Fiona McCann
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Apes 'extinct in a generation'
BBC By Richard Black BBC News website environment correspondent  "The great apes are our kin... but we have not treated them with the respect they deserve." Kofi Annan Some of the great apes - chimps, gorillas, and orangutans - could be extinct within a human generation, an authoritative new assessment concludes. Human settlement, logging, mining and disease mean that orangutans in parts of Indonesia may lose half of their habitat within five years. There are now more than 20,000 humans on the planet for every chimpanzee. >>READ ON |
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1.9.05 02:23 |
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Oui
 I am sad to have to say that Oui is going through another medical crisis. I will spare you the details, but she is seeing the vet today. He explained to me over the phone that it could be cancer. I am hoping it is just a simple infection. She bounced back from her surgery last May so well, and I was just praying she would stay healthy and live a long and happy hamster life. She's such a sweet little joy to watch. Anyway, if you can spare a thought or a prayer for her, she could use sure it. |
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8.9.05 05:09 |
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Says it all
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10.9.05 18:27 |
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Hurricane Katrina - A Question of Class
Indymedia Ireland by IRSCNA - Irish Republican Socialist Party Saturday, Sept. 10, 2005, 11:42pm irscna@irsm.org address: IRSCNA PO Box 8266, Austin TX 78713-8266, Irish Republican Socialist Committees of North America On behalf of the Irish Republican Socialist Movement, the Irish Republican Socialist Committees of North America have issued the following statement about Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath. 9 September 2005 We wish to first extend our sympathy to all the victims of Hurricane Katrina, our condolences to all those who lost friends and family, and our solidarity with all of the survivors. There is no doubt that the question of Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath is a question of class and race. The wealthy and middle classes, mostly white, were able to escape while the working class, mostly black, was left to die and the survivors left with an even greater nightmare. While hurricanes are a natural phenomenon, their impact on human communities can be managed to prevent loss of life and even to reduce the damage caused by the hurricane itself. Hurricane Katrina has revealed that there was a clear pattern of systemic neglect which contributed to making New Orleans and nearby areas of the Gulf Coast more vulnerable to hurricanes and a disaster of this magnitude more likely. The systemic neglect was a conscious decision based on class and race, with a quarter of metropolitan New Orleans living under poverty level, most of whom are African-Americans. Flood control systems could have been strengthened, especially after a 2001 report from the Federal Emergency Management Agency warned that a hurricane striking New Orleans was one of the most likely disasters to happen in the near future (the most likely disaster was a terrorist attack on New York City, another failure of the Bush Administration to heed the report's warnings). The Bush Administration, however, chose to cut flood control funding by 44 percent to pay for the illegal imperialist war against Iraq. To the Bush Administration and the capitalist class it represents, sacrificing working class men and women in foreign imperialist wars is of far greater importance than protecting working class lives in the US. In 2004, the US Army Corps of Engineers proposed to study how New Orleans could be protected from a catastrophic hurricane, but the Bush Administration refused to fund the research. In 1990, a federal task force began restoring lost wetlands surrounding New Orleans, which would have reduced storm surge during a hurricane, but starting in 2003 the Bush Administration's policy was to turn this land over to wealthy developers. For the Bush Administration or anyone else to say this wasn't avoidable is a lie. There were deep flaws in how the disaster was managed even before the hurricane made landfall, both by federal and local authorities. It was appropriate to order a mandatory evacuation, but what about the people without cars or money? What about the elderly, the disabled, or the homeless? While the US government and media have attempted to lay blame on the victims or survivors for not leaving, all methods of egress were blocked -- train service, bus service, and plane service were all halted before Katrina hit. The poorer sections of the working class, especially those who were African-American (the population of New Orleans is 70% African-American), were abandoned to their fate by the