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AR-NEWS Digest 560
Topics covered in this issue include:
1) Injured puppy saved after 2 days on tracks
by LGrayson
2) homocysteine: when the body breaks down meat and dairy products
by LGrayson
3) (US) Vegetable Oil Coated Calif. Birds
by allen schubert
4) (UK) Brain transplant makes chicken think it is a quail
by Chris Wright
5) (UK) Huntingdon Life Sciences - Planning Application Objections
Needed
by "Arc News"
6) King Royal Update
by PAWS
7) (UK) Letters of Complaint - TV Show
by "Shellfish UK"
8) Tulsa Man is Fined $150 for Shooting Two Dogs and Beheading
by SDURBIN@VM.TULSA.CC.OK.US
9) (US) Manure Suspected in Fish Deaths
by allen schubert
10) (US) Maryland Manure Glance
by allen schubert
11) (US) Animal Disease Lab Expands
by allen schubert
12) (US) Leg-Hold Traps May Be Outlawed
by allen schubert
13) (US) Humane Society Fights For Puppies
by allen schubert
14) (US) Oklahoma Anti-Hog Farm Editorial
by JanaWilson@aol.com
15) Mark Calendars Nov.4 - Nat'l Call-In to Congress to Save Endangered Species
by LexAnima@aol.com
16) Mark Calendars Nov.4 - Nat'l Call-In to Congress to Save Endangered Species
by LexAnima@aol.com
17) Sears Anti Fur Action Alert
by MINKLIB@aol.com
18) (US) Wolf culling program
by Twilight
19) (US) Sheriff Suspects Animal Rights Activists Behind Mink
Release
by allen schubert
20) Lecture by Dr. Ken Shapiro
by Miyun Park
21) (US) Scientists Work To Protect Food
by allen schubert
22) (AUS)Acid Tides/New Koala colony found
by bunny
23) FFF Non-Violence Workshop in NYC
by Hillary
24) Protest and Rally in Oregon re: government indifference to animals
by "Bob Schlesinger"
25) (US) House Republicans seek Western grazing compromise
by allen schubert
26) ACLU and PETA fight the circus
by Wyandotte Animal Group
27) (US) Experts to Draft Blueprint to Fight Pfiesteria
by allen schubert
28) Grazing Bill Compromise
by LGrayson
29) Cat missing since '96 hurricane found at hospital
by LGrayson
30) Wilderness Board member takes pro logging stand
by LGrayson
31) Spoken words, sign language use same areas of brain
by LGrayson
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 00:41:51 -0500
From: LGrayson
To: ar-news
Subject: Injured puppy saved after 2 days on tracks
Message-ID: <3456CCA0.30F8@earthlink.net>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit
Injured puppy saved after 2
days on tracks
October 21, 1997
Web posted at: 7:46 p.m. EDT
(2346 GMT)
LINCOLN, Nebraska (AP) -- A
hurt
puppy that lay between a set
of
railroad tracks for at least
two days
as more than 100 trains passed
overhead will recover --
thanks to
the actions of several train
engineers.
Heath LaRue, 24, of Waverly,
an
engineer for Burlington
Northern Santa Fe Railroad, is
adopting
the yellow Labrador-mix puppy
he found Thursday
between
Seward and Tamora.
LaRue said his train was
heading up a hill, about 30
miles west of
Lincoln, when he spotted the
dog between the tracks.
He radioed
the train behind him to slow
down and watch for it. By
the time the
dog was spotted, the puppy was
under that train's
second
engine.
"They fished him out,
called us on the radio
and
said they'd picked him
up and he was alive,"
LaRue
said.
The puppy's head was swollen
to twice its normal size
and its
eyes were swollen shut. Its
shoulder was injured --
likely caused
was malnourished, thirsty and
covered with grease.
The puppy was first spotted
last
Tuesday at 6 p.m. by an
engineer
who thought the dog was dead.
Engineer Steve Haase of
Lincoln
rescued the puppy about 46
hours
later, Thursday at 4:30 p.m.
During
that period, between 100 and
120
trains passed over the dog.
Most
were coal trains with more
than
100 cars.
The puppy is recovering and
will live with LaRue and
his family at
their home in Waverly. LaRue
is letting his two
children, Chase,
3, and Chelsie, 1, name the
dog. They are leaning
toward
"Casey," after famous
railroader Casey Jones, or "Trax."
Copyright 1997 á The
Associated Press. All rights
reserved.
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 00:32:51 -0500
From: LGrayson
To: ar-news
Subject: homocysteine: when the body breaks down meat and dairy
products
Message-ID: <3456CA84.48E@earthlink.net>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit
Studies debate role of
homocysteine in heart
disease
'It's time for the matter to
be
resolved'
October 27, 1997
Web posted at: 8:30 p.m. EST
(0130 GMT)
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Most
people know that smoking, high
blood pressure and diabetes
can
increase their chances of
getting heart disease.
But whether high levels of
homocysteine -- an amino
acid
produced when the body breaks
down meat and dairy
products
-- is a risk factor is still
not clear. Research reported in
two
medical journals this week
reach different conclusions.
A glass of milk, a steak or a
cheese omelet raise
homocysteine
levels at least temporarily,
researchers have found.
They also
have discovered that people
who don't have enough
vitamin
B-12 or folic acid in their
diet tend to have high
concentrations of
homocysteine -- as do some
people with genetic defects.
A study by scientists at the
Allegheny University of
Health
Sciences in Pittsburgh,
reported in the journal
Arteriosclerosis,
Thrombosis and Vascular
Biology, suggests that
homocysteine
may clog heart arteries by
making cells grow in
thickness and
accumulate collagen.
Collagen is found in the
plaque that clogs arteries. The
researchers found that
collagen increased after they
added
homocysteine to lab dishes of
artery cells from a rabbit.
The scientists also found that
adding a form of vitamin B-12
to
the mixture inhibited the
process, lending credence to
studies
suggesting that vitamin B-12
or folic acid, another B
vitamin, may
lower homocysteine.
'It's time for the matter to
be resolved'
Another study by a team of
doctors in Hong Kong
confirmed the
role of homocysteine in
middle-aged adults with
hardening of the
arteries. The study, reported
in the journal
Circulation,
that increased homocysteine
was a risk factor.
But another study challenges
that premise.
That study, also published in
Arteriosclerosis,
Thrombosis and
Vascular Biology, found no
difference in homocysteine
levels
between men who suffered heart
attacks and men who had not.
Dr. David Wilcken of the
Prince Henry Hospital in
Sydney,
Australia, addresses the
contradictory nature of the
findings in
an editorial in Circulation.
Noting that it's been 20 years
since homocysteine was
first
proposed as a possible risk
factor for heart disease, he
writes,
"Surely the time has come for
the matter to be
resolved."
á
Date: Tue, 28 Oct 1997 22:51:06 -0500
From: allen schubert
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (US) Vegetable Oil Coated Calif. Birds
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19971028225104.007126cc@pop3.clark.net>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
from AP Wire page http://wire.ap.org/
------------------------------------------------------
10/28/1997 21:34 EST
Vegetable Oil Coated Calif. Birds
SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (AP) -- Vegetable oil apparently was the mysterious
substance that coated hundreds of birds in the Monterey Bay, the state
Department of Fish and Game said Tuesday.
Still being investigated was the source of the spill, which dumped as
much as 2,300 gallons of the substance into the bay. The spill left a
three-mile-long slick.
