Komputer for Alle 1998 #6/1998 CD 6 (Gul).iso/web/ffa/wwwenv~1.org/arrs/digest/news56~2.htm/text0000.txt

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from AP Wire page http://wire.ap.org/
-----------------------------------------------------
 10/30/1997 11:19 EST

 A Day at the Races, Vietnamese Style

 By RICHARD VOGEL
 Associated Press Photographer

 HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam (AP) -- The rumble of hooves on
 turf pounds through the humid air on a lazy afternoon at the
 ``Prosperity'' race track.

 Coming around the clubhouse turn, Passing Spring loses his
 edge to Red Nguyen. Do Van Khuan, the tiny jockey atop the
 pint-size horse, urges the animal on to victory.

 Khuan's purse is about a dollar, but then this is Vietnam and
 a day at the races is a small-scale event -- right down to
 the jockeys.

 Only 15, Khuan is one of 30 teen-age jockeys who head to Ho Chi Minh
 City's Phu Tho Turf Club and saddle up every weekend. Farm hands or
 students during the week, they are just the right size to fit Vietnam's
 undersized race horses.

             When the track's patrons banter about the ``kid'' jockeys, it
             doesn't bother the young riders.

             ``That's what we are,'' said Vo Be Tu, who at 17, is the
             oldest and the veteran of the bunch.

             Tran Van Nghia, assistant director of Vietnam's only
             racetrack, said the youth of the riders is based on practical
             considerations.

 ``In Vietnam, the horses are very small, so we have to look for small
 riders,'' Nghia said.

 Until Vietnam begins its own domestic thoroughbred breeding
 program, the club will continue to rely on home-grown,
 farm-raised, small horses.

 On race day, the horses take a break from their regular
 farming duties. They are escorted by their owners on foot or
 bicycle to the track and readied for competition.

 The French colonial-era Phu Tho race track was built in 1930. With the
 fall of South Vietnam to communist forces from the north in 1975, horse
 racing and other ``bourgeois luxuries'' were banned.

 But a change of heart and a growing embrace of things Western allowed the
 track to reopen in 1989.

             Betting remains officially illegal, yet the government
             figured a way around its own regulations. Instead of betting,
             wagers take the form of a lottery: The track sells a limited
             number of tickets for each possible combination of first- and
             second-place finishers.

             And when those tickets sell out, bettors turn to private
             bookies working in the stands -- an illegal practice that
             authorities appear to wink at.

 Like beauty queens and fashion models whose livelihoods depend on their
 measurements, the track's diminutive jockeys are very aware their careers
 won't last much longer than their teens.

 ``I have about two good years left in me,'' said Khuan, whose
 serious-looking face brightens when he smiles, revealing two front teeth
 lost to cavities. ``I'm not going to be 30 kilos (67 pounds) forever.''



Date: Fri, 31 Oct 1997 22:50:48 -0800
From: Andrew Gach <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Tug-a-war over saccharin - do rat studies mean anything?
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Setback for saccharin

The Associated Press
RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. (October 31, 1997 5:40 p.m.)

]A panel of scientists voted Friday to keep saccharin on a list of
cancer-causing substances, angering those who say the artificial
sweetener is perfectly safe.

The subcommittee of the National Toxicology Program's Board of
Scientific Counselors voted 4-3 to keep saccharin on the federal
government's list.

"Delisting is going to weigh on my conscience if I'm wrong," said panel
member Kim Hooper, an expert on toxic substances for the California
Department of Health Services.

He and the other three panel members who voted not to change the list
argued that there was clear evidence of increased cancer risk among male
rats fed saccharin.

Studies suggesting an increased risk among some categories of people,
such as men who are heavy smokers, also could not be ignored, they said.

The vote disappointed proponents of saccharin, including the maker of a
major brand of the substance.

Dr. Abe Bakal a consultant for Cumberland Packing Co. in New York, which
makes Sweet 'N Low, said the panel's vote ignored scientific data from
lab rat experiments. In the experiments, rats were fed the equivalent of
hundreds of cans of diet soda a day before developing bladder cancer.

"Those conditions will never occur in humans," Bakal said.

Two government review groups already have voted to take the substance
off the cancer-causing list. It wasn't know what effect this panel's
vote would have on final action by the Food and Drug Administration or
Congress.

Besides Sweet 'n Low, saccharin is still used in a few other products,
such as Tab soda and Carefree gum. But aspartame, the ingredient in
Nutrasweet, is now the most popular artificial sweetener.

By RANDALL CHASE, the Associated Press.
Date: Fri, 31 Oct 1997 23:14:10 -0800
From: Andrew Gach <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Genetically engineered mouse model
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
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Scientists create mouse with sickle cell anemia

1997 The Associated Press
WASHINGTON (October 30, 1997 7:46 p.m. EST)

Mice genetically engineered to mimic human sickle cell anemia are giving
researchers an important new way to search for a cure for the fatal
blood disease that affects about 1 percent of black Americans.

Two teams of researchers have created strains of laboratory mice with
the human genes that make the flawed, crescent-shaped red blood cells
that is characteristic of sickle cell anemia.

