AR-NEWS Digest 592

Topics covered in this issue include:

  1) Wilkes-Barre, PA proudly adds one more FFF arrest
     by LMANHEIM@aol.com
  2) GW2K/Apple Selling Skin Jackets
     by Pat Fish 
  3) [UK] Arrests At Hillgrove Cat Breeders
     by "Miggi" 
  4) [UK] Hunt supporters threaten civil disobedience
     by David J Knowles 
  5) [UK] A green salad a day 'will keep cancer cells away'
     by David J Knowles 
  6) WSJ Article mentions FFF
     by Hillary 
  7) (US) Holiday Fur Protests / 300 march in city; LI Macy's is
  targeted
     by allen schubert 
  8) Expanding the migraine market - clarification
     by Andrew Gach 
  9) LA COPS BEAT ANTI-FUR PROTESTOR (US)
     by civillib@cwnet.com
 10) [UK] Gassed In The Name Of Fashion.  Plus Huntingdon Article
     by "Miggi" 
 11) (US) Oklahoma Weekly Outdoor News
     by JanaWilson@aol.com
 12) Re: Wilkes-Barre, PA proudly adds one more FFF arrest
     by LMANHEIM@aol.com
 13) [UK]CJD (NEW VARIANT), TEENAGER DIES
     by bunny 
 14) RABIES, FOX - EUROPE
     by bunny 
 15) [US]Salmonella,dead calves and dead people 
     by bunny 
 16) Fw: index
     by "Ronald Schaub" 
 17) RFI - Humane methods of crow popluation control
     by Vadivu Govind 
 18) Latest Threat To Orangutans
     by tigerwatch@goodmedia.com (Lawrence Pinsky)
 19) Fur Wearer survey
     by NOVENAANN@aol.com
 20) EU Trap Ban Update!!!
     by Tereiman 
 21) Mutton kills Polynesians - the commercial reality
     by Andrew Gach 
 22) (US) Woman With 'Mad Cow' Donated Eyes
     by allen schubert 
Date: Sun, 30 Nov 1997 01:15:33 -0500 (EST)
From: LMANHEIM@aol.com
To: civillib@cwnet.com, ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Wilkes-Barre, PA proudly adds one more FFF arrest
Message-ID: <971130011533_1115780440@mrin83.mail.aol.com>

Can't go into details now (preparing for post-Thanksgiving veggie potluck
dinner) but we had one arrest at our demo in Wilkes-Barre, PA.

BTW...we had 40 people!!  INCREDIBLE for this region.  They were almost all
straight edge movement kids (God I love them).   They don't drink, drug, or
smoke, they're veggie or vegan, and they're very into animal rights and other
important causes like freeing Tibet.  Also anti-sexist and gay-friendly.
 They have a lot of piercings but hey...I can live with that.  Gavin, the one
who was arrested, has a pierced tongue (shudder).  Some of you out there
might know him?  He's from Canton, Ohio.

Also...I did not organize this demo.  Don't want anyone to get the wrong
idea.  These young people travel en masse--going to concerts together and
doing good works.  If only the whole world were like them...

Lynn Manheim
Letters for Animals
Date: Sun, 30 Nov 1997 06:21:03 +0000 (GMT)
From: Pat Fish 
To: Leslie Lindemann 
Cc: AR-news postings 
Subject: GW2K/Apple Selling Skin Jackets
Message-ID: 
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII

On Sat, 29 Nov 1997, Leslie Lindemann wrote about GW2K's jackets:

>I received a Gateway2000 catalogue today, and was very angry to see a
>"cow-spotted",  lambskin jacket for sale among all their other "cow-spot"
>junk.  Their website is http://www.spotshop.com.  I didn't see the jacket
>on the website, but it is in the mail-order catalogue.


