And what implications does it really have for the fate of so many homeless animals?
The logic behind such actions is often elusive, especially when all parties to the issue bear good intentions. Where do we draw the lines?

The letter below was sent to the magazine ANIMAL PEOPLE (November/December 2011):

Letters
Euthanasia

Ned Buyukmihci

I am responding to the letter by Doug Fakkema ⁽¹⁾ in the September 2011 edition of Animal People concerning “euthanasia.” [See below]

Without in any way impugning Fakkema’s motives and sincerity, he is either in denial or is unaware of the definition of the word. I do not argue that the death must be “good,” as stated by Fakkema, but his definition leaves out the most important aspect: the death should be in the interests of the individual dying. Of necessity, this means that the individual dying would benefit from death by ending a situation that is causing intractable suffering. Ideally, the individual would be able to indicate that he or she prefers death to continued life. In the case of cats, dogs or other nonhuman animals, this may not be feasible because of our inability to communicate with the individual. In these situations, it becomes especially important that the person ending life must be clear on her or his motives which must derive only from a sincere belief that ending the life will end suffering that cannot be relieved otherwise.

Using a defense that one is somehow preventing future suffering does not even warrant consideration, being patently absurd. Read more…

How low can our political discourse go? 

Time to recognize that “conservative” and “reactionary” are four-letter words. 

By Roger Shuler

Cross Posted at Legal Schnauzer

Our public discourse has sunk to such depths that a cat has been murdered in Arkansas, apparently for political reasons. The perpetrator, it seems, supports a Republican who is known for his strong “pro life” stands.

The campaign manager for a Democratic Congressional candidate returned to his Russellville, Arkansas home, to find that the family cat had been killed. The word “liberal” had been scribbled across the cat’s body in paint.

Associated Press reports that a complaint has been filed with the Russellville Police Department, and officials have no suspects at this time. Read more…

By Megan Drake

YOU MAY HAVE HEARD about the odd couple in Tennessee.  Yes, the YouTube sensation from a few years ago that seemed to keep re-entering your inbox from everyone who knows your email address.  Bella, a stray dog and Tarra, a retired Asian elephant who live at The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee became best buds.  They were considered inseparable.  They played together, ate together and slept together.  Their level of love and trust was something to behold.  Read more…

BY MERRITT CLIFTON
Special From ANIMAL PEOPLE,  (January/February 2011): 

Thousands of tormentors of helpless and scared animals, who are then often ripped apart by the mob. And all this in the name of tradition. What have domesticated animals like bovines or goats done to humans except provide sustenance and service to merit this torture?

CHENNAI,  Dehrudun–THE FIRST WEEKEND OF 2011 Pongal harvest festivals in Tamil Nadu,  India,  brought a drop in reported deaths and injuries in jallikattu,  the predominant Indian form of participatory bullfighting–but chiefly because new rules discouraged many communities from hosting jallikattu.  Relative to the unrestrained mayhem at Bunkhal village in Uttarakhand state a month earlier,  that was major progress.
_________________
EDITOR’S NOTE: At the foot of this article we have attached a defense of this practice by someone who sees nothing wrong with tormenting and killing animals for fun. We present it, not as a counterpoint to the main piece, for we see not possible balance between the two views, and we certainly don’t believe in letting readers arrive at the truth by simple presenting two opposing views, one of which may be logically and factually indefensible, BUT as one more example how this kind of mind operates.—TGP
_________________  Read more…

May 27 – 29, 2011

Soren

Editor’s Note: Having lost three feline companions in the last two years—Puntito, Sombra, and animalito—creatures who kept me going during the worst and longest drought in my life—two decades characterized by frequent financial distress, illness, and isolation—I can fully relate to Dave Lindorff’s pain upon the sudden loss of his feline “child”, Soren.  The deepest bonds do not recognize species boundaries, so the death of a cat, a dog, a parrot, a horse, or any other animal we get to share our lives with (an intersection that invariably enriches us immeasurably) can diminish us as much as the passing of a human companion.

animalito, Puntito, and shy Sombra, disputing the cramped real estate on my office chair.

If this sounds weird to you, I’m sorry.  I can’t explain it any better.  The nonspeciesist love of animals is something you either feel in your heart or you don’t.  And while there are a million reasons that validate it, from the moral benefits of simple compassion to the salvation of our planet’s environment, it’s not an intellectual thing at all. Maybe it’s the innocence, playfulness and authenticity of animals that moves us. Or their legendary capacity for what seems to us like unconditional love. Or perhaps it’s their poignant helplessness in a world so utterly dominated by humans. I guess it’s all part of the mystery of animals. Whatever it is, it’s very real.  That’s why their departure, especially when untimely, when their personalities have become as well known and endearing to us as those of a human infant, can be such a shattering event. It’s ironic that in whimsical death, of all things, animals remind us of our own vulnerability to fate, and therefore our undeniable kinship with other beings. —P. Greanville

Read more…

Is SeaWorld safe for killer whale trainers?