"We not only had to put the human sickle cell genes in, but get rid of
the mouse hemoglobin genes," said Chris Paszty, leader of a team at the
University of California, Berkeley, that created one type of sickle cell
mouse.

Another sickle cell mouse strain was developed at the University of
Alabama, Birmingham, by a team led by T.M. Townes.

Separate papers on the two mouse strains will be published Friday in the
journal Science.

Both mice strains inherit the human sickle cell gene and have the blood
disease. However, Paszty said his mouse strain develops the disease
before birth and fewer of the newborns survive to an age useful in
research.

Development of mice that accurately mimic sickle cell anemia may lead
very rapidly to new treatment for a disease that cripples and kills
thousands of patients who often must endure years of pain and medical
care.

****************************************************

Hundreds of special strains of rodents have been produced over the years
to mimic human diseases.  Engineering animal "models" is central to
animal research.  It's a source of billion dollar revenues for Charles
River and other large-scale breeders of lab animals.  Last and not
least, it is a crucial part of raising grants.  But do such
"taylor-made" animal models really lead to cures for human sickness?
That's a promise that has never been fulfilled.

One only needs to look at the record.  All the special strains of rats
and mice used in cancer research since the 70's produced no cures for
cancer.  The same can be said of heart disease, stroke, diabetes,
asthma, Alzheimer's and other degenerative diseases, most of which
unfortunately are on the rise.

If the money and effort expended on producing and using animal models
went into studying human patients, we would certainly know more about
the factors that give rise to health problems and how to prevent them.
But that is not the main concern of the self-serving medical research
establishment.

Andy
Date: Fri, 31 Oct 1997 23:16:28 -0800
From: Andrew Gach <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Virtual pets help alcoholics
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
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Finns use virtual pets to fight alcoholism

Agence France-Presse
HELSINKI (October 31, 1997 08:34 a.m. EST)

A clinic in Helsinki plans to use the Japanese virtual reality pet
Tamagotchi to cure alcoholics by giving them a sense of purpose and
responsibility.

The hand-held, electronic Tamagotchi toys must be fed, played with,
walked and put to sleep regularly or else they die.

"Alcoholics are often very lonely people and their sense of
responsibility is weakened. When they notice that providing care extends
the Tamagotchi's life, they feel a sense of reward and purpose," the
information officer for Finland's private A-Clinic Foundation, Teuvo
Peltoniemi, told AFP.

Peltoniemi came up with the idea himself after a visit to Japan last
winter.

"In Japan, Tamagotchis are also popular among adults. So I started to
wonder if they couldn't be used as a little aid in the care of
alcoholics. Cats and aquarium fish have previously been used for the
same purpose," he said.

A handful of patients have already been given the gadgets in the past
week, and the project, funded by the European Union, the Finnish health
ministry and the Finnish Slot Machines Association, will be evaluated at
the end of the year.

"In five years time, we think many people will be addicted to the
virtual world, and this project is also a way of finding solutions to
this," Peltoniemi said.
Date: Fri, 31 Oct 1997 23:17:21 -0800
From: Andrew Gach <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Duck meat pie kills nuns
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
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Duck meat pie kills three nuns in Colombia

Reuters
BOGOTA (October 31, 1997 00:05 a.m. EST )

Three Colombian nuns died and seven remained in critical condition
Thursday after being stricken with severe food poisoning, authorities
said.

They fell ill after eating what local radio reports in the southwestern
city of Cali described as a duck meat pie they had prepared over the
weekend.

Police quoted hospital officials as saying the Roman Catholic nuns were
all over 60 and served in a Cali home for senior citizens.
Date: Fri, 31 Oct 1997 23:51:50
From: David J Knowles <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: [ID] Apes slaughtered as they flee fires
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
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>From The Electronic Telegraph - Saturday, November 1st, 1997

Apes slaughtered as they flee fires
By Alex Spillius, South East Asia Correspondent

INDONESIAN peasants have butchered orang-utans for food and sold their
young for pets as the animals fled forest fires, according to the World
Wide Fund for Nature.

It is estimated that 1,000 of the apes have either been killed or captured
since the fires began four months ago.

"This is an absolute catastrophe for orang-utan conservation. The
population was already in decline and this is the last thing it needed,"
said Ed Matthew, a WWF spokesman.

The numbers of orang-utan, one of the world's most endangered species which
is found almost exclusively in Sumatra and Borneo, have fallen by 50 per
cent in the last 10 years to about 30,000, chiefly because of oaching and
destruction of habitat.

WWF researchers have recorded several instances in Borneo's Kalimantan
province where chainsaws were used to fell trees sheltering orang-utans and
then turned on the animals.

With many of their plantations destroyed by the fires that have raged out
of control and polluted much of South East Asia, villagers are approaching
famine and have also started eating the orang-utans.

Mr Matthew said: "Orang-utan families are driven to the edge of the forest,
and they come looking for fruit in village plantations, where they are
extremely vulnerable."

Some adults apes have been slaughtered by poachers intent on capturing
their young. Infant orang-utans can fetch up to ú10,000 as exotic pets, and
are favoured in Taiwan and South-East Asian countries and the United States.