  GW2K has sold leather jackets for some time.  And Apple has also marketed
skin, most recently as trimming on the high-priced Mac Spartacus.  For those
who wish to single out Gateway2000 (while conveniently ignoring the
transgressions of Intel, Microsoft, IBM, Hewlett Packard, Mitsubishi, etc.)
here are some key addresses and numbers for you to use to lobby Gateway2000:

 First, their corporate customer #; with this you can call them at
their expense, and get to ANY person in the company as long as you know
their extension #.  Use this #, not the ones you see on TV.  I have included
ext.#'s where available.  Some of this info was not easy to get, so please
leave my name out of it :-) 

1-800-846-2069

Key names, and if known, email addresses.  You can easily
take any name and convert it to their company-wide standard for e-mail
addresses.

Angela Peacock                 Steven Johns 
peacoang@gw2k.com              johnsste@gw2k.com
Corporate Communications       Assistant is Holly O'Conner
EXT. 21686

Jeff Schindler                 James Taylor
Projects Manager               EXT. 21531
Assistant is Mary-Joe
EXT.22223
605-232-6442

Mike Grubbs                    Keith Bradach     Bob Spears
Global Products Manager

Ted Waitt, CEO and Founder
GW2K
610 Gateway Drive
N. Sioux City, S.D. 57049


  If you want more information on Gateway2000's questionable image, see:
    http://www.monitor.net/monitor/free2/mcdgateway.html
    http://www.mcspotlight.org/media/press/cpea_nov96.html
 
I regret that both of these^ articles are early drafts, never meant to be
seen.  I don't know how they both wound up running these rough versions.



  It's fine and well to go after GW2K, but to ignore the greater misdeeds of
Intel, Microsoft, Apple, etc., is a bit like boycotting Proctor & Gamble
while buying Gillette or Colgate or Johnson & Johnson products.  Activists
who want to get information on technology-related issues can subscribe to
the Computer Professionals for Eath & Animals Dispatch.  E-mail me at
pfish@fang.cs.sunyit.edu


>Please take a minute to go the the website, email them, and tell them you'd
>like to be able to buy a computer without supporting a company that sells
>chopped up animals.

  If you're using an Apple product, or a machine with "Intel inside" (or AMD
for that matter), or any Microsoft software, or any IBM compatible, you are
in effect, patronizing companies that:

 * Test on animals (gee, how do they test printer toner anyway?)
 * Openly advocate and champion the cause of vivisection
 * Contribute to pollution in new, strange ways
 * Promote meat/cheese/leather
 * Invest in "biotechnology" (genetic engineering with animal experiments)
 * Hosts TV forums for Pharmaceuticals, multinational corporations
   and the far-right to attack animal-rights, environmentalism, etc.
 * Was involved in fraudulent recycling schemes. 
 * Use anti-animal advertising 

Fortunately there are more ethical (and technologically superior)
alternatives.  The CPEA Dispatch is infrequent at best, so it won't clog
your mailbox.

>Thanks
>Leslie


Pat Fish
Computer Professionals for Earth & Animals


Date: Sun, 30 Nov 1997 11:32:02 +0000
From: "Miggi" 
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: [UK] Arrests At Hillgrove Cat Breeders
Message-ID: <199711301130.LAA12149@serv4.vossnet.co.uk>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT

> From BBC Teletext Page 552

ARRESTS MADE AFTER CAT FARM DISTURBANCE
Five people have been arrested in connection with a disturbance at an 
Oxfordshire cat farm ni the early hours of this morning.
Police say security lights were switched off at Hillgrove Farm at 
Minster Lovell near Witney where cats are breed for use in medical 
experiments.
The farm is the scene of frequent demonstrations by animal rights 
protestors.
They claim five of them were treated in hospital following the 
incident.
Date: Sun, 30 Nov 1997 03:30:03
From: David J Knowles 
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: [UK] Hunt supporters threaten civil disobedience
Message-ID: <3.0.3.16.19971130033003.2fe72304@dowco.com>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

>From The Electronic Telegraph - Sunday, November 30th, 1997

Hunt supporters threaten civil disobedience
By Greg Neale and Tom Baldwin 

HUNTING enthusiasts could resort to blocking roads, airports and stations
if the Government gives extra parliamentary time for legislation to abolish
the hunting of foxes and stags.

