Komputer for Alle 1998 #6/1998 CD 6 (Gul).iso/web/ffa/wwwenv~1.org/arrs/digest/news5~10.htm/text0000.txt

Text File | 1998-04-02 | 212.6 KB | 5,281 lines

STRANGLES, HORSES - USA (LOUISIANA)
***********************************

Date: Wed, 03 Dec 1997 11:22:52 -0500
Source:News sources

In late October a USDA/FSIS veterinarian went with a friend to the
'Adopt-a-horse' program laid on in Natchitoches, LA, hoping to buy one of
the horses there thanks to the US Bureau of Land Management who were
disposing of horses out of Nebraska.   However, she noted that a number
were demonstrating obvious clinical signs of strangles (due to
_Streptococcus equi_).   Being a poultry inspector she asked her
veterinarian, Dr John (Rusty) Berry, to check the horses out himself.
This Dr Berry did, confirmed the diagnosis, and immediately informed the
State Veterinarian Dr Mack Lee.   As a result Dr Lee arranged for the 24
remaining unsold horses to be returned to Elm Creek, NB, on or about 26th
October instead of them being passed on to their next place scheduled to be
in Tennessee, and warned Nebraska of their condition.

In his practice out of Boyce, LA, Berry has seen and diagnosed strangles in
another of these horses that had been purchased by a ranch in Tioga;
subsequently the ranch manager "diagnosed" five more affected horses on the
farm and treated them himself.   On other farms in the area Dr Berry has
diagnosed ten further cases, none were Nebraska horses but had been stabled
with or tied next to such newly purchased horses.   He says that there is
now a raging "strangles" scare in the Alexandria area, fueled by the feed
stores selling antibiotics to owners of horses that are coming down with
the usual Fall incidence of upper respiratory virus infections typical for
this time of year, as well as to owners of horses that may have
_Streptoccus equi_ infections and clinical strangles.   The true extent of
this apparently introduced _S. equi_ infection is obscure.

In talking with Dr Lee about this, he made clear that these horses from
Nebraska had arrived with all the necessary health certificates.
Unfortunately, this year as in others neither his office nor that of the
USDA/APHIS/VS had been warned of their coming, in spite of his requests,
and so it was impossible to have a veterinarian in attendance at the
"Adopt-a-horse" show.

For those veterinarians in other countries where antibiotics for sick
animals can only be obtained on prescription who may be a bit puzzled...,
yes, this country is bizarre but that is the way it is, unfortunately.



[Although the animals had health certificates, and left Nebraska in apparent
good health but with a shedder of this equine shipping fever in the group.
Stress, tiredness, and close contact would do the rest.   It would seem
prudent for many reasons, to have an APHIS veterinarian in attendance.   It
is important that good programs such as Adopt-A-Horse don't end up spreading
disease and killing animals.   Thus, they should have definite provisions
for veterinary
examinations at appropriate venues as the horse moves from federal custody
to home on a farm.   As this outbreak shows, a careful clinical veterinary
inspection at the sale would have been most useful.]
===========================================

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)

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      /'-^-'\
     (_)   (_)
      |  .  |
      |     |}
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Date: Thu, 4 Dec 97 07:39:54 UTC
From: [e-mail]
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Washita Refuge Super for Goose Hunters
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>

Tulsa World, Tulsa, OK USA: Best prospect for a waterfowl hunt in
coming days is in far western Oklahoma, where tremendous numbers of
geese are wintering on two big U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service refuges.

A waterfowl census last week at Washita Refuge on Foss Lake near Clinton
found 109,000 geese. But counts taken Wednesday showed only 63,500 birds.

"We still have lots of geese, though," said Justin Roach of the refuge
staff. "We probably missed some birds due to heavy fog when we were
counting, and there's large numbers of these Canadas now roosting
on big flood control lakes in the area, too. Actually, hunting has been
much better in the region this week as those huge numbers of geese
last week pretty well consumed most of the winter wheat on refuge land."

Washita Refuge also has several first-come, first-served hunts available
on the refuge's public hunting area on Wednesday mornings. Hunts are still
slated Dec. 10, 17, and 31.

-- Sherrill
Date: Thu, 4 Dec 97 09:12:03 UTC
From: [e-mail]
To: [e-mail]
Subject: First Kill - 11 Point Buck
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>

Sapulpa Herald, Sapulpa, OK USA:  Kirk Sontag of Sapulpa brought down a nice
buck for his first kill on opening weekend of rifle season. The deer weighed
118 pounds and had 11 points. Sontag and a friend, Phillip Nichols, also of
Sapulpa, were hunting south of town. Sontag said Nichols helped him bag the
deer by scaring it to him. Both guys are 15 years old. Hunters are reporting
a good crop of deer this year.   (large photo of the boys with the dead deer)
__________________________________________________________________________
(How brave these boys were to scare a poor deer so they could kill him. Also,
notice how the word "crop" is used, as if animals are nothing more than
vegetables or fruits.)  - Sherrill
Date: Fri, 5 Dec 1997 12:29:39 +0000
From: "Miggi" <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: [UK] BARRY HORNE SENTENCED TO 18 YEARS
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT

> From BBC Teletext Page 121

ANIMAL RIGHTS BOMBER GET 18 YEAR TERM
An animal rights activist who planted firebombs in stores causing 3
million pounds worth of damage has been sentenced to 18 years in
jail.

Barry Horne, 45, was convicted of arson last month at Bristol Crown
Court after summer terror campaigns on the Isle Of Wight and in
Bristol.

He firebomber the Newport branch of Boots and was caught planting
more devices in Broadmead, in Bristol.

The unemployed Northampton man was convicted of 12 offences.
Date: Fri, 05 Dec 97 11:03:23 -0800
From: "Paul Wiener" <[e-mail]>
To: "AR-News (to post)" <[e-mail]>
Subject: Bogus News Story: US Ca
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
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According to radio news, it is now believed that the recent story of a
comatose woman who was chewed on by a dog may have been made up. No
evidence has been found to support it.

___________
Paul Wiener

[e-mail]
[e-mail]
[e-mail]
[e-mail]
[e-mail]
[e-mail]
- --------------------------------------------------------
http://www.netforward.com/cyberjunkie/?paulish

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Date: Fri, 5 Dec 1997 14:13:31 EST
From: CFOXAPI <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Cc: [e-mail], [e-mail], [e-mail], [e-mail],
        [e-mail], [e-mail],
        [e-mail], [e-mail],
        [e-mail]
Subject: EU/U.S. TRAPPING PROPOSAL LETTER
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit

Thank you to all of the following organizations that endorsed the sign-on
letter opposing the U.S. trapping proposal.  Letters went out this morning to
each of the European Union Ministers of Foreign Affairs.

We will keep you posted as to what unfolds in the next week.

Camilla Fox
Animal Protection Institute

Ben White
Animal Welfare Institute
_____________________________________________________
The Honorable-----------------
Minister of Foreign Affairs

Re:  Opposition to U.S. Trapping Proposal Set for a Vote on Dec. 8

Dear Minister----------------:

On behalf of the organizations listed at the end of this letter, we
respectfully request that you reject the trapping proposal offered by the U.S.
Government. We strongly object to the excruciating pain caused by all leghold
traps, and the proposal does not mandate any significant change in trapping
practices to reduce the trauma.

As you know, the U.S. Federal Government has stated repeatedly that it does
not have the authority to regulate trapping in each of the fifty states.
Therefore, it would be up to the state game departments to implement the terms
of the Agreed Minute and Side Letter. These documents, which comprise the U.S.
offer, are full of loopholes which the state authorities are poised to
exploit.

"Conventional" leghold restraining traps can continue to be used after 6 years
because of the numerous derogations. Further, any state game department can
allow use of leghold traps if it claims these traps are necessary.

The current U.S. proposal is weaker than the proposal offered in October
(calling for a phase out of leghold traps in 4 years) which was determined to
be unacceptable to the Commission and Council of Ministers! It is not
equivalent to the Canada/ Russia Agreement and will not stop the terrible
suffering caused to millions of animals annually in leghold traps.

Please uphold the intent of Regulation 3254/91 by voting "no" on the
fraudulent U.S. trapping proposal.

Sincerely,

Action for Animals- USA
Actors and Others for Animals-USA
Advocates Working for Animals and Respect for the Environment-USA
Alliance for Animals-USA
American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals- USA
Animal Defense League-USA
Animal Emancipation-USA
Animal Legal Defense Fund-USA
Animal Legislative Action Network-USA
Animal Liberation League-USA
Animal Protection Institute-USA
Animal Rights Direct Action Coalition-USA
Animal Rights Foundation of Florida-USA
Animals Alliance of Canada-Canada
Animal Welfare Institute-USA
Association of Veterinarians for Animal Rights-USA
Born Free Foundation-UK
Cetacea Defense- UK
Coalition to Abolish the Fur Trade-USA
Compassion over Killing- USA
Djurens Stod Grupp- Sweden
Djurratts Alliansen- Sweden
Dolphin Action and Protection Group-South Africa
Dolphin Data Base-USA
Doris Day Animal League-USA
Earth Island Institute-USA
ECCEA- St. Lucia
Eliminera Palsindustrin-Sweden
Elsa Nature Conservancy-Japan
European Cetacean Organization-UK
Forenade Djur-Sweden
Free Animals Network-Japan
Freedom Information Network-USA
Friends of Animals-USA
Great Bear Foundation-USA
Grupo de Los Cien-Mexico
Hawley and Wright-USA
Humane Society of the United States-USA
Humane SPCA of Columbia, South Carolina-USA
Humanitarians for Animal Rights, Education-USA
I CARE- USA
In Defense of Animals-USA
International Fund For Animal Welfare-USA
International Wildlife Coalition-USA, Brazil
Last Chance for Animals-USA
Letters for Animals-USA
Marine Mammal Fund-USA
Mountain Lion Foundation-USA
National Huane Society-USA
New England Anti-Vivisection Society-USA
No Compromise-USA
Nordiska Samfundet Mot Plagsamma Djurforsok-Sweden
Orange County People for Animals
Orca Lab-USA
Osterreichischer Tierschutzverein-Germany
People Acting for Animal Liberation-Canada
People for Parks-USA
People for Reason in Science and Medicine-USA
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals
-PETA-USA
-PETA-Europe
-PETA-Netherlands
-PETA-Germany
Performing Animal Welfare Society-USA
Pet Hope-USA
Pet Assistance-USA
Predator Education Fund-USA
Progressive Animal Welfare Society-USA
Propaw-USA
Protect Our EarthÆs Treasure-USA
Rada Delfinerna-Sweden
Rainforest Action Network-USA
Re-Earth-Bahamas
RespecTiere -Verein zur Beendigueng von Tierland-Austria
S.K.U.N.K.S.-USA
Society for Animal Protection Legislation-USA
Sonoma Peope for Animal Rights-USA
South Carolina Association for Marine Mammal Protection-USA
Tennesee Network for Animals-USA
THE ARK TRUST INC-USA
The Fund for Animals, Inc-USA
The WRITE CAUSE-USA
Tsitka-USA
United for Life-USA
Vegan Resistance- Sweden
Veganska Ambassaden-Sweden
Voice for a Viable Future- USA
Whale Rescue Team-USA
Wildlife Damage Review-USA
World Society for the Protection of Animals-USA, Canada
Zoocheck-Canada




Date: Fri, 05 Dec 97 11:39:37 -0800
From: "Paul Wiener" <[e-mail]>
To: "AR-News (to post)" <[e-mail]>
Subject: Fwd: Minnesota Exotic pet laws could affect birds US
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

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==================BEGIN FORWARDED MESSAGE==================
If you know anyone who lives in Minnesota, contact them and have them
protest this potential rule to their goverment representatives!

>AFA (American Federation of Aviculture) has just learned that the
>State of Minnesota is in the process of adopting new rules
>WITHOUT A HEARING UNLESS 25 OR MORE PEOPLE REQUEST A HEARING,
>with respect to allegedly harmful exotic species. Minnesota Rules,
>parts 6216.0100 - 0600. While AFA has not yet received a full copy of
>the proposed Rule ( it is over 100 pages long ) it appears to require a
>permit to posess any exotic species unless they are on a "clean list" .
> At this point we are told that even goldfish aren't even on the clean
>list. The only birds on the clean list, according to preliminary
>information, are chickens, ducks, and the like. AFA and PIJAC are
>looking into this and will, as necessary advise of
>additional information as it becomes known. The Agency contact in
>Minnesota is Jay Rendall, Department of Natural Resources
>[phone]. Obviously this Rule has the potential for serious
>impact on aviculturists and exotic bird owners.

- --
- --Kathy
Feathered Gems Aviary
http://www.ddc.com/~kjohnson
===================END FORWARDED MESSAGE===================


___________
Paul Wiener

[e-mail]
[e-mail]
[e-mail]
[e-mail]
[e-mail]
[e-mail]
- --------------------------------------------------------
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Date: Fri, 5 Dec 1997 11:33:33 -0800 (PST)
From: Michael Markarian <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail], [e-mail]
Subject: Stay in School, Hunting Isn't Cool (WV)
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Friday, December 5, 1997

CONTACT: Heidi Prescott, [phone], [e-mail]


STAY IN SCHOOL
Hunting Isn't Cool


CHARLESTON, W.V. -- Today, The Fund for Animals sent a two-page letter to
the West Virginia Board of Education, requesting that the board immediately
halt its policy of closing public schools during the first week of deer
hunting season. An Associated Press article last week reported that at least
38 of the state's 55 counties cancel classes all week for deer hunting.

Heidi Prescott, National Director of The Fund for Animals, wrote in today's
letter to the Board, "The quality of education young people in our country
receive is constantly under scrutiny . . . We find it appalling that the
West Virginia school system would put a stamp of approval on absenteeism for
the purpose of killing animals in the name of recreation."

For years, there have been rumors of schools in some states offering
students liberal leave for the opening day of deer hunting season, but this
is the first time a print media account has actually confirmed the practice.
Says Prescott, "Giving students a day off to participate in a
school-sponsored field trip can enhance their education. There is nothing
educational or wholesome, however, about turning the new three R's into
Reading, 'Riting, and Reloading."

The Fund for Animals offered to make its new video, "What's Wrong With
Hunting," and accompanying curriculum unit available to the West Virginia
teachers and students.

A copy of the two-page letter sent today is available upon request.


# # #


http://www.fund.org

Date: Fri, 5 Dec 1997 15:18:36 EST
From: CFOXAPI <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Fwd: AMERICANS SPENDING MORE DOLLARS TO ENJOY WILDLIFE
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Date: Tuesday, 2 December 1997 10:04:00 -0600 (MDT)
From: Mitch Snow <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: AMERICANS SPENDING MORE DOLLARS TO ENJOY WILDLIFE
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Subscribers can't reply or send their own messages to the
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November 25, 1997          Laury Marshall Parramore  202-208-5634
                                          [e-mail]

 AMERICANS SPENDING MORE DOLLARS AND DAYS OFF TO ENJOY WILDLIFE,
    FINAL U.S. FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE SURVEY REPORT SHOWS

What has fur, fins, feathers and a fan club of 77 million people?
It's the Nation's fish and wildlife.  Nearly 40 percent of U.S.
adults spent $101 billion on wildlife-related pursuits in 1996,
according to the final report of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service's most recent nationwide survey.

The 1996 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-
Associated Recreation shows that adults--people age 16 and older-
-who enjoy wildlife-related activities may not be increasing in
numbers but they are willing to spend more time and money to
fish, hunt, and watch wildlife.

"What this means is that the Nation's wildlife continues to
benefit from an active, committed constituency within the
American public," said Service Director Jamie Rappaport Clark.
"These are people who, despite increasing demands on their time,
put their dollars and their days off into continuing our
country's fine tradition of enjoying America's wildlife legacy.
It is good news--for wildlife and for the next generation--that
in the age of the Internet, cable television, and increasing
distractions and demands on people's time, centuries-old
activities that bring families together, such as hunting and
fishing, continue to play a strong role in Americans'
lifestyles."

The national survey shows that the number of anglers and hunters
in the country remained relatively unchanged from the previous
report.  In 1991, anglers numbered 35.6 million and there were
14.1 million hunters.  In 1996, there were 35.2 million anglers
and 14 million hunters.

However, 1996 anglers fished an additional 115 million days and
spent 37 percent more than in 1991, when the spending totals are
adjusted for inflation and other factors.  Last year's hunters
went afield 21 million more days and, using adjusted figures,
spent 43 percent more for trips and equipment.

In addition, although participation in wildlife-watching
(observing, feeding, and photographing wildlife) dropped by 17
percent--down to 62.9 million participants in 1996 from 76.1
million in 1991--spending for trips and equipment increased by 21
percent, when adjusted figures are used.

The survey, which has been conducted every 5 years since 1955,
was completed for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service by the U.S.
Census Bureau.  The Census Bureau initially screened 80,000
households, choosing 28,000 sportsmen and -women and 14,400 other
wildlife enthusiasts age 16 and older as subjects for detailed
interviews conducted throughout the year.

Survey reports for individual states will be published beginning
in December.

The full report of the 1996 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting,
and Wildlife-Associated Recreation is available on the Internet
at http://www.census.gov/prod/www/titles.html or refer to
http://www.fws.gov, the Fish and Wildlife Service's home page.
Printed copies of the survey are available by calling the
Service's Publications Unit at 304-876-7203.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal
agency responsible for conserving, protecting, and enhancing fish
and wildlife and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the
American people.  The Service manages 511 national wildlife
refuges covering 92 million acres, as well as 67 national fish
hatcheries.

The agency enforces Federal wildlife laws, manages migratory bird
populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves
and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, administers the
Endangered Species Act, and helps foreign governments with their
conservation efforts.  It also oversees the Federal Aid program
that distributes Federal excise taxes on fishing and hunting
equipment to state wildlife agencies.  This program is a
cornerstone of the Nation's wildlife management efforts, funding
fish and wildlife restoration, boating access, hunter education,
shooting ranges, and related projects across America.

                              -FWS-




                           FAST FACTS

       From the 1996 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting,
               and Wildlife-Associated Recreation


Fishing

o    35.2 million U.S. residents age 16 and older fished in 1996
     (17 percent of the U.S. population)

o    days spent fishing:  626 million

o    fishing trips taken:  507 million

o    dollars spent on fishing-related expenses:  $38 billion

o    percent of anglers who are women:  27; men:  73

o    number of freshwater anglers:  29.7 million; saltwater
     anglers:  9.4 million

o    five states with the most anglers, in descending order:
     Florida, California, Texas, Michigan, New York

o    top three most-fished species

          freshwater areas other than the Great Lakes:  black
          bass, trout, panfish

          Great Lakes:  walleye/sauger, perch, salmon

          salt water:  flatfish (flounder, halibut), bluefish,
          striped bass

Hunting

o    14 million people 16 years old and older hunted in 1996 (7
     percent of the U.S. population)

o    days spent hunting:  257 million

o    hunting trips taken:  223 million

o    dollars spent on hunting-related expenses:  $20.6 billion

o    percent of hunters who are women:  9; men:  91

o    five states with the most hunters, in descending order:
     Michigan, Texas, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, New York

o    number of big game hunters:  11.3 million
               small game:  6.9 million
               migratory birds:  3.1 million
               other game:  1.5 million

o    three most popular species hunted:

          big game:  deer, wild turkeys, elk
          small game:  squirrels, rabbits and hares, pheasants
          migratory birds:  doves, ducks, geese

Wildlife Watching

o    62.9 million people 16 years old and older engaged in
     wildlife-watching (observing, feeding, and photographing
     wildlife) in 1996 (31 percent of the U.S. population)

o    dollars spent on wildlife-watching-related expenses:  $29.2
     billion

o    residential wildlife-watchers (those who watch wildlife
     within a mile of their homes):  60.8 million

o    nonresidential wildlife watchers (those who watched wildlife
     more than a mile from their homes):  23.7 million

o    percent of residential wildlife watchers who are women:  54;
     men:  46

o    percent of nonresidential wildlife watchers who are women:
     50; men:  50

o    five states with the most wildlife watchers, in descending
     order:  California, Florida, Pennsylvania, Texas, Illinois

o    top three residential wildlife-watching activities:  feeding
     wild birds, observing wildlife, feeding other wildlife

o    top three types of animals enjoyed by nonresidential
     wildlife-watchers:  birds, land mammals, fish and other
     wildlife

Comparisons to 1991 Survey Results


                    1991           1996           Difference

Angling --
     Anglers        35.6 million   35.2 million          *
     Angling days   511 million    626 million          22%
     Expenditures   $27.6 billion  $37.7 billion        37%

Hunting --
     Hunters        14.1 million   14 million            *
     Hunting days   236 million    257 million           *
     Expenditures   $14.2 billion  $20.3 billion        43%

Wildlife-Watching
     Participants   76.1 million   62.9 million        (17%)
     Expenditures   $21.2 billion  $25.7 billion        21%


* No change at the 95-percent level of significance.


