California closes downer animal loophole

We are mildly pleased that Governor Schwarzenegger signed AB 2098 (Krekorian) into law, making it a misdemeanor to kill downed animals (for human consumption) or to sell their flesh for human consumption.

Of course, we encourage consumers to make compassionate food choices, like eating a plant-based diet instead of the standard meat-centric Americanized diet. We can prevent the suffering downed animals - ALL farmed animals - endure by choosing a vegan diet.

A "reformed" vegetarian

From the Detroit Free Press - Female butchers find themselves on the cutting edge (ha. get it? cutting edge? creative).

Did you know:

"Butchering is primal. It's really primal. One of my favorite stories is this butcher that we hired, we were sawing a veal in half ... and I was holding the legs and he was sawing it in half -- I felt like I was a cavewoman or something. It was pretty awesome."

In the primal, caveman days, 16-week old male calves housed in crates and produced by neolithic Holstein cows were called veal and cut in half inside a butcher's shop. They had butcher caves back in the day.

After the ancient custom of cutting a baby calf in half, the "reformed" vegetarian ran through the streets of San Francisco naked, spearing anyone who got in her way - you know, just trying to stay in touch with her primal cavewoman roots. Sarcasm aside, primeval in the middle of San Francisco is not possible. Being lost in the woods with only the clothes on your back and alone with a hungry mountain lion - now that's primal!

One customer has this to say:

We were all sort of deciding to go vegetarian and (her husband) was having a hard time with it and he was, 'All right, I'm going to go humanely raised, humanely slaughtered animals.'

There is no such thing as "humane slaughter" - the two words are antonyms. Watching your herdmates die, hearing their screams, and then having your throat cut is never going to be lumped in with hugging puppies and helping grandma cross the road.

If you are so inclined, please write a letter to the editor at the Detroit Free Press:
editpg@freepress.com or letters@freepress.com

Keep it to under 250 words. Include your full name, address and phone number. Avoid the sarcasm used in this post.

Topics to consider:
- Writing about a vegan diet which is healthier than a meat-based diet as well as environmentally friendly and kind to animals.
- Writing about the incongruity of "humane" and "slaughter", emphasizing that no matter the size of the slaughterhouse, an animal's life is needlessly ended to sate a want, a taste, not because we "need" meat. Not to mention that the animal needs to be transported (very stressful) and hears, smells and sees the slaughter of his/her fellow herdmates.

Nevada may kill wild horses

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is considering killing thousands of wild horses in Nevada - your help is needed to stop this massacre. Horses are being killed because ranchers think their "right to farm" supersedes the horses' right to live. The BLM has traditionally rounded up these beautiful animals and kept them in long-term holding facilities. Citing the struggling economy and lack of adoptions, the BLM is considering killing the horses.

How YOU can help:
1) Write a letter to the Nevada State Office of the BLM and the Las Vegas Field Office. Time is of the essence, so get your letters in as soon as possible!

Nevada State Office of the BLM
1340 Financial Blvd.
Reno, NV 89502
(775)-861-6400

Las Vegas Field Office
4701 Torrey Pines
Las Vegas, NV 89130
(702) 515-5000

Talking Points for your letters/calls:

-The wild horse has been a striking symbol of the South West for as long as we can remember. They remain an important part of our history and represent our freedom. By killing these beautiful animals, we not only destroy one of the most important residents of Nevada, but we destroy a piece of our state’s history.

-Methods of euthanasia include shooting the animals. Shooting feral, fast-moving animals is dangerous and can result in unnecessary suffering. Further, these are herd animals - watching their herd-mates be shot is cruel.

-Suggest that the BLM entertain alternatives to killing by suggesting tax breaks to large landowners that allow wild horses to run on their land.

-Humane forms of birth control are available and can contain population growth, and help the horses retain their freedom.

2) Adopt a horse! If you or anyone you know can adopt one these animals or shelter them, please contact Shari Warren at shari@nwha.us or Jerrie Bertola, Wild Horse and Burro Specialist at (702) 515-5000

New York School Considering Chicken Slaughter

Source: UPC Alert

High School Curriculum to Include Chicken Slaughter?
ISSUE:
(Ontario County, NY) Due to vocal supporters of the high school's previously banned hands-on chicken slaughter project, the Canadaigua Academy is now considering reversing its earlier decision to eliminate the project. The project, which had been part of the school's curriculum for the last 3 years, was canceled earlier this spring following a public outpouring of objections. The ecology class project had students raising chicks in pens and ultimately slaughtering, plucking, gutting, and barbecuing them. While the supervising teacher argued that the class serves to "educate people to the true cost of today's diet," the inherent violence of the meat industry does not justify its reenactment in our classrooms.

Recent News Story:

Canandaigua classroom chicken slaughter rethought
Rochester Democrat & Chronicle, June 12, 2008

Related Links:

The Canandaigua Academy
The Canandaigua City School District

ACTION:
Since the Academy and School Board seem to be influenced by public opinion, please weigh in and let them know the world is watching. Polite letters may be sent to the addresses below, encouraging Principal Erdle and the School Board to follow through with their previous decision to cancel the project, thereby demanding compassion in their classrooms and adhering to their high standards.

Lynne Erdle, Principal
Canandaigua Academy
215 Granger Street
Canandaigua, NY 14424

Tarry Shipley, School Board President
Jeanie Grimm, School Board Vice-President
Canandaigua City School District
143 North Pearl Street
Canandaigua, NY 14424

Letter Writing Tips

Chickens are not usually protected by state anti-cruelty laws due to built-in exemptions such as those for 'traditional farm and animal husbandry practices.' Download a free copy of your state's laws here: Animal Protection Laws of the United States and Canada

When CAFOs attack!

In flooded Missouri, Governor Matt Blunt decided that industrial farms with manure "lagoons" (aka shit-pools) could bypass the minimal environmental laws and saturate wet fields with mushy-feces. Yum! Tomatoes anyone?

No doubt this will help make 2008 The Year of the Dead Zone.

Where's the beef?

Nebraska Beef Ltd. is expanding its beef recall to 5.3 million pounds.

According to the US government, the meat may contain disease-causing bacteria. This is strikingly similar to claims that the earth may revolve around the sun or that air may contain oxygen.

In other news, tomatoes may no longer be the prime suspect in The Salmonella Outbreak. Its salsa cohorts jalapeños, spring onions, and cilantro are also being thoroughly examined. Funny enough, salmonella do not spring forth from the juicy goodness of a saucy san marzano; salmonella "are microscopic living creatures that pass from the feces of people or animals to other people or other animals." Scapegoat tomatoes - the caprine residents at the sanctuary sympathize.