The spectre of civil disobedience was raised yesterday as hunting
organisations reacted to the overwhelming Commons vote on Friday in support
of the Labour MP Michael Foster's Bill to outlaw hunting with hounds. The
vote, 411 to 151, has led to speculation that renewed
pressure on Parliament could lead to hunting being banned within three years.

Janet George, a spokesman for the Countryside Alliance, the umbrella
organisation representing hunting groups, said: "The countryside is now so
angry that if the Government tries to give this Bill time, or dangles the
possibility of an anti-hunting amendment being accepted to a future
Criminal Justice Bill, there is a real possibility that some people would
express their feelings in forms of civil disobedience. We would obviously
not support it, but there are many individuals who are seriously talking
about civil disobedience, and being prepared to go to jail."

John Gouriet, a co-founder of the National Association for Freedom, said
yesterday: "If hunting is banned, there will be widespread civil
disobedience. Mr Foster has declared war on the countryside, and the
countryside will fight back. Every major road, airport and station can be
blocked. London can be blockaded, as can every other major city. The
courts, the prisons and the police would be overwhelmed. We have seen what
French lorry drivers can do - what could British farmers do?"

Meanwhile the campaigners backing Mr Foster were planning their next steps.
Ministers have conceded that opponents of hunting will get another
opportunity to implement a ban within the next couple of years - probably
through an amendment to an anticipated Criminal Justice Bill.

© Copyright Telegraph Group Limited 1997. 

Date: Sun, 30 Nov 1997 03:37:51
From: David J Knowles 
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: [UK] A green salad a day 'will keep cancer cells away'
Message-ID: <3.0.3.16.19971130033751.21afd56a@dowco.com>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

>From The Electronic Telegraph - Sunday, November 30th, 1997

A green salad a day 'will keep cancer cells away'
By Robert Matthews, Science Correspondent 

A PLATE of green salad before a meal can protect against stomach cancer,
according to new research on how the body protects itself against bacteria.

Green vegetables, such as lettuce, have been found to contain chemicals
that, when naturally converted into potent antibacterial agents, also
combat food poisoning. Research by Professor Nigel Benjamin at St
Bartholomew's Hospital, London, and Dr Roelf Dykhuisen at the University of
Aberdeen has found that food rich in nitrates is converted in the mouth
into compounds that produce nitric oxide - a potent antibacterial chemical
- once in the stomach. 

The "disinfectant" effect of this on bacteria in the stomach is dramatic,
Prof Benjamin said. "We have found that the salivary production of nitrite
is sufficiently high to kill all the bacterial pathogens we have tested." 

These include E coli 0157, the bacterium at the centre of the food
poisoning outbreaks in Scotland which killed 20 people last winter. Unlike
most bacteria, E coli 0157 can survive the strongly acidic environment of
the stomach, causing everything from sickness and vomiting to kidney
infection and cerebral palsy. But when exposed to a dose of
vegetable-generated nitric oxide, it is killed. 

Prof Benjamin said this could explain why recent outbreaks of the bacterium
centred on Scotland, a fact that has so far puzzled public health experts.
He said: "We suspect that as the Scots have such an appalling diet in terms
of vegetable intake it may have made them particularly susceptible to 0157."

The findings suggest that eating a green salad before a meal can generate
enough antibacterial nitric oxide in the stomach to kill food poisoning
bacteria. Leaf vegetables, such as lettuce, are likely to be particularly
effective, as they are exposed to low light levels - which boost their
nitrate levels. 

According to Prof Benjamin, nitrate tablets also could help travellers
resist potentially fatal attacks of food-poisoning. A small trial with
volunteers on a trekking expedition through Nepal and Tibet showed that
those who took nitrate tablets suffered less diarrhoea, vomiting and
infections than the rest.

