Archive for July, 2009
Watkins Glen, NY (RPRN) 7/31/2009–Today, July 30, Farm Sanctuary, the nation’s leading farm animal protection organization, will welcome two young goats to its farm animal shelter in Watkins Glen, NY. The goats, a male and female, who appear to be just months old, were first seen on Tuesday wandering along the side of the [...]
Mark Hawthorne’s always excellent “Striking at the Roots” blog has a must-read piece on agribusiness’ efforts to derail the work of animal protection activists. This industry observation is especially worth emphasizing: “Activists have learned to use the Internet better than industry has.” That’s undoubtably true, but it’s also true that we haven’t reached 10 percent of our potential when it comes to Internet activism. And once we do, agribusiness will be hosed. Switching effortlessly int
Viewed as the ” nation’s most famous dogfighting case ,” Michael Vick’s celebrity status and 2007 conviction (which unfortunately ended with Vick being released after serving less than two years in jail for his illegal, six-year dog fighting operation) ignited a firestorm of renewed public interest concerning the dark world of dogfighting, so much that it is now considered a felony offense in all 50 states [PDF]. Vick’s case also brought about a new attitude regarding the future of former figh
The Humane Society of the United States and the Humane Society Legislative Fund praise the U.S. House of Representatives, which took steps to protect rare animals of the sea through legislation passed last night. The House approved H.R. 556, the Southern Sea Otter Recovery and Research Act, which was introduced by longtime animal protection champion Rep. Sam Farr, D-Calif. The bill passed by a vote of 316-107. The House also passed H.R. 509, the Marine Turtle Conservation Reauthorization Act of
I spent last weekend, July 24-27, in the Washington, DC, area at the fifth annual Taking Action for Animals (TAFA) conference , hosted by the Humane Society of the United States. It was my third year at what HSUS says is the largest animal-advocacy conference in the country, which is easy to believe. There were workshops and panels on so many subjects that I couldn’t possibly list them all. The conference was also celebrity-heavy this year, so keep reading for details on that below. Some of
WASHINGTON, D.C. (RPRN) 7/29/2009–Humane Society International and The Humane Society of the United States congratulated the Council of Ministers of the European Union for overwhelmingly endorsing a comprehensive prohibition on trade in products of commercial seal hunts. Twenty-four nations supported the ban, with only three abstaining. HSI and HSUS condemned the Canadian government for its [...]
Group Says Marine-Mammal Massacre Taints Olympics Vancouver, British Columbia (RPRN) 7/28/2009–After learning that the Olympic Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic Games is attempting to sell billboard space after having trouble convincing sponsors to buy the space it had stockpiled in advance of the 2010 Winter Games, PETA has sent a letter to the committee offering [...]
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Quarterback Michael Vick has been reinstated to the NFL on a conditional basis and a decision on his return to action will come by the sixth week of the regular season, Commissioner Roger Goodell said Monday. Vick, who completed a 23-month criminal sentence for bankrolling a dogfighting ring, was free to sign with an NFL team, participate in practice and play in the final two preseason games. A decision on his return to regular-season competition would be based on the progre
Quarterback Michael Vick has been reinstated to the NFL on a conditional basis and may be able to play by the sixth week of the regular season, Commissioner Roger Goodell said on Monday. Vick, who completed a 23-month criminal sentence for bankrolling a dogfighting ring, will be considered for full reinstatement for the October 18-19 games “based on the progress he makes in his transition plan,” Goodell said in a statement. Vick was grateful to be given the chance to play again. “I would l
From the L.A. Times Unleashed blog : Former Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick, who served a federal prison sentence of nearly two years for dogfighting, has been conditionally reinstated for NFL play by the league’s commissioner, Roger Goodell. I’d post more, but I need to throw up now. And then take a long, hot shower in hopes of washing of the scum I picked up just from typing that name. It’s not as if the NFL ever got a lot of my money, but as of now and as long as this dirtba