Politics and Law
Affluent Kids Get Healthy Animal-Free Lunches; Why Not All Children?
Published August 11, 2009 @ 08:36AM PT
We've talked about the need for healthy, humane plant-based options in schools several times on this blog (e.g., here and here). PCRM's Healthy School Lunches campaign has had a related petition on this site for a while now, in addition to elsewhere on the Web (go sign if you haven't!).
And recently, with the reauthorization of the Child Nutrition Act coming up in October, PCRM has stepped up its campaign, with this compelling ad placed around D.C., an ad that some find bothersome, as the Washington Post is reporting today.
The Navy versus the Whales (Again)
Published August 03, 2009 @ 05:30PM PT
From NRDC's Switchboard:
Today the Navy released its Record of Decision to begin construction of an undersea warfare training range right next to the only known calving grounds for the critically endangered right whale. Hunted nearly to extinction, North Atlantic right whales are one of the world's most endangered species, with only about 300 remaining. The North Atlantic right whale remains extremely vulnerable to the continuing threats posed by ship strikes, entanglement and ocean noise - a triple threat that will be exacerbated by the Navy's disastrous plan to build an undersea warfare training range adjacent to their last remaining calving grounds.
Once constructed, the proposed undersea warfare training range will be the site of intensive, year-round exercises employing the same kind of active sonar that has caused multiple marine mammal strandings leading to injury and death. It would effectively transform the waters off the Florida coast into an epicenter of sonar use.
Continue reading here.
The Arkansas Anti-Cruelty Law: Protecting Few, Exempting Many
Published July 31, 2009 @ 01:12PM PT
In the last day or so, I've seen references in several news articles and a couple blog posts to the new animal cruelty law that's just taken effect in Arkansas. It is not quite the "strong" law some are claiming it to be, not from the animals' perspective. And before I move on, I'd like to take this opportunity to direct you back to the post I wrote on this law way back in January: "Arkansas Farm Bureau Backs Cruelty Bill--Because It Doesn't Apply to Them."
The law does increase the penalties for people convicted of abusing dogs, cats, and horses and makes all animal fighting (i.e., including cockfighting) a felony. But beyond the animal fighting section, the felony cruelty law applies specifically and only to dogs, cats, and horses, and there are plenty of exceptions even for them. So considering the way farmed animals are specifically, intentionally denied protection, the many exemptions for cruel practices against even the protected animals, and the changes in who actually gets to determine what is or isn't cruel and make arrests and seizures (e.g., the law has been changed to specifically remove humane officers' right to make arrests; only certified law enforcement officers have that power now), I'm not nearly as impressed as some.
Wayne Pacelle of HSUS, for example, wrote today that it's a "satisfaction to know that, as of today, the mistreatment of animals in Arkansas, whether by hoarders, puppy millers, cockfighters or others, will be met with a stronger measure of justice, one that is backed by a full array of law enforcement and public officials in the state."
All Chimpanzees Deserve Sanctuary
Published July 30, 2009 @ 06:19AM PT
Editor's Note: Although this post by Dr. Debra Durham focuses on research performed on chimpanzees, neither this blog nor PCRM is suggesting here that research merely be moved from chimps to other animals. Rather, nonanimal research that is more reliable and scientifically sound, in addition to more humane, should replace the cruel experimentation on chimps--and other animals. -S. Ernst
Lately, everyone has been wondering what happened to Bubbles, the chimpanzee who often appeared in photos and interviews with Michael Jackson. People were concerned that he might have ended up as a subject in biomedical experiments or in a roadside zoo.
But media outlets have reported that Bubbles is safe and sound at a sanctuary for great apes in Florida, where, according to a blogger on "The Daily Beast" who recently visited Bubbles, he "makes his home most of the time in a giant enclosure surrounded by native ferns, banana trees, water oaks, hibiscus, and Florida maples." Bubbles shares his home with a large group of chimpanzees, all released from the entertainment world where they were used in movies, television shows, commercials, and circuses.
As a primatologist, I often consider the strangeness of our relationships to nonhuman primates. We mock them when they're dressed in funny clothes or, in Bubbles' case, doing the "moonwalk." But we're in awe of their social lives, their awareness, and their emotional capabilities.
According to Bubbles' sanctuary, Bubbles is an extremely sensitive individual. The sanctuary's profile of Bubbles says, "If he has any kind of cut or scratch on his body, no matter how small, he will show it many times during the day to his caregivers and ask for sympathy."
We're constantly amazed by our similarities to chimpanzees and other primates--but we continue to keep these remarkable animals in extremely unnatural environments where they suffer immensely.
-Continue after the jump-
Animal Research On the Rise in the UK: A Guardian Writer Weighs In
Published July 23, 2009 @ 07:59PM PT
As many of you have likely heard by now, it was recently revealed that 2008 marked a significant and disturbing rise in medical research in the UK--the number of animals used last year was the highest in two decades. Numerous articles have been written about this in the last couple days, but I'm going to direct you to one that was just published today by Peter Tatchell of The Guardian: "The Long Fight Against Animal Testing." Following is a brief extract from the editorial (with a bit of commentary interspersed), but please read it in its entirety too:
Replacement of animals is possible in many spheres of medical research. Remember how the supporters of vivisection used to say that it was impossible and dangerous to halt the animal testing of cosmetics and household products? Well, despite their scare-mongering, it has been possible to safely replace many animal tests that were previously said to be "irreplaceable." The Dr Hadwen Trust has shown that alternatives are safe and effective. With tiny amounts of self-generated funding, it has already financed the development of successful, scientifically-validated alternatives to experiments that were once conducted with animals, including brain, kidney, diabetes and rheumatism research.
Bolivia Bans the Use of Animals in Circuses
Published July 15, 2009 @ 07:47PM PT
Here's your encouraging animal news of the day:
LA PAZ, Bolivia, July 14, 2009 (ENS) - Bolivian President Evo Morales has signed the world's first law prohibiting the use of both wild and domestic animals in traveling circuses.
This is the first national law to ban the use of both domestic and wild animals in circuses. To date, Croatia, Singapore, Austria, Israel and Costa Rica have all banned wild animals in circuses. Similar bans on animal use in traveling circuses in Costa Rica, Finland and Denmark only prohibit the use of wild animals or certain species.
Major kudos to Bolivia! Let's hope the rest of the world (including this waaaay-behind country) catches up soon. Read more here.
Obama's Nominee for FWS: No Friend to Endangered Species
Published July 07, 2009 @ 05:10AM PT
President Barack Obama continues to make some mind-boggling decisions with regard to animals--decisions we would have expected from Bush, but not from someone who promised us better. In this latest instance, Obama has nominated, to enforce the Endangered Species Act as head of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Sam Hamilton: the FWS official with "by far the weakest record on Endangered Species Act enforcement of any comparable official in the country," the Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) reports.
