Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter

Sunday, August 31, 2008

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Posted by ShoZu

Another "WTF?" Moment

Whoever votes Republican this year are absolute idiots... Sarah Palin just may be worse than the devil himself.


Sarah Palin - On the Hunt
Sarah Palin, a moose-hunting, lifetime NRA member guns for D.C.

Article by Brian Braiker / Newsweek / August 30, 2008

Like many Alaskans, Gov. Sarah Palin is a lifelong hunter and strong proponent of Second Amendment rights. A longtime member of the National Rifle Association, she told USA Today when she was running for governor as a Republican in 2006 that "We hunt as much as we can, and I'm proud to say our freezer is full of wild game we harvested here in Alaska." Her own parents had just returned from hunting caribou when they learned that she had been tapped as Sen. John McCain's running mate.

Most Alaskans wouldn't bat an eye at such a lifestyle. (Palin's favorite food? "Moose stew after a day of snowmachining," she told Vogue.) But in selecting a pro-gun female running mate who can probably skin and process a deer, Sen. John McCain may be inviting a debate on gun control into the campaign-and he could be seen as extending an olive branch to the wary right wing of his party: a recent independently-produced video clip by a Palin supporter included footage of her firing an assault rifle with Alaska National Guard soldiers. Such imagery stands in contrast to Sen. Barack Obama, who, in accepting the Democratic Party's nomination yesterday, said assault weapons pose a threat to city's streets. "The reality of gun ownership may be different for hunters in rural Ohio than they are for those plagued by gang violence in Cleveland," he said, "but don't tell me we can't uphold the Second Amendment while keeping AK-47s out of the hands of criminals."

Palin publicly applauded the Supreme Court's recent 5-4 ruling in District of Columbia vs. Heller that struck down the District's 32-year-old ban on handguns. Obama hedged, stating that he "always believed that the Second Amendment protects the right of individuals to bear arms, but I also identify with the need for crime-ravaged communities to save their children from the violence that plagues our streets through common-sense, effective safety measures." His supporters describe Obama's stance on guns as nuanced; opponents call it deliberately vague. Eugene Volokh, a legal commentator and UCLA law professor, described Palin's stance as "very mainstream, while Obama has been cagier."

"The lines are being more clearly drawn on the gun issue," says Dennis Hennigan of the Brady Center, a gun-reform lobby group. "One day after Senator Obama made it clear that he thinks assault weapons should be banned in a remarkable portion of his speech, here Senator McCain selects someone who is not only proud to be endorsed by [the NRA], an opponent of that ban, but apparently is pretty enthusiastic about the guns themselves." Perhaps. But Palin has a long history of supporting gun-safety education for kids and nobody would expect her to be thrilled by the prospect of AK-47s flooding the streets of Anchorage. "Of course, we want to keep any firearm out of the hands of gang members and felons and drug dealers," says NRA executive vice president Wayne LaPierre. "But there is no way that Senator Obama can make a claim to be a supporter of the Second Amendment based on his voting record. Governor Palin understands the values of the American public on these types of issues."

Gun ownership in Alaska has little to nothing to do with gangs and everything to do with hunting, which comes with its own array of complicated issues. In 2003, residents in the interior of the state began complaining to state game officials that wild wolves and bears were eating too many moose calves, depleting the stock for hunters (who also presumably love a hot dish of moose stew). Over the past five years the state has intensified its "predator control" program, which reduces the numbers of wolves and bears in the wild in order to inflate the populations of moose, caribou, sheep, deer and other ungulates. Statewide, an average of 1,000 to 1,500 wolves are taken through hunting and trapping each year. Of that total, about 120 to 150 are "harvested" through the predator-control policies, according to Doug Larsen, director of the Division of Wildlife Conservation Department of Fish and Game. In a handful of regions, as many as 60 to 80 percent of the wolf population is targeted.

The practice of deliberately exterminating animals to manipulate the populations of other species is not without controversy. "Palin is on a massive extermination program for wolves across large swaths of Alaska to artificially inflate caribou and moose populations to pacify trophy hunters," says John Toppenberg, the executive director of the Alaska Wildlife Alliance. "It's totally illogical, it's extreme, it's the draconian manipulation of bears and wolves in Alaska." But it is a practice that predates Palin's governorship and remains popular with a majority of Alaskans.
"Her approach to environmental issues generally reflects someone who has grown up and depended upon natural resources, and has the perspective that resources should be used and used responsibly," says Jonathan Adler, director of the Center for Business Law and Regulation at Case Western Reserve University School of Law. "You don't want to reduce the wolf population too much, or it will drop below a sustainable level. There is a certain amount of uncertainty in the field on how to do that. But the consensus is that the folks in Alaska tend to know what they're doing." And as one of their ilk, Palin may be giving Democrats some pause on the eve of the Republican convention. The hunter has them in her sights.