Important Note:  To make these estimates comparable, the 1991 and
1996 expenditure figures are adjusted here for inflation and
inconsistencies in expenditure categories.




============================================================
News releases are also available on the World Wide Web at
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Questions concerning a particular news release or item of
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Rieben ([e-mail]) in the Office of Public
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Date: Fri, 5 Dec 1997 12:52:51 -0800 (PST)
From: [e-mail]
To: [e-mail]
Subject: POLICE BEATEN DOCTOR, OTHERS HOLD NEWS CONFERENCER (US)
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 4, 1997

News Conference Advisory:






DOCTORS, FORMER CHILD STAR
CALL NEWS CONFERENCE TO
DETAIL POLICE BRUTALITY

     BEVERLY HILLS û Only days after being severely beaten by Los Angeles County
Sheriff deputies, a Los Angeles surgeon will make his first public statement
at a news conference Friday at 9 a.m. at the Beverly Hills Police Dept. (464
North Rexford Drive).

     Also appearing at the briefing will be another area doctor and a former
child star û now a nurse û who were brutalized by police after they were
arrested last Friday at a Rodeo Drive anti-fur demonstration. They were
jailed for 6 days on $50,000 bail and felony charges.

     The 3 health professionals/activists will provide details of police
brutality and unsanitary conditions in Los Angeles county jails.

     Following the briefing, they plan to walk into the Beverly Hills Police
Dept. to file the first in a series of official complaints against the
Beverly Hills Police Dept, and the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Dept.

     Due to appear at the news conference are:

     Dr. Jerry Vlasak û A Los Angeles surgeon....handcuffed, kicked and punched
by L.A. Sheriff deputies while under arrest for peacefully protesting the
killing of animals for fur
.
     Dr. Richard McLellan û A Los Angeles physician...hospitalized following his
arrest and use of brutal "pain holds" by Beverly Hills police.

     Pamelyn Ferdin-Vlasak - A registered nurse, and former child star ("Star
Trek" and "Odd Couple" television series, voice of Lucy in "Charlie Brown"
specials)....assaulted by police.

     The three were released Wednesday without any bail and their charges
reduced  to simple misdemeanors. They pleaded not guilty and have demanded
jury trials.
-30-
Contact: / ACLC [phone]


activists civil liberties committee
PO Box 19515, Sacramento, CA 95819 [phone] Fax: [phone]

Date: Fri, 5 Dec 1997 15:18:49 EST
From: CFOXAPI <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: EU Accepts U.S. Offer, Revokes Fur Import Ban
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit


Tuesday December 2 6:41 AM EST

EU Accepts U.S. Offer, Revokes Fur Import Ban

By Adrian Croft

BRUSSELS, Belgium (Reuters) - The European Union has accepted an offer =

from the United States to phase out steel-jawed leghold traps to catch =

fur-bearing animals, a few hours after an EU ban on U.S. fur imports

went into effect.

The agreement, approved by a majority of ambassadors from the EU's 15
member states Monday, commits the United States to phasing out all
jaw-type leghold restraining traps within four years for two species,
ermine and muskrat.

Over two million of the two species are trapped each year in the United =

States, about half of all the animals trapped annually that are covered =

by the agreement, Washington says.

For other species, use of steel-jawed leghold traps will be phased out
over six years, according to documents released by the EU.

Austria, Belgium and Britain, which have sought tougher agreements,
voted against the pact.

The EU and Washington have long been at odds over the leghold traps,
used to catch animals such as mink, otters and wolves. The EU pledged to =

ban U.S. fur imports from Monday unless agreement was reached on the
traps, which it condemns as cruel.

The breakthrough came when the United States made a late concession on =

Friday, reducing the period for phasing out the traps from eight years =

to six.

The fur import ban took effect just after midnight on Sunday but was
expected to be lifted quickly. While the agreement must still be
ratified by EU foreign ministers next week, the European Commission said =

it would immediately tell European customs agencies not to implement the =

ban.

The agreement clears away a contentious issue before Friday's U.S.-EU
summit in Washington. The EU threat to ban U.S. fur imports to Europe -- =

worth about $20 million a year -- had raised fears of a wider trade war. =



British officials said the agreement, which applies mainly to
steel-jawed leghold traps, did not go far enough. The pact calls for
tests to show whether other controversial traps -- like padded-jaw
leghold traps and drowning traps -- are inhumane, allowing trappers to =

continue using them, one said.

The U.S. mission in Brussels had no immediate comment.

The EU passed a law in 1991 making it illegal from January 1995 for
member countries to import fur from animals caught by leghold traps, but =

then delayed implementing the law.

Opponents of leghold traps complain that they do not kill outright but =

often break animals' legs and hold them until they drown, starve or
bleed to death.

Canada and Russia reached agreement with the EU earlier this year to
phase out leghold traps over five years. But the United States, saying =

the EU's demands would jeopardize trappers' livelihoods, resisted such =

an agreement.

In response to a question, a Commission spokesman acknowledged on Monday =

that leghold traps were still manufactured in Europe but sold only for =

export.
Date: Fri, 05 Dec 1997 14:22:57 -0800
From: Karen Purves <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Cc: [e-mail], [e-mail]
Subject: (US) Xenotransplanation TV show airing (Chicago, IL area)
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

If you live in the Chicago suburbs and have cable TV with MediaOne as
your access station, you can view an upcoming episode of "The Journal" on
channel 3, a half-hour show were xenotransplantation is discussed between
an animal advocate and the chief transplant surgeon from the University
of Illinois, Chicago. The same show will air six times at the following
times:
Friday, Dec. 5 12:30pm
Monday, Dec. 8 12:30pm, 10:00pm
Friday, Dec. 12 12:30pm
Monday, Dec. 15 12:30pm, 10:00pm

If you have any further questions, please contact Karen Purves at the
Animal Protection Institute--Midwest Regional Office at:
phone:[phone]
fax: [phone]
email: [e-mail]

Date: Fri, 5 Dec 1997 16:29:19 EST
From: MINKLIB <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Swedens Largest Fox Farm to Close
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit

The following paragraph was sent to me by private email.  I thought you all
would enjoy the good news.

JP
CAFT

The fox farm in Hofors(Westfox), raided 2 times this year, that has
11.000 foxes captive is according to media for sure going to close now.
After a visit on the farm from people from the local government it was
decided that the farm must be closed the last january 1998.
With that farm gone, Sweden will "only" be responsible for 4000 fox
pelts produced a year and with new laws making fox farming in cages
illegal by the year of 2000 they will close anyway.
Date: Fri, 5 Dec 1997 17:53:01 EST
From: AnimalNM <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: BRING BACK THE WILD BUFFALO!
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

Posted for Great Plains Restoration Council

 BRING BACK THE WILD BUFFALO!

 AMERICA'S LONGEST HELD POLITICAL PRISONER

 Just a blink of time ago, the American Bison, or Buffalo,  thundered 65
 million strong across the great Wilderness prairies of this continent. After
 suffering a catastrophic bloodbath and a very close brush with extinction that
 will be spoken of for thousands of years to come, survivors are still denied
 their birthright of freedom. The American Buffalo, vanquished totem of this
 once-wild continent, is the only native animal utterly refused its inalienable
 right to be a wild species.

 Not one free-roaming wild bison exists anywhere in America, including that big
 slaughter-box they call Yellowstone.

 Other Plains wildlife have fared hardly better. The Black-tailed Prairie Dog
 is the keystone species of the Great Plains. Prairie dogs nurture both grasses
 and soil necessary for a diverse ecosystem of 163 native vertebrate species,
 as well as provide a primary food source for many predators' diets. Once
 numbering upwards of five billion and thriving across well over 100 million
 acres, wild Black-tailed Prairie Dogs have now been poisoned, gassed and shot
 down to 7/10's of ONE PERCENT of their former abundance in less than a
 century. The sea of grass around their dead towns is dying like the sea of
 life around a dead coral reef. Top Prairie Dog biologists are warning of
 imminent extinction within the next 12 to 20 years. Rogue ranchers and
 government agencies still actively promote poisoning, plus "recreational"
 shooting of this endangered species for redneck fun and target practice. They
 laugh in the face of the growing outcry from concerned scientists and the
 public.

 The Buffalo Wolf is gone from the Plains. The Prairie Chicken is faltering.
 The Black-footed Ferret (solely dependent on Prairie Dogs) is the most
 endangered mammal on Earth. The list of impending extinctions is long. The
 prairie grassland is America's most abused and least protected ecosystem.
 Everywhere the land is strung up in bristli
fe community is on the verge of collapse.
 The Earth aches. Remaining native wildlife clings tooth and nail yet for
 survival, for a Future.

 BUT...
 These once-great Plains have always refused to submit to the European ideal of
 the cow and the plow. Age-old cycles of violent weather extremes continue.
 Humans have been abandoning their Plains mistakes since before the Dust Bowl.
 Beaten, ugly and sore, 149,000 square miles of this once glowing landscape
 have reverted back to "frontier" conditions of less than two persons per
 square mile, leaving...a wasteland? Nobody alive has (yet) seen a healthy
 functioning prairie.The Great Plains Restoration Council (GPRC) is dedicated
 to a practical implementation of a Buffalo Commons. This is an idea first
 envisioned by Professors Frank and Deborah Popper to take these worn out,
 abandoned lands and restore the great herds and their ancient Plains vitality
 to them, while providing --for the first time since settlement-- a clean,
 sustainable and healthy economy for remaining local towns.

 Through a successively-implemented system of restored and protected Wilderness
 cores, buffer zones and biological corridors, native Plains wildlife will
 again have the space and landscape health to prosper. Much like on the scale
 of the huge East African Game Reserves, the Buffalo Commons will entail
 cooperation between various public and private landholders. Wiser heads and
 warmer hearts will prevail.

 Focusing on the Southern Plains, the Dust Bowl area of most neglect, we will:

 ò Facilitate national educational outreach, so that the American public
 becomes aware of the vast importance and beauty of grasslands, and the crucial
 issues surrounding its destruction. Formulate a 10, 20 and 30 year Plan, with
 an eye to eventually restoring all native wildlife to historic numbers to
 vast, self-regulating native grassland ecosystems.

 ò Begin Geographic Information Systems modeling to map the most sensitive
 areas and biological corridors.

 ò Establish a fund to directly purchase within five years and
t and least populated in the
 country).

 ò Create the nation's first true Grasslands Wilderness Area.

 ò Join the cooperative grassroots effort to end exploitation of our public
 lands.

 ò Specifically involve the Southern Plains tribes, who are all stuck in
 suburban ghettoes in Oklahoma and who have no land base whatsoever to connect
 them with their heritage.

 ò Establish a hands-on educational program for children at our base-camp
 outpost, where kids, assisted every step of the way by trained counselors, can
 not only experience and learn about a different, mostly forgotten part of the
 world, but can actively participate in the healing of an ecosystem. Special
 emphasis will be accorded minority, at-risk or inner-city children.

 ò Work closely with other groups, such as the InterTribal Bison Cooperative,
 which focuses primarily on tribal lands in the Northern Plains, so our
 restorative efforts proceed apace and eventually connect.

 IN THIS WAY, the GPRC hopes to set a practical leadership example for people
 everywhere as to how we - as a maturing society - can at last learn to live
 alongside wildlife and share health and prosperity, not only with each other,
 but with the non-human cultures, too.  Just like there are no jobs on a dead
 planet, there is no health on a sick land.

 Seeking interested members and dedicated volunteers.
 Need volunteers for:
 * fund-raising
 * modern computer technology
 * administration
 * graphic arts/photography/writing
 * spearheading a new Southern Plains Land Trust
 * local, regional, and national grassroots outreach
 * demanding a little justice for native wildlife

 Membership:
 $15 limited income
 $20 individual
 $25 family
 $10 student/youth
 $50 supporter
 $100 donor
 $200 patron
 $1000 life

 GREAT PLAINS RESTORATION
 COUNCIL
 P.O. BOX 717
 ALBUQUERQUE, NM 87103
 505.243.8321



Date: Fri, 5 Dec 1997 15:19:23 -0800 (PST)
From: [e-mail]
To: [e-mail]
Subject: YERKES II PROTEST (US)
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 5, 1997


Contact: IDA [phone] or Animal Abuse Watch [phone]






æYERKES II':  Activists, æApe Army'
Target Yerkes Lab Saturday After
62 Arrests, Near-Riot Last April

     ATLANTA û Militant animal rights activists from throughout the U.S. û and
the commander of an "Ape Army" û will participate in a major demonstration
at the Yerkes Regional Primate Center at Emory University (stone gates) at
10:30 a.m. Saturday.

     Police have threatened to arrest anyone who gets close to the laboratories.

     In April, 64 people were arrested, and several injured û including at least
one police officer û after DeKalb County and Emory University police used
tear gas, pepper spray and stun grenades to attack about 150 to 200
activists who had gathered at the primate labs.

     Saturday's protest is part of a national campaign undertaken by Rick Bogle,
a 41-year-old Oregon 6th grade teacher. He has toured the seven û Yerkes is
the last û regional U.S. primate centers since May to bring attention to
U.S. primate research labs. He takes his "Ape Army" û hundreds and hundreds
of toy, stuffed monkeys û with him to each lab.

     Bogle has been allowed to hold a 9-day sit-in at all the labs, except
University of California, Davis, where, in November, he was jailed for 6
days after being arrested twice in 1 day trying to peacefully distribute
literature.

     At Yerkes, Bogle will be reinforced by activists from as far away as New
York, Minnesota, Oregon and Arizona, as well as throughout the southern U.S.

     ""I have driven more than 8,000 miles and sat in protest at NIH Regional
primate centers for more than 800 hours to call attention to the horror and
cruelty being inflicted on the monkeys and apes imprisoned by the U.S.
government," said Bogle. "When people know the truth, they will act from
their hearts," he added.

     "During its history, Yerkes Primate Center has been inhumane, unproductive,
and the discoverer of nothing," said Jean Barnes, of In Defense of
Animals/Atlanta.

     Dozens of organizations are sponsoring the Yerkes demonstration, including
In Defense of Animals, a national animal protection organization with 80,000
members; Animal Abuse Watch/Atlanta; Animal Defense League/Atlanta and Act
Up/San Francisco.
 -30-

Date: Sat, 6 Dec 1997 07:51:49 +0800
From: bunny <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: [NZ]Rabbits live with RCD
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

>From The Press (NZ)
December 03, 1997

Rabbits live with RCD

Some rabbits in the Mackenzie are surviving RCD, Canterbury Regional
Council biosecurity leader Graham Sullivan says.

He said there were pockets of rabbits surviving in areas seeded with RCD,
but it was not known why. It was possible there was a resistance to the
disease.

Mr Sullivan said rabbit counts at night showed there were between two and
three rabbits per square kilometre. It was possible for rabbit numbers to
build from there.

Rabbit calicivirus seemed to have worked best in semi-arid conditions, as
in parts of the Mackenzie.

The RCD kill-rate varied from very good to very bad, but much more research
was needed to find out why.

Mr Sullivan said he and other investigators would know more about RCD and
its spread by winter, but it could be at least a year before they had a
good picture of its effectiveness.

He said answers were needed about the RCD survival rate, habitat, seasonal
effectiveness, spread, and the age of vulnerability.

Mr Sullivan said it was important now for farmers to maintain traditional
control methods to keep rabbit numbers down.

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

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, 6 Dec 1997 07:53:08 +0800
From: bunny <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: [NZ]Critics 'ignoring' achievements
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

>From The Press[NZ]
November 29, 1997

Critics 'ignoring' achievements

Critics who say the Government is dragging its feet on sorting out the
legal issues surrounding the use of rabbit calicivirus disease ignore the
amount and complexity of the work involved, Biosecurity Minister Simon
Upton says.

The Canterbury Regional Council this week launched a strong attack on the
Government's handling of the legal issues.

Mr Upton said people should realise the Government and officials had been
forced to regularise a situation that arose from an illegal act. "They are
ignoring what has already been achieved." He said the application of the
Pesticides Act to the use of RCD was the only major legal issue remaining
unresolved.

While this may prevent regional councils from directly spreading the virus,
there was nothing to stop them from helping the organised spread in other
ways, like co-ordinating farmers' efforts and providing advice and
information on the best ways to use the virus. Mr Upton said the push for
regional councils to be involved in the RCD spread seemed to be coming from
the councils rather than from farmers.

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

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, 06 Dec 1997 00:27:01 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: El Nino Pet ID Program
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

NORCO, Calif., Dec. 2 /PRNewswire/ -- In an effort to avoid the "heartbreak of
losing a pet, with no way home" AVID Microchip Company, is launching a
statewide, low cost El Nino Pet I.D. Program, says Dr. Hannis L. Stoddard III,
President of AVID.  This Program is designed to microchip and identify as many
animals as possible before the predicted problems associated with El Nino and
is supported by the CVMA (California Veterinary Medical Association), the
SCVMA (Southern California Veterinary Medical Association) and HSUS (Humane
Society of the United States.)

"CVMA's Disaster Response Program has successfully dealt with thousands of
animals needing evacuation, treatment, sheltering or reuniting with their
owners.  Microchipping is an invaluable resource in a disaster setting," said
CVMA Executive Director, Dr. Richard Schumacher.

In response to this program, the Rancho Cucamonga Animal Shelter is hosting an
El Nino Pet ID Chip-A-Thon on December 6, 1997.  The Event will take place at
the shelter located at 11780 Arrow Rt., Rancho Cucamonga, CA., between 11:00
AM and 3:OOPM.  All animals must be restrained with a leash or carrier.
Service animals i.e., Police, Drug, Search & Rescue, Seeing Eye, etc. are
invited to receive a chip and registration at no charge.  The fee for this
service will be $15.00 (regularly $50.00) and will include a lifetime
registration.  Questions may be directed to Roni Jordan at AVID 800-336-2843.

SOURCE  AVID Microchip Company
CO:  AVID Microchip Company
ST:  California
IN:  CPR
SU:

12/02/97 12:57 EST http://www.prnewswire.com

⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Sat, 06 Dec 1997 00:27:24 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: DreamWorks battles Disney with 'Chicken' production
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

By Dan Cox and Nick Madigan

HOLLYWOOD (Variety) - DreamWorks has made another small step in its bid to
battle Disney's domination of the animation market by securing rights to the
claymation project ``Chicken Run.''

DreamWorks co-founder Jeffrey Katzenberg had been doggedly pursuing the
project's producers for several years. Disney was one of several studios --
including 20th Century Fox and Warner Bros. -- eager to corral ``Chicken
Run.''

The project, which has already been shooting preliminary tests, is about a
group of chickens who make a desperate bid for freedom before they can be
fried, filleted or fricasseed. Leading the flock is a British chicken named
Ginger and an American rooster named Rocky.

DreamWorks has slated the project to come out in the spring or summer of the
year 2000. It will carry domestic and all international rights except Europe,
which Paris-based Pathe will handle. DreamWorks also retains rights to
domestic and international merchandising. Budget figures were not released.

``Chicken Run'' is being directed by Nick Park and Peter Lord, who also
produce along with David Sproxton. The trio forms Aardman Animations, which
won Oscars for such shorts as ''Creature Comforts,'' ``The Wrong Trousers''
and ``A Close Shave.'' Karey Kirkpatrick and Jack Rosenthal scripted ``Chicken
Run.''

Reuters/Variety


08:33 12-04-97

⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Sat, 06 Dec 1997 00:29:02 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Flesh eating bacteria attack health worker
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

BOSTON, Dec 3 (Reuters) - It was only a scratch on the edge of a young
doctor's palm but it was enough for an infection of flesh-eating bacteria,
according to a letter in Thursday's New England Journal of Medicine.

Three doctors at the University of Texas and the Houston Medical Center said
the case showed the infection, known as necrotizing fasciitis, can be an
occupational hazard for those practicing medicine.

``Even though the injury appeared minor, the infection progressed rapidly and
required aggressive therapy,'' said doctors Carin Hagberg, Adriana Radulescu
and John H. Rex.

Fourteen hours after the scratch suffered when the young woman doctor was
putting a tube into a patient, the area was hard, red and painful. She quickly
developed fever and chills, and was given an antibiotic.

More antibiotics were added when the doctor discovered the patient had died
from group A streptococcus, which can develop into a flesh-eater, and the
infection began spreading up her left arm.

