A n i m a l   W r i t e s © sm
The official ANIMAL RIGHTS ONLINE newsletter

Established 1997

Editor ~ JJswans@aol.com
Issue # 12/05/04

 

    Publisher   ~ Susan Roghair              - EnglandGal@aol.com
    Journalists ~ Greg Lawson                - ParkStRanger@aol.com
                     ~ Michelle Rivera             - MichelleRivera1@aol.com
Webmasters  ~
Randy Atlas                 - ranatlas@earthlink.net
                     ~ Trevor Chin                   - tmchin@yahoo.com
           Staff   ~ Alfred Griffith                - agriffith@igc.org
                     ~ Andy Glick                   - andy@meatfreezone.org
                     ~ Sheridan Porter             - Pad4Paws21@aol.com
                     ~ Bill Bobo                      - RunRun@aol.com
                     ~ Katie Vann                    - Vann167@aol.com
  
THE ARTICLES IN THIS ISSUE ARE:

1  ~ Hurricanes & Rastus  by Michelle Rivera
2  ~
ACT Radio - Animal Concerns Texas
3  ~
Veganism Inspires Fashion
4  ~
Job Opportunities
5  ~
Asking God To Damn Phony Jewish Kosher Slaughter  by Robert Cohen
6  ~
The Night Before Dog-Mas
7  ~
Memorable Quote

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~1~

Though a little time has passed, ARO was on vacation when the following articles were submitted.  We hope you will find them as interesting as we do, and forgive the delay.

Hurricanes
By Michelle Rivera - MichelleRivera1@aol.com

Meteorologists in our little corner of the world were doing their level best not to alarm anyone as a "climatological event" known as Frances was making its way in our general direction.  But it was very difficult in those few days preceding the landfall of Hurricane Frances to think of much else and I was near hysterics, I am not ashamed to say.  Having lived through Hurricane Andrew and witnessing the near total devastation of our neighbors to the west in Punta Gorda at the hands of Hurricane Charley a mere week or so before, I was not one to be complacent about hurricanes. 

How can you be when you have animals depending on you for their safety and well being and you know that, if the order to evacuate is given, you can't bring them to shelters with you ? 

There are many, many issues to consider when a hurricane threatens and certainly those of us with animals have additional worries at a time when most of those around us are concerning themselves with plywood, shutters and securing property.  The experts tell us to fashion a survival kit and include a gallon of water for each person for seven days.  If you have animals, certainly they, too, will need at least that much so you figure that into the equation.  In the sub tropical heat of South Florida, air conditioning is essential. When the power goes out, a gallon of water per person per day hardly seems enough. 

They tell you to be sure to go into your safe room, be it a closet or bathroom but they don't tell you how to explain to your furkids why you are suddenly acting like the village idiot and herding them all into the closet in near total darkness because the power has already failed.  Incredibly, they warn us not to tie the dog outside and leave him there. (I mean, do we really need to be told that?)  During Hurricane Charley, people had done so with disastrous results when the flooding began.  It's hard to believe that there are some people who actually have to be told not to tie their dog outside during a hurricane but sure enough, a story emerged of a call that came into the police station complaining that a German Shepherd dog had been tied up outside a home, and the people had evacuated.  The dog was picked up just an hour or so before Frances made landfall and animal cruelty charges are pending.

There were lessons learned from Andrew back in August of 1992 that helped shape some of the hurricane survival tips that were making the rounds in the days before Frances.  The folks over at Animal Control came on all the major networks, which had gone "wall to wall" in their coverage about two days before Frances was expected to hit. They told us to be sure our animals had on tags, or had microchips or tattoos and that cats should be in carriers and dogs in crates "just in case." 

When Frances came ashore near my home in Jupiter, Florida she came as a category two, having been downgraded from the four that we were expecting.  It sounded for all the world as if a freight train was traveling through my tiny backyard.  And the thing about Frances was that she was moving at a leisurely pace, drawing out the terror, dousing us with rain and battering us with wind with a ferocity that was downright frightening. 

She stayed with us for a whole day and night, coming ashore in the midnight hours and slipping away silently. But it was just a tease; it was only the eye passing over our little town as we waited in dread for the second assault.  Frances came back with a ferocity that rattled the windows.  When she was really, truly gone, the genuine challenge began.