Lab results indicated the gooey substance was hydrogenated vegetable oil.
Samples taken Saturday were still being analyzed by the agency at two
laboratories near Sacramento.
Since Friday night, the feathers of more than 400 grebes, loons and surf
scoters have been found matted with the oil. Authorities earlier said
there was no potential harm to humans.
Fish and Game officials warned people to stay away from injured or
distressed animals, which could strike out in self-defense. They also
asked that dead animals be left alone.
Officials have not said how many birds died after washing ashore on
several beaches along a 38-mile stretch from Ano Nuevo State Park to
Pacific Grove.
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 09:03:08 GMT
From: Chris Wright
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (UK) Brain transplant makes chicken think it is a quail
Message-ID: <345dfaa5.2536595@post.demon.co.uk>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
Brain transplant makes chicken think it is a quail
By Roger Highfield, Science Editor
[taken from http://www.telegraph.co.uk, Oct 28th 1997]
A CHICKEN that thinks it is a quail has been created by a transplant
of brain tissue from one species to the other, the world's largest
neurosciences meeting was told yesterday.
The creation of this mixed-species animal or "chimera" by
transplanting an entire region of a quail's brain into a chicken
embryo is seen as a milestone in efforts to understand the brain.
Earlier experiments by the Neurosciences Unit in La Jolla, California,
made a chicken sing and bob its head like a quail.
"This is the first time a perceptual difference has been transplanted
between any two organisms," Dr Kevin Long told the annual meeting of
the Society for Neuroscience in New Orleans. He said the experiment
could help scientists work out how minor differences in the physical
structure of the brain of different species could lead to striking
differences in behaviour.
Dr Long said there may be parallels in the human brain to the
mechanisms being studied through the creation of the bird chimera.
"These mechanisms in humans may enable the foetus to differentially
attend to a human voice (presumably the mother's, although it doesn't
have to be) which can be heard during late foetal development," said
Dr Long. The work may also yield ideas on how to treat human nervous
disorders, but Dr Long stressed that, for technical and ethical
reasons, "chimeric work on humans would never be done".
Most species are born with some behaviours that need no learning. For
example, young birds, which are able to walk and feed themselves
within hours of hatching, are especially responsive to sounds from
their own species.
"We wanted to determine the underlying developmental difference which
allows a chick to prefer a mother hen call over a mother quail call,"
said Dr Long, who conducted the work with Dr Evan Balaban. By
transplanting the anterior midbrain from quail to chick, the resulting
"chimeric" chick responded preferentially to the quail mother.
"Transplants of other, neighbouring regions from quail into chick did
not produce this effect," he said.
---
Chris Wright
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 06:08:43 PST
From: "Arc News"
To: ar-views@envirolink.org
Subject: (UK) Huntingdon Life Sciences - Planning Application Objections
Needed
Message-ID: <19971029140843.9400.qmail@hotmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain
Hello List
Huntingdon Life Sciences have applied for planning permission to build
kennels
at their Occold, site in Suffolk, England.
The application will be heard at committee on Monday 3rd Nov. They have
so far only received one objection. Objections can still be sent in but
they must be in by Friday.
Address to send them to:
Head of Development Control
Mid Suffolk District Council
131 High St
Needham Market
Ipswich
IP6 8DL
Ref 902/97
===========================================================
http://www.envirolink.org/arrs/arc/arcnews/index.html
______________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 09:24:36 -0500 (EST)
From: PAWS
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: King Royal Update
Message-ID:
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII
Thanks to everyone who has inquired about the status of the King Royal
case. The USDA's administrative hearing took place October 6-9 in
Albuquerque. Pat Derby and other PAWS members attended. As you know,
the USDA is seeking permanent revocation of King Royal's permits. (Much
to our surprise, though, the USDA made NO MENTION of King Royal's past
history of chronic violations during the hearing!!) We expect to have a
decision from the administrative judge by December and will post that
information as soon as we have it.
The criminal case--with 11 counts of criminal animal cruelty against Ben
Davenport--may not be heard for 6 months to 2 years. The animals that
were in the trailer with the elephant Heather when she died remain in the
Albuquerque Zoo, in the City's custody. They will remain there until the
criminal trial is heard.
We continue to pressure the USDA to confiscate the OTHER King Royal
animals which are still in King Royal's custody at their winter quarters
in Von Ormy, Texas. Recently, Gigi Davenport (wife of King Royal owner
John Davenport) has been advertising the animals as available for
rental. We would appreciate any help in pressuring the USDA to
confiscate these animals.
Write: Mike Dunn
Asst. Secretary
USDA
Box AG-0109
Washington, DC 20250
Phone (202) 720-4256
(202) 720-5775 fax
Thanks again to the activists in 16 cities who leafleted and held Vigils
for Heather during early October!!
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 06:21:29 PST
From: "Shellfish UK"
To: shellfish_uk@hotmail.com
Subject: (UK) Letters of Complaint - TV Show
Message-ID: <19971029142130.12089.qmail@hotmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain
Letters of complaint needed:
During Saturday 25 October edition of "Blind Date" on ITV
a scene was shown in which a sea urchin was eaten alive.
We would ask all supporters of the Shellfish Network to write and
complain about the treatment of this creature.
Write to:
Central Television
Central Court
Gas Street
Birmingham B1 2JP
England
and also
Broadcasting Standards Commission
7 The Sanctuary
London SW1P 3JS
England.
Many thanks
Amanda
Shellfish Network (UK)
http://www.envirolink.org/arrs/arc/shellfish/
______________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 97 08:14:50 UTC
From: SDURBIN@VM.TULSA.CC.OK.US
To: ar-news@Envirolink.org
Subject: Tulsa Man is Fined $150 for Shooting Two Dogs and Beheading
Message-ID: <199710291415.JAA21743@envirolink.org>
Tulsa World, Tulsa, OK, USA: A Tulsa man was found guilty in
municipal court Tuesday of shooting two pit bulldogs and beheading
one of them this summer.
Riley Johnson, 38, was fined $150 on a charge of malicious mischief.
Formal sentencing is set for 9:30am Thursday.
Johnson, who pleaded innocent, claims he was defending himself when
he shot the dogs in his yard June 30. One of the dogs died, and the
other wandered home later that night with a bullet wound to the
shoulder. Johnson beheaded the dog who died and then carried the head
around his neighborhood.
Rodney and Cynde Payton had lived in the neighborhood for three weeks
when their animals were shot. Rodney Payton will file a civil suit
against Johnson.
(Johnson first claimed that he went in and out of his house several
times to find bullets for his gun, while the dogs were cowered under
his truck. He later changed it and said they were attacking him.)
-- Sherrill
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 09:23:15 -0500
From: allen schubert
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (US) Manure Suspected in Fish Deaths
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19971029092312.00722908@pop3.clark.net>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
from AP Wire page http://wire.ap.org/
----------------------------------------------------
10/29/1997 03:33 EST
Manure Suspected in Fish Deaths
By CURT ANDERSON
AP Farm Writer
SALISBURY, Md. (AP) -- For Bill and Cathy Green, the huge pile of chicken
manure in their barn is a vital part of the cycle that earns their
living. Now all that is threatened. ``Why now?'' asks Cathy Green.
``This is a practice that's been done for years and years and years,''
she added.