Surgery was eventually needed to remove rotting flesh in the doctor's hand and
a muscle flap was used to replace the rotted tissue that had been cut away.
The doctor survived, according to the report, but only after 17 days in a
hospital.

``Invasive disease due to group A streptococcus is a potential hazard for
those in the medical profession, especially those who perform invasive
procedures,'' the team of doctors said.'' ^REUTERS@

02:03 12-04-97

⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Sat, 06 Dec 1997 00:30:07 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: USDA near guidelines on meat reworking
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

By Julie Vorman

WASHINGTON, Dec 5 (Reuters) - The U.S. Agriculture Department will soon have
draft guidelines for the re-working of hamburger by meat processors, the
industry practice which was linked to the record recall of beef by Hudson
Foods <HFI.N>, a senior USDA official told Reuters.

"This has been a high priority for us," Catherine Woteki, USDA undersecretary
for food safety, said in an interview. "I'm expecting to get a set of
recommendations very soon."

Woteki will review her staff's recommendations with an eye toward a possible
agency rulemaking on the controversial issue. She declined to comment on how
soon a rulemaking -- which would include a comment period for the industry and
consumer groups -- might begin.

Hudson Foods recalled more than 25 million pounds of ground beef late last
summer after several consumers in Colorado were sickened by the beef. Some of
Hudson's frozen hamburger patties were suspected of harboring E. coli 0157:H7,
a deadly form of bacteria that can cause hemorrhaging of the intestinal walls
and kidney failure.

The recall became the largest in U.S. history after investigators discovered
that Hudson had a practice of taking meat left in processing machines at the
end of each day and mixing it the next morning with new batches of beef. The
practice, known as re-working, made it difficult to track the suspected
contamination of the batches of hamburger.

A federal grand jury has been investigating Hudson and its recordkeeping
procedures for several months. Woteki confirmed the Hudson investigation was
still continuing but declined further comment.

She said the planned USDA guidelines for re-working hamburger should come as
no surprise to the industry at a time when the government is focusing greater
attention on food safety issues.

"Companies should be examining their own policies and procedures" as part of
USDA's roll-out of the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points
regulations, Woteki said.

The HACCP regulations require meat processors to prepare a written plan for
monitoring food safety and will become effective next month for large meat
companies.

Woteki also said the Clinton Administration would continue pressing Congress
to give the USDA authority to order mandatory meat recalls and to impose civil
penalties on violators.

The legislation met with a lukewarm reception in the Senate, and is being
opposed by the U.S. meat industry as unnecessary. Under current law, the USDA
cannot directly order a meat recall but it can pull meat inspectors from a
plant, effectively shutting down a company.

"It remains to be seen how closely a final law is going to reflect our
proposal," Woteki said.

Although the meat industry is adamently opposed to USDA recall authority, it
has expressed less resistance to the same bill's plan to impose civil
penalties against violators, Woteki said.

"We view this as not being out of line with the recall authority of other
agencies," she said.

Woteki also said that the USDA had not yet made up its mind whether to support
recently-introduced legislation to create a single food safety agency. More
than a dozen U.S. agencies and departments -- including the Food and Drug

Administration, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Centers for
Disease Control -- now have a role in protecting the nation's food supply.

"We haven't reached any conclusion or position yet," Woteki said. "There are
many ways of changing the government regulatory structure."

The USDA is awaiting the results of a review by the National Academy of
Sciences on how U.S. food safety can best be protected, she said. The report
is due next summer.

Consumer groups have argued that a single food safety agency would be more
effective in coordinating and monitoring food safety than the crazy-quilt
participation by agencies today. For example, under current law, the safety of
a frozen cheese pizza is overseen by the FDA but a pepperoni pizza falls under
the USDA's jurisdiction because of the meat topping.

18:29 12-05-97

⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Sat, 06 Dec 1997 00:32:37 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Time to feed the animals
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

.c The Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) - Adding folic acid to women's diets during childbearing years
can reduce brain and spinal cord birth defects by almost half, says a study
that reinforces federal plans to fortify bread and cereals with the vitamin.

Dr. James L. Mills of the National Institute of Child Health and Human
Development said the study shows that adding even a small amount of folic acid
a day can have a strong effect on the number of babies born with neural tube
defects such as spina bifida.

``There has been a lot of debate if a small amount of folic acid will do
anything to prevent neural tube defects,'' said Mills. ``Nobody knew what
minimum dosage was needed.''

Now, he said, it is clear that daily dosages as small as 100 micrograms of
folic acid can reduce the number of such birth defects by around 22 percent.
Dosages of 400 micrograms cuts the defects by about 47 percent, Mills said.
``We found that we couldn't eliminate all of the neural tube defects, but we
could eliminate quite a few of them,'' said Mills, co-author of the study
published Friday in the British medical journal Lancet.

One hundred micrograms of folic acid daily is what experts believe people will
receive once all U.S. wheat, rice and corn are fortified at the rate of 140
micrograms per 100 grams of grain. The Food and Drug Administration has
ordered that folic acid be added to all food grains by the start of 1998. Many
breads, cereals and pastas already are being sold with the nutrient added. A
pound totals about 454 grams, and a microgram is one millionth of a gram.

Dr. Richard B. Johnston, medical director of the March of Dimes, which
supports birth defect research, said the Lancet finding is reassuring because
it shows that fortifying food will have some effect. But he said women of
childbearing age should not depend on food alone to get effective levels of
folic acid.

Johnston said women who might bear children should follow the Public Health
Service and National Academy of Sciences recommendations of taking daily
vitamin pills providing at least 400 micrograms of folic acid.

``That's the only way to be really sure that there is enough folic acid in the
diet,'' he said.

Experts recommended fortifying grains after studies showed that few women of
childbearing age follow the folic acid recommendations.

There was concern, however, that putting too much folic acid in grain products
would mask symptoms of pernicious anemia in elderly patients who might eat
lots of bread and cereal. The FDA finally set the supplement level at 140
micrograms per gram of grain.

Folic acid occurs naturally in leafy vegetables, such as spinach, and in
orange juice and liver, Mills said.

In the Lancet study, Irish and American researchers monitored the blood levels
of folate, which comes from folic acid, in a group of 100 women of
childbearing age in Dublin. The women were divided into four groups. One
received no folic acid supplements, while the other groups got doses of 100,
200 or 400 micrograms daily.

After six months, the researchers found that women on the 100 microgram dosage
achieved a blood level of folate that would prevent 22 percent of neural tube

birth defects. Those on 200 microgram doses achieved a 41 percent prevention
level, while the 400 microgram dose gave a 47 percent prevention level. Folate
declined in the blood of women not taking the vitamin.

Mills said the level of prevention was based on earlier studies that
determined the levels of blood folate needed to prevent neural tube defects.

About 4,000 U.S. women become pregnant annually with babies bearing neural
tube defects. Some of the babies are identified before birth, and the fetus is
aborted, Miles said.

The most common defect linked to blood folate is spina bifida, in which a
segment of the spinal nerve cord grows outside the bony spinal column. Babies
with this condition usually are paralyzed and often require up to $250,000 in
medical care in the first five years of life. In anencephaly, another folate-
linked defect, the brain never develops. Most infants with this condition die
before or just after birth.

Only about 50 to 70 percent of neural tube birth defects are linked to folate
deficiency, Mills said. He said inherited genes account for about 10 percent
of the cases, and the cause of the others is unknown.

AP-NY-12-04-97 1831EST

⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Sat, 06 Dec 1997 00:34:25 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Bill Clinton carries out tradition of pardoning turkey
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

.c The Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) - Beating the holiday odds, one lucky Thanksgiving turkey won
a presidential pardon Wednesday. He will be retired, not stuffed.

The white-feathered 60-pounder is the 50th bird in as many years to be spared
in a tradition dating to President Harry S Truman.

The turkey will be retired to a Virginia farm to ``bask in the sun, collect
his hard-earned pension and enjoy his golden years,'' President Clinton said.

``That's one less turkey in Washington,'' he added, grinning.

Unlike some White House turkeys past, the 1997 turkey remained quiet and calm
as first the president, then dozens of school kids, stroked its feathers.

The reprieved bird, from the Tarheel Turkey Hatchery in Raeford, N.C. was
chosen for his starring Thanksgiving role from a flock of 2,000. He was
presented at the White house by the National Turkey Federation.

Although Truman got the White House into the turkey pardoning business in
1947, Clinton recalled that the first instance of a reprieved turkey occurred
83 years earlier when President Lincoln heeded the pleas of his son, Tad, and
spared the life of a beloved turkey named Jack.

Later in the day Clinton, his arms around his wife, first lady Hillary Rodham
Clinton, and their daughter, Chelsea, home from Stanford, took off by
helicopter for Camp David, the presidential retreat in the mountains of
western Maryland.

Mrs. Clinton told reporters earlier that Thanksgiving dinner will be
traditional with stuffing, mashed potatoes, pumpkin, mincemeat pie and some
other turkey.

She recited the Thanksgiving menu while the White House began preparations for
an elegant Christmas.

As carolers sang, a horse-drawn wagon rolled up the south drive of the White
House to deliver an 18-foot North Carolina Fraser Fir that will stand at the
center of the Blue Room during the holiday season.

``The turkey's been pardoned and the tree has arrived,'' Mrs. Clinton said.

An American bald eagle named ``Challenger'' later tried to upstage the turkey.

The eagle and his handler, Al Cecere, of Pigeon Forge, Tenn., were at the
White House for the making of a video called ``The President's Tree,'' a story
of White House Christmas trees through the years.

The eagle will be an on-screen narrator, telling the story with an assist from
an off-screen human voice.

``This bird won over the turkey to be the national bird,'' Cecere said as a
crowd gathered to snap photos of the eagle and ask questions.

``But he's not here to rub it in that the turkey is not the national bird,''
he said.

AP-NY-11-26-97 1653EST
-----

but what did he eat that very day...?
⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Sat, 06 Dec 1997 00:35:08 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Britain to make beef on bone illegal December 16
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

LONDON, Dec 5 (Reuters) - The British government announced on Friday that its
ban on selling beef-on-the-bone would come into force from December 16.

``I have acted swiftly within the powers I have to protect the public,'' said
Agriculture Minister Jack Cunningham.

He is acting to prevent a tiny risk that humans may become infected with the
human form of mad cow disease, Creutzfeldt Jakob Disease (CJD).

Cunningham said his move had the support of consumers, farmers and the Meat
and Livestock Commission.

``I am determined to act on the best scientific advice in the interest of
public safety and to restore consumer confidence in British beef,'' he said in
a statement.

Beef with the bones removed will still be available for sale and Cunningham
said he was determined beef imported into Britain from Europe would face the
same tough controls.

Farmers and butchers say the government's move is a huge blow to the industry.

A worldwide ban on exports of British beef imposed 21 months ago following
evidence of a link between Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE or mad cow
disease) and CJD. Twenty-three people have died of the new variant of CJD
thought to be connected to BSE.

Cunningham's announcement came just hours after the Irish government said beef
on the bone should be withdrawn from sale.

Health Minister Brian Cowen called on butchers to remove the backbone before
putting beef on sale. ^REUTERS@

20:03 12-05-97

⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Sat, 06 Dec 1997 00:35:46 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Irish to withdraw beef on bone from sale
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

DUBLIN, Dec 5 (Reuters) - The Irish government said on Friday beef on the bone
should be withdrawn from sale.

Just 48 hours after Britain moved to get unboned beef out of butchers' shops,
Irish Health Minister Brian Cowen said he decided to act following the British
findings and ``in the interests of public health.''

``While recognising that the risk to the consumer is extremely low, as an
additional precautionary measure I wish to advise that until this issue can be
more fully investigated, no beef with the backbone attached should be sold to
the consumer, ``Cowen said.

``The most practical method of ensuring this is for retail butchers to remove
any backbone from beef before sale,'' he added.

``Bones removed in this way should be disposed of as unfit for human
consumption,'' Cowen said in a statement.

He said he and Agriculture Minister Joe Walsh were consulting with the
European Commission and other EU members on ``what approaches should be
taken.''

The move was viewed in Dublin as a major policy switch that would infuriate
farmers because the Irish government had always insisted that Irish beef was
safe and free of so-called mad cow disease.

On Wednesday, British Agriculture Minister Jack Cunningham announced a ban on
beef sold on the bone to prevent a tiny risk that humans may become infected
with the human form of mad cow disease, Creutzfeldt Jakob Disease (CJD). It
becomes illegal from December 16.

Cunningham and Walsh met in London on Thursday for emergency talks to try and
avert a row over angry British farmers' blockades against Irish beef.

The protests were started by Welsh beef farmers who accused the government of
not doing enough to help their decimated industry. ^REUTERS@

20:10 12-05-97

``They wante

⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Sat, 06 Dec 1997 00:35:29 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Tony Blair, no ARA, condemns UK farmers for beef blockade
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

By Susan Cornwell

LONDON, Dec 5 (Reuters) - Prime Minister Tony Blair urged British farmers on
Friday to stop disrupting beef imports, but the rebellion in the struggling
beef industry continued as protests spread around the country.

Both Blair and Foreign Secretary Robin Cook said British farmers must stop
blockading ports, insisting law and order must be upheld and harbours and
lorry routes kept open.

``We understand very well the distress and difficulty of British beef farmers
at the present time,'' Blair said at a ceremony marking Britain's six-month
stint as president of the European Union starting in January.

But Blair said the free movement of goods had to be upheld. ``The rule of law
must be upheld and we will ensure that it is,'' he added. ``The scenes at some
of the ports and harbours don't help the farmers' case.''

The prime minister said he wanted to see progress soon on lifting a ban
imposed by the EU on British beef exports in March 1996 after scientists found
that Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE, the brain-wasting mad cow disease)
could be transmitted to humans.

That ban and plummeting confidence in beef at home have hit the British beef
industry hard, and farmers accuse the government of not doing enough to help
them.

Welsh farmers began blockading ports on Monday to try to stop imports of
cheaper Irish beef, and they have since been joined by Scottish and English
colleagues. The farmers have forced a number of trucks with Irish beef to turn
back.

The farmers were further enraged on Wednesday when Agriculture Minister Jack
Cunningham proposed a ban on beef sold on the bone to prevent a tiny risk that
people may become infected with the human form of mad cow disease, Creutzfeldt
Jakob disease (CJD). More than 20 people have died in Britain of this disease.

The protesters continued to vent their anger on Friday, with newspaper
headlines declaring ``The farmers go to war'' and ``Farmers rage over beef
crisis.''

Round-the-clock picketing continued at the Welsh port of Holyhead, where the
militant farmers' campaign began.

In Cardiff, farmers' wives with placards lobbied Welsh government offices. In
Cornwall, protesting farmers tried to block trucks entering a meat-packing
plant.

Overnight, some 250 farmers demonstrated at the southeast English port of
Dover and three people were arrested in scuffles with police as protesters
tried unsuccessfully to stop trucks leaving the docks.

Another 150 farmers protested at the ports of Stranraer and Cairnryan in
southwest Scotland.

The demonstrations continued despite government assurances that officials were
considering help for farmers.

``It is under review. It depends on the public spending revenue that we
have,'' an agriculture ministry spokesman said.

However, a spokesman for Blair sounded less optimistic: ``As the prime
minister made clear in the House on Wednesday, there is no European pot of
gold which we can go to.''

Cook, who also made a point of saying that the government was already giving
farmers 1.4 billion pounds ($2.3 billion) in aid this year, made a string of
television appearances to appeal for a halt to the blockades.


He pointed out that Britain put pressure on Paris during a French truckers'
strike last month to keep the roads open for British hauliers.

``The important thing at the present time is to make sure that we do get the
lorry routes clear,'' the foreign secretary told BBC television. ``We cannot
take a tough line with France when it blockades our lorry drivers and then
apply a different standard in Britain.''

Welsh Secretary Ron Davies also weighed in after a meeting with farmers'
leaders in Cardiff.

``It (the blockades) is against the best interests of British farmers -- and
especially Welsh farmers -- because the Irish government has been trying to
help Britain to get the export beef ban lifted to help our agriculture,''
Davies said.

But one of the farmers' wives demonstrating there, Kate Walker of Cwmbran,
Gwent, said, ``My husband John is currently working an 80-hour week for
absolutely nothing.

``Our income has been halved in the last few months,'' she said. ``Tony Blair
and his government have not understood what is happening so far but they must
act soon before it is too late.''

Farmers and butchers say the government's latest move in banning beef sold on
the bone is a huge blow to the industry just when consumer confidence in
Britain was beginning to recover.

But Blair said responsible government had to follow the advice of scientists.

``If government is given such strong advice then I am sure that we would have
been criticised if we had not acted so promptly. Of course we regret the way
the news came out,'' he said. ($ - 0.601 British Pounds) ^REUTERS@

14:21 12-05-97

⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Sat, 06 Dec 1997 00:36:20 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Welsh farmers turn back Irish beef
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

.c The Associated Press

FISHGUARD, Wales (AP) - Farmers blockaded this west Wales port for several
hours Tuesday, preventing six trucks carrying Irish beef from entering Britain
to protest cheap imports of foreign beef.

Police said 500 farmers blocked the dock entrance at Fishguard, 260 miles west
of London, and tried to search trucks bringing meat from Ireland on an
overnight ferry.

After negotiations between farmers and the truck drivers, 22 trucks on the
ferry were allowed into Britain and six carrying beef returned to the port of
Rosslare, Ireland.

On Monday, 400 farmers blockaded the north Wales port of Holyhead to prevent
Irish beef being unloaded, and tossed 40 tons of Irish burgers into the sea.

Farmers in Wales have been hard hit by beef imports from continental Europe
and Ireland. Prices have been hit by the rising British pound and continued
doubts over the safety of British beef.

The European Union barred British exports in March 1996 after researchers
linked mad cow disease in cattle to the human brain-wasting Creutzfeldt-Jakob
Disease. Britain has been working with the EU to try to get a gradual
resumption of exports.

AP-NY-12-02-97 1319EST

⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Sat, 06 Dec 1997 00:36:12 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Irish say beef on bone should be withdrawn from sale
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

DUBLIN, Ireland (Reuters) - The Irish government said Friday beef on the bone
should be withdrawn from sale.

Just 48 hours after Britain moved to get unboned beef out of butchers' shops,
Irish Health Minister Brian Cowen said he decided to act following the British
findings and ``in the interests of public health.''

Cowen said the risk to consumers was extremely low but he called on butchers
to remove the backbone before putting beef on sale.

He said he and Agriculture Minister Joe Walsh were consulting with the
European Commission and other EU members on ``what approaches should be
taken.''

The mover was viewed in Dublin as a major policy switch that would infuriate
farmers because the Irish government had always insisted that Irish beef was
safe and free of so-called mad cow disease.

Wednesday, British Agriculture Minister Jack Cunningham announced a ban on
beef sold on the bone to prevent a tiny risk that humans may become infected
with the human form of mad cow disease, Creutzfeldt Jakob Disease (CJD).

Cunningham and Walsh met in London Thursday for emergency talks to try and
avert a row over angry British farmers' blockades against Irish beef.

The protests were started by Welsh beef farmers who accused the government of
not doing enough to help their decimated industry.

REUTERS@

15:43 12-05-97

⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Fri, 5 Dec 1997 23:18:00 -0700 (MST)
From: robanne harrison <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: nadas
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII

I can't find a direct e-mail address for Bob Schlesinger who seems to have
Nadas info. Maybe someone else has the answer to this question. Surely
Sean and Sharon Roach's neighbors, whose daughter witnessed
Nadas chasing
the horse, have considered dropping the charges. If they did drop the
case, would it do any good or has the case taken on a life of its own at
this point? Maybe we should encourage them to drop it.

By the way, I wrote letters to all on the list from the Governor to Harry
and David. It takes very little time. Do it!!!

Robanne Harrison

Date: Sat, 6 Dec 1997 00:28:16 -0800 (PST)
From: [e-mail]
To: [e-mail]
Subject: YERKES RESEARCHER EFFIGY TO BE TORCHED (US)
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 6, 1997


Contact: IDA [phone] or Animal Abuse Watch [phone]






MILITANTS WILL TORCH æEFFIGY'
OF YERKES RESEARCHER; POLICE
BRUTALITY FEARED SATURDAY

     ATLANTA û Animal Rights and Gay Rights activists will reportedly torch a
life-size effigy of a Yerkes Primate Center animal researcher at the start
of a major protest Saturday at 10:30 a.m. at Stone Gates Entrance to Emory
University.

     Activists say they fear another round of police brutality, which led to
injuries and 64 arrests in April when Emory and DeKalb County police
violently used stun grenades, tear gas and pepper spray to disperse a crowd
protesting the use of primates at Yerkes.