capitalist system and a corrupt political leadership on several levels. Those that survived were again abandoned when it took nearly five days for relief efforts to begin, and those efforts began rather halfheartedly and only after there was mass outrage from people in the US and around the world. Members of the media were able to get to areas hit hard by Katrina as early as Monday, yet it took until Thursday and Friday for official aid to start arriving. During that delay, offers from other states and countries were refused by the federal government, condemning countless survivors of the initial flood- ing to death by hunger, dehydration, and drowning. Cuba generously offered to send 1,100 medical doctors with 26.4 tons of medications and diagnosis kits at no expense to the US, but this was rejected while US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice favored waiting for "the Lord" to come. We can easily contrast this with how well Cuba handles hurricanes. Cuba only lost sixteen people when last a powerful category 4 hurricane struck, the highest death toll in forty-one years on an island constantly hit by hurricanes. Less then two months ago, 1.7 million people were quickly and safely evacuated on short notice in preparation for Hurricane Dennis. If a third world nation is capable of such a response, the US has no excuse. The interests of the capitalist and middle classes were represented by the voices hysterically condemning looting and calling for the looters to be shot. For those people, the crime of stealing a television was much greater than the crime of abandoning tens of thousands of people to death or the survivors to squalid refugee centers. Are a few DVD players, which are no doubt insured by the stores in the first place, really of more importance than human lives? Sadly, the answer appears to be yes. This is the reality of the capitalist ideology and its promotion of private property as the most important thing in society. It should be noted that while Alabama suffered the ravages of the hurricane, native daughter Condoleezza Rice bought a $3000 pair of shoes in New York, and while New Orleans drowned, Bush reminded many of Nero by strumming a guitar. We hold the capitalist system and the Bush Administration primarily responsible for the deaths caused by Hurricane Katrina and the gross neglect of the survivors. We demand that all of the survivors be treated with dignity and given safe, clean housing rather than being pushed into squalid, overcrowded refugee centers. We demand that the US government accept the generous offer from the Cuban government to send medical aid. We demand that the rebuilding of New Orleans and other areas affected by the hurricane, such as Biloxi, Mississippi, includes rebuilding wetlands, increasing the efficiency and safety of flood management systems, and a real concern for working class communities, as well as plans for future disasters which includes quickly and safely evacuating everyone, no matter their income or skin color. In conclusion, this should be a wake-up call to all workers that our lives are of no consequence to those who hold the real power in our society. The hurricane did more than destroy cities and lives, it also laid bare the cruelties of the capitalist system for all to see. It's up to all of us to not forget what we saw and to redouble our efforts to create a system where human lives always come first. http://www.irsm.org/irsm.html |
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11.9.05 01:47 |
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Today in history: Steve Biko dies in custody
BBC ON THIS DAY 12 September 1977  Steve Biko became the forty-first person to die in custody in South Africa The leader of the black consciousness movement in South Africa, Steve Biko, has died in police custody. The 30-year-old's death was confirmed by the commissioner of police, General Gert Prinsloo, today. It is understood Mr Biko died in hospital in Pretoria. The government minister of Justice and Police, James Kruger, stated that Mr Biko had been transferred 740 miles (1,191 km) from Port Elizabeth to Pretoria for medical attention following a seven-day hunger strike. Mr Biko had been in custody since 18 August when he was arrested and detained under the Terrorism Act. He is the 20th person to die in custody during the past 18 months. Medical student Steve Biko was born in King William's Town in the Eastern Cape of South Africa in 1946. He became active in the anti-apartheid movement in 1960s when he was studying medicine at the University of Natal. He initially joined the National Union of South African Students' (NUSAS) but resigned in 1969 because he felt it did not represent the needs of black students. He set up the South African Students' Organisation (SASO) in 1968 and was elected its first president the following year. In 1972 Biko was expelled from medical school and began working full-time for the Black Community Programmes (BCP). He