All across America, farmers use nutrient-rich, cheap livestock manure to
fertilize crops. But on Maryland's Eastern Shore, the practice is being
blamed as the likely cause of an outbreak of a toxic microbe that killed
fish and sickened people along the Chesapeake Bay this summer.
Although most farmers contend that science has yet to prove a link
between Pfiesteria piscicida and manure run-off, others say it is only
common sense but acknowledge the great reluctance to admit it.
``They know, but they're scared to say it,'' said Frank Morison, who
grows chickens for Perdue Farms outside nearby Pocomoke. ``They're
worried about it affecting their livelihoods.''
At the Greens' farm, after each flock of chickens is raised a small
bulldozer scrapes out the droppings of some 27,000 birds. This happens
five or six times a year, and the manure is stored in a big shed.
Their neighbors who grow crops buy the manure, truck it away and spread
it on fields. They say the plants are stronger and taller than those
treated with chemical fertilizers.
``I can sure find a home for it,'' Bill Green said. ``Everybody wants
it.''
But many scientists believe the extra nitrogen and phosphorous introduced
into nature by the animal manure could play a role in appearance of
microbes like Pfiesteria piscicida. These nutrients, which come from all
animal wastes and get into waterways through rainfall, already are blamed
for fish kills that result from oxygen-robbing algae blooms in water.
``Feedlots are a leading source of pollution,'' said Robbin Marks of the
Natural Resources Defense Council.
Farm animals produce mountains of manure. In fact, the Agriculture
Department estimates that cattle, hogs and poultry kept in confined areas
produce 61 million tons of waste a year.
The 1,600 dairies in California's Central Valley, for example, produce
more waste than a city of 21 million people.
The appearance of the microbe in three Chesapeake Bay tributaries -- and
subsequent consumer fears that damaged the area's seafood industry --
could mean new restrictions for Eastern Shore chicken producers and may
signal a change nationally in the way manure is used.
``Animal waste pollution is a national problem that demands a national
solution,'' said Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, who introduced a bill Tuesday
in Congress to enact tougher standards for large producers.
But new regulations could upset the economic underpinnings of many farm
regions.
In Delaware and eastern Maryland, the annual production of 620 million
chickens provides a ready supply of manure for farmers who, in turn, sell
their corn and other grain to poultry companies for chicken feed.
Without the locally produced grain, it would cost more to produce
chickens, and without chicken manure, it would cost farmers more to grow
grain.
``There's nothing wrong with it,'' Bill Green says of the system.
In the aftermath of the Pfiesteria outbreak, however, Maryland officials
are discussing new regulations on use of manure, including methods of
shipping it to other states and mandatory controls on how much is spread
on fields.
Other ideas being floated to further reduce the environmental impact of
manure include composting it and selling the product commercially or
burning it in incinerators and selling the ash as fertilizer. Still
another is using chicken litter as a supplement to cattle feed.
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 09:24:16 -0500
From: allen schubert
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (US) Maryland Manure Glance
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19971029092414.006e4878@pop3.clark.net>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
from AP Wire page http://wire.ap.org/
----------------------------------------------------
10/29/1997 03:34 EST
Maryland Manure Glance
By The Associated Press
Annual amounts of manure produced by farm animals kept in confined areas
that can be collected for fertilizer, according to the Agriculture
Department. The list does not include manure from animals in pastures.
Numbers are in thousands of tons.
Animal Total manure Amount collectible
Range cattle 46,678 1,699
Dairy cattle 26,738 23,626
Feeder cattle 18,364 17,998
Swine 8,496 8,325
Chickens 7,206 7,056
Sheep 2,996 1,603
Turkeys 1,240 1,225
Total 111,728 61,358
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 09:43:52 -0500
From: allen schubert
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (US) Animal Disease Lab Expands
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19971029094350.0071d064@pop3.clark.net>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
from CNN custom news http://www.cnn.com/
--------------------------------------------------------------
Ohio State News
Reuters
29-OCT-97
Animal Disease Lab Expands
(REYNOLDSBURG) -- The state has broken ground on a three- Million-dollar
expansion of a lab dedicated to food safety in Reynoldsburg. The Ohio
Department of Agriculture's new addition to the Animal Disease Diagnostics
Laboratory will open in about a-year-and-a-half... and improve the lab's
efforts to test eggs and livestock for health hazards. The project is part
of a six-year-old, 31-Million-dollar capital-improvements project.
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 09:45:39 -0500
From: allen schubert
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (US) Leg-Hold Traps May Be Outlawed
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19971029094537.0071d064@pop3.clark.net>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
from CNN custom news http://www.cnn.com/
--------------------------------------------------------------
Vermont State News
Reuters
29-OCT-97
Leg-Hold Traps May Be Outlawed
(MONTPELIER) -- Animal rights activists want to do away with the only
remaining legal method of trapping in Vermont. A group called ``End Trap''
held a Montpelier news conference to announce legislation it'll push next
year to ban leg-hold traps. But in a gesture of compromise, the group says
the bill it supports contains an exemption to allow the limited use of
leg-hold traps for nuisance animals.
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 09:52:10 -0500
From: allen schubert
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (US) Humane Society Fights For Puppies
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19971029095208.0071d200@pop3.clark.net>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
from CNN custom news http://www.cnn.com/
--------------------------------------------------------------
Connecticut State News
Reuters
29-OCT-97
Humane Society Fights For Puppies
(NEWINGTON) -- Connecticut's Humane Society is joining the battle to
prevent 96 puppies from being turned over to a Missouri supplier. The dogs
were found in unsanitary conditions in the back of a truck after it crashed
into a railroad viaduct in Bridgeport two weeks ago. After Bridgeport
police completed their investigation, the puppies were turned over to the
city's animal control center. The supplier has notified the state of his
intention to take the dogs to pet shops around Connecticut and Massachusetts.
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 10:44:43 -0500 (EST)
From: JanaWilson@aol.com
To: Ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (US) Oklahoma Anti-Hog Farm Editorial
Message-ID: <971029104443_-291961273@mrin44.mail.aol.com>
This appeared today in Oklahoma City's local news:
Breathes there a man with smell so dead that he doesn't relate
to the plight of folks living next to a massive hog farm?
This paper sympathizes with these good neighbors while not
necessarily endorsing all solutions proposed for confined animal
feeding operstions (CAFOs).
There are rare times when states must limit business activity
in the public interest. Regulating corporate hog and chicken farms
is an example. What started as an economic development
tool for lonely stretches of Oklahoma has become an environmental
bane.
Oklahoma's Republican Gov. Frank Keating's task force on
animal waste has some good ideas. One is to let counties decide if
they want CAFOs in their midst. As demonstrated in a recent Kansas
election, few if any counties would so decide. Still, voters would have
a way in how much waste, smell and potential water pollution they
wish to tolerate for prosperity's sake. Existing operations would
probably remain but face tighter regulations.
Reluctantly, we understand the possible switch in waste regulation
from the state Agriculture Dept. to the Environmental Quality
Dept. The former must remain concerned with developing agricultural
potential, but there are serious concerns about concentrated pig
and chicken operations, and nature's ability to absorb waste.
Our reluctance stems from tyrannical power grabs by the federal
Environmental Protection Agency, which has no head for business.
The ideal environment for CAFOs is one in which the need for jobs
is blended with the need for clean air and water. Increasing the
minimum distance between a large hog farm and a nearby dwelling
is part of this blending, or balance.