     This Saturday's demonstration has drawn activists from throughout the U.S.,
and from as far away as New York, California, Arizona and Minnesota, as well
as nationally-known primate protector Rick Bogle, and his "Ape Army."

     Bogle is a 41-year-old Oregon 6th grade teacher who has toured the seven û
Yerkes is the last û regional U.S. primate centers since May to bring
attention to the suffering of animals in U.S. primate research labs. He
takes his "Ape Army" û hundreds and hundreds of toy, stuffed monkeys û with
him to each lab.

     Bogle has been allowed to hold a 9-day sit-in at all the labs, except
University of California, Davis, where, in November, he was jailed for 6
days after being arrested twice in one day for trying to peacefully
distribute literature.

     "I have driven more than 8,000 miles and sat in protest at NIH Regional
primate centers for more than 800 hours to call attention to the horror and
cruelty being inflicted on the monkeys and apes imprisoned by the U.S.
government," said Bogle. "When people know the truth, they will act from
their hearts," he added.

     "During its history, Yerkes Primate Center has been inhumane, unproductive,
and the discoverer of nothing," said Jean Barnes, of In Defense of
Animals/Atlanta.

     Dozens of organizations are sponsoring the Yerkes demonstration, including
In Defense of Animals, a national animal protection organization with 80,000
members; Animal Abuse Watch/Atlanta; Animal Defense League/Atlanta and Act
Up/San Francisco.
 -30-

Date: Sat, 06 Dec 1997 10:35:41 -0500
From: Mesia Quartano <[e-mail]>
To: "[e-mail]" <[e-mail]>
Subject: Operation Get Down to Distribute Clothing to the Homeless
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

(PR Newswire; 12/05/97)

DETROIT, Dec. 5 /PRNewswire/   On Monday, December 8, 1997, at 9 p.m.,
much needed men, women and children's clothing, shoes and blankets will
be given to the homeless at the Detroit Warming Center (DWC) located at
5818 Dubois, Detroit, DWC, managed by Operation Get Down, is an
overnight housing facility for those homeless unfortunates who need to
be fed and bedded for weather safety reasones during the winter months.
The capacity is 300 persons each evening.

DWC is the only such facility left in the City of Detroit.  Bernard
Parker, Operation Get Down Executive Director, said, "The homeless
condition is at a crisis state.  An increase of 30% or last year is
occuring at this time.  This increase is highest with women."

These items were donated by Ted Nugent's United Sportsmen of America
Hunters for the Hungry.  They organized three clothing and food drives
to complete this donation.  Top Value Muffler, Dearborn Heights; Top
Value Muffler, Southgate; and Southland Mall, Taylor were the sites.
Ted Nugent, WWBR, 102.7 radio station personality, said, "We wanted to
show that hunters are humanitarians, not just conservationist.  So even
during the hunting season, time was taken to help the less fortunate."

Representatives from Ted Nugent's organization will be on hand to
distribute the tons of items donated to the homeless.  Santana Transport
donated the delivery of these items.

Operation Get Down thanks the Ted Nugent's United Sportsmen of America
Hunters for the Hungry for thier generosity and again express a plea to
other businesses and individuals to donate clothing, food and dollars.

SOURCE  Operation Get Down
CONTACT:  Beverly Chenevert-Parker, 313-921-9422/



Date: Sat, 06 Dec 1997 10:38:42 -0500
From: Mesia Quartano <[e-mail]>
To: "[e-mail]" <[e-mail]>
Subject: (US) W.Va. Hunting Holiday Is Criticized
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

(AP Online; 12/05/97)

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP)   An animal-rights group sent a letter to the
West Virginia Board of Education on Friday to complain about schools
being allowed to close so students could participate in the start of
hunting season.

Heidi Prescott, national director of The Fund for Animals in Silver
Spring, Md., said students should not be allowed to be miss classes for
an activity that has "no redeeming social or educational value."

"We find it appalling that the West Virginia school system would put a
stamp of approval on absenteeism for the purpose of killing animals in
the name of recreation," Prescott said in the letter.

This year, at least 38 of 55 counties released students for the week of
Thanksgiving, giving students the option of hunting on opening day, Nov.
24.

"It's to the point where school systems have figured it out: There's no
point holding school in some of these counties because so many people go
hunting," associate superintendent Bill Luff said.

Prescott urged officials to require school districts to keep classrooms
open and make attendance mandatory during hunting season. Luff said
Prescott should address the Legislature, which regulates hunting.


Date: Sat, 6 Dec 1997 15:04:20 EST
From: LMANHEIM <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Fwd:  Activist Group Claims Horse Fire
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit

Subj:     Activist Group Claims Horse Fire
Date:     97-12-06 14:33:54 EST
From:     AOL News
BCC: LMANHEIM

Activist Group Claims Horse Fire

.c The Associated Press

 BURNS, Ore. (AP) - An animal rights group claimed responsibility
for a fire last month at an eastern Oregon corral, saying it was
aimed at halting the roundups of wild horses.

The Bureau of Land Management was holding 500 wild horses and 40
burros at the corral. The federal agency said none of the animals
was injured by the Nov. 29 fire. A dozen horses escaped but were
recaptured.

The Portland-based Liberation Collective, a group that says it
speaks for the Animal Liberation Front, said Friday that the ALF
and a group called the Earth Liberation Front were responsible for
the blaze.

The ALF also claimed responsibility for a July fire at a horse
meat-processing plant in Redmond and for releasing thousands of
minks in June from a fur farm in Mount Angel.

Friday's statement said the groups were trying ``to help halt the
BLM's illegal and immoral business of rounding up wild horses from
public lands and funneling them to slaughter.''

The Associated Press reported in January that the BLM wild horse
adoption program had allowed the slaughter of thousands of wild
horses and burros. The BLM disputes the AP's findings.

Date: Sat, 06 Dec 1997 16:47:44 +0100
From: [e-mail] (Aware)
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Not receiving E-mail
Message-ID: <v01510102b0af23e46363@[204.116.21.82]>
MIME-version: 1.0
Content-type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

For some reason I am not receiving any e-mail from you.  I have checked
with my server to make sure that my e-mail program is working and it is.
Please let me know what to do.
Patricia Friedman
803 686-4083



Date: Fri, 05 Dec 1997 09:45:20 -0500
From: Mesia Quartano <[e-mail]>
To: "[e-mail]" <[e-mail]>
Subject: BRITAIN: RSPCA SUSPENDS SENDING DOGS TO POLICE
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

(Florida Times-Union; 12/04/97)

LONDON -- The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
stopped
sending dogs yesterday to police forces in England and Wales after
reports that
a German Shepherd died after being kicked during training.

The dog, which collapsed Nov. 11 while on a weeklong refresher course at
the
Essex Police Dog Training Center in north England, died from a a
ruptured
liver.

The dog's handler allegedly was ordered to kick the animal while it was
tied
to a pole to control its aggressive tendencies.



Date: Thu, 04 Dec 1997 23:44:48 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Florida researcher seeks mosquito birth control pill, ends up
  starving them
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

VERO BEACH, Fla, Dec 2 (Reuters) - A new diet pill for mosquitoes fashioned
from insect ovaries and pond scum could save human lives by slowing the spread
of malaria and other diseases, a University of Florida researcher said
Tuesday.

Although he calls his discovery a diet pill, Prof. Dov Borovsky said the
formulation actually alters mosquito digestion, starving the disease-carrying
bugs.

``We hope this can stop the advance of malaria and other mosquito-borne
diseases,'' Borovsky said. ``It works on all mosquitoes all over the world.''

Borovsky, an insect biochemist at the Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory,
said his recipe initially called for 100,000 mosquito ovaries, dried and
crushed into a powder and inserted into chlorella, a green algae collected
from the surface of ponds. The ovaries contained the insect's digestive
control hormone.

The hormone now can be synthesized by inserting genetic information into the
chlorella, eliminating the need for the ovaries, he said.

In pill form, the chlorella is placed in bodies of water where mosquitoes
breed. Larvae feast on it, starve and die within 72 hours.

When he first tested the compound, Borovsky said he found that mosquitoes
produced no more eggs, leading him to believe that he had created a birth
control pill. He then realized the mosquitoes were not producing eggs because
they were not digesting.

The pill, which could be on the market within a year, is environmentally
benign, he said.

``This is a natural bullet that we can use in the environment because the
hormone doesn't stay in the environment,'' he said.

More than 3,000 species of mosquitoes exist worldwide and they infect some 700
million people each year, 3 million of whom die, according to the University
of Florida, which cited statistics from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.
REUTERS

02:30 12-03-97

⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Thu, 04 Dec 1997 22:52:27 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: FOCUS-EU on controversial biotech patent rules
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
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By Suzanne Perry

BRUSSELS, Nov 27 (Reuters) - The European Union moved a step closer to
resolving an emotional debate over genetic engineering on Thursday as
ministers agreed rules on patents for biotechnology inventions.

The debate, raging for almost 10 years, has pitted rhetoric about
``Frankenstein monsters'' from critics of gene technology against dire
warnings from Europe's biotech industry that legislation was needed to prevent
its demise.

``This is a quantum leap,'' Lorenz Schomerus, state secretary in Germany's
economics ministry, said after the text was endorsed by EU internal market
ministers. ``It averts the danger that research institutions will leave
Europe.''

The new rules, which must be approved by the European Parliament, allow
patents for inventions such as tomatoes that have been genetically altered to
resist decay or animals that have been engineered for medical research
purposes.

But, after much wrangling with critics who raised ethical concerns about the
``commercialisation of life,'' including Eurodeputies, the ministers inserted
several safeguards.

For example, patents are not allowed for procedures to clone human beings,
commercial use of human embryos, genetic engineering that causes animal
suffering without ``substantial medical benefit'' or therapies that would
transmit genetic changes to a person's descendants.

They are also barred when scientists simply discover a body part such as a
gene sequence. But, in one of the most controversial provisions, patents are
allowed for body parts when researchers find a way to reproduce them outside
the body.

The Netherlands voted against the legislation because of concerns in its
parliament about patents for plants and animals, while Belgium and Italy
abstained.

EU officials said they expected smooth sailing in the European Parliament
since the ministers took on board the bulk of the assembly's proposed
amendments.

The parliament, which takes a keen interest in gene technology issues, vetoed
an earlier version of the legislation in 1995 because of ethical concerns,
delaying adoption for several years.

Doris Ponzoni, head of regulatory affairs at biotech industry group EuropaBio,
said the group broadly welcomed the new text. ``We think it is a good
compromise,'' she told Reuters.

The industry argues that strong patent protection is needed to protect its
investments in research and development.

But environmental and other groups lashed out at it, saying it will allow
corporations to establish monopoly rights over plants, animals and body parts
and exploit genetic material in developing countries.

Greenpeace called it a ``new form of genetic imperialism,'' while the Liaison
Committee of Development Non-Governmental Organisations to the European Union
warned about the ``commodification of the very elements of life.''

16:33 11-27-97

⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Thu, 04 Dec 1997 23:47:25 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Climate Change Affects Birds
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
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.c The Associated Press

KYOTO, Japan (AP) - Costa Rican cloud forest birds migrate to cooler air
uphill. English frogs and newts spawn earlier in the year. Sea birds off the
American Pacific coast nearly vanish in 10 years.

All are signs of how global warming is altering the habits, migration and
breeding of animals - and how it could eventually affect humans,
environmentalists at a global climate conference said today.

``These changes will have a very serious impact on human welfare,'' said
Barnaby Briggs of BirdLife International. ``There are many millions of people
who depend on wildlife for food, clean water ... and medicines of all
sorts.''

Briggs pointed to a recent study by his group and the World Wildlife Fund
that documented how several species of birds, plants and other wildlife were
adapting to the gradual warming of the earth's atmosphere.

Briggs and other environmentalists urged officials meeting at the U.N.
climate conference in Kyoto, Japan, to adopt ironclad restrictions on the
emissions of so-called ``greenhouse gases'' blamed for the gradual increase
in the temperature of the planet.

``The fundamental thing needed ... is that greenhouse emissions must be
reduced in the long term to ensure a secure future for wildlife,'' he told
reporters.

Representatives from more than 150 countries are in the ancient capital of
Kyoto for a 10-day conference to work out an agreement on how to rein in the
global warming trend.

Not all climate-watchers - even those who are concerned about changes in the
Earth's temperature - are convinced that the trends noted in the wildlife
report can be blamed squarely on global warming.

``Saying that the global change in climate has already shown up in changes in
birds' and other animals' behavior is a bit too sweeping for my taste,'' said
Bert Bolin, a Swedish climate scientist who led the U.N. panel that concluded
in 1995 that human activities were causing global warming.

Environmentalists have not noted any impact yet on human food supplies, but
Briggs said that the first signs of future trouble could be in something like
the decline in duck populations in the United States.

He said he is interested in broadening the studies to tropical regions to see
if there have been any effects on indigenous populations more directly
vulnerable to changes in the environment.

The report by the WWF Briggs' group, which is based in Cambridge, Britain,
cited case studies of animal and plant life in the Americas and Northern
Europe as evidence of the impact of climate change.

For example, the study found that birds such as the keel-billed toucan had
moved to higher elevations to follow the cloud cover that had been pushed
uphill by rising temperatures.

The report also said several species of frogs, toads and newts had begun
their spawning seasons 10 days earlier to match the increasingly early
spring, and some types of geese are staying at higher latitudes for the
winter.

And some animals even showed signs of extinction. The sooty shearwaters, who
spend their non-breeding times off the U.S. Pacific coast, declined by 90
percent between 1987 and 1994 - a trend the report's authors linked to

changes in ocean surface temperature and currents.

The biggest worry, environmentalists said, was that the rapid pace of global
warming would overcome wildlife's natural ability to adjust to changing
habitats and circumstances.

``If the change is too fast, wildlife will not be able to adapt,'' Briggs
said.


AP-NY-12-03-97 0636EST

⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Fri, 05 Dec 1997 03:52:11 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Stray dogs roam Romanian capital
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.c The Associated Press

BUCHAREST, (AP) - Rome is famous for its stray cats, New York for its rats.
But in Bucharest, the streets have gone to the dogs.

Between 100,000 and 200,000 mangy mutts roam the city, cowering in doorways,
dashing in front of cars, foraging for food. They bite 50 people a day -
nearly twice as many as in New York, a city three times larger.

``I was climbing the stairs to the Senate and a dog just jumped up and bit my
leg,'' Irinel Radulescu said. She went for tetanus and rabies shots ``and in
the hospital courtyard, a dog almost bit me again.''

Even Hillary Rodham Clinton's security guards had to deal with the mongrels,
chasing a pack away from another hospital just before she arrived for a visit
last year.

The problem of out-of-control canines is blamed on former dictator Nicolae
Ceausescu, who leveled entire neighborhoods during his megalomaniacal building
spree in the 1980s.

Ornate prewar homes were torn down to make way for a gargantuan Palace of the
Republic - second in floor space among government buildings only to the
Pentagon - and rows of equally pompous buildings along a boulevard patterned
after the Champs-Elysees in Paris.

The people who lost their homes were moved into large apartment blocks with no
yards. Some found new homes for their dogs, but others just left them to fend
for themselves. And the abandoned animals have been breeding ever since.

The dogs saunter along the sidewalks with a confident air, sniffing around for
scraps and rooting through garbage cans at night. Human passers-by try to
avoid them, but sometimes the dogs snap.

The bites are usually more painful than dangerous.

Bucharest has not had a case of rabies since the 1970s, but most people still
get the shots as a precaution, says Dr. Mariana Mardarescu of Colentina
Hospital.

``It's not the poor animal's fault,'' she says. ``They're protecting their
territory and are hungry and thirsty.''

But not everyone is so forgiving.

More than 1,000 complaints a month pour into the city's Animal Protection
office. But the cash-strapped city has only eight dog catchers, two trucks and
one pound with space for 300 animals. A third truck was put out of service
this month by dogs who chewed up the wiring.

Killing the stray dogs, as done elsewhere, is not an option. Local authorities
once proposed that solution, but dozens of organizations protested. Brigitte
Bardot even wrote to Bucharest's mayor to plead for mercy.

Opposition politicians exploited the issue, accusing the mayor of having no
heart; residents resoundingly told newspapers that killing the dogs would
violate Christian values.

So, the canines that are caught are kept until they can be given checkups and
sterilized. Then they're let go, says Codrut Visoiu, a vet who took over the
office Nov. 3.

``They're not so aggressive after sterilization,'' he says. ``True, it doesn't
stop their barking, but until we can build more space to shelter them, there's
nothing else we can do.''


Adoptions from the pound are rare; most Bucharest residents look down on the
mutts, preferring a purebred.

Mardarescu, the doctor, is an exception.

``My daughter came in from outside with a little puppy and said `Momma, I want
this to be my dog,'' she said. They live in a house with a yard and make sure
that the dog ``Johnny'' never leaves it now.

People should be able to walk the streets without fear of being attacked by a
dog, the doctor said - but she's torn about what should be done.

``I love animals,'' she says. ``But human beings have rights too.''

AP-NY-11-26-97 1744EST

⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Thu, 4 Dec 1997 16:53:29 -0600 (CST)
From: Suzanne Roy <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Discovery Ch. Fax No.
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

Per Donna Hertel, fax number for Discovery Channel to protest program on
bull fighting:  301/986-5843.

Date: Thu, 04 Dec 1997 17:15:22 -0500
From: Constance Young <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: resubscribe
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
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For some reasons I stopped receiving ar-news.  Please resubscribe me.

Date: Thu, 4 Dec 1997 14:28:20 -0800
From: [e-mail] (Lawrence Carter-Long)
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Canadian Seal Slaughter Information Now Available
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
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To AR-News:

At least 30,290 seal penises were "harvested" in the Canadian seal hunt in
1996 (1997 figures not yet available).  This from a kill of at least 269,000
seals killed (although the real number could be much higher).

For a history of the seal hunt and an examination of the current status,
please go to <http://www.api4animals.org> and click on Opinionatedly Yours # 8.

Many thanks,


Lawrence Carter-Long
Science and Research Issues, Animal Protection Institute
email: [e-mail], phone: [phone] x. 215
world wide web: http://www.api4animals.org/

"All censorships exist to prevent any one from challenging current
conceptions and existing institutions. All progress is initiated by
challenging current conceptions, and executed by supplanting
existing institutions. Consequently the first condition of progress
is the removal of censorships."  - George Bernard Shaw





Date: Thu, 04 Dec 1997 13:55:32 -0500
From: Mesia Quartano <[e-mail]>
To: "[e-mail]" <[e-mail]>
Subject: 87 Ferrets Killed
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
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Forwarded by request:
**********************

On Nov 27 in Spokane, Washington, ferret breeder Jean Smith came home to
find her ferrets stabbed, and injected with bleach and liquid draino.
The death count is now 87 and she expects at least half of those that
remain to die as well.

There is a suspect for this horrible crime against animals, but he is
not in custody and the Spokane Police are not giving the case any
priority.

For those wanting information about the ferrets, the article that
appeared in the 11/27 issue of the Spokane newspaper can be found at:
http://www.VirtuallyNW.com/stories/1997/Nov/27/S311318.asp

Ms. Smith is in desperate need of supplies and funds to help treat the
ferrets still alive.  If you can help, or know someone who might be able
to, please pass this information on.

Jean Smith
3523 E. Wellsey
Spokane, WA  99207

THERE HAS BEEN A RECOVERY FUND SET UP FOR Jean Smith at:

Jean Smith's Ferret Fund
US Bank
428 W Riverside Ave
Spokane WA 99201

509-353-5008 xKathy

*********************************
More info:
*********************************

The police do have a suspect, a 20-yr-old neighborhood man. Apparently
they are not making much effort to apprehend the suspect. One officer
said to Jean, "Lady, you have to understand, these are only animals and
we have unsolved murders of humans".

It has been suggested/requested by others, that each of us please
contact the police department and media in Spokane to voice our feelings
about this horror and to request the person responsible be dealt with
accordingly.

The phone number for the front desk of the Spokane Police Dept. is:
[phone].





Date: Thu, 04 Dec 1997 12:44:12 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Big plans held for signing primate
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
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.c The Associated Press

ATLANTA (AP) - Chantek, a giant ball of orange fur, puts a fist to his chin -
sign language for orange.

``Give me the cup, Chantek. Then, I'll give you an orange,'' trainer Lyn
Miles signs back, motioning to the plastic juice cup the 450-pound orangutan
has nabbed from her. He repeats the sign for the orange, again without
success, then turns away.

``That's the 'No way, lady,' response,'' said Carol Flammer of Zoo Atlanta.