also started writing regularly for the SASO newsletter under the pen-name of Frank Talk. By 1973 his work had come to the attention of the government who, in an attempt to curtail his activities, imposed a banning order on him restricting him to his home town.. But he continued his work with the BCP which succeeded in building a clinic and a crèche in King William's Town. He was also instrumental in setting up several community groups including the Zimele Trust Fund in 1975, which helped political prisoners and their families, and the Ginsberg Educational Trust, to assist black students. In January of this year he was made honorary president of the BCP. An inquest into his death is not to be held for several months, according to the authorities. Mr Biko leaves a wife and two children. In Context Steve Biko's death caused outrage in South Africa and almost immediately doubt was cast over the alleged cause of his death. Newspaper editor Donald Woods, and close friend of Biko's, accused the Minister of Justice and Police James Kruger of being directly responsible for the death. Two weeks later preliminary results from a post mortem examination revealed Biko had died from severe brain damage. His funeral was attended by more than 15,000 mourners. Thousands more were barred from going by security forces. Twelve Western countries sent representatives to the service, which was conducted by the Right Reverend Desmond Tutu. Biko's contribution to the black fight for freedom from apartheid is often placed as second only to that of former President Nelson Mandela. The inquest into his death in November 1977 cleared the police of any wrong-doing. But after the election of the ANC Government in 1994, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which was set up under Archbishop Desmond Tutu, denied an amnesty to five policemen who admitted being involved in his death, although they have never been prosecuted. The Commission found that Biko's death was as a direct result of the injuries he sustained in custody. His life story was dramatised in the film Cry Freedom. |
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12.9.05 04:21 |
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Song for you
The post after this deals with the death anniversary of Stephen Biko. I have a place where you can download Peter Gabriel's German version of the song about Biko. It is a moving piece and gives me chills when I listen to it. Just thought somebody might want it: >>Download page I have used this service lots of times and never had a problem with it. |
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12.9.05 05:01 |
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Regular paracetamol use can increase asthma risk
Irish Independent FREQUENT us of paracetamol (**acetaminophen to those of you in the US) could increase the risk of suffering asthma attacks, a new study warned yesterday. Weekly or daily use of the popular painkiller could also cause the condition to worsen, researchers have found. Experts have warned people with asthma to cut down on the amount they take in the light of the news. The study of more than 1,000 Londoners by researchers from Guy's King's and St Thomas's School of Medicine found that people who took paracetamol every week were 80pc more likely to have asthma than those who never took it. And people who used the painkiller every day were twice as likely to suffer from asthma, according to the study published in the journal 'Thorax'. Frequent use of paracetamol was also linked to people with more severe asthma and rhinitis (runny nose and sneezing) in non-asthma sufferers. Asthma sufferers cannot take aspirin or similar drugs because they can trigger severe reactions. The researchers said that taking paracetamol every day or week decreases levels of the antioxidant glutathione, which is found in the airways and the nose. Glutathione protects the lungs from the harmful effects of pollutants which can exacerbate asthma and other breating disorders. Maxine Frith Health Correspondent |
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15.9.05 05:57 |
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Giggle 4 u
Yesterday I got a giggle from reading about Irish Eyes' culinary efforts. I think you will enjoy boiledorfried's description, and there's a photo in the next post that looks yummy! Read Rambling Irishman |
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16.9.05 02:34 |
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Worldwide candle light vigil day for the greyhounds
