Written by PETA
Well, I'm tickled pink as a pig's bottom—Kelly Clarkson has ditched her July 9th performance at the Calgary Stampede. The annual rodeo exhibition means 10 days of cruelty, including catastrophic and often fatal injuries for horses and bulls—not really the best venue for an animal-loving vegetarian like Kelly.
Our thanks to the pop star are on their way!
Written by Karin Bennett
What do Smithfield Foods and Donald Rumsfeld have to do with the global swine flu scare? Author F. William Engdahl's informative article, which details the links between factory farms, spin doctors, the pork industry, and drug companies, explains all.
Before you race to the doctor for a Tamiflu vaccine, read this piece. You might think twice about helping Mr. Rumsfeld and his buddies at Roche pay for their vacations (surely they don't do Acapulco these days, maybe St. Barts though).
Flying Pigs, Tamiflu and Factory Farms
By F. William Engdahl
If we are to believe what our trusted international media report, the world is on the brink of a global pandemic outbreak of a new deadly strain of flu, H1N1 as it has been labelled, or more popularly, Swine Flu. As the story goes, the outbreak of the deadly flu was first discovered in Mexico. According to press reports, after several days, headlines reported as many as perhaps 150 deaths in Mexico were believed caused by this virulent people-killing pig virus that has spread to humans and now is allegedly being further spread from human to human. Cases were being reported hourly from Canada to Spain and beyond. The only thing wrong with this story is that it is largely based on lies, hype and coverup of possible real causes of Mexican deaths.
April 29, 2009 "Global Research" — One website, revealingly named Swine Flu Vaccine, reports the alarming news, ‘One out of every five residents of Mexico's most populous city wore masks to protect themselves against the virus as Mexico City seems to be the epicenter of the outbreak. As many as 103 deaths have been attributed to the swine flu so far with many more feared to be on the horizon. The health department of Mexico said an additional 1,614 reported cases have been documented.’ We are told that the H1N1 ‘shares genetic material from human, avian and swine influenza viruses.’1
Airports around the world have installed passenger temperature scans to identify anyone with above normal body temperature as possible suspect for swine flu. Travel to Mexico has collapsed. Sales of flu vaccines, above all Tamiflu from Roche Inc., have exploded in days. People have stopped buying pork fearing certain death. The World Health Organization has declared a ‘a public health emergency of international concern,’ defined by them as ‘an occurrence or imminent threat of illness or health conditions caused by bioterrorism, epidemic or pandemic disease, or highly fatal infectious agents or toxins that pose serious risk to a significant number of people.’2
What are the symptoms of this purported Swine Flu? That’s not at all clear according to virologists and public health experts. They say Swine Flu symptoms are relatively general and nonspecific. ‘So many different things can cause these symptoms. it is a dilemma,’ says one doctor interviewed by CNN. ‘There is not a perfect test right now to let a doctor know that a person has the Swine Flu.’ It has been noted that most individuals with Swine Flu had an early on set of fever. Also it was common to see dizziness, body aches and vomiting in addition to the common sneezing, headache and other cold symptoms. These are symptoms so general as to say nothing.
The US Government’s Center for Disease Control (CDC) in Atlanta states on its official website, ‘Swine Influenza (swine flu) is a respiratory disease of pigs caused by type A influenza viruses that causes regular outbreaks in pigs. People do not normally get swine flu, but human infections can and do happen. Swine flu viruses have been reported to spread from person-to-person, but in the past, this transmission was limited and not sustained beyond three people.’ Nonetheless they add, ‘CDC has determined that this swine influenza A (H1N1) virus is contagious and is spreading from human to human. However, at this time, it is not known how easily the virus spreads between people.’3
How many media that have grabbed on the headline ‘suspected case of Swine Flu’ in recent days bother to double check with the local health authorities to ask some basic questions? For example, the number of confirmed cases of H1N1 and their location? The number of deaths confirmed to have resulted from H1N1? Dates of both? Number of suspected cases and of suspected deaths related to the Swine Flu disease?
Click here to read the entire article.
Award-winning actor Michael Sheen, who so convincingly played Tony Blair in The Queen, is the latest compassionate celebrity to join PETA Europe's Unbearable Cruelty campaign.
While the real Tony Blair is still keeping mum on the issue of skinning bears, Michael recently sent a letter to Prime Minister Gordon Brown (the actual Gordon Brown, not an actor), calling for an immediate end to the killing of Canadian black bears for the Royal Guards' fur caps.
In his letter, Michael points out the UK's Ministry of Defence's unfulfilled promise to use an animal-friendly fake to replace the skins used for the caps and adds, "Not only is the purchase and importation of bearskins from Canada a deplorable waste of military funding, it is also a waste of animals' lives."
Yes! Michael, if you ever actually run for prime minister, count on my vote. (Well, you know, if I were British … and if prime ministers were actually voted for …)
Read Michael's letter and, if it bothers you that cubs are orphaned when their mothers are killed for hats, then please take action now!
Written by Shawna Flavell
TV talk-show host Montel Williams' daughter Wyntergrace is a real peta2-type girl, and she rocks. She's only 14 years old, but she's heading to Washington, D.C., this week to ask Congress to change the Child Nutrition Act to require public schools to provide healthy vegetarian options to students.