For the Animals,
Jana, OKC
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 11:51:45 -0500 (EST)
From: LexAnima@aol.com
To: AR-News@cygnus.com
Cc: VEGGI125@aol.com
Subject: Mark Calendars Nov.4 - Nat'l Call-In to Congress to Save Endangered Species
Message-ID: <971029115144_-1896059608@mrin46.mail.aol.com>
The Animal Rights Voice is a KEY element to this campaign. Don't think of
this as a middle-of-the-road issue. The people who are trying to gut the EPA
are the same old use-'em-and-abuse-'em crowd. Remember when Ted Nugent
killed endangered species on his "how to hunt" video? Let's protect wild
animals! The Endangered Species Act is one of the FEW laws that exist on the
federal books to protect animals. Let the offices know that you're an animal
person and you're proud to be working with the environmentalists. If you
have a union connection, a women's organization connection or work for a big
company -- let them know that too!
National ESA Call-in Day! National ESA Call-in Day!
NATIONAL ESA CALL-IN DAY!
TUESDAY, November 4
Let's hold our elected officials accountable.
Pick up the phone to protect the ESA.
Let the halls of Congress ring on November 4.
All across the country folks will be calling for a stronger ESA.
Congressional Switchboard (202) 224-3121
* Call your senators and tell them not to support Kempthorne's bill *
Senator Kempthorne's S. 1180 would jeopardize the mission of
the ESA to recover species in peril. Kempthorne's S. 1180
would provide:
o Special access for special interests
o Taxpayer subsidized habitat destruction
o Roadblocks to recovery
o Weaken protections for species on public & private
lands
* Call your Representative to cosponsor HR 2351. *
A better bill has been introduced in the House. HR 2351
would reaffirm and strengthen the nation's commitment to
wildlife and to protect our children's future. It is
estimated we are losing approximately 100 species every day.
Rather than weaken protection for fragile plants and animals,
Congress should strengthen the ESA, so species do not slip
through loopholes and cracks in the current ESA.
HR 2351 would:
o Conserve declining species before they near the brink
of extinction.
o Place a deadline on listing decisions for candidate
species.
o Provide economic incentives to encourage voluntary
conservation.
Please distribute widely!
NATIONAL ESA CALL-IN DAY!!
TUESDAY, November 4
National ESA Call-in Day! National ESA Call-in Day!
==========================================================
Roger Featherstone -- Director
GrassRoots Environmental Effectiveness Network
A project of Defenders of Wildlife
PO Box 40046, Albuquerque, NM 87196-0046
(505) 277-8302 fax:(505) 277-5483 e-mail: rfeather@defenders.org
check out our web page at: http://www.defenders.org/grnhome.html
(All other GREEN staff remain at our Washington, DC, office)
==========================================
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 12:21:56 -0500 (EST)
From: LexAnima@aol.com
To: AR-News@envirolink.org
Subject: Mark Calendars Nov.4 - Nat'l Call-In to Congress to Save Endangered Species
Message-ID: <971029121319_1724018990@emout08.mail.aol.com>
The Animal Rights Voice is a KEY element to this campaign. Don't think of
this as a middle-of-the-road issue. The people who are trying to gut the EPA
are the same old use-'em-and-abuse-'em crowd. Remember when Ted Nugent
killed endangered species on his "how to hunt" video? Let's protect wild
animals! The Endangered Species Act is one of the FEW laws that exist on the
federal books to protect animals. Let the offices know that you're an animal
person and you're proud to be working with the environmentalists. If you
have a union connection, a women's organization connection or work for a big
company -- let them know that too!
National ESA Call-in Day! National ESA Call-in Day!
NATIONAL ESA CALL-IN DAY!
TUESDAY, November 4
Let's hold our elected officials accountable.
Pick up the phone to protect the ESA.
Let the halls of Congress ring on November 4.
All across the country folks will be calling for a stronger ESA.
Congressional Switchboard (202) 224-3121
* Call your senators and tell them not to support Kempthorne's bill *
Senator Kempthorne's S. 1180 would jeopardize the mission of
the ESA to recover species in peril. Kempthorne's S. 1180
would provide:
o Special access for special interests
o Taxpayer subsidized habitat destruction
o Roadblocks to recovery
o Weaken protections for species on public & private
lands
* Call your Representative to cosponsor HR 2351. *
A better bill has been introduced in the House. HR 2351
would reaffirm and strengthen the nation's commitment to
wildlife and to protect our children's future. It is
estimated we are losing approximately 100 species every day.
Rather than weaken protection for fragile plants and animals,
Congress should strengthen the ESA, so species do not slip
through loopholes and cracks in the current ESA.
HR 2351 would:
o Conserve declining species before they near the brink
of extinction.
o Place a deadline on listing decisions for candidate
species.
o Provide economic incentives to encourage voluntary
conservation.
Please distribute widely!
NATIONAL ESA CALL-IN DAY!!
TUESDAY, November 4
National ESA Call-in Day! National ESA Call-in Day!
==========================================================
Roger Featherstone -- Director
GrassRoots Environmental Effectiveness Network
A project of Defenders of Wildlife
PO Box 40046, Albuquerque, NM 87196-0046
(505) 277-8302 fax:(505) 277-5483 e-mail: rfeather@defenders.org
check out our web page at: http://www.defenders.org/grnhome.html
(All other GREEN staff remain at our Washington, DC, office)
==========================================
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 13:10:14 -0500 (EST)
From: MINKLIB@aol.com
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Sears Anti Fur Action Alert
Message-ID: <971029131013_473850625@mrin41.mail.aol.com>
Sears has cut back on the amount of fur trim they carry, but they still have
some coats that are lined with real fur. A buyer from Sears told CAFT that
only a small percentage of their coats now have real fur trim. To us that
means it is even easier to completely phase it out of the companies
inventory.
Please write and call Sears and demand that a ban be implemented to stop the
sale of coats lined with fur. A lot of Sears stores only have fake trim, but
in some of the northern markets they are selling real fur trim.
Fur trim is the only thing keeping the prices for fox, coyote, and raccoon
somewhat profitable. If we can eliminate the sale of this product in major
retail chains then you can rest assured that we will see a drop in the prices
for those pelts, and a subsequent decline in trapping.
Write to:
Arthur Martinez
Chairman and CEO
Sears
3333 Beverly Rd.
Hoffman Estates, IL 60179
or call:
847-286-2500
Please distribute this action alert to other lists.
Coalition to Abolish the Fur Trade
PO Box 822411
Dallas, TX 75382
MINKLIB@aol.com
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 10:47:15 -0800 (PST)
From: Twilight
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (US) Wolf culling program
Message-ID: <19971029184715.6926.rocketmail@web2.rocketmail.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Study casts doubt on Alaskan wolf-control programs
By Yereth Rosen
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (Reuters) - Despite hunters' pleas that
Alaska's wild wolf packs should be thinned out, there is no
proof that predator control helps sportsmen bag more moose and
caribou, a report released Tuesday said.
Programs to supress wolves and bears can temporarily boost
prey populations, but the long-term fate of moose and caribou is
more likely to rest with habitat and weather changes, the report
by the National Research Council said.
Alaska's past attempts at wolf control -- controversial
enough to prompt temporary worldwide tourism boycotts -- were
conducted without biological and economic information, said
Gordon Orians, the professor of zoology at the University of
Washington who chaired the committee that wrote the report.
