Politics and Law
On the FBI's "Most Wanted" Vegan "Terrorist"
Published April 22, 2009 @ 01:37PM PT
The FBI has announced the addition of an animal rights activist to its Most Wanted Terrorists list, a vegan animal rights activist, the FBI makes a point of stressing. And grouping an activist who's never killed or tried to kill anyone with the likes of Osama bin Laden, along with the FBI's (and subsequently, news reports on the FBI's announcement) focus on his veganism, is outrageous. I'll start off giving some of my thoughts on this (thoughts similar to what others are expressing too) and then feature some other responses.
Let's be clear about something: the vast majority of vegans are among the strongest promoters of peace and nonviolence this world has. And even the vast majority of the tiny minority who engage in illegal property destruction are known for their painstaking efforts at making sure no one is physically hurt during one of their actions--and that's why no one has ever been killed in an action taken by environmental or animal rights activists. Whether that justifies the actions is something heavily debated within the animal rights community, given that many (I'd say the majority) of us fear that someone may accidentally be hurt someday and that the actions fuel opposition to animal rights and distract from the message.
However, regardless of whether animal rights advocates support or oppose these types of property destruction in the name of animal activism, I think we all can agree that putting these activists--who act in opposition to abuse, torture, and killing and who have a policy of avoiding physical harm to both humans and nonhuman animals, in the same category as hateful people and groups who seek to harm and kill (and furthermore, simultaneously leaving hate groups and individuals who do kill and seek to kill off the list!) is outrageous and ludicrous.
Moreover, the FBI's focus on this "most wanted" activist's veganism, as if that's a part of what makes him a so-called terrorist, is shameful and enraging. Given that the FBI has a history of going after the vegan animal rights community (everyone remembers their attempts to infiltrate vegan potlucks, right?), this move perhaps shouldn't be surprising, but it's still inexcusable.
Please continue reading after the jump for a roundup of thoughtful, excellent responses--and more details on this news--from other animal rights/vegan bloggers, including Gary Francione, Erik Marcus, and others (click on the links introducing the excerpts for these bloggers' full responses):
What We Can Expect from the Obama Dog Choice
Published April 15, 2009 @ 05:41AM PT
I just saw this animated Washington Post cartoon thanks to a Twitter alert from Animal Person's Mary Martin. I won't give it away. Go see it for yourself.
Secret Prisons for Muslims and Animal Rights, Environmental Activists
Published April 14, 2009 @ 10:38AM PT
Will Potter just posted "Secretive U.S. Prison Units Used to House Muslim, Animal Rights and Environmental Activists" at GreenIsTheNewRed.com. Intro:
The government is using secretive prison facilities on U.S. soil, called Communication Management Units, to house inmates accused of being tied to “terrorism” groups. They overwhelmingly include Muslim inmates, along with at least two animal rights and environmental activists.
Little information is available about the secretive facilities and the prisoners housed there. However, through interviews with attorneys, family members, and a current prisoner, it is clear that these units have been created not for violent and dangerous “terrorists,” but for political cases that the government would like to keep out of the public spotlight and out of the press.
Go read it. It's astonishing.
Hey, Obama, Don't Be Another Bush for the Wolves
Published April 03, 2009 @ 07:57AM PT
Defenders of Wildlife is still pushing hard against Secretary of the Interior Salazar's decision to delist wolves in Idaho and Montana (as well as in the western Great Lakes and parts of Oregon, Washington, and Utah).
When it was the Bush administration disregarding the interests of the wolves in favor of pleasing ranchers and hunters, I called out Bush himself in addition to his hand-selected appointees (e.g., Bush and Bangs vs. the Wolves--Again; Bush Administration and the Wolves: The Battle Continues), and so President Obama now gets the same treatment: You hand-picked Salazar, Mr. President, and you're his boss. Step up. Do the right thing. Prevent the killing.
-More, including Defenders of Wildlife video, after the jump-
Aerial Wolf Hunt in Alaska Underway; Defenders of Wildlife Taking Action
Published March 18, 2009 @ 11:35PM PT
Photo: Defenders of Wildlife
Alex at Planetsave has been reporting today and tonight about the latest aerial hunting of wolves in Alaska. From "Alaska to Kill Over 75% of Wolf Population in New Aerial Hunt":
Alaska abruptly resumed shooting wolves from helicopters this weekend in hopes that shooting the wolves will increase the population of caribou for hunters to kill. The state plans to kill up to 328 wolves, sparing under 100 in the Yukon area. . . .
The state hopes to increase the caribou population from 40,000 to 100,000. Dudgeon [of the National Park Service] said the goal is outrageous because the animals haven’t been that populous since the early 20th century.
And from "UPDATE: Defenders of Wildlife Looks to Halt Wolf Slaughter":
While 58 wolves have already been killed since Saturday, there’s hope that Alaska’s Department of Fish & Game will not reach their enormous quota. Defenders of Wildlife has taken legal action that could stop the hunt immediately.
“The Board of Game did not authorize the use of helicopters by state agency personnel as part of the Upper Yukon/Tanana wolf killing program,” said Wade Willis, Alaska Representative for Defenders of Wildlife. “What they are doing in that region right now is illegal.”
See the original posts at Planetsave and the Defenders of Wildlife press release for more. I'll post updates when they're available.
Gristmill on the Cow Tax and Less Meat vs. Less Coal
Published March 11, 2009 @ 10:35AM PT
Extracted from "The 'cow tax': not now, maybe not ever: A love of delicious farm votes beef crosses ideological boundaries":
A Democratic and Republican Senator have joined together to enshrine in law the sacred principle that American cows shall never be taxed. Smell the bipartisanship.
Including cattle in a cap-and-trade system is, of course, a fine idea. From an environmental perspective, cattle are a major source of a wide range of ills: methane emissions, land use changes, nitrous oxide emissions, ammonia emissions, etc. If you tally up the negative impacts of beef on human health and productivity, the societal cost of cows climbs even higher.
From an economic efficiency perspective, it generally doesn't make sense to exclude sectors from a carbon cap. We want emissions reductions to come from the fastest, lowest-cost sources available, and it's hard to imagine anything cheaper or lower-cost than reduced beef consumption. It takes decades to shut down a coal plant. It takes no time at all to not eat a strip steak [emphasis mine]. Moreover, energy is a primary input to just about every sector of the economy. The same can hardly be said for tender, delicious short ribs.
Finally, pricing is really the only policy implement up to the task of curbing beef consumption. The government might be able to fiddle around at the margins through consumer awareness campaigns and school lunch programs, but anything more heavy-handed would raise a justifiable backlash. (And, sadly, even these modest government interventions are ferociously resisted by industry.) . . .
Anyhow, ranchers need never have worried. A cow tax is a political non-starter, simple as that.
The blogger is right, of course (yes, I'm choosing to ignore that "tender, delicious short ribs" remark). The power that animal agribusiness has in this country--the sway that the animal ag lobby has in politics and the crap (sometimes literally) that animal ag can get away with--never stops amazing and infuriating me beyond words.
Updates on the AETA Arrests and Green Scare Tactics
Published March 11, 2009 @ 07:55AM PT
Since I last directed you to the goings-on at GreenIsTheNewRed.com a few weeks ago regarding recent activist arrests (Activists Arrested as "Terrorists" for Exercising Free Speech), Will Potter has supplied numerous additional updates. Following, after the jump, are several that you should check out (indented paragraphs are extracts from the posts). This is highly important stuff.
