Written by PETA
We've been working on a new-and-improved PETA.org for quite awhile. If you haven’t checked it out yet, you might want to have a look. It's beautiful. Like, Grand Canyon beautiful. The Great Redwood Forest. Frickin’ Niagara Falls. Seriously, have a look. Don't be a stranger!
Not too many years ago, the only way PETA VP Dan Mathews could get a designer's attention was by storming their office and painting slogans on the wall, or disrupting a runway show or two in his underwear (hey, I'm pulling this stuff straight from his memoirs). But now Dan seems to have a foot firmly in the door. After reading his new book, Liz Claiborne big wigs Tim Gunn (of Project Runway fame) and Anne Cashill invited Dan to be the featured speaker at the company's monthly designer roundtable last week, which was attended by several of the company’s designers—many of whom work with leather, wool and even fur—as well as the company’s CEO, William McComb.
In honor of PETA’s visit, the company treated attendees to delicious homemade cookies in the shapes of foxes, beavers, and bunnies, with the words “Save Me” written in icing across the bottom. The fashionistas also received a copy of Committed and were aghast at the cruelty involved in creating animal-based “fabrics” as they watched PETA's fur industry exposé hosted by former fur wearer Martha Stewart, our undercover Indian leather investigation hosted by Pam Anderson, and our Australian wool exposé narrated by Pink. One handbag designer at the event promised never to use leather again! He's quite a charmer, our Dan.
Here are links to the stories.
Cry of the Wild
Gorilla Warfare
Hugely Vulnerable- Q&A with Richard Leakey
A lot of people have been writing in to ask who won the Second Life anti-fur slogan contest I was talking up a few weeks ago. Well, the virtual ballots have been cast, and the winners have been announced. Here are the winning slogans, and the awesome Stella McCartney display stand that will memorialize their work in Second Life forever. “All we are saying is give fleece a chance.” Love it.
There are a few old lighthouses on the East Coast being offered up free of charge to a nonprofit or other qualified entity under the Lighthouse Preservation Act of 2000. So—of course—we’re applying for them. What international animal protection organization doesn’t need a lighthouse or two, right?
The first of the lighthouses we applied for is called the Penfield Reef Lighthouse—it's about a mile off the Connecticut coast, near the small town of Farifield. Here’s a story about it.
In all seriousness, we're applying for the lighthouses to serve as the international headquarters of our Fish Empathy Project, where we would install interactive displays promoting the protection of fish. Plus, it would be the perfect place to house the world’s first Fish Empathy Quilt.
After we submitted our application for the Penfield Reef Lighthouse, we found out that an official with the City of Fairfield—backed by the local Historical Society—is trying to obtain the lighthouse. So we wrote to him offering to bow out of the competition (which, incidentally, is just between us and him right now) if he can ensure that no cruelty to fish (such as angling or fish sticks) takes place on lighthouse grounds. Here’s the letter we sent. I’ll be sure to let you know if we get a response, but I wouldn’t start making vacation plans to visit the PETA Lighthouse just yet . . .
Dear Paris and Britney, So, you have popped into a pet store to pick up some more doggie arm candy. Your impulse purchases of dogs encourage others to follow suit, no matter how ill-equipped they are to provide a decade or more of care for a little dog who has feelings and needs and who requires patience, veterinary care, and stimulation other than nightclub music and bar laughter. Also, for every pet store puppy purchased, a pound puppy dies (and a breeder -- probably somewhere in Arkansas or Missouri -- is rewarded for adding yet another litter to the pet overpopulation crisis). A California bill that would have required most dogs and cats to be spayed or neutered-and therefore would have helped reduce the taxpayer burden for disposing of (killing) homeless animals-was recently defeated by greedy breeders. Perhaps you and other vacuous stars need to tattoo "Don't buy while pound pups die" on your foreheads to remind each other of that home truth. Very truly yours,Ingrid E. Newkirk, PresidentPETA
Dear Paris and Britney,
So, you have popped into a pet store to pick up some more doggie arm candy. Your impulse purchases of dogs encourage others to follow suit, no matter how ill-equipped they are to provide a decade or more of care for a little dog who has feelings and needs and who requires patience, veterinary care, and stimulation other than nightclub music and bar laughter. Also, for every pet store puppy purchased, a pound puppy dies (and a breeder -- probably somewhere in Arkansas or Missouri -- is rewarded for adding yet another litter to the pet overpopulation crisis). A California bill that would have required most dogs and cats to be spayed or neutered-and therefore would have helped reduce the taxpayer burden for disposing of (killing) homeless animals-was recently defeated by greedy breeders. Perhaps you and other vacuous stars need to tattoo "Don't buy while pound pups die" on your foreheads to remind each other of that home truth.
Very truly yours,
Ingrid E. Newkirk, PresidentPETA
… but first, here’s a comic from the wonderful Dan Piraro that I think just about sums it up:
One of Michael Vick’s codefendants, Tony Taylor, changed his plea to guilty today. Taylor admitted to the court that he helped buy pit bulls and puppies and executed animals who didn’t do well in performance tests by shooting and electrocution.
PETA is offering up to $1,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of anyone suspected of dogfighting.
I know I just blogged about this on Friday, but I just couldn’t resist another entry . . . OK, so maybe it has a little something to do with the fact that I grew up with The Lost Boys and The Goonies, but I absolutely loved the premiere of the new A&E reality show The Two Coreys last night. Of course, it could also have a little something to do with the fact that the plot centered around a dinner meeting with KFC Campaigner Nicole Matthews.