``Often they were based on biological and economic
assumptions that were not adequately tested,'' Orians said at a
news conference in Juneau.
Alaska officials also failed to do adequate follow-up
studies to determine whether the programs achieved their goals,
he said.
``It's ironic that the pressing purpose for predator control
has been to increase hunting success, yet the changes in ...
hunter success have not been monitored,'' Orians said
The 15-month study was conducted at the request of Gov. Tony
Knowles. The Democratic governor suspended the state's
wolf-control program in late 1994, soon after he was elected.
Knowles asked the National Research Council, an arm of the
National Academies of Sciences and Engineering, to investigate
the biological and economic validity of programs to reduce wolf
and bear populations. The council appointed a committee of
experts to study past programs in Alaska and Canada.
Economic information to justify the cost of predator control
is thin, Orians said.
The value to hunters of game meat and the income from
sport-hunting buinesses must be balanced against that from
tourism and the ``existence value'' held by people who want to
keep wolves and bears in the wild, Orians said.
The only wolf-culling programs that appeared to have raised
prey populations -- if only temporarily -- were carried out with
aerial support over at least four years, the report said. They
reduced wolf numbers by at least 40 percent.
Even in hunting-friendly Alaska, such aggressive programs to
kill wolves and bears are likely to be highly unpopular and
possibly illegal, the report said.
State voters overwhemlingly passed a ballot issue in 1996
outlawing the killing of wolves on the same day that a hunter's
aircraft lands, and the use of poison is banned.
Alaska is to start an experimental wolf-control program in
December. To help boost caribou numbers in the Fortymile River
area of interior Alaska, it plans to sterilize some wolves there
and transplant others to the Kenai Peninsula, where wolf packs
have been shrinking.
_____________________________________________________________________
Sent by RocketMail. Get your free e-mail at http://www.rocketmail.com
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 17:19:43 -0500
From: allen schubert
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (US) Sheriff Suspects Animal Rights Activists Behind Mink
Release
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19971029171941.006e770c@pop3.clark.net>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
from CNN custom news http://www.cnn.com/
----------------------------------------------------------------
Sheriff Suspects Animal Rights Activists Behind Mink Release
AP
29-OCT-97
MEDFORD, Wis. (AP) Raids on mink farms that released more than 4,000 of the
fur-bearers are being investigated by federal agents because of possible
links to similar raids by anti-fur activists in other states, officials say.
"We look at this as an act of domestic terrorism," Taylor County Sheriff
Bill Breneman said Tuesday.
During the weekend, mink were freed from three mink farms in Wisconsin, the
nation's top producer of mink pelts.
This month alone, mink have been freed at ranches in Idaho, Illinois, Iowa
and South Dakota. Similar raids were made earlier this year on mink farms
in Oregon and Utah. Because of that interstate connection, Breneman said,
he was working with the FBI on the case.
No one had claimed responsibility for the raids, but Breneman said the
underground Animal Liberation Front was among the suspects.
The group's Web page says "the Animal Liberation Front carries out direct
action against animal abusing in the form of rescuing animals and causing
financial loss to animal exploiters, usually through the damage and
destruction of property."
Activists who free domesticated mink are simply harming the animals, the
sheriff said.
"These animals are not conditioned to survive being turned loose in the
wild," he said. "It is like someone dumping off their cat or dog. They are
not doing a humane act here."
Wisconsin produced 718,100 mink pelts in 1996 from the state's 74 mink
ranches, state officials said. Utah was second with 585,000 pelts from 130
ranchers.
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 17:24:22 -0500
From: Miyun Park
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Lecture by Dr. Ken Shapiro
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19971029134916.0069b0f4@pop.erols.com>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
Subject: US : DC/MD/VA Ken Shapiro of PsyETA to speak at AU
On October 30, 1997, come listen to Dr. Kenneth Shapiro speak about the
ethics, necessity, and reality of using non-human animals in laboratory
experiments. Ken is the Executive Director of PSYeta, Psychologists for
the Ethical Treatment of Animals. He will be discussing in part his most
recent publication, a book entitled Animal Models of Human Psychology :
Critique of Science, Ethics, and Policy. Ken is well respected in both
the psychology and animal rights communities.
Date: Thursday, October 30, 1997
Time: 8:30 PM
Location: American University, 4400 Mass Ave NW, Ward Building 310. Red
line metro to Tenleytown, then two blocks or so down Nebraska.
More info: Email AUARE-L@american.edu
or call Nisha 202.686.7966
or Jon 202.885.6974
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 17:50:24 -0500
From: allen schubert
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (US) Scientists Work To Protect Food
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19971029175020.00721d78@pop3.clark.net>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
from AP Wire page http://wire.ap.org/
------------------------------------------------------
10/29/1997 16:39 EST
Scientists Work To Protect Food
By TARA MEYER
Associated Press Writer
GRIFFIN, Ga. (AP) -- Faced with outbreaks of salmonella and E. coli,
scientists are developing a better way to protect food: killing deadly
bacteria in the bowels of chickens and cattle before the animals even
leave the farm.
``We've concentrated on the end product of food so long when we should be
looking at how to stop it from being contaminated in the first place,''
said Lester M. Crawford, director of the Center for Food and Nutritional
Quality at Georgetown University in Washington.
Salmonella, campylobacter and toxic forms of E. coli all get their start
in animals' intestines. They can spill out in the slaughterhouse and make
their way into food.
Currently, chickens are sprayed with chlorine and quick-chilled to retard
bacteria. Inspectors touch, sniff and sometimes test animal carcasses for
contamination. Another method, in which bacteria are killed with zaps of
radiation, has proved too controversial for widespread use in this
country.
In a lab in this Georgia town, food scientist Michael Doyle looked inside
a cow's stomach for a way to kill E. coli 0157:H7, the mutant microbe
blamed in the recall of 25 million pounds of ground beef over the summer.
Doyle found that several types of bacteria inside the cow make their own
repellent against E. coli 0157. So he took those bacteria from cattle
droppings and tissue, grew them in the lab and fed them to calves in
their milk.
The bacteria not only wiped out E. coli 0157 in one group of calves
within three weeks, they also kept it from invading a second group, said
Doyle, who runs the University of Georgia Center for Food Safety and
Quality Enhancement.
Doyle hopes his work will lead to a product that could be fed to cows to
clean them out before they are sent to slaughter. He is hoping to get his
product to market within three years, at a cost of about $1 per animal.
``This type of technology is exactly what we need if we are going to keep
the bacteria out of the food supply,'' said Caroline Smith Dewaal,
director of food safety for the Center for Science in the Public
Interest, an independent consumer advocacy group. ``We need to have
farmers address the bacteria before the cattle go to slaughter.''
Several researchers are working on a similar concept in chickens.
A new oral vaccine aimed at cutting down salmonella infections from eggs
and poultry could be available for farmers by early next year.
Developed by biologist Roy Curtiss III of Washington University in St.
Louis, the vaccine is a weakened form of salmonella that allows the
bird's defenses to fight off infections.
Scientists at the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Research Service in
College Station, Texas, have also patented a mixture of bacteria from a
chicken's gut that wards off salmonella in chicks.
The mixture is now being sold overseas. The approach is awaiting approval
in the United States from the Food and Drug Administration.
In Canada, Andy Potter and his colleagues at the nonprofit Veterinary
Infectious Disease Organization are also working on an E. coli vaccine
for chickens. They hope eventually to develop a supervaccine that can
also fight salmonella and campylobacter.