"They are very cute and adorable as babies but when they get bigger many
owners just throw them on to the streets," Mr Matthew said.

"The fires and these killings will have massive repercussions for the
orangutan communities. Trees which supply their food will take eight or
nine years to mature again. With mothers dying and groups broken up, their
breeding patterns will be badly upset."

A rescue centre in Kalimantan is full with 120 orang-utans, many of them
treated for knife and axe wounds.



⌐ Copyright Telegraph Group Limited 1997.

Date: Sat, 01 Nov 1997 17:01:26 +0000
From: jwed <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Letter to National Zoo, Washington (US)
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
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National Zoological Park
3001 Connecticut Avenue NW
Washington DC 20008
U.S.A.
Attn: Benjamin B. Beck,  Associate Director for Biological Programs
Tuesday, October 21, 1997.

Dear Mr Beck,

     I thank you for your prompt reply, dated 15th August. I apologise for the
delay in my reply but I have been doing a lot of travelling.

     I have to make it clear that I am unequivocally opposed to the underlying
moral values and ethical order assumed by the global zoo industry. However,
I believe the worst incidents of neglect and abuse must be corrected
immediately - this is why I gave specific examples in my initial letter -
and I shall respond below to the points raised in your reply. But my
primary goal lies far beyond merely having problem areas "fixed", having
larger cages, richer environment, etc.  Making these improvements is
very important, but it cannot be an end in itself.  My mission is to expose
the fundamental flaw and cruelty in keeping wild animals in captivity, and
I am guided by a vision of a world that truly respects nature and wildlife.
 I am therefore seeking to change the ground rules, the so-called
"standards' followed blindly by due-paying members of national and
international zoo organisations.  I have to challenge the status quo so
carefully maintained by zoos' PR departments.  To accomplish that, I will
not hesitate to make use of every opportunity to educate the public, to
inform the press and media,  to persuade governments and elected public
officials.

     The only artificial animal collection that I have seen that comes anywhere
near an acceptable standard is the San Diego Wild Animal Park.  Even there
the size of the enclosures and the amount of cover and other natural
attributes is insufficient.  But it is much more like what is needed.  I
cannot see how there can be any place in an ethical world for overcrowded
urban zoos of the traditional menagerie type like the National.

     Now to deal with your specific points.  Unfortunately there seems to be a
wide gulf between my perception of the conditions of the animals and yours.
But please allow me to go through the points you made - I hope that we may
narrow the gap for the sake of your inmates.  Realistically I fear there is
little hope that the National will close its doors in the near future -
therefore these animals are likely to be incarcerated for their whole lives
and I would like to see their conditions improved.  I shall put your
comments in italics and quotation marks and follow them with my replies.

     "You may not have seen the large outdoor grassy yard to which the giant
panda has access  all day. On Washington summer days, he often chooses to
come into his air-conditioned indoor enclosure. It is indeed designed to be
thoroughly cleanable to reduce the likelihood of bacterial infection."
Does this not sound more like a prison cell with an exercise yard than an
attempt to create an enriched living space?

     "The 0-Line was not intended to be naturalistic in appearance, only in
function. This allows the orang utans to use their natural arboreal
locomotor abilities, and provides choices and social opportunities
available at no other zoo in the world. In these ways, the 0-Line is a
functional replication of the natural environment."
I was not there long enough to observe the usage of this apparatus. I would
hazard a guess that the Orang utans do not derive much benefit from it -
but I should be very interested to learn if they do indeed find use or
enjoyment in it.

     "All of the enclosures in our Small Mammal House meet the space
requirements of the United States Animal Welfare Act; I would be interested
in the standard you use to judge them as `tiny" and `grossly inadequate".
I am rather shocked that you should consider minimum federal standards to
be adequate for a first class zoo.  The standard I try to use is based on
my observations of the behaviour of the animals. Many books have been
written on animal behaviour - you have probably read as many as I - but in
the end one has to use a subjective assessment.  Many of the animals in
your Small Mammal House were clearly in  distress - when I say "clearly", I
mean clear to anyone with any compassion or empathy who stops for longer
than a minute in front of the cells.

     "I was unaware of the armadillo circling, and will stop in today to check
on this situation."
Thank you. I hope your visit results in an improvement in this animal's
circumstances. Did you also visit the depressed Colobus?

     "Despite being a frequent visitor to zoos, you seem to believe that no
zoo  environment can be suitable for wild animals."
I do indeed believe this.  My main purpose in visiting the National Zoo was
to prove myself wrong.  I had been hoping that here would be a zoo that had
succeeded in providing adequate habitats.  This hope unfortunately proved
false.

     "We would agree that it is hard to truly replicate natural environments,
but we would not agree that a well-designed zoo environment is inadequate."
In theory it should be possible.  But considerations of viewability of the
exhibits and financial constraints make adequate artificial habitat a
rarity. As I said above, conditions such as at the San Diego Wild Animal
Park are the minimum that I could consider "adequate".