Chantek is the zoo's latest and possibly most fascinating addition to its
primate group. Raised like a human child, Chantek knows at least 150 words in
American Sign Language.

Chantek isn't merely aping what he sees. Ms. Miles believes he understands
and uses the language just as people do, a talent the zoo hopes to eventually
share with the world.

``What is really spectacular is that Chantek is actually using the symbols
he's learned as his language,'' she said. ``He can talk about places he
doesn't see. He can talk about things that aren't present. I can ask him to
sign better and he will.''

Zoo officials have big plans for Chantek. Director Terry Maple and Ms. Miles
envision a $1 million amphitheater where children could interact and talk
with Chantek through the glass, but not in a way that would make him a
performing seal.

``I truly think this will be the most exciting exhibit in the world,'' Ms.
Miles said.

Chantek, who zoo officials say thinks like a 4-year-old human, is one of a
handful of signing primates throughout the country. Washoe, the 32-year-old
female chimp who is one of the most famous, lives in Washington. Koko, a
signing gorilla, lives in California.

Chantek, who is nearing age 20, was born at the Yerkes Regional Primate
Research Center in Atlanta and was sent to live in a trailer with Ms. Miles
at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga for about nine years.

Ms. Miles, an anthropologist, raised Chantek as if he were her own child. She
fed him at 4 a.m. and even toilet trained him. As he grew up, Chantek learned
to clean his room and was given an allowance, which he spent for treats such
as car rides and trips to fast-food joints.

Chantek proved a quick learner. He memorized the way to McDonald's, made
shadow puppets on the wall, threw tantrums and even told about three lies a
week, she said.

``He'd tell me he had to go to the bathroom and then go in there just to play
with the knobs on the toilet,'' Ms. Miles said.

Chantek came back to Yerkes in 1986 and Ms. Miles followed, continuing her
research until 1989. Yerkes gave him to the zoo last month.

AP-NY-11-28-97 0416EST

⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Thu, 04 Dec 1997 12:46:11 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Cc: [e-mail]
Subject: BRITAIN BANS T-BONE STEAKS ON NEW 'MAD COW' FEARS
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
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      Copyright © 1997 Agence France-Presse

   LONDON (December 4, 1997 02:17 a.m. EST http://www.nando.net) -
   Britain on Wednesday announced it was banning sales of T-bone steaks,
   spare ribs and all other beef on the bone after evidence that bones
   and marrow can transmit "mad cow disease."

   Amid growing militancy by cattle farmers, Agriculture Minister Jack
   Cunningham told parliament he was proposing to de-bone all beef, home
   produced or imported, from cattle over six months old before it could
   be sold.

   He said he was taking the action on "a strictly precautionary basis"
   following advice from his expert committee on bovine spongiform
   encepalothapy (BSE), which Britain has admitted is the probable cause
   of a new strain of the fatal human brain disorder Creutzfeldt-Jakob
   Disease (CJD).

   The committee said nerve swellings in the backbone -- ganglia -- had
   been found to carry BSE, which could be released in cooking.

   "The first priority... is protection of the consumer," Cunningham
   said, although he insisted British beef was safe and stressed that 95
   percent of beef was sold off the bone.

   The scientists admitted the risk was small, with only six cattle among
   the 2.2 million slaughtered this year thought likely to pose any
   hazard at all.

   Nevertheless, supermarkets immediately took all meat on bones,
   including T-bone steaks, ribs of beef and oxtail, off display and
   smaller butchers were expected to do the same.

   One of Britain's biggest restaurant chains, Beefeaters, also took
   T-bone steak off its menus.

   The expectation that the new ban would further depress British beef
   prices and demand fueled protests by farmers across the country, who
   are seeking government aid for their ailing industry.

   Cattle prices have already been cut by a third in the past year by
   falling domestic demand, the European-imposed worldwide ban on British
   beef and the strong pound.

   On Wednesday night thousands of farmers held protests along west coast
   ports, turning back imports of subsidized Irish beef.

   In Scotland hundreds of farmers mobbed the port of Stranraer and
   forced lorries from Ireland and Northern Ireland to take the next
   ferry back.

   In Gaerwen in north Wales, 2,000 farmers at a protest rally were
   expected at descend on the port of Holyhead for a repeat of the
   protests of the last three nights, which have seen lorries turned back
   to Ireland and on Sunday saw 40 tonnes of beef burgers thrown into the
   sea when drivers refused to do so.

   In Liverpool a group of farmers also gathered to stop further imports.

   Earlier government ministers met farmers' leaders in an unsuccessful
   attempt to head off further protests.

   Beef farmer David Hill, who rears 400 animals on his farm in southwest
   England, said he was "astounded" by the ban. He said it would shatter
   beef sales.

   Another farmer, Richard Barter, who has 127 cattle, said: "This could
   be the end of the line. I am completely gutted. We are not making

   money now, how are we going to cope."

   David Naish, National Farmers' Union president, offered an opposite
   view, however, saying the move should add to consumer confidence
   because the standards to which British farmers produced beef made it
   the best in the world.

   In Europe the French government said there was no reason "to panic" in
   France and the European Commission reassured consumers that the
   situation in Britain was "different to other member states."

   Both said they had asked for Britain to hand over its new evidence for
   examination.

   Wednesday's swift reaction to the evidence was in marked contrast to
   the previous Conservative government's handling of BSE revelations,
   political commentators said.

   The government has also indicated it may hold a public inquiry into
   the entire madcow affair. The new strain of CJD which BSE is held to
   cause has already killed more than 20 people.

   Nevertheless the ban is a major embarrassment for London which has
   mounted a nine-month campaign to get the European Union ban on British
   beef exports lifted.

   By ALEX PERRY, Agence France-Presse


⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Thu, 04 Dec 1997 11:59:41 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: US Tribe seeks to revise whale hunt
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
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.c The Associated Press

aol://4344:30.GR_Monac.5259044.542487035
MONACO (AP) - Seventy years after his tribe harpooned
its last whale, Micah McCarty is training for a dangerous -
and some say reckless - hunt from a sleek dugout canoe.

For the second year in a row, his people, the less than 2,000-member Makah
tribe of Washington state, have asked the International Whaling Commission
for permission to kill up to five gray whales a year.

It is a controversial request, and it has provoked dissent in the IWC,
within the tribe itself, and a lawsuit in the United States.

The tribe stopped the hunts 70 years ago out of concern for the animals'
declining numbers. But now, the gray whale population has rebounded
and the coastal tribe hopes to resume what was once a deeply important
ritual.

McCarty, 26, and other pro-whaling tribe members want to be ready if the IWC,
meeting in Monaco this week, gives the go-ahead. The commission takes up the
request Wednesday or Thursday.

``Whaling is a sacrament of the ocean for us,'' said McCarty, his woven cedar
headband standing out amid the flashy cars and casinos of Monaco.

``The hunt requires tremendous spiritual and mental preparation,'' McCarty
said. Proudly, he pointed out he was the first member of the tribe to try
firing an enormous new whaling rifle from a canoe.

Experts say the Makah have lost the skills needed for whaling, and may regret
it if the IWC grants their request to kill the whales, who measure 13 meters
(about 40 feet) long, weigh up to 35 tons, and are so feared by whalers that
they're called ``devil fish.''

``They don't know what they're doing,'' said Sidney Holt, a long-time member
of the IWC scientific commission. `` Wounded gray whales were notorious for
killing whalers and ramming whaling ships.''

He said the tribe may lose their taste for the hunt ``when the first Makah
gets killed.''

But McCarty says the tribe - which plans to hunt from roughly 32-foot-long
canoes - knows how to hunt from legends, and from drawings on drums and other
relics.

The IWC banned commercial whaling in 1986, but routinely grants quotas to
other aboriginal peoples - such as the Inuits of Canada and Alaska, and the
Chukchi of eastern Siberia - who have strong whaling traditions and need the
food.

The Makah claim they, too, have the right to hunt whales, because they are an
aboriginal people that hunted whales for hundreds of years. They also cite an
1855 treaty with the United States.

The U.S. government strongly backs their demand, and its delegation to Monaco
expressed ``cautious optimism'' about someday winning approval for the hunt.

However, a broad U.S. coalition last week filed suit in federal court in
Washington D.C. to block any attempt to resume the hunt.

``It is clear that the Makah do not meet the criteria for the approval of
aboriginal subsistence quota,'' said Betsy Dribben, of the Humane Society of
the United States. She said the tribe survived without whale meat for 70
years.

``If the IWC grants the Makah quota, it could provide a legal and political
precedent for culture-based whaling that pro-whaling forces may use to

undermine the commercial whaling ban,'' she said.

Some tribe members agree.

``The bottom line is money,'' said Alberta Thompson, a 73-year-old Makah
member who came to Monaco to speak out against the hunt. She said her people
never even hunted gray whales since ``there are tastier whales.''

She said the dispute has become ugly in the reservation, even splitting
families.

Holt, the IWC adviser, said whaling nations Norway and Japan are delighted
that a tribe from the United States - which routinely condemns the two
countries for their whale hunts - is now embroiled in its own controversy
over whaling.

McCarty claims the hunt is important because whales are such a strong part of
the tribe's heritage and rituals. The tribe also argues it needs the meat to
offset declining fish stocks, another important source of food.

As a concession to modern demands for humane killing methods, they plan to
use a 50-caliber rifle, weighing about 40 pounds (18 kilos), to kill the
whales as soon as they are harpooned.

Some are skeptical.

``They say they are going to make the fast kills, but no one believes them,''
Holt said, adding that a hunt would likely be agonizing for the whales, as
well as a potential tragedy for the whalers.

``It could be a real mess,'' he said.

AP-NY-10-21-97 1646EDT

⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Thu, 04 Dec 1997 12:14:09 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail], [e-mail]
Subject: New Milk Labels to Appear in the New Year (AMF propaganda)
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
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WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 3, 1997--

Federal Regulations That Change How Milk Is Labeled
Go Into Effect January 1

The makeover in the dairy case is official next month as
processors change packages that reflect new names and labels for milk.

The face-lift is the result of new Food and Drug Administration
regulations that were published in November 1996 with a deadline
of January 1, 1998 for the new labels to be in place.

The change was sparked by an unprecedented partnership
by the Milk Industry Foundation and the
Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) to change
how milk is labeled.  The two groups  petitioned the FDA
to make it easier for consumers to identify fat free, lowfat,
and reduced fat varieties of milk.

The new regulations replace an older set of federal rules that
defined 2% milk as lowfat; the new descriptor for 2% milk
will be reduced fat.  Under the new regulations,
skim milk can also be called fat free milk.

"We recognized the disparity in labeling regulations when the
Nutrition Labeling and Education Act (NLEA) was passed
in 1993, and we petitioned FDA to resolve it," said Rob Byrne,
vice president of scientific and regulatory affairs for the
Milk Industry Foundation.   "This is a positive move for
consumers and it's one the dairy  industry encouraged
and helped make happen."

At the time the labeling regulations were passed,
FDA had already established a number of food product
standards of identity that  included a nutrient content
claim as part of the legal name of the  food.
"Lowfat Milk" and "Skim Milk" were two of those standards.
To avoid consumer confusion during the initial implementation

of the NLEA regulations, Congress exempted nutrient content
claims contained in existing standards from the new labeling
requirement.

"The government granted the exemption to allow time to see
how these products would be able to comply under the new regulations,"
said Byrne.  "Now that the new definitions have been established,
we  want to bring our products into conformity." He said
the new change will make it easier for consumers when
shopping at the dairy case,  and will help bring milk in line
with how other foods are labeled on grocery store shelves.

The switch from "skim" to "fat free" milk is significant,
Byrne said, because research has shown that many consumers
mistakenly believe that skim milk is "skimmed" of nutrients.
But that's not  true -- fat free milk has the same amount of
calcium and other important nutrients as whole or 2% reduced fat
milk.  Only the fat  has been removed.

Fat free milk sales have risen steadily in the last few years --
up almost 6 percent in 1996 alone, according to the
U.S.  Department  of Agriculture.

This trend will likely continue as Americans seek to cut fat from their diets.

In addition to new names, cartons of fat free and 1/2% lowfat milk
will now also display the American Heart Association
heart-check certification mark.  This easy-to-spot symbol signifies
to consumers  that these varieties meet American Heart Association
food criteria  for fat, saturated fat and cholesterol and can be
part of a balanced, heart-healthy diet.

"These label changes make it easy for consumers to identify options
for a heart-healthy diet and get the calcium and other  nutrients milk
offers,"
said Greg Miller, Ph.D., vice president of  nutrition research and
technology transfer at the National Dairy Council.

"Milk is one of the best dietary sources of calcium and beats out most other
beverages in terms of its total nutrient package -- each  glassful contains
nine essential nutrients," Miller said.  "Yet many adults, particularly women,
have stopped drinking milk." According  to USDA studies, nine out of 10 women
and two-thirds of men in this  country do not meet the daily requirements for
calcium as identified  by the National Academy of Sciences.

By drinking at least three 8-ounce glasses of milk, adults can  help meet the
daily requirement of 1,000 mg of calcium.  Now, the new labels remind
consumers that there are fat free and lowfat choices of milk available in the
dairy case.

A free booklet, "Drink 3 For The Calcium You Need," which  includes recipes
and tips to help fit in three glasses of milk a day, is available by calling
1-800-WHY-MILK or clicking on the milk Web  site at http://www.whymilk.com/ .

CONTACT:
Bozell P.R., Chicago
Janet Helm, 312/988-2343
KEYWORD:  DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
BW0326  DEC 03,1997

⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Thu, 04 Dec 1997 12:07:14 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Cc: [e-mail]
Subject: McDonald's plants Golden Arches atop Arctic Circle
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

HELSINKI, Nov 28 (Reuters) - The Finnish subsidiary of U.S.

fast-food group McDonald's said on Friday it will open the world's
northernmost McDonald's hamburger restaurant in the town of Rovaniemi on the
Arctic Circle next week.

"The opening celebration will be under the open sky, in nippy weather with
temperatures below zero, in the middle of winter darkness in Lapland,"
McDonald's Oy Finland said.

"But there will be huge slow-burning log fires and brilliantly lit-up ice
sculptures to give warmth and light," it said.

The world's southernmost McDonald's is in Invercargill, New Zealand. The
westernmost is in Western Samoa, and the easternmost in Gisborne, New
Zealand, Finnish McDonald's said.

07:53 11-28-97


⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Thu, 04 Dec 1997 11:30:31 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Cc: [e-mail]
Subject: Manatee Sanctuary Proposed for Three Sisters Spring, FL
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 26, 1997--In response to reports  from
concerned citizens, researchers and wildlife managers about  harassment of
endangered manatees at Three Sisters Spring at Kings  Bay in Crystal River,
Fla., the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is  proposing to establish a
sanctuary for the species.

Sanctuaries, established under provisions of the Endangered  Species Act and
the Marine Mammal Protection Act, are areas where  waterborne activity is
restricted to protect the manatees that  congregate at the site during the
winter, and where people are  prohibited from entering.

The proposed sanctuary would be located at the point where Three  Sisters
Spring flows into a nearby residential canal and would  extend north of the
canal and west of the spring run.  Currently,  there are six manatee
sanctuaries in the Crystal River's headwaters  at Kings Bay that protect
approximately 39 acres of essential  manatee habitat.  The sanctuaries were
created to provide manatees  areas where they could retreat from people during
their winter-long  stay in the area.  The new sanctuary will cover less than
one-fourth of an acre.  Kings Bay is the most important winter  refuge for
manatees on Florida's west coast.  More than 250 manatees  are known to winter
here.

"The Fish and Wildlife Service believes a sanctuary is the only  solution for
protecting manatees in Three Sister Spring given the  level of harassment that
has been observed and reported," said the  Service's Southeast Regional
Director Sam D. Hamilton.  "While we  understand the public's enthusiasm for
seeing and enjoying these  magnificent creatures, interaction with manatees
that causes them to  leave warm-water areas can create serious problems for
these  cold-intolerant animals," he said.  "It is the Service's
responsibility by law to see that manatees are protected from such  threats."

Hamilton emphasized that education of the public, including  boaters, divers,
swimmers and snorklers, to the needs of the species  is equally as important a
key as sanctuaries to conserving manatees.   He credited dive shop owners and
marina operators in Crystal River  for their efforts to inform their customers
about the crucial  importance of such things as observing boat speed limits in
manatee  zones, not feeding manatees, and avoiding interaction that disrupts
the species' normal patterns of activity.  Local dive shop operators  provide
their customers with videos and handouts that describe  "manatee-friendly"
ways to interact with manatees.

Robert Turner, the Service's manatee recovery coordinator, says  that manatees
use the upper Crystal River area as a refuge to escape  the cold.  "On
especially cold days, manatees seek out and remain at  warm-water sites until
the weather warms up," he said.  "When this  happens, the animals leave in
search of food.  People wanting to  interact with manatees can and do disturb
them during these critical  times."

Manatees leave these sites when people approach them, encircle  them, touch
them, and otherwise harass them to the point that they  become uncomfortable.
A Service-sponsored study conducted last  winter confirmed this type of

problem at Three Sisters Spring.  if  manatees are harassed to the point
where
they cannot find adequate  warmth and food, they may die from exposure to the
cold, Turner  explained.

The new sanctuary has temporarily been established by the  Service for 120
days through an emergency rule authorized under the  Endangered Species Act
and published in the Federal Register today.   In the Federal Register notice,
the Service is also proposing to  make the sanctuary permanent.  The public is
provided with a 60-day  period to comment on this proposed, long-term
solution.  Comments  should be sent to:

Robert O. Turner
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Jacksonville Field Office
6620 Southpoint Drive, South Suite 310
Jacksonville, Florida 32216

"The upcoming winter season and the increasing use of this part  of the spring
by manatees calls for immediate action," said Turner.   "We have had
documented evidence of the harassment problem since  1993.  We had hoped to
see this spring protected through local  government action, but we've recently
been notified that local  efforts have stalled, despite strong support from
the local dive  shop owners.  We are still open to local designation of a
sanctuary  as we seek a permanent solution to this problem.  In the meantime,
it is the Service's obligation to move forward with this sanctuary  and to
propose that it become permanent," Turner said.

Efforts to protect manatees from harassment at Three Sisters  Springs are also
supported by local citizens, the Florida  Department of Environmental
Protection, the Marine Mammal  Commission, Save the Manatee Club and others
who have an interest in  the well-being of this endangered species.

More information on the establishment of the sanctuary is  available by
contacting Robert O. Turner or William B. Brooks at  [phone] extensions
117 and 111, respectively, or the  Service's Regional External Affairs Office
at [phone].

CONTACT:
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Diana M. Hawkins or Vicki M. Boatwright,
404/679-7289
KEYWORD: GEORGIA FLORIDA
BW0047  NOV 26,1997


⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Thu, 04 Dec 1997 11:29:15 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Cc: [e-mail]
Subject: Town Torn Over Cat-Killing Trial
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

.c The Associated Press

FAIRFIELD, Iowa (AP) - It has taken some time, but
Mr. Mom doesn't run and hide from people anymore.

The short-haired, charcoal-gray cat sidles up to a visitor
at Noah's Ark animal sanctuary, rubs against a leg and purrs.

Last March, Mr. Mom and dozens of other strays were trapped
inside the shelter as teen-age intruders slipped in late at night
and started swinging baseball bats. Sixteen cats were killed
and another dozen severely battered.

``It was done by people who are dangerous. This was not a kid's prank.
This was off the scale,'' said shelter owner David Sykes.

While Mr. Mom appears to be back to normal, the rampage
still stirs emotions in this southeast Iowa community
of 10,000 people as a Nov. 4 trial nears for two of the three
teens charged in the attack.

``I'm a cat lover. I own five of them. But as far as punishment goes,
what good is it to put them in jail?'' asked Dan Davis, a bartender
at the Town & Country tavern.

Chad Lamansky and Daniel Myers are charged with burglary
as well as felony and aggravated misdemeanor charges for
offenses against an animal shelter. If convicted, they could
get at least 10 years in prison and $15,000 in fines.

The third teen, Justin Toben, agreed to testify against his
buddies in exchange for the dismissal of some charges.
He was sentenced to three years' probation and
200 hours of community service, and must pay restitution.

Sykes' voice shook and his eyes welled with tears when
he recalled the carnage at the sanctuary's small white house:
``There was blood everywhere - spatters on the refrigerator and walls.''

Furniture was disheveled and cats roamed the house
``with broken jaws and limbs hanging,'' he said.

In the basement, he found 10 bodies beneath a pile of blankets
and towels.  Scores of other cats quivered with fear in the rafters
of the basement.

He counted 15 bodies; the 16th didn't turn up until several days later
when its smell led him to look underneath a sofa where the
battered feline had crawled up into the springs and died.