A much larger trial is now planned with the British Army. Prof Benjamin
said: "Nitrates may also help those in refugee camps, where diarrhoea is a
major concern."

The research marks a U-turn in scientists' attitude towards nitrates -
agricultural chemicals long thought to be a cause of cancer. The
concentration of chemicals, used by farmers to boost crop yields, are
strictly controlled by the Government after claims that they leach into
groundwater and cause several disorders, including stomach cancer. However,
suspicions of such fears have circulated for years, with researchers
failing to find clear evidence outside the laboratory of a link.

While laboratory studies have shown that nitrates can produce
cancer-causing chemicals, attempts to demonstrate a link with cancer in the
population have failed.

The part of the country with the highest rates of stomach cancer - North
Wales - turns out to have the lowest exposure to nitrates, while the lowest
rates of the disease are found in East Anglia, which has the highest
nitrate exposure.

However, Prof Benjamin suggests that nitrates in the diet may protect
against stomach cancer by killing a bacterium called Helicobacter, now
believed to cause many cases of the disease. Although Helicobacter is
resistant to stomach acid, research is under way to discover if the
bacterium can be destroyed by the combined effect of acid and nitrate
from vegetables. 

Prof Benjamin believes that the combination of nitrate and acid is likely
to have a host of other medical uses, from helping the treatment of
athlete's foot to fighting off yeast infections. "We are looking at a wide
range of applications to boost this natural mechanism to treat or prevent
infection," he said.

Prof Benjamin's work on nitrates and food poisoning is featured on Trust me
- I'm a doctor tomorrow at 8pm on BBC2.

© Copyright Telegraph Group Limited 1997. 

[BBC2 is a British TV station and is part of the British Braodcasting
Corporation network]

Date: Sun, 30 Nov 1997 09:56:28 -0800
From: Hillary 
To: "ar-news@envirolink.org" 
Subject: WSJ Article mentions FFF
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19971130095607.0070a910@pop01.ny.us.ibm.net>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"


Hurry! There Are Only 27 More
Protesting Days Until Christmas

By REKHA BALU 
Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL


In an annual rite, newspapers and TV stations will dispatch reporters to
retail districts Friday for the first day of Christmas shopping.

But the coverage won't be limited to big crowds, colorful lights and
cheerful music. 'Tis also the season for retail gadflies.

Retired employees of Sears, Roebuck and Co. plan to picket some Sears
stores, seeking reinstatement of their life insurance benefits.
"Thanksgiving is the most logical time to rally around," says Everett
Buckardt, former president of Sears catalog and now a protester. "It's when
more people see what we're speaking about." (Sears contends that its
retirement package remains generous.)

Also Friday, the National Labor Committee, a New-York based workers' rights
group, will release a list of nine companies it claims use sweatshop labor.
The move is a prelude to candlelight vigils on the nation's main shopping
boulevards Dec. 11. In a similar campaign, the Union of Needletrades,
Industrial and Textile Employees is organizing anti-sweatshop rallies
outside two retail chains throughout December.

In Canada, protesters against the Burmese government will target stores
carrying clothes made in Burma. As always, anti-fur protesters will be out
in force, designating the day "Fur Free Friday."

Naturally, retailers regard all this as contrary to the Christmas spirit.
"Retail is the engine that drives the U.S. economy," says Pamela Rucker,
spokesperson for the National Retail Federation. "We employ an extra one
million people during the holidays," so sales boycotts can have "an impact
down the economic ladder."

Such protests usually have a minimal impact on sales, retail experts say.
But they concede that protesters have impeccable timing. "With the press,
the day after Thanksgiving is still a trigger," says Neil Stern, a partner
at retail consultancy McMillan/Doolittle LLP. "It's the time of year we're
most likely to think about the plight of fellow human beings," says Herbert
Chao Gunther of Public Media Center, a non-profit advocacy firm in San
Francisco.