Indymedia Ireland To be held: Saturday, Oct 15 2005 by John Carmody - Animal Rights Action Network (ARAN) Saturday, Sep 17 2005, 4:47pm arancampaigns@eircom.net address: Po Box 722, Kildare, Ireland phone: 087-6275579 WILL YOU HELP?  THE PROBLEM: Ireland is known as the foremost greyhound breeding country in the world. The state-run organization Board na gCon (Greyhound Racing Board) is responsible for the breeding and racing of greyhounds. Approximately 20,000 greyhound puppies are registered each year in Ireland. The number actually born each year is higher, but many "unpromising" dogs are disposed of before registration time. About half of those registered are exported to the UK and the United States, and a small number to Spain and elsewhere. It is estimated that approximately 14,000 greyhounds are "disposed of" in Ireland each year, but the true number will sadly never be known. But this problem is not just confined to Ireland but so many other countries. ACTION: There has being huge interest everywhere from groups and people relating to our idea of a worldwide candle light vigil day for the greyhounds, and, we want YOU to help us make this day a huge success for the greyhounds that need your help. Our aim for this day is to shed the much needed light on the horrifically cruel suffering of these beautiful gentle creatures in this part of the racing industry, we want to educate the many about the suffering and call for it to be abolished. Scheduled: for Saturday October 15th to be the day when groups, activists and volunteers from all over the world come together to peacefully support this very special day for the greyhounds and we want to make it a success! We can make this happen and use this occasion to open the eyes of many thousands of people who simply do not know how these poor creatures suffer. The good news is that many involved in helping greyhounds think this is a great idea and already are helping!!! WHAT CAN YOU DO: Please encourage your group to gather outside your nearest greyhound track on October 15th at a time convenient to you and your volunteers. Bring candles and if possible lay a wreath for the many tens of thousands of greyhounds that have and will die. Please do bring along your companion animals including your rescued lurchers & greyhounds. Remember as little as two people can change the hearts and minds of so many! If you are on your own, please do contact your nearest greyhound protection group for possible hook up or email us and we can do our best to put you in touch with your nearest vigil. HOW CAN ARAN HELP: Whilst we are a grassroots animal rights group that works nationwide for animal rights here in Ireland, we do not have the funds to send out leaflets and posters. But, If needed, ARAN can help:- 1. Put you in contact with your nearest greyhound protection group. 2. Help you organise your candle light vigil. 3. Give you advice on how to contact the media, work with them and promote the event in your area if needed. 4. Contact activists (if we have them) if your area and put them in touch with you. 5. Organize a media release for your event and help you raise awareness in the media prior and on the day and we may also be able to send it out for you too. And much more, just ask! Please do take this opportunity to set aside October 15th for your special day to remember the greyhounds that need your help, please do organize a vigil at your nearest race track or stadium. For more information please do contact us and remember to inform us of your event. If you need more information on how greyhounds do suffer in the racing industries please visit some of the many tremendous websites available or we can put you in touch with your nearest greyhound campaigning group. Thanks for all that you are doing to help greyhounds, ARAN |
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18.9.05 04:43 |
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Today in history: Rock legend Hendrix dies after party
BBC ON THIS DAY 18 September 1970  Guitarist Jimi Hendrix has died after collapsing at a party in London. Police say there was no question of foul play. A number of sleeping pills were found at the house in Notting Hill Gate and they have been taken away for analysis. Hendrix, 27, was born in Seattle, Washington, but rose to fame in Britain with his band the Jimi Hendrix Experience. He will be remembered as a key figure in the music world who transformed electric guitar-playing using distortion, feedback and sheer volume to create a revolutionary new sound. Flamboyant Hendrix had been staying in London since cutting short a European tour with his band after bass player Billy Cox fell ill with stress and exhaustion. They were among the headline acts at the three-day Love and Peace Festival at Insel Fehrmarn in Germany. The concert was not an entire success. A torrential downpour meant Hendrix postponed his performance by a day and the audience was disrupted by fighting and gunfire between rival German motorcycle gangs who eventually burned the stage to the ground. It was after this performance the group returned to London and Hendrix sent Cox back to the United States to convalesce. James Hendrix was part black, part Cherokee Indian and part Mexican. He left school early, having developed a keen interest in music but unable to read it.  