Many types of E. coli are present in humans and animals and aid
digestion. But the toxic form E. coli 0157 serves no purpose. Neither
does salmonella or campylobacter.
Killing bacteria inside animals isn't foolproof. Doyle, for example,
still has to find out how long his method will keep E. coli at bay and
whether the bacteria will interfere with other animal antibiotics.
But the scientists see their approach as part of series of checkpoints
from the farm to America's dinner table. Now, much of the burden rests on
whoever is in the kitchen to make sure that the beef and chicken are
cooked thoroughly to destroy any deadly bacteria.
``Food safety begins when the animal is born,'' Potter said.
Date: Thu, 30 Oct 1997 07:13:09 +0800
From: bunny
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (AUS)Acid Tides/New Koala colony found
Message-ID: <1.5.4.16.19971030065952.2cf7d768@wantree.com.au>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
>From TV News - Australia
Acid Tides.
Some rivers in the Eastern States of Australia are experiencing "acid tides"
after ti-tree farming has exposed minerals previously held in the subsoil.
These acidic minerals have been washed into the rivers killing a large
number of fish and threatening oyster farming. Ti-tree is not native to the
all the
areas it is being farmed.
Koalas.
A colony of koalas has been found with longer, softer palates and larger paws
than before. These koalas may be a little larger than those found elsewhere
and scientists are trying to tag and observe the differences betweenthe newly
discovered koala colony and existing koalas.
===========================================
Rabbit Information Service,
P.O.Box 30,
Riverton,
Western Australia 6148
Email> rabbit@wantree.com.au
http://www.wantree.com.au/~rabbit/rabbit.htm
(Rabbit Information Service website updated frequently)
/`\ /`\
(/\ \-/ /\)
)6 6(
>{= Y =}<
/'-^-'\
(_) (_)
| . |
| |}
jgs \_/^\_/
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 18:54:23 -0800
From: Hillary
To: veg-nyc@waste.org
Subject: FFF Non-Violence Workshop in NYC
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19971029185409.00726444@pop01.ny.us.ibm.net>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
Friends of Animals is sponsoring a FREE non-violence workshop on Saturday,
Nov 1 from 10-5 pm at the Source of Life 22 West 34th Street in NYC. This
will be highly informative, inspirational and you can network with other
activists from the NYC area. All invited, esp those who want to participate
in NYC's FFF demo at Saks Fifth Avenue--destined to be even Bigger and
Better than last year!
Interested? Call Matt at 212-247-8120.
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 18:53:23 -0800
From: "Bob Schlesinger"
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Protest and Rally in Oregon re: government indifference to animals
Message-ID: <199710291853230520.0229BCBA@pcez.com>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit
>From Ark Online Newshttp://www.arkonline.com
Hillsboro, Oregon
October 29, 1997
-------------------------------
A protest rally was announced today for Saturday, November 8th at noon at the Oregon State
Capitol building steps by individuals in the Oregon animal rights movement. The protest is
directed towards the legislature, governor, and other officials for turning their backs on
companion animals in Oregon. Recently Oregon gained notoriety for its mandatory death
sentence for any dog that "chases" livestock, regardless of whether any damage to the livestock
occurs or not. The legislature bowed to the livestock industry and has refused to change the law.
Also recently an off duty policeman shot and killed a family dog in a quiet neighborhood in a
Portland suburb without any provocation. To date no charges have been filed in the case.
Meanwhile animal control departments across the state routinely harass individuals that own pets
that complaints have been filed against, regardless of merit.
Currently a dog is on death row for running after a horse. The horse was not injured. The dog
was impounded and is scheduled to die pending an appeal to the Oregon Supreme Court which
most likely will decline to review the case. The governor, who has the power to stop the killing
due to his right to revoke the original forfeiture of the dog refuses to get involved, claiming that
his right to revoke forfeiture does not apply in this case. A spokesman for the governor stated
"We won't get involved, After all it's just a dog".
More information about the protest will appear at Ark Online at http://www.arkonline.com as
they become available
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 22:36:34 -0500
From: allen schubert
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (US) House Republicans seek Western grazing compromise
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19971029223631.00724624@pop3.clark.net>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
from CNN http://www.cnn.com/
-----------------------------------------------
House Republicans seek Western grazing compromise
October 29, 1997
Web posted at: 9:15 p.m. EST (0215
GMT)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- House Republicans worked toward
compromise Wednesday on a Western rangeland
grazing bill, but opponents said even the new
version continues a taxpayer subsidy that causes
environmental damage.
The main sponsor, Oregon Republican Rep. Bob
Smith, and a leading Republican on environmental
issues, Rep. Sherwood Boehlert of New York, tried
to defuse one controversy by removing a provision
granting ranchers effective control of local
councils that make grazing policy recommendations
on some 270 million acres of public land.
In addition, the new version would ensure access
to public lands across private property and change
some wording in the original bill that appeared to
increase private property rights.
"It is a reasonable compromise that protects the
environment, yet protects the legitimate concerns
of Westerners and ranchers," Boehlert said. Smith,
chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, added
that the bill's purpose is to give ranchers
"stability and predictability" in their use of
rangeland and noted it raises $6 million through a
new, higher grazing fee.
The House planned a vote on the bill as early as
Thursday. In part, the fact that it was nearing a
vote represented an effort within the House GOP to
heal a rift between pro-property rights Westerners
and Eastern Republicans concerned about
environmental protection, two House aides said.
Environmental groups and some Democrats, however,
said the revised measure still would leave intact
a taxpayer subsidy to ranchers variously estimated
at $25 million to $50 million a year. Even higher
grazing fees -- from an average of $1.35 to $1.55
per animal per month -- are more than $4 lower
than what it costs the government to manage the
rangeland.
In addition, opponents said it expands a practice
allowing ranchers to sublease their permits at
higher fees and then pocket the profits. The Smith
bill extends that right to Forest Service land.
"The bill does create new opportunities for
ranchers to milk taxpayers," said Courtney Cuff of
the Friends of the Earth environmental group.
"Those who benefit from public lands grazing ought
to pay for this privilege. The taxpayers and the
environment should not bear the cost."
About 23,000 producers of cattle, sheep and goats
hold permits to graze animals on Bureau of Land
Management and Forest Service rangeland.
Rep. Bruce Vento, a Minnesota Democrat, planned to
offer an amendment that would raise the grazing
fee for large producers by either 25 percent or to
the level states charge for grazing on their land,
which is usually higher.
Beyond the fees, however, Vento and the
environmentalists say the bill would scrap the
Clinton administration's attempt to balance
interests in use of the public land, putting more
livestock pressure on sensitive areas and harming
endangered native species.
"This really is abuse in terms of the
environment," Vento said. "It restores
confrontation, and we don't need that."
Even if the House manages to pass Smith's bill,
its fate this year is cloudy because there is no
companion bill in the Senate and Congress hopes to
adjourn next month. In addition, Interior
Secretary Bruce Babbitt has recommended that
President Clinton veto the measure.
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 22:22:12 -0500
From: Wyandotte Animal Group
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: ACLU and PETA fight the circus
Message-ID: <1.5.4.16.19971030032212.3837ac74@mail.heritage.com>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
>From ACLU Newswire:
Freedom of Speech Arrives
On Pittsburgh's Mario Lemieux Place
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, October 24, 1997
PITTSBURGH, PA -- Acting on behalf of People for the Ethical Treatment
of Animals, the ACLU late yesterday reached an agreement with the City
of Pittsburgh over the right of activists to distribute leaflets and
display signs at this weekend's Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey
circus shows at Pittsburgh's Civic Arena.
