March 17, 1999
John Q. Public
Multinational Corp.
1313 Someplace Rd.
City, CA 90001
Dear Mr. Public:
The foolishness of politicians is always good for a laugh. But when elected officials start destroying more than their reputations, things stop being funny.
Thats currently the problem with Al Gore. The vice president, whom I understand you have supported in the past, has ordered the Environmental Protection Agency to fast-track a high production volume (HPV) program that will test tens of thousands of chemicals by poisoning animals. Millions of birds, rabbits, ducks, fish, guinea pigs, and other animals will suffer and die in the testsand needlessly so. Astoundingly, many of the targeted chemicals, including turpentine and rat poison, have been known to be hazardous for years. Other chemicals on the list, such as caffeine, have already been declared safe food ingredients by the Food and Drug Administration. Where there is a legitimate need for more information, non-animal testing methods are available. Not only are these alternatives humane, they are faster, less expensive, and more reliable in predicting a chemicals potential hazard.
Animal tests, meanwhile, are so outdated and crude that it is actually possible for them to “clear” chemicals we already know to be hazardous. They can also delay governmental regulation of toxic chemicals for years, since a company can always accurately claim that the results are not applicable to humans. There has been strong democratic support on Capitol Hill for delaying the program until these concerns are resolved. Seventeen national animal protection organizations, representing more than 10 million Americans, have also written Vice President Gore to voice their opposition to the program.
Please join us in urging Vice President Gore to delay the HPV chemical-testing program, allowing for a proper review of all existing data and for the incorporation of non-animal testing methods. You may write or call him at:
The Honorable Albert Gore Jr.
Vice President of the United States
Office of the Vice President
The White House
Washington, DC 20500
Tel.: 202-456-2326 / Fax: 202-456-7044
E-mail: [email protected]
Thanks in advance for your support.
Sincerely,
Bill Maher