Saturday, August 23, 2008

Must See TV Show

           This Sunday, Get The Real Truth About The Michael Vick Case  





"I want to apologize." "I take full responsibility for my actions." "Those things just didn't have to happen."



—Michael Vick, former football star sentenced to 23 months in federal prison on charges in connection with a dog fighting operation on his property in Virginia



The sentence may have been handed down, but the concern and questions still remain. What happened to the dogs seized in the case? How did Vick get involved in this underworld?



Many of these questions will be answered this Sunday night during "Animal Witness: The Michael Vick Case," the premiere episode of Animal Planet's new series on animal forensics. The one-hour show offers an in-depth look at Vick and exposes the hidden world of dog fighting—and for the first time on national television, lead investigator Bill Brinkman talks about the inner workings of the case.



The episode will also feature interviews with Dr. Melinda Merck, ASPCA Forensic Veterinarian, and Officer Annemarie Lucas, Supervisory Special Investigator, ASPCA Humane Law Enforcement. As reported in ASPCA News Alert, the ASPCA worked closely with federal authorities at every step of the case, first assisting in forensic examinations and later leading behavior evaluations of the seized dogs.



"Animal Witness: The Michael Vick Case" airs at 10:00 P.M. EST this Sunday, August 24; please note, the episode does feature footage from underground dog fighting videos—viewer discretion is advised. 



                       

Sunday, August 17, 2008

BS Haters and PA Kennel Dogs Shot Execution Style

Ok, first there's YouTube still not checking the content on flagged videos. An animal welfare friend of mine has been getting her videos flagged by haters on a regular basis. Her videos have always been a show of support of large breed dog owners, showcasing how gentle a breed Rottweilers are, when treated right. YouTube administrators tell her that one more complaint will get her account suspended. If they were doing their job, they would see those flags as unfounded. She's leaving the site on her own now, disillusioned... and the haters win again.

Saw this on the news this morning. Pennslyvania's Governor Ed Rendell wants to change an antiquated law that allowed two sick individuals to shoot 80 of their kennel dogs in eastern PA because a state inspector told them to treat the dogs for flea and fly bites, make sure the cages had solid flooring and to allow better ventilation for the facility because heat was a problem too. Instead of fixing the problem, doing repairs and taking the dogs to the vet, as RECOMMENDED by the inspector, the Zimmerman brothers shot a total of 80 dogs in two of their kennels.

Also, if you live in Pennsylvania, I strongly urge you to openly support Gov. Rendell's call for this much needed change regarding treatment of animals kept in kennels.

Info on HB 2525

08-13-2008
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA
Aug. 12, 2008 Department of Agriculture

Commonwealth News Bureau

Room 308, Main Capitol Building

Harrisburg, PA 17120



CONTACT: Chris L. Ryder

(717) 787-5085

SECRETARY WOLFF: PENDING LEGISLATION WOULD HAVE SAVED DOGS KILLED BY BERKS KENNEL OWNERS

Current Law Allows Commercial Breeders to Shoot Dogs

HARRISBURG - Pennsylvania Secretary of Agriculture Dennis Wolff released the following statement in response to the shooting of 80 dogs at two Berks County kennels:

“The recent shooting of 80 dogs at two Berks County kennels is saddening. The decision by commercial breeders to kill healthy dogs instead of paying to repair a kennel and seek veterinary care is alarming, and will likely outrage many people. Unfortunately, the killing of the dogs was legal under current Pennsylvania law.

“The two kennels involved have both voluntarily closed, but until our state’s outdated dog law is changed kennel owners may continue to kill their dogs for any reason they see fit, even if it is simply to save money. We can’t afford to wait any longer to pass legislation that would ban commercial kennel owners from killing their dogs.

“House Bill 2525, introduced in May, would allow only veterinarians to euthanize dogs in commercial breeding kennels. The bill would strengthen current dog laws and provide better standards for the health and safety of dogs in commercial breeding kennels without burdening other types of kennels that house dogs. The legislature has an opportunity to pass this important legislation this fall, and they should -- as doing so will assure that this activity will be illegal in PA commercial breeding kennels moving forward."

Rather than seek medical attention for dogs suffering from fleas and fly sores, kennel owners Ammon and Elmer Zimmerman of Kutztown shot all 80 of their dogs to save costs. The Zimmermans, owners of A&J Kennel and E&A Kennel, voluntarily surrendered their licenses on July 29 after killing the dogs.

Dog wardens inspected E&A Kennel on July 24, noting several violations for kennel sanitation and maintenance. Wardens also noted fleas and fly sores on 39 of the dogs and ordered veterinary checks. Wardens issued four citations for violations and planned to confirm the veterinary checks during a follow-up inspection. The wardens were notified on July 29 that the owners of both kennels chose to destroy the dogs and dismantle the kennels.

For more information on House Bill 2525, visit www.DogLawAction.com.