Month: January 2014

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An Autistic Activist Responds To Temple Grandin

Our Compass



OC Comment: Temple Grandin is a welfarist who designs slaughterhouses meant to lessen the stress on animals.  Rather than maintaining that killing animals is altogether wrong, as an abolitionist does, Ms. Grandin instead attempts to diminish the stress of the killing “experience” on animals.  This is an essay written in opposition of such.

The following essay was written by autistic author, activist and co-founder of Autism Network International, Jim Sinclair. Sinclair noted that he wrote this in “response to Temple Grandin’s writing about her work in the slaughter industry, especially as described in Thinking In Pictures.”

If you love something, you don’t kill it. I didn’t need to spend time in a squeeze box to learn that. Love is not killing.

If you know what another being feels–not just how you feel when you touch it–then you know that living things want to remain alive. It doesn’t…

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TRUE cost of the season’s must have fur-trimmed Canada Goose coat

Exposing the Big Game

‘Chilling cruelty, unspeakable suffering and corporate denial’:  the TRUE cost of the season’s must have fur-trimmed Canada Goose coat

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2544075/Revealed-Chilling-cruelty-unspeakable-suffering-corporate-denial-Is-TRUE-cost-seasons-Canada-Goose-coat.html#ixzz2rYM0Ypqk

By Laura Collins  23 January 2014

They have made America their new frontier, forging into the US clothing market to become one of the season’s most recognisable brands with sales of Canada Goose outerwear expected to top $30million this year alone.

In a high profile year in the States, Kate Upton has appeared on the front of Sports Illustrated in one of their fur trimmed, down jackets and nothing much else.

It isn’t the only firm to market such coats, yet Canada Goose has rapidly established itself as the label of choice for the well-known and the well-heeled braving the frigid weather blown in on the polar vortex.

But today MailOnline can reveal that allegations of chilling cruelty and unspeakable animal suffering have been repeatedly levelled at this family…

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Federal Agency’s New Action May Mean Release for Orca at Seaquarium

Skriv dina tankar här… (frivilligt)

Wolf Is My Soul

Posted on January 24, 2014 by Animal Legal Defense Fund

Lolita to Gain Protected Status Following PETA, ALDF Petition

For immediate release:

Contact:

Lisa Franzetta, Animal Legal Defense Fund
David Perle, PETA

lolita-feature-article-image-x2

Miami — Currently confined alone to a tank at the Miami Seaquarium that’s smaller than even the minimum standard required by federal law, Lolita the orca’s future could soon take a turn for the better. Following a petition by PETA, the Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF), Orca Network, and others, the National Marine Fisheries Service today proposed a rule to grant Lolita the same status under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) that covers all other Southern Resident orcas—the pod that she was seized from in 1970. PETA and the ALDF believe that the current confinement conditions that Lolita is subjected to are prohibited by the ESA. Today’s action opens the door to the prospect that she could be…

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Crazy Cat Lady? I Don’t Think So.

Dogpaddling Through Life

I am bothered that many people think that a single woman who cares for more than one cat is to be identified as a Crazy Cat Lady. I am even more bothered that many of you think that’s cute and have chosen to embrace the title.

And retailers have taken notice, for now they, too, are calling us Crazy Cat Ladies.

For instance, World’s Best Cat Litter has an ongoing contest for you to show the world you’re a crazy cat lady by taking a photo of yourself and posting it on social media.

That’s right, denigrate yourself and all of your gender on social media in hopes of winning a few bags of cat litter.

But wait, am I being overly sensitive? After all, the photo announcing the contest looks like this:

Wikipedia identifies the term “cat lady” as pejorative- that means abusive. So no, I think I’m being…

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You are what you EAT! 5 Surprising things humans feed cows

Our Compass

Source Mother Jones
By Alex Park

In addition to the old standbys of corn, soy, hay (and, uh, drugs), “there’s a lot of stuff which the general public might not think of as feeds which are actually quite common,” says Cory Parsons, a livestock nutrition expert at Oregon State University. For example:

Sawdust: Decades ago, when Bob Batey, an eastern Iowa entrepreneur, observed cows gobbling up sawdust hosed down from his paper mill, he had an idea: Why not make the stuff into a commercial cattle feed? Sawdust is made largely of cellulose, a carbohydrate, but it’s bound together with a compound called lignin, which makes it hard to digest. To strip the lignin, Batey soaked some of the stuff in nitric acid, and voilà! The cows were ready to chow down. “They like it,” he says. “It’s good for them. It’s economical. And it’s green.”