Millions of people were without power.  One of them was my friend Mary Pat who had offered to take in the greyhounds of people who had to evacuate, and there were many of them.  She had fourteen greyhounds in her little house, which was battened down and fully capable of defying a cat two hurricane.  But when the power went out so did the air conditioning, of course, and in South Florida in early September that is truly a nightmare. A few of the dogs became ill and needed Gatorade and Immodium to help them struggle with symptoms of diarrhea and heatstroke.  Mary Pat and her fourteen greyhounds were without power for a full week and she sobbed every day when I called her to ask what I could do.  "Bring ice, please, bring ice and water" she told me, because both were in very short supply.  I did what I could and we learned that greyhounds rather like the taste of kiwi-strawberry Gatorade!

The folks at Busch Wildlife Sanctuary had a dilemma as well.  The electricity had gone out there too and with it went all the food supply for the seabirds.  The frozen fish was no longer frozen and was spoiling fast.  I called to ask if they needed anything and David, their executive director, asked if I knew anywhere to get some fish for the seabirds.  "All my suppliers are without power and the birds have not eaten now for three days." There was a supplier in Miami, which is about two hours south of us and not affected by the storm, but gas was in very short supply and there was a dusk-to-dawn curfew which made it very difficult to get to Miami and back with a truckload of fish.  In the end, they found some fish for the birds but several animals had died of heart failure during the height of the storm.  Immediately after the storm, their animal population swelled as over two hundred animals were brought in to be treated for hurricane-related injuries.  A baby squirrel had been slammed against someone's front door and was soaking wet and traumatized.  Birds had become disoriented, snakes had run afoul of people's personal spaces and all were brought in for some tender loving care.

A story appeared in the Palm Beach Post about a woman who opened her door right after the storm to find a strange dog, a Rottweiler, standing there pleading with her. At first she was afraid and called to her husband in alarm.  He came and saw the dog and decided that the dog was harmless and so he ventured outside to see if the rotti had a collar or tag.  But the dog turned and ran into the backyard and so the homeowner followed her to see where she was going.  When he arrived in his yard he found a second Rottweiler struggling to survive in the debris-infested pool.  He saved the drowning dog and, at last report, both dogs were "eating them out of house and home" while their owners were tracked down. 

The animals at Lion Country Safari took over the kitchen and bathrooms and the Palm Beach Zoo suffered the loss of a few animals and many, many tropical plants.  I heard several reports of older animals suffering heart attacks or shock and dying at the height of the storm. These are the victims one never reads about but they are disaster victims just the same.

By far the biggest tragedy to come out of Hurricane Frances was the thousands of cattle who were standing in flooded pastures with nothing to eat and suffering from a disease that rots their feet because of the water.  The farmers will no doubt be reimbursed from FEMA but I can't help feeling the tragedy of the pain of hunger and isolation those animals must be feeling.

As I write this we have just escaped a strike from Ivan and are waiting to see what Jeanne and Lisa will bring. 

As for me, I am leaving for California and getting out of the way.  Hurricanes are not discriminating in their total destruction of flora and fauna and humans and their habitats.  In that regard, we are one with the animals.

Rastus
By Michelle Rivera - MichelleRivera1@aol.com

Miracles are all around us but we just don't see them because they start out so small and we hardly ever get around to noticing them.  We're busy, we are on the move, and we almost never have time to stop and smell the roses, look up at the night sky in wonder or ponder the morphology of the clouds.

I became a grandmother recently and someone told me to plant a tree to commemorate the birth of my grandson. That way, goes the rationale, you can watch the child and the tree grow over the years together.  A beautiful sentiment and one that helps the earth and the creatures who make their, homes in trees.  "Yes" I decided, "I will plant a tree."

Thus having decided to follow the sage advice, I made plans to purchase a tree and plant it on or about the day Alexander Michael Rivera burst onto the scene.  However, fate played a hand in this sweet little story, and the tree that I planted was not a young tree eager to enter the world, but a clever tree reborn.

Almost twenty years ago I bought my mother a small potted "corn palm" plant for Mothers Day, or her birthday, or some occasion that has long ago been forgotten.  My mother vigilantly raised this little plant, carefully repotting it when it grew too large for it's pots and bestowed upon this little plant a great deal of tender loving care. Indeed, she used to say that it was very hard for her to keep a plant alive but for some reason, this little corn plant thrived under her care.

Mom died in 1992 and I was left to the sad task of taking her meager belongings and finding new homes for all of them.  I sat down with the corn plant and considered it thoughtfully, decided to call him Rastus and brought him home to live with me. 
Rastus lived in a large pot in my town home and was eventually moved to the outdoors in a huge pot so it could enjoy the sun, humidity and Florida's sweet breezes and sun showers.  When my beautiful angel fish died, she was buried in the soil at Rastus' feet.  This was a very hearty, healthy plant.