He joined the army as a paratrooper but was discharged due to injury and took up work as a session musician. He was spotted by former Animals' bass player turned manager Chas Chandler who persuaded him to move to London in the autumn of 1966. He changed Hendrix's stage name to "Jimi", and introduced him to drummer Mitch Mitchell and bass player Noel Redding to form the Jimi Hendrix Experience. The band's first single 'Hey Joe' spent 10 weeks in the UK charts, reaching number six in early 1967. They enhanced their reputation with flamboyant stage performances. With his long wiry hair and colourful clothes Hendrix kept audiences enthralled with his improvised solos often playing the guitar behind his back or between his legs. Their performance of 'Wild Thing' at the Monterey International Pop Festival in June 1967, in which Hendrix played the guitar with his teeth, confirmed their success in the US. The Jimi Hendrix Experience became one of the most popular and successful touring acts in the world. After the Hendrix Experience disbanded he continued performing with a range of musicians - including a memorable rendition of Star Spangled Banner at the Woodstock Festival in 1969. In 1970 the Jimi Hendrix Experience re-formed and were in the process of recording a new LP when he died. His final public performance in Britain was with American band War at Ronnie Scott's club in London last week. In Context A coroner recorded an open verdict on the death of Jimi Hendrix. The inquest heard he had taken nine sleeping pills but there was no evidence of drug addiction. The guitarist's father, Al Hendrix, a landscape gardener, was the sole beneficiary of the will, estimated to be worth in the region of $500,000. He set up a company, Experience Hendrix, with the aim of preserving his son's musical legacy. On his death in 2002, the company was inherited by his step-daughter Janie. But Jimi's brother Leon claimed he had been unfairly written out of the will and launched a lawsuit in 2004 to try to overturn it. In 2003 a survey by the Rolling Stone magazine named Jimi Hendrix the greatest guitarist in rock history. >>Visit the official Jimi Hendrix website |
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18.9.05 05:47 |
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Distressed Jet Makes Successful Emergency Landing
CBS (CBS 13) LONG BEACH A jetBlue airliner has successfully made an emergency landing at Los Angeles International Airport. The plane's front wheels were turned sideways and were unable to retract into the Airbus jet. Dozens of emergency crews and vehicles, including a foam truck, were standing by as sparks flew and the plane skid to a halt.  'In this image taken from television, a JetBlue Airbus A320 airliner with its front landing gear stuck sideways safely landed at Los Angeles International Airport. (AP Photo/ABC via APTN)' - Victoria Times **I was watching this on streaming video after a friend alerted me to what was going on with this plane when he thought someone he knew was on it. To envision a whole plane-load of people who have been flying in a pattern over the Pacific Ocean for hours, trying to get rid of the heavy fuel so the pilot can attempt an emergency landing at LAX, knowing that each and every one of them is thinking that they might die at this time, is a very stressful thing. I sat with my Rosary in my hands watching the approach of the jet and listening to the news readers drone on. I was praying and crying and appealing to all avenues of aid when all of a sudden I 'saw', but not actually saw in a concrete fashion--I saw the hand of God reach out and encircle the middle top of the plane much as a child would with a model airplane he was pretending to zoom over the ground. I knew at that moment that all would be well because God had reached out to bring this plane and these people to safety. I continued to watch the landing, which was one of the most beautifully executed jet landings I have ever seen. The pilot never waivered--never deviated from his straight-in approach. The sideways nose gear produced a streaming shower of sparks as the rubber tyres melted, yet nothing caught fire, nothing went awry; it was as smooth as if all gears had been working correctly. It was awesome. I have nothing but respect and admiration for this pilot, and I thank God that this plane was saved. Prayers do make a difference, and I know that like this plane, we are all in the safe grip of our God even when we think we are in the most danger. See news story >>JetBlue |
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22.9.05 03:15 |
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Brave Rhiannon has 'holiday of a lifetime'