But it was only after a…

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12 Heartwarming Photos that Prove Farm Animals Love Us

Life or Lunch?

Many of us never have the privilege of getting to know a farm animal. Instead, we know them by their parts. A cow is a rib steak, a brisket, a package of ground beef. A pig is a strip of bacon, schnitzel, a loin chop. A chicken is a wing, drumstick, or a thigh.

While this categorizing may make it easier for some to pick out what they’d like from the grocery store, it’s also a way of distancing ourselves from who these individuals once were.

Thinking of a farm animal as an individual is certainly not something many feel comfortable with, but just like the domestic animals we share our households with, farm animals also have their own distinct personalities, likes, dislikes, and desires. What’s more, if we’d give them a chance, they’d show us just as much love as our beloved dogs and cats.

To prove this…

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Call OFF the “Wild”man

Exposing the Big Game

Drugs, Death, Neglect: Behind the Scenes at Animal Planet

Mother Jones’ exclusive investigation reveals how animals suffer on the network’s top reality show.

By the time three orphaned raccoons arrived for emergency care at the Kentucky Wildlife Center in April 2012, “they were emaciated,” says Karen Bailey, who runs the nonprofit rehab clinic set in the sunny thoroughbred country just outside of Georgetown, in central Kentucky. “They were almost dead.”

Read more: http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2014/01/animal-abuse-drugs-call-of-the-wildman-animal-planet

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A Vegan Doctor Addresses Soy Myths & Misinformation ~ Free From Harm

Free From Harm

Holly Wilson, M.D.

Soy has long been recognized as a nutrient-dense food and as an excellent source of protein by respected dietitians and clinical nutritionists. The soybean contains all of the essential amino acids, as well as an impressive list of micronutrients (vitamins and minerals). Micronutrients in rich supply in soy include: calcium, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, vitamins B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B9, C and zinc. Fiber and omega-3 and 6 fatty acids are also present in soy. The composition of these nutrients varies among preparations, but is in the highest quantity in whole soy foods such as edamame (whole soy beans), soy milk, tofu and tempeh.

Yet despite the powerful health benefits of whole soy foods, myths and misinformation regarding the ‘dangers’ of soy consumption are being widely circulated and presented as fact. I will address a few of these myths by taking a closer look at some of the sources of confusion and controversy.

“All soy is GMO!”

I would like to begin by explaining that the largest consumer of commercially grown GMO soybeans, both in the US and globally, is farmed animals. GMOs are genetically modified organisms, and their safety for human consumption is a hot topic of debate; many European countries have banned GMOs. While long term studies and conclusive data on the health effects of GMOs are lacking, GMOs are ubiquitous in our food supply. Soybeans are one of several major food staples now dominated by genetic modification. Currently, 81% of the global soybean crop is genetically modified, and approximately 85% of all GMO soybeans

– See more at: http://freefromharm.org/health-nutrition/vegan-doctor-addresses-soy-myths-and-misinformation/#sthash.caZQU1HA.dpuf

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Shades of Gray

Fight for Rhinos

The Dallas Safari Club has auctioned off the life of a black rhino for $350,000.

In light of this recent atrocity, trophy hunting has come to the forefront of the social consciousness. The elitist hobby of killing for the thrill  has been going on since the 19th century, with nearly 18,000 participants a year.

Today, with the black rhino population in serious decline, each life is crucial to the species. It is a wonder that anyone could place higher value on their death, than their life. Endangered species are labeled as such to provide them extra levels of protection. Hunting them to “save” them flies in the face of logic.

Yet, some argue that hunting helps conservation. What do they mean by that?

Countries condone trophy hunting for a couple of reasons:
1. to make money – the money brought in from the hunting fee goes toward community conservation
2. to…

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Bob Barker Says Dallas Safari Club’s Black Rhino Auction Is A ‘Cheap Thrill’

Exposing the Big Game

http://keranews.org/post/bob-barker-says-dallas-safari-club-s-black-rhino-auction-cheap-thrill

By Eric Aasen

Credit The Price Is Right/Facebook
Bob Barker recently returned to “The Price Is Right” to celebrate his 90th birthday.

