants in Africa nearly 30 years ago. Lindsay outlined the impact of confinement on huge animals that "are designed to move" and are on the go up to 18 hours a day in their natural habitats.

Lindsay and other experts told the committee that elephants cooped up in small spaces suffer ailments that include arthritis, infections and psychological damage that sometimes results in aggressiveness. But the animals recover when they are moved from zoos and circuses to sanctuaries, they said.

Officials of the American Zoo and Aquarium Association and the International Elephant Foundation contended that elephants are treated humanely at accredited institutions. And they said that allowing Americans to experience elephants at zoos is vital to generating support for conservation efforts in the animals' native lands.

The City Council is being "pressured" as part of a nationwide campaign by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, said Beth Stevens, president of the zoo association.

"This ordinance is not about elephants in Chicago," Stevens said. "It is an attempt to make Chicago a national example of getting ... elephants out of zoos [today], and tomorrow getting other species--giraffes, lions, gorillas, out of zoos.

Ald. Mary Ann Smith (48th), the ordinance's sponsor and head of the council's Parks and Recreation Committee, scoffed at the "conspiracy theory."

"I am personally insulted that you would think that any one of us would be used by any organization ... to dominate the zoo world," Smith said.

Steven Thompson, a senior Lincoln Park Zoo official, opposes the ordinance. Its standards are "arbitrary [and] subjective," he said.

gwashburn@tribune.com
----------------------

Chicago Sun Times
February 24, 2006 Friday
NEWS; Pg. 06

All noise, no action on elephant ban: Council panel weighs in on zoo crackdown but doesn't vote

Andrew Herrmann, The Chicago Sun-Times

He shares his name with a certain buck-toothed rodent, so perhaps Ald. William M. Beavers (7th) has some special insight into animals.

As a City Council committee Thursday was debating an ordinance that would effectively prevent Lincoln Park Zoo from hosting elephants, Beavers opined some wild creatures might prefer captivity.

An elephant in a zoo, he said, "don't have to worry about no poacher.'' With regular feedings, "he don't have to worry about food, either.''

In response, Ald. Richard F. Mell (33rd) suggested sending a "psychologist" to Africa to find some of those animals Beavers believes would like to live in Lincoln Park.

The banter offered a bit of levity in the four-hour-plus hearing, a meeting that also included Mell's suggesting, tongue-in-cheek, that Northerly Island might be converted to an elephant sanctuary.

MORE PRESSING MATTER

Few in City Hall give the proposed ordinance much chance of being presented to the full Council, much less enacted. Mell's Rules Committee adjourned without a vote.

But the hearing did draw top officials from the U.S. animal rights movement, the zoo industry and representatives from Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus.

The ordinance, sponsored by Ald. Mary Ann Smith (48th), would require zoos in Chicago to provide at least 10 acres per elephant -- a physical impossibility for Lincoln Park Zoo.

Ordinance supporter Keith Lindsay, a conservation biologist, said elephants he observed in southern Kenya are on the move 18 hours a day. Foot problems on less-mobile zoo elephants are not seen in their wild counterparts, he said.

Lincoln Park Zoo vice president Steven D. Thompson questioned whether Lindsay's findings applied to zoo elephants. "How can data on the use of space by wild elephants be appropriate for establishing space needs in zoos?'' said Thompson.

Ald. James A. Balcer (11th) had a more pressing topic in mind after reading in the Chicago Sun-Times how "two people whose sons died in Iraq -- they can't even find out what happened. That troubles me.''

Choking up, Balcer said, "I'm for this ordinance, but, ah, forget it,'' and bolted from the chamber.
------------------------
(END OF TRIBUNE AND SUN TIMES ARTICLES)
----------------
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Date: Fri Feb 24 18:46:45 2006

DawnWatch: 60 Minutes covers shark finning -- 12/11/05

2005-12-12T18:52:44Z

On Sunday, December 11, 60 Minutes did a great piece they call, "Swimming with Sharks." It covered the danger to both humans and sharks of programs that encourage people to visit great whites from the safety of cages. Bait is used to attract the sharks, so sharks start to associate people with food. Shark attacks are way up in areas that provide this kind of tourist activity. And angry people are taking to shooting sharks.

At the very end of the segment the horror of shark finning was covered as follows:

"But, in fact, sharks have far more to fear from us humans and our industrial fishing fleets, which bring in 100 million sharks a year. In some regions, shark populations are down 90 percent, and some species are approaching extinction.

"Why is this happening?

"The answer boils down, literally, to soup. Shark fin soup. In China, it�s been an expensive status symbol for millennia. Chefs in the emperor�s court were once beheaded if they prepared it incorrectly. But these days, with China booming, more people can pay $100 for a bowl. Finning sharks is a billion-dollar business, and it�s not a pretty sight.

"That�s because as soon as a shark is caught, his fins are cut off and he is thrown overboard, alive, to sink to the bottom and drown. In South Africa and a few other countries, it�s a crime to do that. But given the high price of soup, it�s a very common crime.

"What�s a fin worth? A large one can cost thousands of dollars. And the black market in fins is tough to police because most of the sharks are caught in international waters where there�s no law against finning.

"But on land, laws can be enforced. In Cape Town recently, authorities raided several processing plants owned by Hong Kong Chinese. Seven tons of fins were confiscated.

"And after you�ve seen those fins laid out, have another look, as we did, at sharks doing what sharks do. At a cow shark, weaving through an underwater forest; at the perfect geometry and grace of a blue shark in cold, clear water.

"It�s not the shark�s fault that we have demonized him for so long. Besides, we need our demons. They�ve been with us, in our minds, as long as gods. So the next time you�re in a Chinese restaurant and feel like some soup, why not stick to the egg drop, or the wonton. Give the shark a break."

You can view the on line version of the story at:
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/12/06/60minutes/main1099368.shtml

Please thank 60 Minutes for the coverage of shark finning. Positive feedback will encourage further animal friendly coverage. The show takes comments at: http://www.cbsnews.com/htdocs/feedback/fb_news_form.shtml or 60m@cbsnews.com

Yours and the animals',
Karen Dawn

(DawnWatch is an animal advocacy media watch that looks at animal issues in the media and facilitates one-click responses to the relevant media outlets. You can learn more about it, and sign up for alerts at http://www.DawnWatch.com. To unsubscribe, go to www.DawnWatch.com/unsubscribe.php. If you forward or reprint DawnWatch alerts, please do so unedited -- leave DawnWatch in the title and include this tag line.)

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Date: Mon Dec 12 18:52:44 2005