For many years, people wishing to engage in time-honored political
protest activities against circuses, rock & roll groups and other shows
were precluded from using the sidewalks along Auditorium Place, the
street that runs between Centre and Bedford Avenues right next to the
Civic Arena. Auditorium Place was renamed Mario Lemieux Place last
summer in honor of Pittsburgh's recently retired hockey star.
Protestors in the past have been relegated to the sidewalks on Centre
Avenue and Washington Place, a good distance from the Arena itself.
Consequently, activists did not have access to the many patrons who
parked in the lots along Centre Avenue.
How the police could keep people from exercising basic First Amendment
rights on a public street, Mario Lemieux Place, puzzled many people. The
first step was taken yesterday in restoring basic free speech rights to
an important area of the City.
ACLU of Pittsburgh Director Vic Walczak hailed the agreement. "I don't
know Mario's politics, but I do know that politics is coming to Mario's
street," Walczak said. "The ACLU is pleased to have brokered this
agreement to reconcile the Civic Arena's commercial interests with the
activists' basic constitutional rights."
The situation began Wednesday when local PETA activist Mara McKay
complained to the ACLU that she and her colleagues had not in the past
been permitted to leaflet on Mario Lemieux Way.
By letter dated October 22, the ACLU asked the City to give assurance
that police officers would not prevent PETA activists from leafleting on
Mario Lemieux Place. Discussions on Thursday, October 23, expanded to
include attorneys from the URA, which owns the land under the Civic
Arena, the PAA, which leases the auditorium itself, and SMG Corporation,
which subleases the building and runs the facility. An agreement was
reached late in the day on Thursday.
Under the agreement, PETA volunteers will be allowed to leaflet and
picket on any of the sidewalks abutting the thoroughfares around the
Civic Arena, including Mario Lemieux Place, during the Ringling
Brothers, Barnum & Bailey circus shows on Friday and Saturday night,
October 24 and 25, respectively. The agreement encompasses only these
two shows.
But Walczak noted that the ACLU has already informed the parties to this
agreement that the group will push to extend the same right of access to
political activists attending all Civic Arena events.
"Animal rights activists protesting a circus, Evangelicals objecting to
a Marilyn Manson concert, anti-pornographers at Motley Crue, or people
concerned about the exploitation of NHL players - if there are any- all
have a constitutional right to express their views on every Pittsburgh
sidewalk, including those at the Civic Arena," Walczak said.
As for tonight's circus performance, PETA members will be out there
telling patrons about the way Ringling Brothers treats its animals. PETA
is an international non-profit organization dedicated to exposing and
eliminating animal abuse wherever it occurs. PETA uses public education,
litigation, research, investigations, media campaigns, and grassroots
organizing to accomplish its goal of protecting all animals from
exploitation and abuse. Circus acts are a frequent target of PETA's
activities.
Operating under the credo, "Animals are not ours to eat, wear,
experiment on, or use for entertainment," PETA supporters defend the
right of all individuals, human and other-than-human, to be respected
and live peacefully without fear of harm or persecution.
Mara McKay, the local activist who is largely responsible for the free
speech victory today, was pleased that PETA would have the opportunity
to spread the group's message to more people.
"Captivity of wild animals provides an environment of fear, boredom,
illness and anxiety," McKay said. "They are denied all that is natural
to them - food, activity, socialization and natural behaviors. The
whips, muzzles, chains and other tools used in circuses are constant
reminders that these animals are being forced to perform for their
human audience."
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Jason Alley
Wyandotte Animal Group
wag@heritage.com
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 23:33:38 -0500
From: allen schubert
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (US) Experts to Draft Blueprint to Fight Pfiesteria
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19971029233242.00724f6c@pop3.clark.net>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit
from MSNBC http://www.msnbc.com/
----------------------------------------------------------
Experts to Draft Blueprint to Fight Pfiesteria
Wednesday, October 29, 1997 û A meeting is taking place in Baltimore to
find a way to fight the deadly microbe pfiesteria.
That microbe is responsible for killing hundreds of fish in the waters of
Maryland and Virginia.
The group hopes to draft a blueprint of ways to fight the toxic microbe,
which has also been found to cause health problems in humans.
Meantime, nine poultry producers vow to decrease the amount of manure
runoff that leaks into the areaÆs rivers.
That runoff has been found to contain nutrients that help pfiesteria to
thrive.
In our immediate area, the pfiesteria problem has been found in the
Pocomoke and Rappahannock rivers.
Despite continued concerns about pfiesteria and sick fish,
environmentalists say they believe the Chesapeake Bay is showing signs of
improvement.
They say an increasing fish population, more underwater plants and clearer
waters are indicators of a much healthier bay.
However, skeptics say while this is encouraging, major steps still need to
be taken to ward off pollution and until that happens, the bay will still
be in poor health.
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 23:13:13 -0500
From: LGrayson
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Grazing Bill Compromise
Message-ID: <34580959.6569@earthlink.net>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: multipart/mixed; boundary="------------6DBE59663AF"
http://cnn.com/EARTH/9710/29/grazing.ap/index.html
House Republicans seek Western grazing compromise
October 29, 1997
Web posted at: 9:15 p.m. EST (0215 GMT)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- House Republicans worked toward compromise
Wednesday on a Western rangeland grazing bill, but opponents
said even the new version continues a taxpayer subsidy that
causes environmental damage.
The main sponsor, Oregon Republican Rep. Bob Smith, and a
leading Republican on environmental issues, Rep. Sherwood
Boehlert of New York, tried to defuse one controversy by
removing a provision granting ranchers effective control of
local councils that make grazing policy recommendations on
some 270 million acres of public land.
In addition, the new version would ensure access to public
lands across private property and change some wording in the
original bill that appeared to increase private property
rights.
"It is a reasonable compromise that protects the environment,
yet protects the legitimate concerns of Westerners and
ranchers," Boehlert said. Smith, chairman of the House
Agriculture Committee, added that the bill's purpose is to
give ranchers "stability and predictability" in their use of
rangeland and noted it raises $6 million through a new,
higher grazing fee.
The House planned a vote on the bill as early as Thursday. In
part, the fact that it was nearing a vote represented an
effort within the House GOP to heal a rift between
pro-property rights Westerners and Eastern Republicans
concerned about environmental protection, two House aides
said.
Environmental groups and some Democrats, however, said the
revised measure still would leave intact a taxpayer subsidy
to ranchers variously estimated at $25 million to $50 million
a year. Even higher grazing fees -- from an average of $1.35
to $1.55 per animal per month -- are more than $4 lower than
what it costs the government to manage the rangeland.
In addition, opponents said it expands a practice allowing
ranchers to sublease their permits at higher fees and then
pocket the profits. The Smith bill extends that right to
Forest Service land.
"The bill does create new opportunities for ranchers to milk
taxpayers," said Courtney Cuff of the Friends of the Earth
environmental group. "Those who benefit from public lands
grazing ought to pay for this privilege. The taxpayers and
the environment should not bear the cost."
About 23,000 producers of cattle, sheep and goats hold
permits to graze animals on Bureau of Land Management and
Forest Service rangeland.