     "We offer as evidence that in nearly all cases zoo animals live longer
than their wild counterparts, and are free of food shortages, environmental
extremes, predation, untreated injuries and illnesses, and territorial
pressure from conspecifics. Most zoo animals now reproduce so well that
they have to be contracepted  to prevent overcrowding."
Are you trying to tell me that length of life and ability to reproduce are
evidence of an adequate environment?  Try telling that to the lifers in the
penitentiaries!

     "We would like you to know that the National Zoo, like most major zoos,
has extensive involvement in in situ conservation programs, such as the
reintroduction of golden lion tamarins in Brazil and helping to protect
wild giant pandas in China."
So many zoos claim the tamarin story as their own!  I am sure you did play
a small part - but how can that justify the misery of so many other
species?  Please tell me what part National Zoo has played in the
preservation of the natural habitat of the giant panda.

     "We are proud to be a place to help "save endangered species,"
I agree that there is a need for breeding establishments to help endangered
species - but such animals should not be exposed to the public as exhibits.

     "......... to educate"
What do you think the children learn from a visit to a zoo?  They learn
what they see, not what is written on the sign boards.  What they see is
man's subjugation of the wild beast and that animals are in this world for
man to do with as he pleases. (Please do not quote the Bible on this one
until you have looked up the real meaning of the word "dominion".) They
learn as much about animals as a foreigner would learn about American
Society by touring San Quentin.

     "......... and to provide family fun",
This is where we really part company.  The average family spends only a few
seconds in front of each cage.  And for that the animal has to endure a
lifetime of imprisonment.  How can it be right for us to pursue "fun" in
this way?

     "......... and believe that we can demonstrate efficacy on those fronts."
No - your contribution to the survival of species is negligible if not
negative.  The children come away with the impression that animals and the
environment are there for their enjoyment.  I will have to concede that
you do provide fun but the fun derived from looking at incarcerated
creatures is sick. And most of the fun for the kids is in the ice-cream,
soda pop and hamburger concessions  - again a poor message for their future.

     "We also have premier research programs, all relevant to the conservation
of biodiversity."
I do not doubt the value of your research programmes.  But I do doubt the
necessity for conducting them in the midst of so many imprisoned animals.

     "And I can assure you that were we to follow your recommendation to close
our gates, there would be howls of protest from the 2.5 million visitors
who enjoy and support our programs without having to spend a penny."
Unfortunately you are correct.  But the public needs to be educated.  It is
tragic that you choose to follow the public whim rather than lead.

I regret that I must repeat what I said in my last letter.
When will you face up to the fact that the words you use are primarily for
public relations purposes?  A genuine concern for animal protection and the
environment does not and cannot entail keeping, breeding, and displaying
captive wild animals; neither can a few isolated "conservation programs"
save endangered species.  When will the National Zoo and the global zoo
industry recognise that the future of wildlife depends not on putting
animals on exhibit but upon preserving their true habitat and concentrating
on conservation in the wild?

     I hope you will consider deeply what I have said.  I may be before my time
 - but I know I am right.  Thank you for your attention.

     Yours sincerely,
     Dr John Wedderburn.

CC:
Mr. Syd Butler
Executive Director
American Association of Zoological Parks and Aquariums
7970D Old Georgetown Road
Bethesda  MD 20814

Mr. Clinton A. Fields
Executive Director
Friends of the National Zoo
3001 Connecticut Avenue NW
Washington DC 20008

Visitors' Department
Washington DC Conventions and Visitors' Association
1212 New York Avenue NW, Suite 600
Washington DC 20005

Mr. William Norman
President
Travel Industry Association of America
1100 New York Avenue NW, #450W
Washington DC 20005-3934

Date: Sat, 01 Nov 1997 16:42:38 +0000
From: jwed <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Anger at dolphin loan plan (HK)
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
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South China Morning Post - Thursday 30th October 1997 - by OLIVER POOLE

Ocean Park hopes to lend dolphins to aquariums on the mainland if a new
breeding scheme is successful, sparking outrage from animal rights
activists.

Six wild bottlenose dolphins are due to arrive from Indonesia by the end
of
the year to help create a self-sustaining breeding programme at the
attraction.

If targets are achieved, dolphins could be transferred from the SAR to
help
stock the growing number of new aquariums being built on the mainland.

Exact figures are not available, but developers are building several new
aquariums on the mainland and there would be fierce competition for the
crowd-pulling exhibits.

Yesterday, Ocean Park's chief vet, Dr Reimi Kinoshita, said the
aquarium,
if approached, would also be keen to train keepers to work for the
mainland
aquariums.

"If the facilities were well looked after then there is no reason not
to,"
she said.

Co-operation would only be given if the new parks were properly
maintained
and posed no threat to the dolphins.

However, International Fund for Animal Welfare China director Jill
Robinson
said any proposal to send dolphins to the mainland was "totally
inappropriate".

"It is the old story of dolphinariums being exported to the east as they
die down in the west as people realise how cruel it is to keep this
intelligent species in these conditions," she said.

Ocean Park's six new female dolphins will join the existing eight male
and
four female dolphins.

They were caught by Jakarta's Jaya Ancol oceanarium several months ago.
Ocean Park said none were available from aquarium-bred stocks anywhere
in
the world.