When I moved to my home and finally had a yard big enough to accommodate more than a potted plant, I made the decision to plant Rastus in the ground, knowing that I would watch him reach high towards the sky and blossom to a beautiful, strong and brave little corn plant.

And he did. He grew over twelve feet tall, branch off into two separate stalks and grew leaves that were broad, shiny and beautifully marked with bright yellow stripes.  It was the kind of yellow that was my mother's favorite.  Not lemon, (too wimpy), not lime, (too greeny), but brilliant, vivid yellow, like the kind of yellow you see on the bumblebee who frequents the tiny white flowers Rastus graced me with in the spring.

And those flowers smelled so sweet, and like a melody the fragrance drifted through the air and formed a bouquet around anyone, human and non-human alike, who came into it's presence. This delicate scent only graced once a year, and lasted only a week, and so the scarcity of it made it all the more special, something to revel in, enjoy and look forward to.

And the bees loved those flowers too, and the hummingbirds.  And the squirrels loved to climb the strong, slender stalks from which the big, flat leaves burst forth, leaves that served as hammocks for small lizards to laze upon while sunning themselves in the hot Florida sun.

I enjoyed watching Rastus grow in the corner of my yard.  My mother had said, upon her deathbed, that when she got to heaven, she would send me white flowers so that I would know she had arrived.  Every spring, with the advent of those tiny white flowers on Rastus' sweet face, I knew she was reminding me that she, indeed, had arrived in heaven.

There are forces of nature that are so vehement, so intense, so extreme, that it is impossible to exaggerate their ferocity.  This was the case when Hurricane Frances visited upon us such cruelty that we were hard pressed to find any redemption.  With deep sadness I watched while she tore the leaves off of Rastus and left naught but two bare stalks reaching helplessly to the sky.  My poor little corn plant looked for all the world like a starving victim, left in the desert to perish and reaching heavenward in a gesture of pleading, begging to be snatched home.

Two weeks later, Hurricane Jeanne finished Rastus off, breaking the stalks and leaving shards and shreds. 

We took a saw and cut through the tattered remains, and waited to see what would happen.

Enter Alexander Michael Rivera.  A cute little baby boy born during Hurricane Frances.  Our first grandchild, a grandson.  He came into the world at a time when our world was being torn asunder.  His arrival was much-anticipated, lauded and heralded a new generation of gentle souls who will be carefully counseled to care deeply about the earth and her inhabitants, all of them.

I was thinking about what kind of tree to buy to plant in commemoration of Alexander's birth when a little miracle took place.  Buds began to form on Rastus' crippled stalks.  Tiny ones at first, covered with little parasites that threatened to kill this little living thing before it could be strong enough to survive.  But I gently sprayed the buds with a little bubbly water (nematodes hate soapy water) and the buds began to thrive.  They are numerous and strong and it's clear that Rastus will come back stronger and bigger and braver and more beautiful than ever before.

I will watch it grow, and I will watch Alex grow, and I will pray that both of them will be a source of food, shelter and comfort for all manner of wildlife who come into their presence.  Like Rastus, it is my hope that Alex will grace the world with wonderful auras and beautiful flowers and that together, they will prove that nothing, not even the forces of nature, can destroy a spirit.

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~2~
ACT Radio - Animal Concerns of Texas

Be sure to listen to ACT Radio tonight, Sunday, Dec. 5, at 9:30pm EST (7:30pm, mountain time).  Tonight, Greg Lawson and Steve Best will have a conversation with April Christofferson, author of a number of biomedical novels.  The discussion will center on her latest book, Buffalo Medicine, which deals with the annual slaughter of the bison of Yellowstone and the Buffalo Field Campaign.

ACT can be heard over the web with Real Radio, which is a free download and with other streaming audio software.
Click on Listen to KTEP Online at
El Paso NPR - KTEP 88.5 : National Public Radio for the Southwest
http://www.ktep.org/program_detail.ssd?id=103

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~3~
Veganism Inspires Fashion
By Ruth La Ferla
New York Times News Service
Posted on Sun, Nov. 21, 2004

It's not just taste that prompts shops to offer animal-free attire.

Erica Kubersky met her first cow when she was 8, during a visit to Israel. To hear her tell it, the experience was defining. "We formed this connection when it started sucking on my hand," Kubersky recalled. "I knew I could never eat meat again."