Rep. Bruce Vento, a Minnesota Democrat, planned to offer an
amendment that would raise the grazing fee for large
producers by either 25 percent or to the level states charge
for grazing on their land, which is usually higher.
Beyond the fees, however, Vento and the environmentalists say
the bill would scrap the Clinton administration's attempt to
balance interests in use of the public land, putting more
livestock pressure on sensitive areas and harming endangered
native species.
"This really is abuse in terms of the environment," Vento
said. "It restores confrontation, and we don't need that."
Even if the House manages to pass Smith's bill, its fate this
year is cloudy because there is no companion bill in the
Senate and Congress hopes to adjourn next month. In addition,
Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt has recommended that
President Clinton veto the measure.
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 23:30:47 -0500
From: LGrayson
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Cat missing since '96 hurricane found at hospital
Message-ID: <34580D78.E5D@earthlink.net>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: multipart/mixed; boundary="------------606C6CC59DA"
http://cnn.com/US/9710/29/fringe/cat.found.ap/index.html
Cat missing since '96 hurricane found at hospital
October 29, 1997
Web posted at: 8:26 p.m. EST (0126 GMT)
WILMINGTON, North Carolina (AP) -- Fifteen months had passed
since Hurricane Bertha ripped ashore and Paulette Tipton's
cat, Tiger, disappeared.
Then she saw the classifieds: "FOUND CAT: Yellow and white,
long hair, male. Found 10/23, Bethel Road area. Call Needham
Animal Hospital."
Could it possibly be?
Tipton telephoned the hospital, drove over to have a look and
there he was. Tiger, long lost Tiger.
"I told him he could eat Starkist tuna for the rest of his
life," Tipton said.
While making preparations for Hurricane Bertha, the family
lost track of the cat. They had just moved to Wilmington, and
Tipton said she thought the unfamiliar surroundings and the
blasting winds of that summer day in 1996 might have killed
Tiger.
Turns out Tiger had been just a few miles away the whole
time, using his charm to seduce food from strangers.
A woman whose house he sought out in recent weeks had taken
him to the animal hospital, thinking he was better off put to
sleep than homeless. Mercifully, the hospital placed the ad
instead.
Tiger, 14, reclined on a plaid couch Tuesday afternoon,
nursing an infected bite wound on his head but otherwise
appearing fit. His future travels will be limited.
"He's not leaving this house," Tipton said. "Not for a daily
romp or anything."
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 23:34:13 -0500
From: LGrayson
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Wilderness Board member takes pro logging stand
Message-ID: <34580E45.7A03@earthlink.net>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: multipart/mixed; boundary="------------53FC1D56F4F"
http://cnn.com/EARTH/9710/28/logging.reversal.ap/index.html
Wilderness Society board member takes pro-logging stand
October 28, 1997
Web posted at: 9:09 p.m. EST (0209 GMT)
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- A director of the Wilderness Society has shocked fellow
environmentalists with a pro-logging legal brief that could undermine their right to file lawsuits.
Charles Wilkinson, a University of Colorado law professor,
signed on to a legal argument written in a case that could decide the fate of 75,000 acres of
national forests and 12 million acres of grazing land in New Mexico and Arizona.
It contends that any group in a coalition may be banned from
suing if another organization in that coalition has ever filed a related suit.
If the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
rules in the loggers' favor, it could harm the Wilderness Society and many other environmental
groups. The court will hold a hearing on the lawsuit next week.
Activists are irate that Wilkinson -- who is one of the Wilderness Society's 26 national board
members and helped the
Clinton administration create the Grand Staircase Escalante
National Monument in Utah -- has come out in favor of logging.
"I was shocked to find Charles' name on this. It's
indefensible," said Mark Hughes of Denver-based Earth Law. "If he were on my board of
directors and held the views he has taken in this brief, we would act to remove him."
The brief not only supports logging one of the few old-growth ponderosa pines forests left in the
Southwest, it seeks to narrow environmental concerns to the issue of hiking, Hughes said.
The suit grows out of the efforts of a number of environmental groups, including the Forest
Guardians and the Southwest Center for Biological Diversity, to restrict grazing and logging on
park lands. The La Manga timber tract in New Mexico has drawn the most attention.
The Wilkinson brief contends that since the Forest Guardians filed an earlier lawsuit solely on La
Manga, all groups in a
coalition with the Guardians should be banned from entering into the broader legal action.
"It's a real scary precedent," said Kieran Suckling, executive director of the Southwest Center.
"This has sweeping implications not only for the environmental movement but for any groups that
enter coalitions -- it's a constitutional disaster."
Wilkinson defended his position, saying some things are more
important than preserving trees. The issue in La Manga, he said, is helping the local Hispanic
community by backing the logging company.
"I wanted to give the Hispanics some support, and, damn it,
they deserve it," Wilkinson said. "We in the environmental
community are the ones who need to address this."
On the broader issue of blocking environmental coalitions,
Wilkinson conceded in an interview Monday that the brief, which was written by the logging
company's attorney, may have gone too far.
"I did not expect this kind of reaction and am still surprised by it," he said. "I'm trying to correct
it."
Wilkinson said he has no intention of resigning from the
Wilderness Society board.
At the Washington headquarters of the Wilderness Society,
spokesman Ben Beach said he knew of no efforts to censure or remove Wilkinson.
"These people are volunteers. They have their own lives," he said. "We don't have some sort of
procedure for testing what
people do."
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997 23:38:46 -0500
From: LGrayson
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Spoken words, sign language use same areas of brain
Message-ID: <34580F56.C41@earthlink.net>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: multipart/mixed; boundary="------------396CE3D68A"
http://cnn.com/HEALTH/9710/29/brain.words.ap/index.html
Researchers: Spoken words, sign language use same areas of
brain
October 29, 1997
Web posted at: 4:30 p.m. EST (2130 GMT)
NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- Words are words, whether spoken or
signed, when it comes to brain power.
Researchers say people who grew up speaking and those who
grew up signing language use the same parts of the brain to
interpret words or word parts.
Even more important, one of those areas had been thought to
process only speech because it is hooked directly to the
auditory nerve, Laura Ann Petitto of McGill University in
Montreal announced Tuesday at the Society for Neuroscience
meeting.
"Now we see signed languages processed in that area," she
said. "How could it be possible? What is that tissue
responsible for?"
She and researcher Robert Zatorre compared brain scans of
people who either saw a printed noun on video and spoke a
related verb, or watched a videotaped signed noun and
responded with a signed verb.
They also were shown videotapes of meaningless finger
movements and of meaningful signs.
The scans were used to see whether more blood flowed into
certain brain areas when people were reading and responding
to written or signed words, and to parts of words. Higher
flows were seen in two areas, one linked to the mouth and one
near the ear.
The work is a valuable addition to studies showing that
signed and spoken language share central components, said MIT
neuroscientist Steven Pinker.
"The original idea, and what you still see in many textbooks,
is that they are important because they're connected to the
mouth area and to the ear area," Pinker said. "The fact that
the same two areas are involved when it's hand-eye instead of
mouth-ear suggests that they really may be predisposed to be
language areas."
Researchers already knew that hearing and signing babies
reach linguistic milestones at the same time.
"This suggests there's something about natural language that
exists in independence of the ability to speak," Petitto
said.
"You can't take speech away from the brain -- the capacity
for language is so profound that it will map onto the hands
equally as well as to the tongue."
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