One year after Dawn Brancheau’s death, Tillikum kept at a distance; theme park says trainers allowed back in the water with whales

February 24, 2011 [print_link]

(CBS News) One year after the horrific death of a SeaWorld trainer, the popular Orlando, Fla. theme park is getting set to launch a new killer whale show with revamped safety measures. Read more…

Mamaroneck boys save kitten frozen under sewer grate  December 11, 2010 Randi Weiner rcweiner@lohud.com MAMARONECK — At first, the two boys thought the tiny black spots on the sewer grate could be mice. Then they took a closer look and spotted a kitten suspended over the muddy and nearly frozen water below. The black spots were her paws, glued to the metal grate the way a tongue sticks to a freezing light pole. She might have mewed. (Jack Masciopinto thought so, but buddy Mike Margolis differed.) The 10-year-olds, walking to school Friday morning with their younger brothers, just knew that something needed to be done. “Me and Jack were walking in front and we looked over … and looked down and saw these green eyes staring up at us. So we called my mom and dad,” Mike said. Brothers Brian Margolis, 8, and Luke Masciopinto, 9, waited with their siblings as first a neighbor and then their father, Steven Margolis, came to the Barry Street sewer grate, about halfway between their home and school. The boys were sent on to class, while Steven Margolis contacted the village Department of Public Works. Rescuing the kitten, who now is resting comfortably at Miller Clark Animal Hospital in Mamaroneck, was the work of a half-dozen people, none of whom could tell the story Friday without breaking out in smiles. All agree that it probably would have died without the quick action of the F.E. Bellows School students. DPW workers Vinnie Keck and Mark Ferraro — both cat owners themselves — were fast on the rescue, taking out a crowbar to pry up the metal grid. “They had to hit (the grate) with a sledgehammer because it was frozen in the ground,” said mom Jenny Margolis, who had joined her husband at the grate for the rescue. “When they picked up the grate, the cat came up too.” A police officer who had come to the scene offered water to release the kitten’s frozen paws. DPW foreman Tony Iacovelli said his men aren’t often called on to rescue animals. “It took five minutes or so, but I’m sure it seemed longer. Poor kitten,” Iacovelli said. “It was 21 degrees at 7 this morning, so it probably wasn’t much warmer when they went out there.” Dr. Gina Antiaris said the kitten appeared to have survived her experience intact. She didn’t know how long the approximately 5- to 6-month-old kitten had been hanging there, but said it had not been long enough to create hypothermia concerns. Right now, everybody is waiting to see if the kitten, which did not have a collar, will be claimed by an owner. If nobody steps forward, she’ll be available for adoption. The boys said they felt pretty good about rescuing the kitten. Luke said the boys felt “if (she) fell, (she) would have died.” Added 8-year-old Brian Margolis, “A cat has nine lives, but that might have been its last life.”

For inquiries about the kitten, contact the veterinary hospital where she is being helped: Miller-Clark Animal Hospital 1621 Harrison Ave # 1 Mamaroneck, NY 10543-3191 (914) 698-1756

The mental rot of religiosity at work:

Grotesque human chauvinism alive and well in America

WITH BONUS FEATURE ABOUT FISCHER’S PARTICIPATION IN SPREADING ANTI-GAY LIES

Having successfully stopped people from being gay, the American Family Association’s Bryan Fischer is taking on another moral scourge: grizzly bears. The weird AFA spokesman, who has compared Muslims to Nazis, suggested a Sea World Killer Whale be stoned, and likened gay sex to domestic terrorism, has penned a blog post obliquely calling for some sort of grizzly bear genocide  (flagged by Kyle at Right Wing Watch). Says Fischer:

     The AFA is also one of those groups that prominent GOPers pander to — and help legitimize — when they’re trying to score points with “values” voters. (At the last Values Voter Summit Fischer shared the stage with Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee, and Michele Bachmann.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

BONUS FEATURE

Bryan Fischer’s Lively Connection – The death penalty for homosexuals

First posted By Jody May-Chang On December 9, 2009

During Bryan Fischer’s self-righteous reign of terror in Idaho, he literally made a career out of issuing outrageously pious and ungodly statements aimed at dehumanizing and vilifying lesbian, gay and transgender people. He managed to do so with such skill that his propaganda was rarely, if at all, questioned by reporters covering him.

     One of his most abhorrent deeds has been Fischer’s shameless promotion and support for Scott Lively, in his May 14, 2008 post “The truth about homosexuality and the Nazi Party [1]” he abundantly quotes and summarizes Lively’s anti-gay Nazi propaganda book ‘The Pink Swastika’. Lively’s book, and Fischer by extension, among other things, blame homosexuals for starting the Nazi party.