Wyntergrace has also written a letter to Sasha and Malia Obama asking them to join the campaign and sign her petition. She points out that while they are lucky enough to attend a private school where healthy options are available, most kids standing in line in public school cafeterias have to pick from fat-laden hamburgers, high-calorie chicken fingers, and greasy pizza.
What ever happened to equality?
We hope that Sasha and Malia join Wyntergrace in her fight. Congress has needed to step up on this issue for a while, and the support of the first daughters might be just what our representatives need to make them stop dragging their feet.
Written by Liz Graffeo
With the world worried about swine flu, we're ready to turn up the heat—by heading to the steps of the U.S. Capitol to re-create a real-life hog factory farm if our permit is granted. Along with audio of piglets who scream as they endure castration, tail-docking, and ear-notching without any painkillers, our proposed exhibit will include the following:
We've submitted the permit requests and asked to set up shop next week. Now, like the neighbors of the smelly hog farm in LaGloria, Mexico, that's in the news or the folks living next to that smelly hog farm in Tewksbury, Delaware, we're just holding our breath—and hoping to get our permit so that we can bring a dose of reality to Washington's visitors, residents, and lawmakers!
Keep your fingers crossed, and hopefully we'll see you at the Capitol!
Dancing With the Stars—not only a staple of my DVR schedule but also a place to find some serious PETA reppin'. Judge Carrie Ann Inaba and celeb dancers Holly Madison and Steve-O have all starred in some intensely sexy ads for PETA, and even though our faves have already been kicked off, the cast has stepped it up a notch with this fantastic spoof of our "Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur" ad series. Check it out … it's almost funnier than the time Steve Wozniak attempted "The Worm":
Written by Christine Doré
Happy "Win It" Wednesday, everyone. This week, we're celebrating the launch of the new and improved Sea Kittens game, in which you can choose your own sea kittens, dress them up, name them, and share them with your friends.
It's super fun to create your own sea kitten, but it's pretty hard to cuddle with a computer screen (not to mention staticky). Luckily, our lovely merchandise team came up with a solution: the brand new "Sammy the Sea Kitten" plush toy!
Sammy enjoys playing Marco Polo, hanging out with his friends, and not being eaten.
How do you win? Go play the new sea kitten game and then leave us a comment describing your new sea kitten's wardrobe. Don't forget to name him or her. The three most inventive creations will take home the prize!
The contest ends on May 13, 2009, and we'll choose the winners on May 15, 2009. Be sure to read our privacy policy and terms and conditions, as you're agreeing to both by commenting. Check back every Wednesday for new prizes. Good luck!
Written by Lianne Turner
A recent article on UsMagazine.com notes that Octomom Nadya Suleman is considering adding another member to her brood.
No, she's not thinking about having any more babies (at least as far as we know). She's considering bringing a pig into her home.
Actually, into her home isn't quite correct. She wants to buy a pig, put a diaper on him or her, and have him or her live outside—because of the smell.
Pigs are intelligent, social creatures with complex needs. Throwing such a sensitive animal into a mix of 14 kids who won't understand him or her—and expecting him or her to live outside—is no way to treat a family companion.
So, we've written Nadya to ask her to reconsider her plans. Instead of adding another mouth to feed, we hope that she'll focus on the 14 that she already has.
And if compassion doesn't change her mind, hopefully the fear of pig flu will.
OK, well, that's pretty much all that these four lovelies from PETA Asia-Pacific were wearing outside the Manila Zoo, but they certainly drew the crowd's attention to their campaign to improve conditions for animals at the cramped, decrepit zoo.
Thanks go out to these ladies and the rest of the team at PETA Asia-Pacific for their efforts to get the Manila Zoo to shape up its act.
Thanks to global pandemonium revolving around swine flu, almost everything has ground to a halt in Mexico; schools in New York, California, and Texas have closed; Europeans are being urged to postpone travel to the U.S. and Mexico, and sore throat sufferers everywhere are dialing their doctors to ask, "Is it really just my allergies … or have I got swine flu?"
You know who's to blame? Yup, filthy factory farms. A headline in Vera Cruz's La Marcha points the finger at gi-normous pig-breeding farms operated by a subsidiary of Smithfield Foods, the world's largest hog producer. Local residents reportedly believe that feces from the pig farms has contaminated the water and the air, spreading the virus to people. Another article in the Huffington Post quotes La Jornada newspaper, which points the finger at a factory farm in La Gloria, saying, "Clouds of flies emanate from the lagoons where Granjas Carroll discharges the fecal waste from its hog barns …." Yup, knew all that.
Because human consumption of meat is the sole reason that these factory farms exist, PETA has fired off a letter to Mexico City Mayor Marcelo Ebrard urging him to encourage residents to go vegetarian, noting that such an action could help prevent future outbreaks. We're also shipping emergency Spanish-language copies of our "Vegetarian Starter Kit" in case residents need helpful tips when making the shift.
If you live in the U.S., encourage members of Congress to stop the spread of these diseases by ending factory farming.
If you have a general question for PETA and would like a response, please e-mail Info@peta.org. If you need to report cruelty to an animal, please click here. If you are reporting an animal in imminent danger and know where to find the animal and if the abuse is taking place right now, please call your local police department. If the police are unresponsive, please call PETA immediately at 757-622-7382 and press 2.
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