Date: Fri, 31 Oct 1997 20:35:59 -0800
From: Barry Kent MacKay <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Plans for Snow Goose slaughter.
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The Arctic Goose Habitat Wildlife Group wants to instigate a series of
changes in hunting regulations that will lead to a massive increase in
the killing of snow geese in the U.S. and Canada.  This will include
opening closed parts of refuges to hunting; use of electronic calling
devices; increased or no bag limits; extended hunting seasons and so
on.  There are also rumours of calls for introducing biological
controls; providing free ammunition to native hunters on the breeding
grounds of the geese and having a year-round, no bag limit open season.

The concern is that the geese are destroying important wildlife habitat,
but it appears that the basic data are flawed...or intentionally
misrepresented.  For an article about this planned slaughter (even the
once endangered Ross's Goose is to be included), go to
<http://www.api4animals.org/Column.htm>.  I will keep you posted if
write ins are needed, but it is best if you are informed on the issue.

Barry Kent MacKay
Animal Protection Institute (Canadian Office)


Date: Sat, 1 Nov 1997 10:09:31 EST
From: JanaWilson <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (US) Okla. Hunters Set for Big Weekend
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A/w local Okla. city hunting news:

This will be a big weekend for hunters with today marking the
opening of several important seasons:
Opening for the first time on Nov. 1 instead of Nov. 20, quail  season
continues thru Jan. 31 and the daily limit is 10.  Hunters in this
field this weekend must wear either a head cover or upper body
garment of blaze orange because of the muzzleloader deer season.
  Fall turkey season also opens today and runs thru Nov. 21.  It is
an either sex hunt and not all counties are open for fall turkeys.
Check the regulations.  The blaze orange requirments for turkey
hunters are the same as those for the quail hunt until the black
powder deer hunt ends.
  The Zone 2 duck season which includes most of the state begins
today, and the first half runs until Dec. 7 and the second half of the
season reopens on Dec. 13 and continues thru Jan. 18.  The 74-day
season is two weeks longer than last year's 60-day hunt.
  The daily bag limit is six ducks and can include no more than five
mallards (two of which may be hens), three pintails, two wood ducks,
two redheads, one canvasback.
  The season for dark and light geese also begins today.  The 85-day
hunt for Canadas and whitefronts continues thru Jan. 25.  The bag
limit is two.  For light geese (Snow, Blue, and Ross) the first part
of the split season runs until Jan. 25 and than reopens Feb. 7 and
continues thru Feb. 27.  The bag limit is 10.  Both state and federal
waterfowl stamps are required to hunt ducks and geese.
  This weekend also affords black powder deer hunters the
opportunity to bag an antlerless deer in addition to a buck.  Does
will be legal both Saturday and Sunday.  However, hunters must
have a separate $16.75 tag for an antlerless animal.  A doe cannot
be killed on an unfilled buck tag.  The black powder deer hunt
ends Sunday.

                                                              For the Animals,

                                                              Jana, OKC
Date: Sat, 1 Nov 1997 10:09:38 EST
From: JanaWilson <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (US) Oklahoma Sequoyah Refuge Hunt
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A/w local Okla. City hunting news:

Ninety-eight deer were harvested by 94 hunters during three special
muzzleloader hunts this fall at the Sequoyah Wildlife Refuge near
Vian, Okla.  Each hunter selected for the hunt was allowed to take
two antlerless deer, but no bucks.
Mr. Steve Berendzen, refuge manager, said "Three areas of the
refuge were hunted this year.  All of these areas have had severe
habitat and crop damages in the past from the growing deer herds."
The objective of this hunt remains the same as last year to provide
active managment of the deer herd to reduce the over-populated
condition."
The population of the deer on the eastern Oklahoma refuge remains
above the capacity of the habitat so the refuge expects to continue
conducting these hunts in future years, he added.
Annual spotlight surveys are conducted in the early fall to track
any changes in the refuge deer population.  Buck hunting was
not permitted and is not planned for the hunts as long as the buck-to-
doe ratio on the refuge remains above the optimum level of 3 to 4
does per buck.  Refuge biologists anticipate as many as four
muzzleloader hunts in the future.  All applications for future hunts
will be handled by the Okla. Wildlife Dept.

                                                     For the Animals,

                                                     Jana, OKC
Date: Sat, 1 Nov 1997 10:25:05 EST
From: JanaWilson <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (US) Oklahoma Environmental Workshop
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A/w local Oklahoma outdoor news:

Oklahoma educators interested in the environment and outdoors
have an opportunity to attend one of two upcoming environmental
workshops around the state.  These workshops offer an introduction
to the Leopold Education Project, a critical learning curriculum
designed to "establish a postive conservation ethic by instilling
respect, love and admiration of the land."
The classic literary work, A Sand County Almanac by Aldo
Leopard, the father of wildlife management, is the basis of the workshop.
A basic one-day workshop will be held today at Mid-America
Bible College here in Okla. City.  The workshop costs $30.
And a second workshop will be held Feb. 14-15 at Cameron Univ.
in Lawton, Okla.  The cost is $95 and also is available for college
credit.
The Leopold Education Project curriculum is targeted for grades
6 thru 12.  The curriculum fits into such classroom topics as
English, natural resource management, sustainable agriculture,
forestry, land use and wildlife conservation.
For more information please contact the Okla. Wildlife Dept.
at 1801 N. Lincoln, Okla. City, Okla. 73105 or call (405)
521-4633.