Kubersky and her sister, Sarah, have parlayed their distaste for meat and, for that matter, all goods derived from animals, into a vigorous business selling vegan products - that is, imitation leather shoes, bags and motorcycle jackets - at MooShoes, their boutique in Lower MManhattan. MooShoes, where the best-sellers include pointy-toed microfiber dress shoes ($85) and canvas bags, is one in an expanding roster of shops catering to people who, from motives of conscience or style, have banned animal products from their diets and, often, their wardrobes.

"I haven't given up wool or silk," said Jen Mazer, a 23-year-old New York Web site designer, "but leather is where I draw the line." Until recently, ferreting out stylish vegan clothing and accessories had been a futile exercise. But Mazer said she's impressed with her new options. "It looks like more designers are realizing that people have become more conscious about the kinds of products they buy," she said.

Dozens of merchants now offer wares that are labeled cruelty-free; the Web site Vegan Essentials offers hemp shoes and clothes. And Stella McCartney, long an activist for animal rights, has added shoes stamped "suitable for vegetarians" to her collection. Her fabric-and-Lucite pumps are available at Nordstrom.

Vegan products are finding takers not only among the roughly six million Americans who call themselves vegetarians, but also among shoppers attracted to prices that are often 60 percent to 75 percent lower than leather. A spike in demand prompted Earth Shoes to introduce 15 vegan styles this year. "We are marketing to people who, whether or not they are vegans themselves, would be happy to have stylish vegan products," said Vern Aisner, the company's director of marketing.

Animal-rights activists such as actress Alicia Silverstone and skateboarder Ed Templeton have helped fuel the trend.

"Today vegan products appeal to a younger generation that is interested in culture and fashion and has a sense of humor," said Josh Hooten, publisher of Herbivore, a quarterly for vegetarians.

All the more reason for the makers of vegan styles to buff up their image. "A lot of people still assume we are granola hippies or that we are overly political," said Jeremy Crown, an owner of Otsu, a San Francisco store selling vegan accessories. "Hopefully we will change people's minds about what a vegan looks like," he said.

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~4~
Job Opportunities

CRUELTY CASEWORKER – non-profit seeks cruelty caseworker with shelter or humane association work experience to assess various allegations of animal abuse reported to PETA and intervene as necessary.  Caseworkers educate the public on humane treatment of animals through the development and distribution of literature and through representing PETA to the media.  Candidate must have strong writing, research, and organizational skills and the ability to handle cruelty complaints in a professional and confidential manner.  Animal Friendly. Competitive salary and benefits.  Please send resume with cover letter to PETA, Attn: Human Resources, 501 Front Street, Norfolk, VA  23510; or fax to 757.628.0789; or e-mail to jobopenings@peta.org.

HUMANE FIELD OFFICER – People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) seeks a field officer for its Norfolk, Va., location to respond to local calls, such as requests for assistance with companion animal care, injured animals (including wildlife), animal placement, and neglected animals.  Candidate must have an excellent rapport with animals, hands-on experience working with animals, and proven ability to make independent decisions in a crisis situation.  Candidate must also be able to be on 24-hour emergency call and have the availability to work weekends, split shifts, and evenings.  Valid driver’s license required.  Competitive salary and benefits.  Please send resume with cover letter to PETA, Attn: Human Resources, 501 Front Street, Norfolk, VA  23510; or fax to 757.628.0789; or e-mail to jobopenings@peta.org.

NORTH CAROLINA PROJECT COORDINATOR – non-profit animal protection organization seeks candidate to manage and develop a North Carolina project, including establishment and operation of a humane shelter to serve animals in and around Bertie County, N.C., and to perform field work in accordance with Community Animal Project’s standard operational procedures. Candidate must be certified in animal euthanasia and drug use, have an excellent rapport with animals, gentleness, respect, and understanding. Must have the proven ability to make sound, independent decisions in a crisis situation, ability to network with area veterinarians, investigate neglect and cruelty complaints. Competitive salary and benefits. Send cover letter and resume to PETA, Attn: Human Resources, 501 Front Street, Norfolk, VA 23510; or fax to 757-628-0789; or e-mail to jobopenings@peta.org.

Amanda Elizabeth Jones
HR Assistant
Foundation to Support Animal Protection (FSAP)
501 Front Street
Norfolk, VA 23510
757-962-8413 (Phone)
757-628-0789 (Fax)


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~5~
Asking God to Damn
Phony Jewish Kosher Slaughter

By Robert Cohen - www.notmilk.com

What happens to cows after they no longer produce enough milk for the dairyman? What is the fate of most male calves? They end their lives in brutal slaughterhouses.  Some meat eaters delude themselves into thinking that twenty-first century slaughter is compassionate. Some people eat only Kosher meat, trusting that animals slaughtered Kosher-style die with no pain.