Even so, Mr. Gunther warns that holiday protests can backfire if shoppers
see them as intrusive. "A lot of people see this as a time when the world
should be at peace," he says.
Date: Sun, 30 Nov 1997 10:42:23 -0500
From: allen schubert 
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (US) Holiday Fur Protests / 300 march in city; LI Macy's is
  targeted
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19971130104221.00722824@pop3.clark.net>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

from Newsday http://www.newsday.com/mainnews/rnmi041o.htm via NewsWorks
http://www.newsworks.com/
----------------------------------------------
Holiday Fur Protests / 300 march in city; LI Macy's is targeted

Caryn Eve Murray and Al Baker contributed to this story, which was
supplemented with a Reuters report.

It was "Fur Free Friday" across the metro area on the first big shopping
day of the holiday season, and anti-fur demonstrators made their point
flamboyantly in Manhattan and on Long Island.

In midtown, 300 demonstrators marched up Fifth Avenue from Saks to Revillon
Fur Co., where about 22 from the group Friends of Animals were arrested
after they blocked the entrance with a sit-down.

At the Roosevelt Field Shopping Mall, about 30 animal rights activists
sneaked into the region's largest shopping mecca at noon and unfurled a
"Fur Is Murder" banner from a balcony, threw fliers in the air and
partially blocked the Macy's entrance inside the mall for nearly two hours.

Five members of the Animal Defense League used metal tubes to link one
another's arms and form a ring around an anti-shoplifting device outside
the store, forcing Nassau emergency service police to use power saws to
separate the protesters before they arrested them.

Some shoppers were angered by the din that disrupted their bargain hunting.

"It makes you want to buy two fur coats," one shopper said as he shielded
his ears from the activists' shouts of, "Stop the insanity, no blood for
vanity!"

Other shoppers were puzzled but were more sympathetic. "I don't know why
they're picking on Macy's, but I admire young people who stand up for what
they believe in," said Yvonne Broderick of Center Island.

Macy's was targeted because it's part of Federated Department Stores, which
also owns Bloomingdale's and other stores, and is the nation's largest
seller of furs, said Brian G. Smith, 24, a protest organizer. Store
officials could not be reached for comment.

Smith said coordinated anti-fur protests were taking place on Long Island,
in New York City and around the country as part of "Fur]] Free Friday" and
to launch a new national campaign against leg-hold animal traps and the
sale of animal fur. Animal Defense League members also protested outside
the Fur Vault in Garden City, but there were no arrests there.

Police said 11 Rooosevelt Field protesters were arrested and were being
charged with trespassing, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. In
addition, two of the 11 are being charged with harassment, police said.

The Manhattan protesters were charged with trespassing, criminal
trespassing and obstructing governmental administration. 
Date: Sun, 30 Nov 1997 10:50:19 -0800
From: Andrew Gach 
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Expanding the migraine market - clarification
Message-ID: <3481B56B.341A@worldnet.att.net>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

Allen Shubert asked me to clarify the relevance of the wire item
"Expanding the migraine market" I recently submitted, to the ar-news
list.  Here is my rationale:

Every new drug is tested on hundreds of animals.  Not only the ones that
reach the market, but the huge majority that fizzle out.  (According to
an article in the Sept. 19, 1994 issue of The Scientist, for every 5,000
compounds evaluated in the laboratory, only one approved drug will
result!)    

The drug industry subjects millions of laboratory animals to tremendous
suffering year after year.  They claim their motive is to alleviate
human suffering.  I believe it is important to document the fact that
the real motive behind drug development is corporate profits and not
human welfare.  Whether a new drug helps or hurts the consumer is of
little import to the pharmaceutical industry as long as revenues are
generated.

New drugs that reach the market are often of dubious value and if they
improve on previously licenced medications at all, they do so at the
price of introducing new risks, -- as is the case with the new migraine
drugs.  The real engine behind drug development is the expiration of
patents that have given the manufacturer exclusive rights.

Uncovering the real motives and underlying cynicism of the
pharmaceutical industry, in face of the the fawning adulation of the
mainstream media toward purported "breakthroughs" cannot be indifferent
to those of us opposed to vivisection.