News of the attack spread quickly, and hundreds of outraged letters
have flooded into Jefferson County Attorney John Morrissey's office.
Nearly all carried the same message.

``Throw the book at those monsters,'' demanded Grace Schikowitz,
of Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

Particularly troubling to Richard W. Swain Jr., vice president
of investigations for The Humane Society of the United States,
is the extreme violence and past acts allegedly committed
by the 18-year-olds.

``Any thinking person has got to question what happened here,''
said Swain, who is helping prosecutors. ``I've given up trying
to figure out why people do the things they do.''

Prosecutors plan to offer evidence the teens killed a cat
belonging to Lamansky's mother, skinned it and showed
the remains to friends before the shelter attack.

Ruled as inadmissible is a photograph of a bumper sticker -
``Missing your cat? Look under my tires'' - that had been
affixed to Lamansky's truck.

Jefferson County District Judge Daniel P. Wilson last week
ordered the trial moved to another county, saying
extensive publicity would make selecting a jury difficult.

``I've handled a lot of cases that would generate publicity,
but I have never seen anything like this case,'' said
Lamansky's attorney, Kirk Daily.

Neither has Sykes, who said he still has trouble sleeping at night.

``It wasn't just one animal killed,'' he said. ``This thing went on and on
and on. What kind of a human being can do that? They just kept swinging.''

AP-NY-10-21-97 0658EDT

⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Thu, 04 Dec 1997 11:26:17 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail], [e-mail]
Subject: Britain bans sale of beef on bone
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

.c The Associated Press

LONDON (AP) - Just in time for Christmas, the government on Wednesday
announced a ban on rib roasts and T-bone steaks - and all other beef on the
bone - after new warnings about mad cow disease.

That means no beef bones for soup stocks, and man's best friend will wag his
tail in vain. No amount of begging will get that dog a bone.

Restaurants must rethink their menus, and butchers will have to prepare to
disappoint customers who like a nice rib roast for holiday dinner parties.

``Christmas is coming and we usually sell a lot of ribs of beef,'' said
butcher Joseph Steele, whose shop in a quaint byway of Hampstead, north
London, supplies a well-heeled clientele.

``I would say 40 percent like rib of beef, sirloin on the bone, T-bone,''
Steele said. ``It will be a big disappointment to them.''

Calling the risk ``very, very small,'' Agriculture Minister Jack Cunningham
announced the ban to the House of Commons after receiving scientific advice
that material contaminated with bovine spongiform encephalopathy could reach
the human food chain through bone marrow.

He said it would take effect in a week.

Like many British butchers, Steele weathered the original mad cow scare in
March 1996, when the government announced a link between BSE and a new strain
of the fatal human form - Creutzfeld-Jakob Disease. At least 20 people have
died in Britain of the new strain.

``The first scare really hit us hard,'' Steele said, but he's not so worried
this time about losing business.

``I don't think it's going to bother them as much as the first time,'' he
said. ``They've got over the initial shock. We have a quite sensible
clientele.''

But The National Farmers' Union called the news ``another body blow'' for the
farmers who have lost their entire export market and seen domestic sales
struggle under the burden of customers' fears.

``The announcement is bound to spread uncertainty in the mind of the
housewife, who is already confused as to whether to buy beef,'' said David
Hill, who has 400 cattle on his farm in Devon county, southwest England.

``I am completely gutted. We are not making any money now. How are we going to
cope?'' said Richard Barter, another Devon cattleman. He feared farmers would
be made to pay the cost of boning.

British beef prices have fallen markedly since the initial ban and, more
recently, the strong British pound has forced prices lower.

Concern about infected meat had centered earlier on the spinal cords and
brains of cattle, and the previous Conservative government tightened
slaughterhouse procedures.

Cunningham told the House of Commons the move announced Wednesday was an
essential ``precautionary measure,'' but noted the risk was small, with only
six cattle among the 2.2 million slaughtered this year thought likely to pose
any hazard at all.

``Ninety-five percent of beef is already eaten off the bone,'' he said.

People seeking the other 5 percent can give up any thoughts of rib roast, at
least for awhile. And even those who thought they'd play it safe this
Christmas by concentrating on dessert could be out of luck, if the Vegetarian

Society has its way.

The group wants the ban extended to gelatin, which is made from bone marrow
and used to make sweets and yogurts and puddings.

A ban that does not include gelatin, the group said, was ``farcical and
illogical.''

AP-NY-12-03-97 1710EST

⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Thu, 4 Dec 1997 10:54:01 EST
From: MINKLIB <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Sears Web Page- Register Anti Fur Comments
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit

Sears is selling fur trimmed coats in select Northern markets.  You can let
Sears what you think about fur by leaving a comment on their web page.  There
is a special place to let your feelings be known.

Now please realize that several animal abuse groups monitor ar-news and
forward everything like this to their members, so we need to all double up and
contact this web page as many times as possible.  Please forward this to other
animal rights advocates and animal supporting lists, newsletters, etc.

www.sears.com/cserv/fcus.htm

Coalition to Abolish the Fur Trade
PO Box 822411
Dallas, TX 75382
Date: Sat, 6 Dec 1997 18:39:36 -0800 (PST)
From: [e-mail]
To: [e-mail]
Subject: ALF FREES HORSES, GUTS BLM HORSE PRISON (US)
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

URGENT NEWS ADVISORY
December 5, 1997


Contact:        Liberation Collective [phone] or [phone]



Underground ALF/ELF Claim Responsibility for
$75,000 Sabotage, Horse Release at BLM Corrals

PORTLAND, OR - In a communique made public Friday, the Animal Liberation
Front (ALF) and the Earth Liberation Front (ELF) claimed responsibility for
the release of 500 wild horses and a fire that destroyed a BLM corral on
November 29 near the town of Burns, Oregon.

The freedom raid by the ALF/ELF comes just over four months after the ALF
set fire to the Cavel West Horse Rendering Plant in Redmond, Oregon causing
over $1 million in
damages.

This latest action was designed "to help halt the BLM's illegal and immoral
business of rounding up wild horses from public lands and funneling them to
slaughter," said both the ALF/ELF in the communique sent to sympathetic
animal rights and environmental groups.

"The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) claims they are removing non-native
species from public lands (aren't white Europeans also non-native) but then
they turn around and subsidize the cattle industry and place thousands of
non-native domestic cattle on these same lands," said the communique.

The ALF - which has a code of nonviolence, and in 20 years of operation in
the U.S. has never harmed a human or non-human animal - teamed up with the
ELF to help stop the "hypocrisy" which the Associated Press uncovered in
January 1997 after an intensive investigation.

"This hypocrisy and genocide against the horse nation will not go
unchallenged!" the message continued.  "The practice of rounding up and
auctioning wild horses must be stopped.  The practice of grazing cattle on
public lands must be stopped.  The time to take action is now.  From an
investigation like the Associated Press' to writing the BLM to an action
like ours, you can help stop the horse slaughter and save our Mother
Earth," said both the ALF & ELF.

The ALF has in 20 years been responsible for thousands of actions, which
have led to the release of tens of thousands of animals from research labs,
fur farms and factory farms, as well as the destruction of animal abuse
industries, including research labs and fur ranches.
-30-



Date: Sat, 06 Dec 1997 21:58:07 -0500
From: joemiele <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (NYC) Macy's action
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

At 11:00 am on December 21 there will be a protest against fur at Macy's
Herald Square department store on 34th Street in New York City.

This building is home th the self proclaimed "largest department store in
the world" and the Macy's corporate offices.

All interested parties should call Adam Weissman at the Wetlands:
212-966-5244

There will be "something for everyone" at this demo so people who would
like to do a little more than chant may want to get involved also.


Peace,
Joe

()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()

Visit NJARA's web page!

http://www.envirolink.org/orgs/njara/index.html

()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()
Date: Sun, 7 Dec 1997 11:34:05 EST
From: JanaWilson <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (US) Oklahoma Deer Hunting Season Vote Delayed
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit


A/w Oklahoma Sunday hunting news:

The absence of three members caused the Oklahoma Wildlife
Commission last Monday morning to delay a discussion of whether
to junk a 16-day deer gun season in favor of zoning which would
result in a 16-day season in some places of the state and a nine-
day season in some other parts of the state.
The Wildlife Commission voted in October to lengthen the gun hunt
from 9 to 16 days which would begin next year but some members
are now pushing to rescind the vote.  Two of the three absent members
- Dan Ritter of Atoka and John Zink of Tulsa - are opponents of a
longer gun hunt.  The third member, John Groendyke of Enid,
was at home preparing to host his fellow commissioners and members
of the Oklahoma House and Senate wildlife committees for a
quail hunt and informal discussion of legislation.
During the regular Monday meeting, the five commissioners on
hand gave tentative approval to zones drawn by the Okla. Wildlife
Dept. at the request of members of the commision.
They break down the state into four zones, three of which would
have nine-day gun seasons.  The boundaries are based on highways
and rivers, which cause some counties to be divided into both
nine- and 16-day zones.
Commission Chairman Bill Crawford of Frederick said the
question of zoning will be discussed and a decision will be made
during the commission's January meeting.  He had planned for
a discussion of the issue Monday, followed by a final vote on Jan.5.
Crawford said no decision had been made on whether to reverse
the 4 to 3 vote appproving the 16-day hunt, or whether to adopt
the zoning proposal proposed by Ritter, Zinc and Commissioner
Harland Stonecipher of Ada, who cast the third "no" vote.
Wildlife Dept. Director Mr. Greg Duffy said the commission must
settle the matter in the Jan. meeting in order for the 1998-99
hunting regulations to be printed on time.
This is the second time the commission has voted to extend the
gun season from 9 to 16 days, only to have second thoughts.
The first time was in 1993 when the commission rescinded its
vote after landowners complained.

                                                For the Animals,

                                                Jana, OKC
Date: Sun, 7 Dec 1997 16:03:38 EST
From: LMANHEIM <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Reptile & Amphibian importation.
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit

Excuse me if these details have already been posted...
Lynn

Humane and
        Healthful Transport of Wild Mammals, Birds, Reptiles and
        Amphibians to the United States; Notice of Extension of
        Comment Period on Proposed Rule

        AGENCY: U.S. Fish and
        Wildlife Service, Interior.

 The comment period has been extended so that
        interested members of the public can review the proposal
        and offer comments to the Service.
        DATES:


        ADDRESSES: Written
        comments should be sent to the Director, U.S. Fish and
        Wildlife Service, c/o Office of Management Authority
        either by mail 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, Room 430,
        Arlington, VA 22203 or by fax [phone].
        FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
        CONTACT: Mr. Bruce J. Weissgold, Office of
        Management Authority, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
        telephone [phone], fax [phone].

        SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
        Electronic Access
        Comments and other information can also be sent
        via electronic mail (E-mail) to: [e-mail].
        Background
        On Friday, June 6, 1997, the Service
        published in the Federal Register (62 FR 31044) a
        proposed rule announcing the Service's intention to amend
        50 CFR part 14 subpart J to further implement the
        requirements of the Lacey Act (18 U.S.C. 42 (c)).

          The
       Lacey Act prohibits the importation into the United
        States of all wild animals and birds under inhumane or
        unhealthful conditions, and requires that the United
        States Government promulgate regulations governing the
        importation of wildlife. On June 17, 1992, the Service
        finalized (57 FR 27094) the rules contained in 50 CFR
        part 14 subpart J, establishing rules for the humane and
        healthful transport of wild mammals and birds to the
        United States.

        To more fully implement the amendments of the Lacey Act,
        which requires the healthful and humane transport of all
        classes of wild animals and birds and the promulgation of
        regulations necessary to that end, the Service proposes
        to extend 50 CFR part 14 subpart J to include rules for
        the healthful and humane transport of reptiles and
        amphibians.

 Furthermore, many reptiles and amphibians are
        species included in the Appendices of the Convention on
        International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna
        and Flora (CITES). The Parties to CITES have adopted a
        resolution that calls for all CITES-listed species to be
        packed and shipped in accordance with the International
        Air Transport Association (IATA) Live Animals
        Regulations. Therefore, the proposed rule would place
        these internationally accepted standards into the Code of
        Federal Regulations for reptiles and amphibians.
        For this, and other reasons discussed in the June 6, 1997
        Federal Register, the Service is proposing amendments to
        50 CFR Part 14 concerning humane and healthful transport
        of reptiles and amphibians into the United States.

        Public Comments Solicited
        On July 22, 1997 the Service received a
        request from Underground Reptiles to extend the comment
        period on this proposed rule by 30 days ``so that various
        reptile and amphibian importers, shippers, and hobbyists
        can meet to review the proposal, gather data regarding
        shipments and submit meaningful comments.'' On July 23,
        1997, the Service received a similar letter from Reptile
        Masters, Inc. Due to the complexity of the proposed rule,
        the need for data gathering by potential commenters, and
        the expressed interest of members of the public, the
        Service is extending the comment period and solicits
        comments from all interested parties. All comments
        received by the date specified above will be considered
        in the Service's final decision.

[Important Note:  Allen Salzberg ([e-mail]) posted
notice of a further extension "from January 17 - February 17, 1998, during
which time the Service will receive comments in writing from interested
parties)."]

        Authority

        The authority for this action is the
        Lacey Act, as amended (18 U.S.C. 42 (c)).
        Dated: July 30, 1997.
        Marshall P. Jones, Jr.
        Acting Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
        [FR Doc. 97-20593 Filed 8-4-97; 8:45 am]
        BILLING CODE 4310-55-P
Date: Sun, 07 Dec 1997 20:44:13 -0500
From: Mesia Quartano <[e-mail]>
To: "[e-mail]" <[e-mail]>
Subject: Norway Sets Higher Whaling Quotas
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

(AP Online; 12/06/97)

OSLO, Norway (AP)   In a move likely to antagonize critics of Norway's
whaling policies, the government has increased its quota for next year's
hunting season to 671 minke whales from 580, a Cabinet minister said
Saturday.

A number of countries have taken Norway to task for continuing its whale
hunts in defiance of a ban on the practice. The Norwegian government
insists that minke whales are not an endangered species, and that the
limited hunting the government permits is safe for the stock.

Next year's quota includes the new quota of 621 plus 50 carried over
from this year's limit, Minister of Fisheries Peter Angelsen told the
Whalers' Association on Saturday.

During the 1997 season, Norwegian whalers killed 503 whales in the
Arctic Ocean and the Norwegian Sea.

The International Whaling Commission, which has 39 member nations,
banned commercial whaling 11 years ago out of concern for the mammals'
dwindling numbers. As the populations have grown, so has pressure for
the resumption of whale hunting.

Norway resumed commercial whaling in 1993 under a loophole in the ban
and since has faced fierce protests.

Japan also hunts whales, under a scientific program that permits killing
the animals for research purposes, and the commission regularly grants
hunting quotas to indigenous groups.

Norwegian whalers Saturday were disappointed by the government's
decision to retain its ban on exports of whale fat, according to the
Norwegian news agency NTB. Whale fat sells for more than $500 a pound in
Japan.



Date: Mon, 8 Dec 1997 15:13:56 +0800
From: bunny <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: INFLUENZA, AVIAN, H7 SEROTYPE - AUSTRALIA
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"


INFLUENZA, AVIAN, H7 SEROTYPE - AUSTRALIA
*****************************************

Date: Sat, 06 Dec 1997

Source: OIE Disease Report, Vol 10, No 48, 5 Dec 1997


Australia has reported to the Office International des Epizooties an
outbreak of avian influenza, serotype 7, detected on 15 November.


   LocationNo. of outbreaks

31o 1' S - 150o 50' E,
near Tamworth,
New South Wales
  (ca 400 km north of Sydney) 1


Description of affected population: the disease has occurred on a farm
complex that produces fertilized eggs of meat-producing birds under
contract to a hatchery near Sydney.


Total number of birds in the outbreak:


    susceptiblecases      deathsdestroyedslaughtered

  128,000           -      40,000[see * below]        0


Diagnosis: diagnosis has been based on typical clinical signs and
postmortem findings and confirmatory laboratory tests.

A. Diagnostic tests used:
     Serological tests on paired sera.
     Fluorescent antibody testing of impression smears of pancreas
     Isolation of the virus in inoculated embryonated eggs.

B. Causal agent: preliminary typing has shown it to be a virus of H7 type.
Neuraminidase sub typing is being carried out.  Pathogenicity studies in
experimental chickens are also under way.  These tests should confirm
whether this is a highly virulent strain.

Epidemiology: clinical illness commenced on the farm as early as 15
November 1997, but was originally diagnosed by a private veterinary
consultant as bacterial peritonitis, which appeared to respond to
antibiotic medication.  High mortality only commenced on 22-23 November,
and reached 95% in some sheds.

A. Source of agent / origin of infection: the farm is located close to a
watercourse frequented by wild water birds, which could be the source of
infection through inadequate chlorination of the water supply.

B. Other epidemiological details: The hatchery is not believed to be
infected as eggs are formalin fumigated as a routine both before leaving
the Tamworth farm and before incubation at the Sydney hatchery, and no eggs
from the Tamworth farm have hatched during the epidemiologically critical
period.  The nearest major poultry production farm is more than 3 km distant.

Control measures implemented by Government veterinary authorities in New
South Wales:

The farm was placed in quarantine on 25 November 1997. Declaration of a
restricted zone of approximately 3 km around the farm. Determination of the
size and scope of the restricted zone has been based on the isolated nature
of the affected poultry farm and the small number of other poultry
enterprises in the area. Epidemiological factors also support the inclusion
of the watercourse and adjacent agriculture enterprises within 3 km of the
affected farm.  A surveillance zone has been imposed for 10 km
around the infected zone.  A comprehensive surveillance programme has been
instituted.

* All birds on the infected farm will have been slaughtered by 2 December;
disinfection procedures have also commenced.  As a precautionary measure,
hatching eggs from the Tamworth farm at the hatchery near Sydney have also
been destroyed.

The disease has been regionalised according to the principles established
by the OIE. Therefore, no restrictions have been placed on the movement of
poultry or poultry products within Australia, except from the 10-km
surveillance zone around the infected farm, i.e. the rest of Australia
should be recognised as an avian influenza free zone.
===========================================

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)

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      /'-^-'\
     (_)   (_)
      |  .  |
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 jgs  \_/^\_/









Date: Mon, 8 Dec 1997 15:15:25 +0800
From: bunny <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: INFLUENZA, AVIAN, H5 SEROTYPE - ITALY
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

INFLUENZA, AVIAN, H5 SEROTYPE - ITALY
**************************************


Date: Sat, 06 Dec 1997 14:07:24 -0500

Source: OIE Disease Report, Vol 10, No 48, 5 Dec 1997


A highly pathogenic strain [H5] of avian influenza has been identified in
outbreaks in Italy.  The following is a "synthesis of two faxes received"
by Office International des Epizooties " from Dr. R. Marabelli, Director
General of Veterinary Services, Ministry of Public Health, Rome:


New outbreaks:

   LocationNo. of outbreaks
Talmassons district,
Udine province,
  Friuli Venezia Giulia region1

Giacciano con Barruchella
district, Rovigo province,
     Veneto region1

Eraclea district, Venezia
  province, Veneto region       1

Total number of outbreaks identified since 1 January 1997: six (6).

Description of affected population in the new outbreaks: chickens, ducks,
quail, pigeons, Guinea fowl (rural farms).


Total number of animals in the new outbreaks:

     susceptiblecasesdeathsdestroyedslaughtered
         366  63     42       324        0


Diagnosis:

A. Laboratory where diagnosis was made: Experimental Animal Disease Control
Institute (IZS).
B. Causal agent: [influenza] virus of H5 serotype.

Control measures during reporting period: completion of stamping out;
application of all the restriction measures provided for under national and
EU regulations.
===========================================

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)

     /`\   /`\
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      /'-^-'\
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 jgs  \_/^\_/









Date: Mon, 8 Dec 1997 15:43:20 +0800
From: bunny <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (Aust)Deadly New Virus Fear
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

Deadly New Virus Fear

from The West Australian newspaper
8th December 1997

HONG KONG
MEDICAL experts fear a worldwide,  deadly  flu  epidemic
after the emergence of a new virus in Hong Kong.
The  worry  follows  weekend reports that two more people had
been killed by the virus which was thought to affect only birds.
When the disease was discovered earlier  this  year,  Hong  Kong
authorities said the case was isolated. Now no one knows why the
virus is spreading among humans.

Two  medical  experts  from  the Centre for Disease Control and
Prevention in Atlanta in the United States have arrived in
the territory had started investigations with the
Territory's Health Department.