Belfast Telegraph 'Prayers answered' says mum Shauna By Sarah Brett 26 September 2005 A five-year-old Londonderry girl who suffers from a rare and incurable brain disease has had "the time of her life" at Disney World thanks to the generosity of local people. Thousands of pounds were raised through a special concert in Derry and an appeal spearheaded by the Belfast Telegraph to send little Rhiannon Bates to the US before her rapidly progressing degenerative condition prevented her from losing her faculties. Rhiannon, from Rockfield, developed the disease three years ago and there is no known cure. She and her parents Alan and Shauna jetted off to Orlando for two weeks where the family enjoyed the holiday of a lifetime, incorporating trips to Washington DC and New York. "It went fantastically well," a delighted Shauna Bates told the Telegraph. "She had the time of her life and was treated like a princess by everyone she met. "It's hard to believe how well the trip went. We were worried that she might get over excited and have more seizures but that just didn't happen, the whole thing really suited her and she was really relaxed. "We had nine days in Disneyland and then Washington and New York, so she's been to the White House and the Empire State Building. "She went on every ride at Disneyland including one that went at 65mph - three times! The highlight for her was having breakfast with Winnie the Pooh and Tigger. "Every day we were afraid that something might go wrong but it didn't. It was like we had our old Rhiannon back. All our prayers were answered." The Bates family will attend the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast on Tuesday to start their daughter on a special diet and get biopsies and a lumbar puncture to chart her condition. In June Rhiannon attended the Brain Wave programme in Somerset with her Aunt Martina Ramsey where experts tried to stimulate parts of her brain that are still living through exercises. Mrs Ramsey is now set to organise further concerts to help buy equipment which will allow Rhiannon's parents to continue the sensory development work at home. |
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28.9.05 12:28 |
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NUDE PROTESTERS CONVERGE ON AUSTRALIAN EMBASSY AS AUSTRALIAN WOOL BOYCOTT RESUMES
Indymedia Ireland by John Carmody - Animal Rights Action Network (ARAN) Thursday, Sep 29 2005, 5:38pm arancampaigns@eircom.net address: ARAN Po Box 722 Kildare phone: 087-6275579 For Immediate Release: October 7, 2005 Dublin, Ireland — Nude PETA members—with the Australian flag painted across their bloody bodies—will hold a lively protest at the Australian embassy against the wool industry’s refusal to embrace a landmark agreement between PETA and a prominent group of wool producers that would have resulted in an immediate reduction of lamb mutilations and an end to PETA’s international boycott campaign. Flanked by giant posters of bloody sheep and signs reading, “Australia: Stop Mutilating Lambs,” the naked PETA posse will officially re-launch the Australian wool boycott: Date: Friday, October 7 Time: 12.00 noon sharp Place: Australian Embassy, Fitzwilton House, Wilton Terrace, Dublin 2. (The Embassy is situated between Leeson Street and Baggot St Bridge, on the town side of the canal.) This action in Dublin is one of multiple protests taking place around the world this week to mark the resumption of PETA’s international boycott of Australian wool after a moratorium was announced in August. The boycott resumes after two major wool industry groups, Australian Wool Innovation (AWI) and Wool Producers, flatly rejected a landmark agreement between PETA and the Australian Wool Growers Association (AWGA) that would have resulted in live export reforms and an immediate and industry-wide reduction in lamb mutilations. The agreement between PETA and AWGA provided a timetable for phasing out mulesing mutilations (in which skin and flesh are sliced from lambs’ backsides with gardening shears) and would have ended exports of live sheep to countries failing to meet Australian animal welfare standards. AWI and others refused to do anything other than criticize the plan during the 45-day moratorium, despite the urging of major retailers—including Benetton, Gap Inc., Liz Claiborne, Lands’ End, L.L. Bean, Eddie Bauer, Jones Apparel Group, Nordstrom, and Ann Taylor—which have all expressed support for the PETA/AWGA agreement and interest in the new, more humane brand of wool created by the agreement. The new brand will provide retailers worldwide with wool from farmers who are part of the structured plan to end mulesing and live exports to countries that do not meet Australian domestic animal welfare standards. “The wool industry has had 45 days to agree to consider the compromise agreement, but has done little more than lip service to their claims to care about animal welfare,”says PETA Europe’s managing director, President Ingrid E. Newkirk. “It’s only a matter of time before AWI and Wool Producers realize that they won’t be able to give their wool away until they agree to stop torturing lambs and sheep.” For more information, please visit SaveTheSheep.com. http://www.SaveTheSheep.com |
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29.9.05 22:14 |
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