                                                     For the Animals,

                                                     Jana, OKC
Date: Sat, 1 Nov 1997 10:59:40 -0500 (EST)
From: [e-mail]
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (US) Deer Management Book
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>


This review is from a science news magazine:

Heart and Blood:  Living with Deer in America by Mr. Richard Nelson.

The overpopulation of deer and its impact on people in both rural
and suburban areas of the US are a growing concern.  The author's
fascination with deer intensified when he lived in a small village in
the northern Pacific Coast and took up subsistence hunting of
deer with his Eskimo and Indian peers.  They believe that one
must have a keen sense of the animal and its habits if one is to
hunt successfully.  That curiosity and quest for knowledge led
Mr. Nelson to various parts of the country to study deer and how
people, including the farmers, ranchers and suburbanites, can live
with and control these creatures.  The fruits of his labor are laid
out in this study, as is a look at the history of deer and humans.

The hardcopy book is published by Knopf, 1997, 389 pages, black
and white illus.   Cost is $27.50.

                                                          For the Animals,

                                                          Jana, OKC
Date: Sat, 1 Nov 1997 13:01:53 EST
From: MINKLIB <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: Nordstrom fur policy
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit

Nordstroms operates 12 fur salons, and sells a lot of fur trim.  It isn't
surprising that a sales rep lied over the phone, as they aren't liable for
those statements.  Anytime a sales rep makes such a statement ask them to put
it in writing.

JP
CAFT
Date: Sat, 1 Nov 1997 11:16:35 -0800 (PST)
From: Twilight <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (US) Endangered Species Act Alert
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii

CRITICAL TIME FOR THE ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT'S
FUTURE--By attorney Michael J. Bean, head of EDF's Wildlife
program.

After nearly six years of stalemate, Congress may finally be
moving toward consensus on the future of the Endangered Species
Act. On September 30, by a vote of 15-3, and with the support of
the Clinton Administration, the Senate Environment and Public
Works Committee approved a bill to reauthorize the Act. The bill
(S. 1180) is the result of months of negotiations among
Committee Chairman John Chafee (R-RI), Democrats Max Baucus (MT)
and Harry Reid (NV), Republican Dirk Kempthorne (ID), and
Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt. A more far-reaching bill
introduced in the House by Rep. George Miller (D-CA) has
improved prospects for House action as well.
   The Senate is likely to act on its bill first. Rather than
radically overhauling the existing law, the Senate bill leaves
in place the law's key requirements: (1) Federal agencies must
still ensure that their actions neither jeopardize the continued
existence of endangered species nor destroy critical habitat,
and (2) private landowners must still refrain from harming
endangered species by destroying habitat or by other means. The
bill makes other changes, however, that could be problematic
unless the concerns below are addressed.
   The bill authorizes significant new programs to provide
incentives--in the form of cost-sharing assistance--to private
landowners who agree to carry out management practices to help
endangered species. This may be the bill's most positive
feature, but--as EDF stressed in testimony before the
committee--the potential benefits of these new provisions will
only be realized if the programs are assured of substantial
funding.
   The bill focuses mainly on the recovery planning process. Its
intent is to make recovery plans more influential in guiding the
actions of Federal agencies and others in furthering the
conservation of imperiled species. To do so, the bill requires
that plans identify the Federal agencies that could contribute
most to species recovery and the actions needed from them.
Today, Federal agencies often ignore recovery plans, since
nothing obliges them to implement such plans. S. 1180 would, for
the first time, require relevant Federal agencies to enter into
formal "implementation agreements" that commit them to carry out
specific actions in recovery plans. States and private
landowners may do so as well, and cost-sharing aid to private
landowners who commit to help carry out recovery programs is one
of the new incentives created by the bill. A serious concern is
that the new planning procedures are unduly complex and costly.
EDF has urged that they be significantly streamlined.
   The bill makes less substantial changes in "habitat
conservation plans," the main means of accommodating both
endangered species conservation and development interests on
private land. The most significant change is that the bill
raises the standard for approval of plans that encompass both
listed and unlisted species (typically plans that cover large
geographic areas). This desirable change would make it less
likely that the long-term assurances given to landowners who
enter into such plans will put species at risk. Nevertheless,
EDF has vigorously pressed the Senate to add, as a further
backstop against such risk, a generous "insurance fund" from
which the Secretary of Interior could draw if he needed to step
in and correct an inadequate conservation plan. The Miller bill
in the House also gives assurances to plan participants, but
limits the impact by imposing bonding requirements on
participating landowners.
   The Senate bill also codifies the government's authority to
enter into "safe harbor" agreements with private landowners.
EDF, with the generous support of the National Fish and Wildlife
Foundation, pioneered the safe harbor concept as a means of
overcoming private landowners' reluctance to create, restore, or
enhance habitat for endangered species. The bill also authorizes
cost-sharing assistance to landowners who enter into such
agreements. The active management needed by many endangered
species is expensive; cost-sharing will help landowners who
might otherwise be unable to bear alone the costs of carrying
out essential actions for improving the well-being of endangered
species.
   The House is likely to await Senate action--which could come
very quickly--before it begins a serious reauthorization effort.
None of the House conservatives who in the last Congress backed
a radical overhaul--indeed, a virtual repeal--of the Endangered
Species Act has yet shown any inclination to follow the lead of
their Senate counterparts who have moved toward the middle in an
effort to find consensus. If the Senate passes its bill, it will
likely put pressure on House members not to let the issue die,
as it has done in each of the last three Congresses.
   Ending the six-year impasse over the future of the Endangered
Species Act is critically important. The status quo, in which
the great majority of imperiled species are not making clear
progress toward recovery, is simply not adequate.