Here’s the description from the producers:
After a long hiatus, the "Two Coreys" are finally reunited when Corey Haim comes to stay with his best friend, Corey Feldman, and his wife, Susie. But a lot has changed in the years they have been apart—Feldman is married, a devout vegetarian, animal activist, and a non-smoker. Haim, still single and a committed carnivore, finds himself at odds with Feldman's new lifestyle and struggles to adjust to the rules of the house. The tension peaks when Haim disrupts an important dinner meeting between the Feldmans and a PETA representative.
You can check out the re-run Friday (August 3) at 11pm, Saturday (August 4) at 3am and 1pm, Sunday (August 5) at 5pm and Sunday (August 12) at 2pm. All times are Eastern Standard Time.
Here’s a clip to whet your appetite, and you can click here to read our interview with Corey Feldman and his wife Susie.
I just got word from our media department that PETA's latest billboard, which shows a patient in a Japanese hospital who suffered brain damage from mercury that was traced to contaminated fish, along with the tagline "Extreme Case of Mercury Poisoning: How Much Is in Your Fish?" was banned in Providence by all three of the city's outdoor advertisers. CBS Outdoor Mall sent PETA the following rejection note: "We won't take anything from PETA that depicts cruelty to animals, blood, disabled children, etc." That certainly rules out a few of our billboards. The purpose of this particular ad was to warn consumers about the tragic consequences of mercury poisoning from eating fish and direct readers to a website where they can learn some of the following disturbing information:
Feel free to let me know what you think of this one.
I just love Bea Arthur. She has been speaking up for animals for years, most recently narrating this moving KFC video and helping with our Petsmart campaign. Now she is turning up the heat on Beverly Hills restaurant Matsuhisa—where she has been a loyal customer since it opened in 1987—for serving cruel foie gras. Check out her letter below.
Nobuyuki Matsuhisa, OwnerMatsuhisa Restaurant129 N. La Cienega Blvd.Beverly Hills, CA 90211 Dear Nobu, I have been a loyal fan of Matsuhisa since its opening in 1987 and have dined there nearly every week after. I have always loved the food, the décor, and the staff. That’s why I was so dismayed when I recently learned that foie gras is available in the restaurant’s side room. I cannot, in good conscience, continue dining at your restaurant as long as foie gras is offered.The cruelty of the foie gras industry is staggering. The only way to produce foie gras is by ramming pipes down the throats of ducks and geese and force-feeding them until their livers become painfully diseased. These poor birds are pumped so full of grain and fat that their livers swell to up to 10 times the normal size. Then the animals are killed, and their diseased livers are sold as foie gras. The world is speaking out against the cruelty inherent in foie gras production. Chicago enacted a ban on the sale of foie gras last year, and Wolfgang Puck recently dropped this cruel “delicacy” from his menu. As you know, in 2012, California will join 15 countries, including Israel, Germany, Switzerland, and the U.K., in banning the production of foie gras—and will join Chicago in banning its sale. I am an avid supporter of this cause, and I lobbied for the foie gras ban in Sacramento. It would be both savvy and compassionate of you to remove foie gras from Matsuhisa’s menu before the ban takes effect in 2012.I am enclosing a copy of a video, narrated by Sir Roger Moore, depicting the horrific abuse of animals on foie gras farms. I hope that you will watch it and make the compassionate decision to remove foie gras from your menu. Only once I know that Matsuhisa stands firmly against cruelty to animals will I be able to return to my favorite restaurant.Please contact me via Lisa Lange at PETA. Yours truly, Bea Arthur
Nobuyuki Matsuhisa, OwnerMatsuhisa Restaurant129 N. La Cienega Blvd.Beverly Hills, CA 90211
Dear Nobu,
I have been a loyal fan of Matsuhisa since its opening in 1987 and have dined there nearly every week after. I have always loved the food, the décor, and the staff. That’s why I was so dismayed when I recently learned that foie gras is available in the restaurant’s side room. I cannot, in good conscience, continue dining at your restaurant as long as foie gras is offered.
The cruelty of the foie gras industry is staggering. The only way to produce foie gras is by ramming pipes down the throats of ducks and geese and force-feeding them until their livers become painfully diseased. These poor birds are pumped so full of grain and fat that their livers swell to up to 10 times the normal size. Then the animals are killed, and their diseased livers are sold as foie gras.
The world is speaking out against the cruelty inherent in foie gras production. Chicago enacted a ban on the sale of foie gras last year, and Wolfgang Puck recently dropped this cruel “delicacy” from his menu. As you know, in 2012, California will join 15 countries, including Israel, Germany, Switzerland, and the U.K., in banning the production of foie gras—and will join Chicago in banning its sale. I am an avid supporter of this cause, and I lobbied for the foie gras ban in Sacramento. It would be both savvy and compassionate of you to remove foie gras from Matsuhisa’s menu before the ban takes effect in 2012.
I am enclosing a copy of a video, narrated by Sir Roger Moore, depicting the horrific abuse of animals on foie gras farms. I hope that you will watch it and make the compassionate decision to remove foie gras from your menu. Only once I know that Matsuhisa stands firmly against cruelty to animals will I be able to return to my favorite restaurant.
Please contact me via Lisa Lange at PETA.
Yours truly,
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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