The department said at the weekend it had discovered two new cases
of the virus  HSN 1  a variety  of strain A influenza, previously found
only  in poultry. The virus killed 4500 chickens in Hong Kong in
April.

In May,  a three-year-old Hong Kong boy died after contracting the
virus, the first known case of human infection.
He died in May from ailments including pneumonia,  respiratory
disease and inflammation of the brain.Late last month
the Hong Kong Government said a two-year-old boy suspected
of having the virus was admttted to hospital but
recovered.

Both the latest suspected cases involve older people.
A 54-year-old man, who was not identified, has died,
and a 13-year-old girl, also unidentified, is in
hospital, the Government said.
Laboratory results made available yesterday had
been "sent urgently" to the CDC in Atlanta for
confirmation, the department said.

It  said  the  Hospital  Authority,which  runs
the  territory's  public hospitals, had been advised
to take "appropriate -surveillance and pro-
phylactic measures".

The World Health Organisation said this month there was no evi-
dence that the infection had spread widely or that there had been any
human-to-human transmission.
In 1968 "Hong Kong flu" claimed 45 lives and caused panic around
the world. New viruses are traditionally named after the place where
they are first found.

An earlier flu epidemic in Hong Kong in 1957 killed 53 people and
had worryingly similar origins in avian influenza.
Daniel  Lavanchy of the  WHO headquarters  in  Geneva  said  the
four victims had no contact with one another.
He called the virus a new entity.These were only four cases in the
world and nobody knew the characteristics of the virus.

"This is a 50 per cent death rate which  is  extremely  high,"  Mr
Lavanchy said."Major diseases usually kill less than 10 per centt of the
people." The two youngsters first infected with the strain lived near a chicken
market and the one who died used to play in an area where poultry was
bred.

Experts warned in October that the strain must be closely
monitored as it had unknown pandemic potential.
The South China Morning Post newspaper  reported  that  some
experts feared the flu could cause a worldwide epidemic.
The world's worst flu outbreak in 1918-19 killed an estimated
20 million people  US researchers believe that virus Spanish flu,
is related to a flu usually found in pigs.

End
===========================================

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: Mon, 8 Dec 1997 15:54:45 +0800
From: bunny <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (Aust)Poison carrots to bug bunnies
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

The Daily Telegraph (Aust)(1st Edition)
Tuesday 2 Dec 1997

Poison carrots to bug bunnies.

Toxic carrots and oats coated with calicivirus are
set to become the latest weapon in the rabbit war.
An application will go to the national drug
registration body this week to allow the virus to be
given orally for the first time around the country.
It has previously been administered by capturing
groups of rabbits, injecting them with the virus and
releasing them.
The move comes amid concerns that the calicivirus
has had little or no impact in many areas.

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

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: Mon, 8 Dec 1997 10:18:50 +0000 (GMT)
From: Pat Fish <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (US) CAT KILLERS ON TRIAL on COURT-TV (Iowa V. Lamansy & Myers)
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII


North American residents with the Court TV channel can watch the trial of
the two (Lamansky and Myers) defendants, who are charged with breaking into
an animal facility (shelter) and killing over 20 cats. (Dec. 8, 1997)

www.courttv.com will also likely become a hotspot of debate over the case..

Date: Mon, 08 Dec 1997 11:13:46 -0500
From: allen schubert <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Subscription Options--Admin Note
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

Routine posting (about once a week).........

To unsubscribe, send e-mail to:  [e-mail]

In text of message:  unsubscribe ar-news
--------------------------------------------------------------
Here are some items of general information (found in the "welcome letter"
sent when people subscribe--but often lose!)...included:  how to post and
how to change your subscription status (useful if you are going on
vacation--either by "unsubscribe" or "postpone").
---------------------------------------------------------------

To post messages to the list, send mail to [e-mail]
POSTING

To post a *news-related item* (no discussions), send your message to:

     [e-mail]

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.
------------------------------------------

***General Subscription Information***
ALL THE FOLLOWING SHOULD NOT be sent to ar-news !!!
(send them to [e-mail])
For all commands, use a blank Subject line.
---------------------------------------------------

To request a digest version, send mail to [e-mail]
with the following single line:

     set ar-news mail digest

To switch back to immediate mail, and to get copies of *your* postings
also, send the following command:

     set ar-news mail ack

or the following to not get your own postings:

     set ar-news mail noack

To see how you are set up ***(and to see if you are still subscribed!)***, use

     set ar-news

To temporarily stop mailings, use:

     set ar-news mail postpone

To re-enable it, use ack, noack, or digest as above.

To unsubscribe, use:

     unsubscribe ar-news

or:

     signoff ar-news

If you have to subscribe again, use:

     subscribe ar-news first_name last_name   (use false name if you want!)

If you have problems, please contact:

     Allen Schubert
     [e-mail]


Date: Tue, 09 Dec 1997 00:15:34 +0000
From: jwed <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (CN) Ostrich advice to poor farmers
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

MondayááDecember 8áá1997 South China Morning Post

TOM KORSKI in Beijing

The Government is advising impoverished mainland farmers to invest in
ostriches and aims to have a million of the birds by 2000.

But state planners added few could afford to eat the birds.

The China Ostrich Breeding and Development Association described investment
in African breeding stock as risky but potentially lucrative.

"Expansion of ostrich breeding . . . is recommended as a way to lift
China's central and western regions out of poverty," the state association
said.

Authorities told China Business Weekly: "With abundant food resources,
China's ostrich-products market embraces tremendous potential."

State planners said the "sandy wasteland" of Ningxia, Shanxi and Xinjiang
was ideal for ostrich breeding, adding an ostrich steak costs about 120
yuan (HK$112.12) a kilogram - more than a month's earnings for farmers in
the drought-plagued regions.

"As the ostrich industry is in its early stages . . . ostrich breeding
still involves high risks," the association said.

China reportedly spent more than 290 million yuan importing ostriches for
breeding last year and the current population is estimated at 80,000.


Date: Mon, 08 Dec 1997 12:04:01 -0800
From: Hillary <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Veg Chef Wanted
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

>Date: Mon, 08 Dec 1997 11:33:47 -0500
>From: suzi katz <[e-mail]>
>Reply-To: [e-mail]
>To: [e-mail]
>Subject: Chef Wanted
>
>Hillary,
>
>Would you please post this for us?  Much appreciated.  Thanks.
>
>Laughing Seed 120 seat award-winning Vegetarian restaurant located in
>beautiful Asheville, NC is seeking a creative chef, someone with
>high-powered restaurant and management experience and capable of
>creating ethnic specials and overseeing a busy kitchen.  Great
>opportunity for the right person.
>Send Resume by US mail to:
>
>Laughing Seed Attn: Joan
>PO BOX 734
>Asheville, NC 28802
>
>704) 258-9005 ask for Joan.
>
>NOTE:
>Please do not attach any files to your email, we prefer that you mail us
>a hard copy of your resume.  We can't handle file attachments by email.
>
>
>
>
Date: Mon, 08 Dec 1997 12:55:55 -0500
From: allen schubert <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Cc: [e-mail] (Aware)
Subject: Admin Note -- Inappropriate Posting
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

Do not post administrative problems to the entire list.

Envirolink had problems with the Listproc program (AR-News as well as
others).  It is now coming back online.  Whenever you have what you believe
to be an e-mail problem, contact me at:  [e-mail]
----------------------------------------------------
Due to the sudden surge of inappropriate postings to AR-News, the Listowner
(me) will implement a new policy in dealing with such postings.  At the
_earliest_possible_convenient_time_, I will ban the offending individual
from posting to AR-News for a minimum of two (2) weeks.  An individual who
repeatedly posts inappropriate material _may_ be banned from posting
permanently.

***NOTE:  If you are banned from posting, be sure to remind me when the two
weeks are up.  The process to REMOVE the person from a "banned" status does
not always work well.  A potential side effect of the process is that it
may "lock" the AR-News list, meaning that no one may post or
subscribe/unsubscribe.

If you have questions as to the appropriateness of a post, DO NOT HESITATE
to contact the Listowner ( [e-mail] ) concerning the
appropriateness of a news item.  I have supported this in the past, though
these discussions did not make it to the list.

I am avoiding making this a "moderated" list (one in which the Listowner
approves/releases posts to the list) as such action will reduce the speed
of posting -- plus, it puts the decision of what is considered "animal
rights" in the hands of one person.  My goal here is to eliminate non-news,
discussion/opinion posts to AR-News and not to decide what is/isn't *animal
rights* and to allow news items to be posted as rapidly as possible.
Further, a "moderated" list would punish the many for the infractions of
the few.  (Something that I found highly offensive since childhood.)

***If you have problems with this policy, please feel free to e-mail me
_privately_ to discuss this.  (Posting to the list would be inappropriate.)

allen
-------------------------------
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

Date: Mon, 08 Dec 1997 19:20:57 +0100
From: 2063511 <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: [SPA] Closed Bullfighting ring in Lloret de Mar (Girona)
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-version: 1.0
Content-type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
Content-disposition: inline
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

Lloret de Mar, Girona, Pa∩sos Catalans: The autonomous governement of
Catalonia, in Spain, decided 3rd of Dicember closed the Lloret de Mar
Bullfighting ring. In the sesion all group decided this event except PP
(Partido Popular- A Conservative) and PSC (Partit dels Socialistes de
Catalunya- Socyalist). PP vote aginst closed the Lloret de Mar bullfighting
ring and PSC vote abstention.
The other groups Nationalist (CIU, ERC and PI) and Comunist and Ecologyst
(IC-Els Verds) vote for closed this bullfighting ring.

In July 400 persons organized a protest in Lloret for this bullfighting ring.

JORDI NI╤EROLA
CATALONIA.

Date: Mon, 8 Dec 1997 14:35:38 -0600
From: "Nancy Gomez" <[e-mail]>
To: <[e-mail]>
Subject: Fw: TEAR ~ AR News post
Message-ID: <01bd0418$d81ac080$4f751ed1@nancyg>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain;
     charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

T.E.A.R.
The Texas Establishment for Animal Rights

   We have  launched a new campaign against a local vivisector!
The 1st demo went well Saturday Dec 6 with the hospitalÆs security all
around our 15 acitvists, eagerly videotaping every step we took.

Concerned for our saftey ~ IÆm sure!.

I would like to thank PCRM for their assistance.

Kyle Cook,
Board member

VIVISECTOR PROFILE:

Vivisector:  Robert L. Johnson , Jr.

Victims:  Foxhounds used in limitation to exercise after 68% of there
lungs are removed experiment and  high altitude test

Employer:  University of Texas Southwest Medical Center
Work  address:   5323 Harry Hines Blvd.
                                    Dallas, Texas 75235
Office phone:              [phone]

Experiment:  Dr. Robert L. Johnson, Jr. , a vivisector at the University
of Texas Southwest Medical Center in Dallas, Texas has been performing
cruel and redundant experiments using foxhounds for the past 11 years!
He has approval and the grant funds ( your taxpayer dollars!)  secured
to continue these experiments for another year.  When that is up he will
more than likely reapply, get another approval and start the same tests
all over again!  What exactly are the experiments?   Dr. Johnson takes
healthy foxhounds, which are similar to beagles and are known for their
endurance, and performs pneumonectomies on them (pneumonectomy is all or
partial removal of an organ --in this case the lung). He then removes
68% of their lung on either or both sides ,  he sews them back up and
forces them  to exercise.  He then ôrecyclesö the dogs into yet another
experiment which is a high altitude test.  The removal of the lung is
meant to simulate lung disease.  The  title  of these experiments is
Limitations to Exercise After Pneumonectomy.  After Dr. Johnson has
finished with the dogs they are killed so their lungs can  be
dissected!

Argument against:   Not only are  these experiments redundant and cruel
they are a gross waste of  our taxpayer dollars.  Our money should and
could be spent on testing that can be used to help humans!   Southwest
Medical Center is not a veterinary clinic, however Dr. Johnson seems to
think it is. On Dec. 1, 1997 when one of our activists talked with Dr.
Johnson he justified his use of animals in testing by stating that both
animals and humans would benefit by the tests.  He also stated that he
does use humans in the tests as well !  If this is the case, we urge him
to choose this more accurate form of testing and STOP his unethical use
of dogs in tests.  By his own admission this is a choice.  The ethical
alternative would be clinical studies of humans who already have lung
disease, and or  partial lung  removal,  subject them to exercise on a
treadmill, then observe  clinically their lung growth.

What you can do:  Please help us stop this scientific fraud and stop the
senseless torture and death of these foxhounds.  Dr. Robert  Johnson
states in his grant request that he will merely be confirming what he
already knows from his previous 11 years of tests.  Please write or call
Dr. Robert L. Johnson Jr. at his work address or work phone number
listed above,  demand that he stop these tests and not reapply for
future grants for these redundant and cruel experiments.


T.E.A.R.
The Texas Establishment for Animal Rights
[e-mail]
www.flash.net/~tear


Date: Mon, 08 Dec 1997 14:08:43 -0500
From: Shirley McGreal <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Indonesian monkey shipments - continued
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

This letter was sent by Jamie Rappaport Clark, Director, U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service, to an IPPL member protesting the clearance by USFWS of two
shipments of crab-eating macaques from Indonesia imported in April and May
1997 in violation of US humane shipment laws against shipment of infant and
nursing animals. These shipments also contained large numbers of monkeys
whose "captive-born" origin was highly dubious, despite issuance of II(C)
export permits by Indonesian wildlife authorities and description of the
monkeys as captive-bred by the exporter's veterinarian.

IPPL has learned that shipments of monkeys from Inquatex to the US may
resume, with the first reportedly set to leave in mid-December. We don't
expect babies to be shipped, after the international protests. However, we
are concerned that wild-caught monkeys may form part of the shipment.

Also attached is a translation of an article which appeared in Kompas in
August 1997, of which IPPL only recently obtained a translation. This shows
that the exporter Inquatex has acquired over 200 wild-caught monkeys from
Lampung, Sumatra. Allowing exporters to supplement their breeding colonies
with wild-caught animals rather than requiring that enough captive-bred
animals be retained for future self-sustaining breeding defeats any
conservation intent of the ban on export of wild-caught monkeys instituted
by Indonesia on 1 April 1994.

It also opens the door to transmission of disease into the "clean colony"
unless the facilities and personnel are totally separate (some years ago a
shipment of "dirty" monkeys caused the deaths from simian hemorrhagic fever
of around 500 rhesus at the New Mexico Primate Research Institute,
fortunately the chimpanzee colony totalling hundreds of animals was not
affected). Obviously it also facilitates "laundering" of animals who can
come in the back door as wild-caught and leave through the front door as
captive-bred, although we do not know that this applies in this particular
instance.

The article also mentions the export of 473 monkeys by the exporter as of
August 1997. However, the February shipment consisted of 220 animals, the
April shipment of 253 animals and the May shipment of 255 animals, i.e. well
over 700 animals.

-----------------Jamie Rappoport Clark letter--------------------

19 November 1997

Thank you for your letter expressing your concerns about the apparent
unlawful importation of several shipments of macaques from Indonesia into
the United States.  These importations occurred at the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service designated port of Chicago, Illinois.

Your concerns were relayed to our Division of Law Enforcement for evaluation
and appropriate action.  The Assistant Regional Director for Law Enforcement
who oversees wildlife inspections in Chicago has completed a preliminary
review of this matter.  Errors were indeed made by Service wildlife
inspectors with regard to the clearance of shipments of macaques containig
nursing mothers and babies.

We continue to conduct an in-depth review of these importations.
Regulations pertaining to wildlife importations under 50 CFR 14.52(a) state
that "Such clearance does not constitute a clarification of the legality of
an importation or exportation under the laws or regulations of the United
States."  Therefore, even though these shipments were "cleared," the
clearance does not preclude the Service from taking appropriate action when
violations are documented.

We thank you for bringing this matter to our attention.  The information you
provided has increased our awareness of the need for renewed vigilance in
the area of primate inspections and has prompted us to establish new
procedures at the port of Chicago to prevent a similar incident from
occurring again.

Sincerely,

Jamie Rappaport Clark
Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

----------------Kompas article------------------

The Plight of Monkey for Mankind
Kompas, Monday, August 18, 1997

     Injection needle, drug cotton and net have been prepared.  Three
officers in blue uniform are also ready to harvest a long-tailed monkey,
quite big in size, spectators are also ready.

     One by one the three officers enter the wired cage of 5 x 6 meters.
The monkeys inside the cage immediately step away to the corner, frightened,
their eyes widened, watchful and their eyebrows move up and down, very noisy.

     "The male must be drugged first, only the male strikes," said Dr.
Zulkifli Abdul Jabar, assistant manager of CV Inquatex Primates Division, to
a number of reporters and staffs of Directorate General of Forest Protection
and Nature Conservation of the Ministry of Forestry, who visited the
long-tailed monkey breeding complex owned by CV Inguatex at Rumpin Bogor.

     The only male monkey in the cage is then chased by the three officers,
just only in a few minutes the male has been caught into a net which
resembles a butterfly net, then injected with the drug.  Unfortunately, the
semi-conscious monkey escapes from the net, now he is chased for the second
time.  Finally, before being netted again, the monkey falls to the cemented
floor because his hold on the cage wire is weakening.  His mouth is bleeding
when he hits the floor.

     The next duty is to separate monkey offspring from their mothers, at
least there are four mothers who are still caring for their offspring, one
monkey was just born two weeks ago.  "At the age of four months, they will
be separated from their mother",* [see note] explained Zulkifli.

     Once again the monkeys are chased, their long tails make their catch
easy. The caught tail is pulled, and then their hands and tail are wrapped
to the back.

     The offspring, tightly holding to his mother's breast, was forcefully
released from his mother.  Because he is so frightened, he urinates and
defecates.  From his eyes, it is clear that he is so frightened, his hands
and tail are wrapped to the back.

     There are two more monkey offspring that must be separated from their
mothers.  Before being separated and prepared for export, these monkeys must
be tatooed on the breast.  The breast number of their mother is also
recorded.  When caught, officers will give them worm medicine and other
medicines.

     One male and female monkey offspring are then weaned in separate cages
until they are ready for export.  Before their export, the monkeys must
first be quarantined for one month so they will adapt to a battery cage.

     One monkey in one cage, the cage box has a size of more or less 40 x 60
x 40 cm.  In one cage there are two cans for water and food.  This tight
cage has only one small hole for air ventilation.

For mankind

     These monkeys are then sent overseas such as to USA and England.
According to data up to April 1997, CV Inquatex has exported 473** monkeys
to USA, in six deliveries.  In 1996 CV Inquatex has sent more than 900 monkeys.

     Every year Indonesia exports more or less 5,000 monkeys overseas,
particularly to USA," said Dwiatmo Siswomartono, Director of Conservation of
Flora and Fauna, Directorate General of Forest Protection and Nature
Conservation of the Ministry of Forestry.  After prohibition of export for
monkeys caught in 1994 was issued, the export of monkeys from Indonesia
sharply decreased.

     CV Inquatex started exporting monkeys since the beginning of 1970***,
"Our export of animals started with decorative fish, then concentrated on
monkeys.  From a land area of three hectares, only two hectares are used,"
explained Agus Darmawan, owner of CV Inguatex.

     In a three hectare land in Rumpin, only two hectares are used to build
30 wired cages.  One cage is occupied by one male and more or less 25
females.  At present, Inquatex has 500 _parent stocks_, 50 males and the
rest are females, caught in nature.****

     "Not long time ago 203 new _parent stocks_ from Lampung has arrived to
replace the old ones," disclosed Agus Darmawan.

     These monkeys are fed with pelet (monkey chow) imported from USA.  In
addition to artificial food, in the first week of their arrival from the
forest, the monkeys are fed with cassava and banana while adjusting them to
eat _monkey chow_.  After getting used to such imported food, once a week
they will be served with cassava.

     Within a period of five months, 75 offspring are ready for export.  It
is not surprising because in one day a male is able of mating 60 times, with
a quite high pregnancy level, i.e. 90 percent.

     What are these monkeys for?  The monkeys from Indonesia, and also from
a number of neighboring countries, such as the Philippines, are mostly
exported to USA for biomedical test purposes.  For example, to conduct
research on new medicines, certain human diseases such as heart, cancer,
hepatitis to AIDS.

     The Indonesia-born monkeys are served with certain foods, given new
medicines to test the effects.  At the end of research, they normally have
to sacrifice their lives on the operating table.

     What a great service they have rendered, not only to the whole mankind
but also to their raisers and exporters.  CV Inquatex may have to apply more
human approach in raising and catching practices.  Just assume it as an
appreciation to their who for the interest of mankind are forced to
sacrifice their lives.