                    EDF Action Alert
Senate action is likely in the very near future. You can
help by urging your Senators now to (1) add an assured source
of substantial funding to S. 1180 so that the proposed new
landowner incentives programs (and the habitat conservation plan
insurance fund) can accomplish their full potential benefits,
and (2) reduce the cost and complexity of the new recovery
planning procedures.







_____________________________________________________________________
Sent by RocketMail. Get your free e-mail at http://www.rocketmail.com

Date: Sat, 01 Nov 1997 19:13:15
From: Dirk Anton Boeckx <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (US) deer hunting approved by Cornell Univ.
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

from Dirk Boeckx

ITHACA, NY, Nov. 1.

In an unprecedented move, Cornell University has decided to allow hunting
in McLean Bog, one of the natural areas managed by Cornell Plantations.
According to Nancy Ostman, program director of Natural Areas, "Previous
prohibitions against hunting in the 100 acre site in Tompkins County have
encouraged artificially high numbers of deer to congregate there during
hunting season and to overgraze vegetation." Twelve hunt permits have been
issued to hunt white-tailed deer between Nov. 1 and December 31. The
decision was kept secret until Oct. 22, when it was announced to faculty of
the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences who conduct research at McLean
Bog.
     In formulating its plan, Cornell Plantations was advised by, and is
co-operating with, the NY State Department of Environmental Conservation,
which frequently resorts to hunting as a strategy to tackle deer
overpopulation.
     The decision of Cornell Plantations has upset animal rights activists.
Last Friday, Cornell Students for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (CSETA)
launched a petition on campus to stop the hunt, and to explore alternatives
for protecting the endangered plants. They also wrote to other student
organisations to gather support. CSETA fears that Cornell's decision will
create a precedent. It maintains that if Cornell Plantations will conclude
in Spring that the plants at McLean Bog will have been preserved thanks to
the hunting, more hunting permits will be issued in the next few years, and
the policy may be extended to other Natural Areas.
     The Animal Defense League held a candlelight vigil at the entrance of
Mclean Bog at 6 a.m. this morning to protest the start of the bow hunting
season. Its spokesman Bryan Pease was quoted in the Ithaca Journal (Nov. 1)
as saying "This is a thinly veiled attempt on the part of the Department of
Environmental Conservation to expand their armed takeover of our forests
and wildlands."
     CSETA and the Animal Defense League request you to write to Donald Rakow,
director of Cornell Plantations, to ask him to stop the hunting and look
into alternatives. Rakow can be reached by email at [e-mail], or at
[phone] (phone) or [phone] (fax).


Date: Sun, 2 Nov 1997 11:18:43 +0800
From: bunny <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (AFR)PLAGUE, BUBONIC - MALAWI
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

PLAGUE, BUBONIC - MALAWI
*****************************

Plague, bubonic - Malawi


Source: Item(s) published on World Wide Web



30 October 1997

The Ministry of Health has reported an outbreak of plague in Nsanje
District in the Southern Region of the country.  The first case was
reported on 29 September in Madani Village, Ndamera Traditional Authority
Area.  A total of 43 cases (17 of which are seropositive) have been
reported up to 23 October. Two other areas have also been affected.  Over
60% of cases are children under 5 years.  No deaths have been reported.

Control measures being taken include spraying of houses [presumably for
fleas, ES], treatment of patients and health education through
dissemination of health messages at the local level.  The Ministry of
Health will strengthen active surveillance and investigation of cases and
will inform WHO if technical assistance is required.  Plague was previously
reported in Nsanje District in 1994 when 9 cases occurred in Mozambican
refugees in Mankhokwe refugee camp and surrounding villages.


===========================================

Rabbit Information Service,
P.O.Box 30,
Riverton,
Western Australia 6148

Email>  [e-mail]

http://www.wantree.com.au/~rabbit/rabbit.htm
(Rabbit Information Service website updated frequently)

     /`\   /`\
    (/\ \-/ /\)
       )6 6(
     >{= Y =}<
      /'-^-'\
     (_)   (_)
      |  .  |
      |     |}
 jgs  \_/^\_/













Date: Sat, 01 Nov 1997 23:32:33 -0400
From: Ty Savoy <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (Ca) Fur in Fashion Again
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

FUR IN FASHION AGAIN

(Oct31/97) Winnipeg (CP) -- Fur trappers in Manitoba are poised to benefit
this season from  an upswing in demand for fur, especially from the fashion
design world.