Andy 

allen schubert wrote:
> 
> Andrew...or...just a simple statement clarifying the AR connection to the
> list would be great, too!
> 
> allen
Date: Sun, 30 Nov 1997 11:16:30 -0800 (PST)
From: civillib@cwnet.com
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: LA COPS BEAT ANTI-FUR PROTESTOR (US)
Message-ID: <199711301916.LAA05581@smtp.cwnet.com>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

HELP FOR THE 'BEVERLY HILLS 6'

Reports from visitors in L.A. suggest Jerry has been beaten by guards inside
the jail (see release below). There is a vigil planned tonight.

However, we are urging ALL ACTIVISTS (and pass the word) to begin an
IMMEDIATE PHONE BLOCKADE (not to to harass but to inquire about the
condition of your friends) of the LA and Beverly Hills Police. Tell a friend...

Ask about Jerry Vlasak, Pam Ferdin or Vlasak, Richard McLellan, Alison
Lance, Michael Welton and Patrick Thames.

Numbers are: LA County Jail 213/473-6100
Beverly Hills PD  310/550-4951
********************
URGENT NEWS ADVISORY
November 30, 1997

Contact: Activist Civil Liberties Committee (916) 452-7179




LA COUNTY DEPUTIES BEAT
JAILED DOCTOR, NOW ON 3rd DAY
OF HUNGER, THIRST STRIKE 

     LOS ANGELES – Los Angeles County deputies reportedly handcuffed, and then
punched and kicked a local surgeon Saturday after his arrest at a
demonstration and transfer to Los Angeles County Central Jail. A news
briefing, and candlelight vigil is scheduled for Sunday at 6 p.m. in front
of the jail (441 Bauchet).

     Dr. Jerry Vlasak told friends Saturday that deputies handcuffed him to a
pole and then took turns kicking and punching him. Dr. Vlasak was jailed
Friday after an anti-fur protest in which 8 people were arrested during a
peaceful sit-in at Fendi Furs on Rodeo Drive.

     Dr. Vlasak is in Central Jail with Dr. Rich Mclellan, also a Los Angeles
doctor – both announced Friday they are refusing to eat, or drink any
liquids in protest to jail conditions. A "thirst strike" can result in
kidney damage in about 72 hours – which the two will reach sometime Sunday.
Death can result within 5-7 days.

     Four other protestors, also at Central Jail or Twin Towers, are also on a
hunger strike. All 6 have an arraignment date of Tuesday at 8:30 a.m. at
Central Arraignment (429 Bauchet).

     They are being held on felony charges because 2 of the people arrested at
the demonstration Friday – part of a national day of protest against the
killing of animals for fur – were juveniles. However, both individuals
received permission from their parents to attend the nonviolent demonstration.

     Bail is $50,000 each for the "Beverly Hills 6" - extraordinary high for a
protest.

     At least 96 anti-fur protestors were arrested on "Fur Free
Friday"including: New York City (22), Minneapolis (17), Garden City, NY
(13), San Francisco (12), Dallas (10), Beverly Hills (8), Albany (4),
Eatonville, NJ (2), Atlanta (2), Philadelphia (4),Wilkes-Barre, PA (1),
Boston (1). Dozens of those activists remained jail, some on felonies,
across the U.S.
-30-




activists civil liberties committee
PO Box 19515, Sacramento, CA 95819 (916) 452-7179 Fax: (916) 454-6150

Date: Sun, 30 Nov 1997 20:31:33 +0000
From: "Miggi" 
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: [UK] Gassed In The Name Of Fashion.  Plus Huntingdon Article
Message-ID: <199711302029.UAA23816@serv4.vossnet.co.uk>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

> From The Express On Sunday - 30/11/97 (Main Front Page Story)