Fischer Writes:

• “In fact, the Nazi Party began in a gay bar in Munich.”

• “Most of Hitler’s closets aids were homosexuals or sexual deviants.”

• “Heinrich Himmler, second in powered only to Hitler, was publically opposed to homosexuality but may have been a closet homosexual himself… Himmler was deeply immersed in the occult…”

• “May of the guards and administrators responsible for concentration camp horrors were themselves homosexuals.”

• “The ‘Butch’ homosexual guards and capos were capable of unrestrained cruelty, sadism and savagery. A guard at Auschwitz, for instance, strangled crushed and gnawed to death as many as 100 boys and young men a day while raping them at his leisure.”

• “Some parts of the American Nazi movement are explicitly homosexual.”

• “What’s the point here?” Fischer asks, “Simply that there is another side to the constant refrain from homosexual activists who frequently mention the Nazi persecution of homosexuals and in doing so imply Christian who opposed the normalization of homosexuality Are in effect crypto-Nazis.”

Last year, Fischer wrote these things [2] to promote and encourage attendance for the “Shake the Nation” religious hate fest held here in Idaho. Why is it necessary to revisit this? Well, for two very important reasons.

First of all, Bryan Fischer’s blossoming national fame [3] has its roots in here thanks to the Idaho media which gave him free reign to make outrageous statements while never holding him accountable. The Idaho media gave Fischer ink and face-time on camera without so much as a single hard question.

     The Idaho media’s kid glove treatment of Fischer has allowed him to attain his long sought after status as a national celebrity. His most recent claim to fame is his anti-Muslim racism, which is a huge embarrassment to fair minded Idahoans.

     The second, and most troubling reason that revisiting this relevant, is because of Bryan Fischer’s connection and support of Scott Lively who now is an evangelical celebrity who promotes the notion that you can ‘pray the gay away’ – Fischer’s cronies are “credited to have inspired” Bill No. 18, The Anti-Homosexual Bill of 2009 in Uganda.

     This bill, which is very likely to become law, will impose harsh sentences upon those who are gay, suspected of being gay or offer protection to those who support gay people. These so-called gay offenses include:

• Commits the offence of Homosexuality, Life in prison

• Aggravated Homosexuality, Death

• Attempting to commit Homosexuality, 7 years in prison

• Attempt to commit Aggravated Homosexuality, Life in prison

• A person who funds or sponsors homosexuality, min 5 – max 7 years in prison

• Know someone is gay and do not report them within 24 hours – 3 years in prison

• Extradite citizens back to Uganda from anywhere in the world for prosecution if suspected of committing any of the above crimes.

     Last spring, Scott Lively, who is now the president of “Defend the Family,” went to Uganda with Don Schmierer of “Exodus International” and Caleb Lee Brundidge of “The International Healing Foundation” to conduct an anti-homosexual seminar.

     Lively is quoted by LifeSiteNews.com [4] saying that his trip to Uganda was “with the purpose of getting them to liberalize the law making it more oriented toward therapy” and says the current bill “went too far.”

Lively is a fraud who is now trying to distance himself from his own propaganda, but what is very clear here is that he is deeply rooted in a longtime campaign of contempt against homosexuals. Lively, like Fischer, is a bold-faced liar and a propagandist. He admitted going to Uganda to testify in favor of this immoral legislation. In his own words, his reason was because of, “a lot of external interference from European and American gay activists attempting to do in Uganda what they’ve done around the world – homosexualize that society, ” and “the many male homosexuals coming into the country and abusing boys who are on the streets.”

     Fischer shamelessly promoted Scott Lively by encouraging the public to listen to this man’s hate speech. At the time Lively came to Idaho Fischer said that his merchant of hate will, “address some of the lessons we must learn from Nazi Germany and its disastrous embrace of homosexuality.”

     Fischer posted a ‘Shake the Nation’ event on his website to promote the conference which he later deleted, but not before I had a chance to PDF that post.[5] You will note that ‘Shake the Nation’ was organized by Fisher’s good friend Tom Munds who appears to have thought twice about stepping into Fischer odorous shoes.

A good friend once told me, “Show me your friends, and I’ll tell you what you are.” Bryan Fischer aligns himself with hate mongers then tries to rewrite history by deleting it from is his website. The Idaho news media had an opportunity to shed some light on Bryan Fischer, but instead of defending the public’s right to know about this miserable fraud, they ran to him as if he was the official spokesman of the Christian community.

     The Idaho news media shares some responsibility in failing to examine Fischer’s record and giving him the keys to the newsroom to spread his propaganda.

     Now the world is hearing about Scott Lively and the Ugandan Bill No. 18 that calls for throwing gays in prison and executing them. The rightwing echo chamber screams about so-called “death panels” – well, this is what they really look like thanks to the unchallenged rants of a con-men like Bryan Fischer and his cronies.