Super-model Naomi Cambell, who once posed for an ad saying: "I'd rather go
naked than wear fur," was last seen strutting down the runway in a
sable-lined coat.

The shift in public opinion about fur seems to be boosting prices and demand
in Manitoba. A Winnipeg fur auction house fetched more than its asking price
for Manitoba pelts at a recent Toronto sale.

Dave Bewick, manager of North American Fur Auctions, says he has hardly any
furs left from last season.

"There's an absolute demand for fur and there's more money available to buy
now," Bewick said, adding 80 buyers were at the sale from North America,
China and Greece. "A lot of the big designer names are starting to use fur
now. People have heard enough from (anti-fur protesters). They've heard our
side of the story and people are making choices to wear fur."

There are currently about 5,500 trappers in Manitoba, and more people are
signing up for trapper training classes. Grant Armstrong, president of the
Manitoba Trappers' Association, said that's because the industry is on an
upswing.

Statistics Canada reported a 45 per cent increase in Canadian fur garment
exports in 1996 to $122 million.

Nationally, the fur industry employs more than 80,000 people from trappers
to manufacturers and is worth $800 million a year.

Armstrong has been trapping beaver, muskrat, fox, coyote, mink, squirrel and
weasel in southwestern Manitoba for 35 years. He said price fluctuations in
the market happen in cycles and now prices are on the rise.

He earned $36 to $37 per beaver pelt last year. Eight years ago the same
pelt sold for $12 to $13.

"The demand has steadily increased as it has over the past few years," said
Armstrong, adding cooler winters have helped demand. "It seems to make
people want to wear furs more."

This fall's fashion magazines such as Elle, Vogue, Essence, Harper's Bazaar
and W all have large advertising inserts about Canadian fur.


Date: Sat, 1 Nov 1997 20:35:31 -0800 (PST)
From: [e-mail]
To: [e-mail]
Subject: APE ARMY COMMANDER ARRESTED - TWICE (US)
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

VERY URGENT NEWS ADVISORY
November 1, 1997





æAPE ARMY' COMMANDER ARRESTED AGAIN; SUNDAY PROTEST STILL SET

     DAVIS, Ca. û Despite attempts by State Police to cut short a presence
Saturday by animal rights activists by making 2 arrests within 11 hours --
of the same person -- a major rally is planned at the California Regional
Primate Center at the University of California, Davis Sunday at Noon.

     Police have threatened to arrest anti-cruelty activists, who are expected
to come to Davis from Oregon and throughout Northern California. Similar
protests are going on at primate labs in Harvard and the Univ. of Wisconsin
Sunday.

     Police made good on the arrest threat Saturday, jailing "Ape Army"
commander Rick Bogle at 5 a.m. when he setup a table with literature and his
"Ape Army" -- more than 100 stuffed toy monkeys -- across the street from
the primate lab. He was released 6 hours later, but was re-arrested for
trespassing at 4 p.m. when he returned to the campus.

     If released prior to the rally Sunday, Bogle û a sixth grade teacher from
Oregon û said he may risk arrest again. He has toured the nation in a
cramped pickup truck for the past 3 months holding vigils in front of
primate research centers û there are 7 in the U.S. -- in Washington,
Massachusetts, Wisconsin, Louisiana, Oregon and now California. He was never
arrested, and labs let him distribute literature and even camp in front of them.

     Not so at UC Davis. Witnesses to the arrests claim that Bogle was not
breaking any laws, and was simply preparing to conduct a peaceful vigil û
one that he has done in 5 other states since July with no arrests or trouble
û in front of the UCD facility.

     "This is another example of UC Davis refusing to allow freedom of speech.
All he wants to do is express his views, and however unpopular they may be
at UC Davis, Mr. Bogle should be free to express them," said Crescenzo
Vellucci of the Activist Civil Liberties Committee, a legal aide project
based in Sacramento. In April, 32 activists were arrested, and several were
injured û one was hospitalized û at a primate center protest.
-30-
Contact: ACLC [phone]


Activist Civil Liberties Committee
A Legal Aide Project
PO Box 19515, Sacramento, CA 95819   [phone]   Fax: [phone]
"PEACE AT LAST"

Date: Sat, 01 Nov 1997 23:46:14 -0500
From: allen schubert <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: AR-News Admin Note
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

Routine post...

Please do not post commentary or personal opinions to AR-News.  Such posts
are not appropriate to AR-News.  Appropriate postings to AR-News include:
posting a news item, requesting information on some event, or responding to
a request for information.  Discussions on AR-News will NOT be allowed and
we ask that any
commentary either be taken to AR-Views or to private E-mail.

Continued postings of inappropriate material may result in suspension of
the poster's subscription to AR-News.

Here is subscription info for AR-Views:

Send e-mail to:  [e-mail]

In text/body of e-mail:  subscribe ar-views firstname lastname

Also...here are some websites with info on internet resources for Veg and
AR interests:

The Global Directory (IVU)
http://www.ivu.org/global



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