Bob Barker, the legendary game show host, has chimed in on the Dallas Safari Club’s black rhino auction that’s taking place this weekend. He wants the club to call off the event.

The club hopes to raise as much as $1 million to protect the rare black rhino by auctioning off the right to hunt one. But the auction has kicked up international controversy. Club members have been receiving death threats, and the FBI is investigating. (Update: On Saturday, the rhino hunt permit was sold for $350,000, the Associated Press reported.)

Friday afternoon, PETA released a letter from Barker, who hosted “The Price is Right” for 35 years. He’s also an animal rights advocate. (You remember his classic sign-off, right?: “Help control the pet…

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Black Rhino Auctioned for $350K in the Name of Conservation

Exposing the Big Game

black-rhino

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/animal-emotions/201401/black-rhino-auctioned-350k-in-the-name-conservation

by Marc Bekoff

Should we kill in the name of conservation? Individual animals are not disposable commodities

We live in a troubled and wounded world in which humans continue to dominate and to relentlessly kill numerous nonhuman animals (animals).

A Texas hunting club recently auctioned off an endangered black rhino purportedly to save other black rhinos and their homes in Namibia. The Dallas Safari Club says, “Namibian wildlife officials will accompany the auction winner through Mangetti National Park where the hunt will occur, ‘to ensure the correct type of animal is taken.'” This is not a very comforting thought.

This sale, in which an animal is objectified and treated like a disposable commodity, raises many questions about how we try to save other species. One major question is, “Should we kill in the name of conservation?” People disagree on what is permissible and what is not. My take and…

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What if a judge handed down a verdict without viewing all the evidence?

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Click HERE to take action

Background, Source Animals Australia

What if a judge handed down a verdict without viewing all the evidence?

Right now, many politicians are doing just that — deciding the fate of millions of animals while turning a blind eye to the cruelty that may await them in the live export trade. We urgently need your help to get this new evidence in their hands.

Live export is once again making headlines across the country for all the wrong reasons… We have uncovered harrowing footage — posted on YouTube — showing Australian animals being tortured and killed during the Festival of Sacrificein the Gaza Strip. When we alerted media, the live export industry swung back into damage control.

As an investigator, I’ve witnessed more cruelty than I care to admit — but ‘Gaza’ is the worst I have ever seen. Dozens of Australian bulls were…

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REPOSTED – Just Because I Want To: Orangutan Outreach Photo — What’s At Stake in Indonesia and Malaysia

gettingonmysoapbox

The Standoff Orangutan Outreach

(Photo Credit: Orangutan Outreach. Copyright 2012. All rights reserved. No use whatsoever without the explicit written permission from the copyright holder.)

I do some pro bono legal work for Orangutan Outreach, but I’ve also adopted an orphaned/displaced orangutan (or two) through this organization. They do some great work helping to “protect orangutans in their native habitat while providing care for orphaned and displaced orangutans until they can be returned to their natural environment. Orangutan Outreach seeks to raise and promote public awareness of orangutan conservation issues by collaborating with partner organizations around the world.”

Here’s a great photo that we just registered for copyright. It’s called, “The Standoff,” and it shows the gentle and sometimes humorous personalities of these precious animals, who also share some 97% of our own human DNA.

How can you look at this and do nothing about the palm oil scourge that is destroying so much of Indonesia…

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Tell Outdoor Gear Companies to End Down-Plucking Torture of Geese

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Click HERE to sign petition

Down feathers are sometimes cruelly and painfully plucked from live birds. But consumers and most retailers don’t know which products contain this live-plucked down.

Peta and Four Paws have obtained undercover video footage of workers pulling fistfuls of feathers from geese as the ravished birds shriek with pain. During the torture the geese are often squeezed between pluckers’ knees or sometimes have their necks sat upon. The traumatized, suffering birds are often left with gaping wounds, which many don’t survive.

But the horror doesn’t always end after this torment, because many of these tortured birds are further victimized by the foie gras market, and then some go on to be slaughtered or dumped into scalding water – also while still alive.

Most upsetting is that none of this cruelty is necessary. Imitation materials that mimic down are warmer and washable and now available, and outdoor…

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