------------------------

* Removal of monkeys from their mothers at 4 months of age is premature,
arguably cruel to both mother and baby, and may adversely affect the
infant's social development and future breeding potential.

*** US import records show that over 700 monkeys were shipped by Inquatex to
the LABS company in 1997. We do not know about any exports from this firm to
other countries. Number seems very low.

*** Maybe this is a misprint for 1990, as this firm was not breeding monkeys
in 1970 (the massive Indian trade in rhesus flourished till 1977 and there
was little demand for crab-eating macaques).

**** With 450 parental stock, are these mothers having triplets or what,
with 900 exported in 1996?

|---------------------------------|----------------------------------------|
| Dr. Shirley McGreal             |   PHONE: [phone]                  |
| Int. Primate Protection League  |   FAX: [phone]                    |
| POB 766                         |   E-MAIL: [e-mail]                |
| Summerville SC 29484            |   Web: http://www.ippl.org             |
|---------------------------------|----------------------------------------|


Date: Mon, 8 Dec 1997 16:04:59 EST
From: CFOXAPI <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: MISSOURI RIVER OTTERS NEED YOUR HELP NOW!
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit


Posted by:
Animal Protection Institute
P.O. Box 22505
Sacramento, CA  95822
Phone [phone]
Fax [phone]
Email= [e-mail]
Web= www.api4animals.org

                                                      ***ACTION ALERT***

                             MISSOURI RIVER OTTERS NEED YOUR HELP NOW!

The Missouri Department of Conservation (DOC) is using tax dollars right now
to promote the trapping of river otters. Today trappers are out on the rivers
of Missouri setting steel jaw leghold traps and Conibear killing traps to kill
river otters, all to make a quick buck from the sale of their pelts. They have
until January 20th, 1998 to kill an unlimited number of animals.

The taxpayers of Missouri spent more than $1.6 million to bring river otters
back from the brink of extinction. And now those very same otters are dying
agonizing deaths in cruel traps throughout the state. Last winter, despite
opposition from wildlife advocates around the nation, the Missouri DOC held
the first otter trapping season in over 60 years, resulting in the deaths of
1,054 otters out of a total estimated population of 3,000. The skins were sold
for $60-$80 at auction and then exported to the Far East where they are made
into coats and other fashion items.

PLEASE HELP STOP THIS BARBARITY! WRITE GOVERNOR CARNAHAN TODAY!

    Governor Mel Carnahancc or write a separate letter to:
    State Capitol, Room 218Mr. Jerry Conley, Director
    Jefferson City, MO 65101Missouri Department of Conservation
    Phone: [phone]         2901 West Truman Blvd.
    Fax: [phone]                Jefferson City, MO  65102-0180
Email:  [e-mail]                 Phone:  [phone]
                                       Fax:  [phone]
                           Email:
[e-mail]
Points to include in your letter:

*  The taxpayers of Missouri spent more than $1.6 million to bring river
otters back from the brink of extinction and were led to believe the animals
would be free to live out their lives in Missouri's rivers.
*  There are less than 4,500 registered trappers in Missouri, while more than
46,000 Missourians belong to animal welfare organizations.
*   Traps such as steel-jaw leghold traps and Conibear kill traps used to kill
river otters are known to cause severe injuries, including broken bones,
severed ligaments, and amputations.  Such traps not only cause severe pain and
suffering to their victims, but they also pose a hazard to non-target animals
such as endangered species and pets.
*  River otter trapping should be permanently banned in Missouri and the
remaining river otter population should be protected in perpetuity for the
benefit of all Missouri residents and all future generations.
*  Urge Governor Carnahan to consider the value of live otters in Missouri --
as a source of enjoyment for those who take pleasure in viewing and
photographing wildlife and for those who take comfort in just knowing that a
native species has been restored to the wilds of Missouri.

For more information please contact Camilla Fox at the Animal Protection
Institute at [phone] or Jeanne McVey at the Animal Legal Defense Fund
at [phone].
Date: Mon, 08 Dec 1997 14:48:55 PST
From: "Arc News" <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (UK) Hillgrove 24 hour Vigil Sat 29th/Sun 30th Nov. '97
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Content-Type: text/plain

(Apologies for this news now being over a week old but this was due to a
hard disc failure, however it is still worth reading we feel)

Report of Hillgrove 24 hour Vigil Sat 29th/Sun 30th Nov. '97

The vigil started at 06.45am Saturday morning and demonstrators found
that the workers had already come into work early to avoid the
protesters.

A most bizarre scene was encountered throughout the daylight hours of
the vigil as 5 people who remained on the main gate were faced with
70-80 police including mounted police, riot police and a helicopter.
(These figures are by no means an exaggeration).

As nighttime fell the demonstrators grew in number to 20-25. The police
were by now quite silly in their approach to the demonstrators in not
even allowing them to light braziers and in one instance a police
inspector put one out with a fire extinguisher.

It seems that the police were made to look fools with their over
reaction in numbers earlier in the day and were hell-bent on revenge and
trying to justify their large presence, and what was to follow was quite
horrifying.

A group of 5 teenage demonstrators were ambushed as they strolled
through the woods surrounding Hillgrove Farm by between 25-35 riot
police thugs. The demonstrators offered no resistance and all were
severely beaten, some whilst in handcuffed.
See photographs
<http://www.envirolink.org/arrs/arc/campaigns/vigil_report2911.html>

One of them received hospital treatment for injuries they had had
inflicted upon them and the others including the person photographed
were denied access to medical treatment.

We have to show that we will not be intimidated and that we will close
Hillgrove Farm come what may.
So with this in mind we call on everybody to attend a national vigil at
Hillgrove Farm on Sat 13th December starting at 7pm. Please support this
vigil in the fight to close down Hillgrove Farm and in support of the
injured demonstrators.

Save the Hillgrove Cats
http://www.envirolink.org/arrs/arc/campaigns/hillgrove.html


______________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com
Date: Mon, 8 Dec 1997 14:37:43 -0800 (PST)
From: Michael Markarian <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail], [e-mail]
Subject: Alert: Make-A-Wish Foundation Accepts Blood Money
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

ACTION ALERT

Make-A-Wish Foundation Accepts Blood Money

The Make-A-Wish Foundation of America's Mississippi chapter plans to accept
the proceeds from a duck hunt sponsored by Wildlife, Inc., a private hunting
club located in the Mississippi delta.  The duck hunt is scheduled to take
place on December 28 and 29, during which twenty hunters will pay $400 each
in order to hunt at this private club.  Although the Mississippi Make-A-Wish
chapter has a policy stating that no wish involving firearms or weapons will
be granted, they have deemed it acceptable to benefit from the killing of
innocent animals.

We need your help to stop this duck hunt. If the Make-A-Wish office in
Mississippi receives enough complaints about this hunt, and if it starts
receiving donations through other means, they may refuse to accept this
blood money, which may ultimately stop this duck hunt.

Please contact the Mississippi Make-A-Wish chapter and politely explain to
them that just because hunting is legal, it does not justify the killing of
innocent animals for recreation, nor does it make it ethical or appropriate
to receive money from such an event.  Let them know that the Make-A-Wish
Foundation has done wonderful work promoting life and helping children, and
they should not stain their reputation by putting a stamp of approval on
killing. Urge them to refuse the money from this duck hunt and to promote
non-violent fundraisers such as wildlife viewing opportunities and wildlife
photography or wildlife art contests.

Make-A-Wish Foundation of Mississippi
931 Hwy. 80 West, Unit 17
Jackson, MS 39204
Phone: [phone]

Also, please contact the national office of the Make-A-Wish Foundation and
urge them to enact a nation-wide policy which would prohibit granting a wish
that involves the killing of any sentient being, or accepting money that is
raised from such an activity.

Make-A-Wish Foundation of America
100 West Clarendon, Suite 2200
Phoenix, AZ 85013-3518
Phone: [phone]-WISH
Fax: [phone]

Thank you for your help! Please contact The Fund for Animals at
<[e-mail]> if you would like more information.

Date: Mon, 08 Dec 1997 19:21:48 -0500
From: Liz Grayson <[e-mail]>
To: Pat Fish <[e-mail]>
Cc: *@iceland.it.earthlink.net, [e-mail],
        "and, others?" <:@iceland.it.earthlink.net>,
        ";"@iceland.it.earthlink.net
Subject: MICROSOFT & FUR--APPLE & HSUS
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

>From Apple News:

 Mac OS 8 not only makes a real difference in
 the way you work, play and communicate, it
 also helps you share the spirit of the season.
 Upgrade to Mac OS 8 before January 15, 1998,
 and Apple will make a $10 donation in your
 name to your choice of one of the following
 charities: The Humane Society of the United
 States, Second Harvest Food Bank, or
 Make-A-Wish Foundation. [Dec 5]

--------------------------------------------------------------------

> From CPEA Dispatch:

> The following column was graciously sent to me by Mike Markarian of the Fund for Animals.
This is yet another example of why the Microsoft boycott is important.
>
> LEATHER AND FURS COMING OUT OF CLOSET
>
> The Highlands: Guests, some wearing fur pelts, passed a pod of protesters
> last weekend on entering the reception for newlyweds Bill and Melinda Gates.
>
> "Melinda, do you know you have a dead animal around your neck?" said one
> sign, referring to the white fox trim on the bolero jacket of the bride.
>
> Downtown Seattle: In the space of a 30-second wait for a cross-walk light
> last month, the well-dressed, well-meaning woman wearing what looked like
> leather pumps was told off by three other well-dressed women on the corner
> of Fourth Avenue and Olive Way.
>
> The first woman was shouldering a picket sign protesting the wearing of
> animal furs.
>
> The other three were fed up with activists telling them what to wear.
> "Excuse me, but please get out of my life," said one passer-by politely.
> They weren't the only markers indicating that a backlash against fur
> abstinence is under way.
>
> In private preserves like the Washington Athletic Club, at least, fur coats
> are again choking the checkroom after a few years of exile in storage.
>
> At Leathercare Cleaners on Elliott Avenue last week an elegant older woman
> was exhuming three fur coats from political burial. "I'm tired of keeping
> them in the closet," she said.
>
> And, at Victoria's Bridal Inc. on West McGraw, where Melinda Gates got her
> gown, owner Victoria Glenn said another young woman Gates' age - one who was
> a guest at the Gates party--just ordered a dress trimmed in black fox for a
> February event.
>
> People are rebelling against hypocrisy and the in-your-face ferocity of
> protesters, many of whom march in leather shoes munching Big Macs while
> telling others how to live.
>
> At a bridal show in Bellevue last weekend Glenn said one exhibitor threw an
> anti-fur fit, asking if she'd ever seen how these animals die. She wondered
> if he'd ever stepped inside a slaughterhouse.  Like many informed shoppers,
> Glenn is concerned about how animals are raised and killed for fur. "The
> baby seal-thing was hideous," she said.
>
> But, like cows, most mink are not born free. They're raised on "ranches" as
> "products," not as pets, guide rodents or tiny circus performers.
>
> Glenn recalled that Melinda Gates was concerned, "because of her position,"
> about how some people might react to the trim on her dress.  "But I'm
> sensing that the time has come that people are feeling that many of the
> (anti-fur) arguments aren't valid or consistent and they're making their
> rather conservative choices (for occasional touches of fur) accordingly,"
> Glenn said.  Is it a trend? "Well, It's at least an attitude shift," she
> said.
>
> Susan Paynter's column appears Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
> Seattle Post-lntelligencer
> January 14, 1993
> SECTION C
> _________________________________________________________
> MicroSoft founders Bill Gates and Paul Allen have a long record of
> support and investment in bio-technology companies which experiment
> on animals, and practice genetic re/engineering.  Bill Gates is
> reportedly the Western hemisphere's largest bio-technology investor,
> and many speculate he is the world's most vested bio-technology
> backer.  Worth noting, is that in 1992, quiet partner Paul Allen,
> bought 24.9% of America OnLine.  He had tried to take over AOL, but
> management adopted a "poison pill" strategy to hold him at bay.
> Estimates indicate that he is currently one-fifth owner of AOL.
> MicroSoft has a long history of unethical business dealings, as well
> as blatantly anti-environmental policies.  One of the most public
> exposures occurred when a MicroSoft employee discovered that his
> company had been landfilling and incinerating millions of perfectly
> good diskettes every year.  When software was superseded by newer
> revisions, Microsoft felt it was too expensive to de-label, relabel
> and reuse the same disks.  Due to labor costs, it was cheaper to
> simply trash the disks.  When the employee threatened to expose
> MicroSoft, Gates agreed to deal with GreenDisk, a company which
> resells and reuses magnetic media.  Paul Allen's many companies have
> also been accused of unethical dealings, above and beyond animal
> vivisection.  His Ticketmaster Corp., which has been roundly
> denounced for MicroSoft style monopolism,
>
> =================================================================
>  Since the above was written, reports have stated that Allen has sold many
> of his shares in one or more of the above companies, instead buying and
> selling on other opportunities.  Intrigue always follows Allen, although not
> at the same level of controversy that Chairman Bill generates.
>
> After all, Paul Allen is the quiet one.
>
> AOL has signed several deals with Microsoft, one of them involves
> MS's Internet Explorer browser.
> ===========================================================
Date: Mon, 8 Dec 1997 18:56:26 -0500
From: "The Animals' Agenda" <[e-mail]>
To: AR-News <[e-mail]>
Subject: HSUS Congressional Scorecard
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
Content-Disposition: inline
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

Posted on behalf of Wayne Pacelle of HSUS ([e-mail])
-----------------------------------------------------------------

  RE:HSUS Congressional Scorecard



    I am happy to report that the just-issued HSUS "Scorecard" for the
First Session of the 105th Congress is on our web site.  The
"Scorecard" includes House votes on two critical issues (tuna/dolphin
and CAMPFIRE) and records cosponsorship for three bills (the "Bear
Protection Act"; the "Captive Exotic Animal Protection Act," otherwise
known as the canned hunt bill; and the Downed Animal Protection Act)
introduced in each chamber of Congress.  It also indicates which
members have taken the lead in protecting animals.  There are 28
members of the House who achieved perfect scores.

    You can access the scorecard by calling up the HSUS web site
(http://www.hsus.org) and going into "What's New."  Click on Scorecard
and you are there.

    The scorecard gives an excellent indication of where legislators'
sympathies are on animal issues.  I urge everyone to read it, and read
it carefully.  Please draw others' attention to it.

    Also, if you represent an organization, feel free to reprint any
portion of the scorecard in your newsletter or add the information to
your web site.

    It is critical that activists know who serves them in Congress and
how they vote.  Please provide feedback to legislators, expressing
approval if they have achieved a favorable "score" and disapproval if
they have not.

    You can reach House members by writing:

The Honorable _____
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, D.C.  20515

    You can reach Senate members by writing:

The Honorable ______
U.S. Senate
Washington, D.C.  20510

    You can reach all members of Congress by calling the Congressional
switchboard at 202-225-3121.  Almost all members have e-mail addresses
as well.

    Please contact me if you have any questions.

Wayne Pacelle
Vice President
Government Affairs and Media
Date: Mon, 08 Dec 1997 19:39:25 -0500
From: Liz Grayson <[e-mail]>
To: ar-news <[e-mail]>
Subject: Clinton's best friend
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

03:54 PM ET 12/08/97

Clinton gets new best friend, remains nameless


            WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House was abuzz Monday with
talk of President Clinton's new loyal friend.
            The friend turns out to be a chocolate brown Labrador pup
that will be moving into the White House as soon as it is
housebroken -- and the question hounding Clinton is what he will
call it.
            ``Unidentified White House dog,'' was how White House
spokesman Mike McCurry described the name for what will be the
first mutt at the mansion since George Bush's dog Millie.
            McCurry said Clinton took the pup on two introductory walks
Friday and ``bonding occurred.''
            ``I think the president will enjoy walking the dog, on the
general theory that he deserves at least one loyal friend in
Washington,'' he said.
            White House spokesman Joe Lockhart said Clinton has not yet
focused on a name for the 3-month-old puppy, since it will be a
while before the dog arrives.
            ``I think the process will accelerate when the phone lines
at the White House get jammed with suggestions,'' he said.
''That might force the issue.''
            Socks, the Clintons' cat, ``is taking it quite well,'' said
McCurry.
         ^REUTERS@
Date: Mon, 08 Dec 1997 21:44:03 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Big plans held for signing primate
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

.c The Associated Press

ATLANTA (AP) - Chantek, a giant ball of orange fur, puts a fist to his chin -
sign language for orange.

``Give me the cup, Chantek. Then, I'll give you an orange,'' trainer Lyn
Miles signs back, motioning to the plastic juice cup the 450-pound orangutan
has nabbed from her. He repeats the sign for the orange, again without
success, then turns away.

``That's the 'No way, lady,' response,'' said Carol Flammer of Zoo Atlanta.

Chantek is the zoo's latest and possibly most fascinating addition to its
primate group. Raised like a human child, Chantek knows at least 150 words in
American Sign Language.

Chantek isn't merely aping what he sees. Ms. Miles believes he understands
and uses the language just as people do, a talent the zoo hopes to eventually
share with the world.

``What is really spectacular is that Chantek is actually using the symbols
he's learned as his language,'' she said. ``He can talk about places he
doesn't see. He can talk about things that aren't present. I can ask him to
sign better and he will.''

Zoo officials have big plans for Chantek. Director Terry Maple and Ms. Miles
envision a $1 million amphitheater where children could interact and talk
with Chantek through the glass, but not in a way that would make him a
performing seal.

``I truly think this will be the most exciting exhibit in the world,'' Ms.
Miles said.

Chantek, who zoo officials say thinks like a 4-year-old human, is one of a
handful of signing primates throughout the country. Washoe, the 32-year-old
female chimp who is one of the most famous, lives in Washington. Koko, a
signing gorilla, lives in California.

Chantek, who is nearing age 20, was born at the Yerkes Regional Primate
Research Center in Atlanta and was sent to live in a trailer with Ms. Miles
at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga for about nine years.

Ms. Miles, an anthropologist, raised Chantek as if he were her own child. She
fed him at 4 a.m. and even toilet trained him. As he grew up, Chantek learned
to clean his room and was given an allowance, which he spent for treats such
as car rides and trips to fast-food joints.

Chantek proved a quick learner. He memorized the way to McDonald's, made
shadow puppets on the wall, threw tantrums and even told about three lies a
week, she said.

``He'd tell me he had to go to the bathroom and then go in there just to play
with the knobs on the toilet,'' Ms. Miles said.

Chantek came back to Yerkes in 1986 and Ms. Miles followed, continuing her
research until 1989. Yerkes gave him to the zoo last month.

AP-NY-11-28-97 0416EST

⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Mon, 08 Dec 1997 21:46:10 -0500
From: Vegetarian Resource Center <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Bioethics links
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

http://ccme-mac4.bsd.uchicago.edu/CCMEDocs/EthLinks

⌐1997   Maynard S Clark    Vegetarian Resource Center    [e-mail]
Date: Mon, 8 Dec 1997 21:16:33 EST
From: KELE5490 <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: Clinton's best friend
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit

does anyone know if the Clinton's bought or adopted the dog ?

kellie
(blfc)
[e-mail]
Date: Tue, 9 Dec 1997 12:53:35 +0800
From: bunny <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (Aust)Authorities killing cats et al
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

This notice seems to recomend shooting and poisoning cats and pigs and
whatever else to protect lambs.If rabbit numbers decline due to the
deliberate spreading by Australian authorities of RCD, all predators who
feed on rabbits including birds of prey, foxes, dingoes, wild non-indiginous
cats and pigs will be looking for other food.This is what happens when
people interfere in the balance of nature.

regards, Marguerite


ANIMAL HEALTH

Greg Curran,
SFVO,
NSW Agriculture, Cobar


Predators threaten your lambs

* article written with Tiger Anderson, NSW Agriculture, Cobar

As the Rabbit Calicivirus is removing one of the fox's main sources of
food, lambs may face increased predatory pressures from foxes this year.
Contact your Rural Lands Protection Board Ranger for help with baiting.

The dry conditions also mean that pigs will be looking for tender, high
quality protein. They won't be getting it from pastures in some areas, and
lambs may look very tempting!

We have had two reports where cats are suspected of killing lambs. One
report was of lambs being found dead with unusual bite marks to the back of
the neck and head. The stomach was opened and the kidneys taken. Having
seen similar marks on trapped rabbits as a boy, the person decided to try
poisoning any cats about. He succeeded, finding six large tom cats dead. He
shot two more in the same area and the killings of lambs stopped. Cats are
large and strong, easily accounting for rabbits, and are much stronger and
more agile than lambs. If cats know how to kill lambs, beware!

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

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  \_/^\_/




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