The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) have concluded an eight week undercover operation (mid-July thru mid-September 2004), filming so-called acts of compassionate animal slaughter at the largest Glatt Kosher Slaughterhouse in America, located in Iowa.

Holier-than-thou meat eating Jews claim that killing and eating animals is justified, so long as the act is done with compassion. You be the judge. WARNING: The following is graphic, and the truth will make most people sick:

The 40 minute version:
<http://www.petatv.com/tvpopup/Prefs.asp?video=agri_long >
Tiny URL: <http://tinyurl.com/4fuod >

The 5 minute version:
http://www.petatv.com/tvpopup/Prefs.asp?video=agri_short
Tiny URL: <http://tinyurl.com/3nd78 >

If you did not view the above film(s), here is what you missed:

* Kosher slaughterhouse workers shock cows in the face with electric cattle prods.

* Blood sprays horizontally with great force out of each cow's throat.

* Slaughterhouse workers rip out cow's tracheas while the animals are still conscious.

* The animals are then allowed to run in pain, screaming, as blood drains from their bodies.

* Still conscious, one leg is tied and the animal is hoisted and decapitated.

Are you angry and disgusted? Ask God to damn phony Jewish Kosher slaughter, or, contact a Jewish activist who is prepared to dedicate his life to doing something
about this injustice:

Jewish Scholar, Richard H. Schwartz
President of the Jewish Vegetarians of
North America (JVNA)
Phone (718) 761-5876
<rschw12345@aol.com>

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~6~
The Night Before Dog-mas
By Claudine Gandolti

"Twas the night before Dog-mas when all through the pound
Not a puppy was yelping or playing around;
Our leashes were hung, by our kennels with care,
In hopes that St. Bernard would soon find us there;
Chihuahuas were curled up, all snug in their beds,
While visions of doggie treats danced in their heads;
Max in his collar, on somebody's lap,
Had tucked in his tail for a midwinter's nap,
When outside the room there arose such a clatter,
My ears perked right up to hear what was the matter.
Away to the window I jumped up with glee,
And barked at the shadows that were cast by a tree.
The glow from the moon changed night into day,
And started me thinking, "woof woof time to play!"
When, what with my puppy-dog eyes did I see,
But a splendid dog sled, led by doggies like me.
With a regal furred driver commanding, not stern.
I yelped to the others, "That must be St. Bern!"
More rapid than greyhounds our saviors they came,
And we barked and we howled, and called them by name:
"There's Duchess! There's King! Fat Chance, and bare Buffy!
On Fido!  On Scooter! On Rover and Scruffy!
Go by the red fire hydrant and run pass those trees!
Nothing can stop you, not even some fleas!"
As puppies at play chase after a stick, and race to their masters
So lively and quick, so out in the field his canines all flew,
Catching the frisbees, that St. Bernard threw.
And then in an instant I heard at the door the
Scratching and clawing of each little paw.
As I pulled in my nose, and was turning around,
Through he door St. Bernard came in with a bound.
He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his tail
His wood cask adorned with an icing of hail;
A bag of chew toys he had brought in with him,
And his mouth was turned up what looked like grin.
His eyes how they twinkled! His ears flopped, how merry! 
His coat shone like crystal, his nose like a cherry!
His big floppy mouth was drawn up like a bow,
And the fur on his chin was as white as the snow;
The stump of a bone was held tight in his teeth,
And his collar encircled his neck like a wreath.
He had a large face and a furry, round belly
That shook when he barked, like a bowl full of jelly.
He was fluffy and plump, a big cuddly, old pooch and
I laughed when I saw him and gave him a smooch.
A wink of his eye and a wag of his tail; we knew right away
We'd have homes without fail. He howled not a howl,
But went straight to his deed, and took down our leashes
That soon we would need. He opened the door,
And families stood there, with children, all smiling,
And much love to spare.  He leapt to his sled,
to his team gave a call and away they all flew as if chasing a ball.
But I heard him exclaim as he chewed on a bone;
"Happy Dog-mas to all and to all a good home!"

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~7~
Memorable Quote

"All beings tremble before violence.  All fear death.  All love life.  See yourself in others.  Then whom can you hurt?  What harm can you do?"
~ Buddha

 

«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»
Susan Roghair - EnglandGal@aol.com
Animal Rights Online
http://www.oocities.org/RainForest/1395/

-=Animal Rights Online=-
«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»
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