GASSED IN THE NAME OF FASHION
Exposed: Horror Of British Fur Farms - By Danny Penman
-
The full horror of Britain's fur farms can today be revealed by The 
Express on Sunday.
Thousands of baby mink are being slowly gassed to death by exhaust 
fumes in makeshift chambers.
Just 24 hours after MPs voted for a ban on hunting foxes, deer, hares 
and mink with hounds, campaigners last night urged the Government to 
outlaw the fur farms "inhumane" methods.
Despite constant denials by the trade, secret photographs and video 
footage obtained by The Express provide evidence of the cruel death 
inflicted, at one farm alone, on up to 60,000 mink each year. Our 
pictures show the mink being torn from their cages, swung round by 
their tails and forced into a tiny wooden chamber.
They are then left to die slowly from exhaust fumes piped from a 
motorised buggy. Some mink fight each other viciously in a panic- 
striken bid to escape.
Agriculture Minister Jack Cunningham has promised to fulfil Labour's 
election pledge to ban fur farming completely. Yet the Government is 
dragging its feet over how to do it.
Last night Elliot Morley, Minister for Fisheries and the Countryside, 
said: "We are committed to banning fur farming and are seeking the 
best way of doing it. Whatever way we decide, we're not going to 
accept the present situation."
Mark Glover, of Respect for Animals the main anti-fur group, said: 
"You cannot imagine the terrorof these animals as they slip into 
unconsciousness, knowing that they will die, knowing there is no 
escape. If these animals are lucky, the exhaust fumes will be cooled 
and filtered first. If they are not, the hot gases will eat into 
their noses, mouths and throats. It is the cruellest of deaths if not 
done properly."
The British Fur Trade Association has always denied that its members 
kill mink by gassing and have refused to comment.
Our pictures were obtained on the Windmill Mink Farm, in Child 
Okeford, Dorset, which is typical of Britain's 15 remaining fur 
farms.
Palstic bins, rusting farm machinery and dead mink lie scattered 
about. In one shed, amid an unbearable stench, there is a bin filled 
with rotting carcases.
But even the agonising death of the animals is a release compared to 
the conditions in which they have lived for six months.
Between 5,000 and 7,000 creatures are kept in the battery hen-style 
wire cages.
Animal welfare expert Professor Donald Broom, of Cambridge 
University, described conditions at Windmill Mink Farm as "scruffy 
and cruel". He said that animal are driven mad in the cages and 
behave like shell-shocked war veterans, swaying gently from side to 
side. Some repeatedly rear up on their hind legs and others climb the 
walls of their cages, then throw themselves to the floor.
Local residents hate the fur farm and want it closed down. One who 
wished to remain anonymous, said the farm "blighted the village".
She added: "There are horrendous smells. Dead mink are just left to 
rot. There are flies everywhere."
Last night Dr Cunningham said: "There are welfare rules about keeping 
and slaughtering mink and my vets are visiting every farm during this 
killing season to ensure the process is being properly conducted. If 
anyone has evidence of contraventions, they should send it to my 
vets." More than 35 million mink have been killed worldwide this 
year. Their pelts are worth about £10 each. Gassing is cheap and 
leaves the fur in good condition.
Retailers say that the trade in mink coats is booming again. Full 
length coats cost between £3000 and £8000 with 40 pelts used per 
coat.
The land on which the Windmill Mink Farm is sited is owned by John 
Habour and his wife Valerie, who also own the next-door Oasis Health 
and Beauty Centre.
The farm is run by T T Smith (Mink) Limited and one of those involved 
is Terence Smith, a former business associate of Mr Habour.
Managers failed to respind to several requests for an interview.

>Also on the same page........

CO-OP £1m SHARES IN ANIMAL LAB
The parent company of the Co-op bank, which opposes animal 
experiments, has a massive shareholding in Europe's biggest 
vivisection lab, it was disclosed last night. Huntingdon Life 
Sciences uses tens of thousands of animals to tests drugs, pesticides 
and household products.
The Co-operative Insurance Society owns more tha one and a half 
million shares in the lab worth about £1 million. The CIS is part of 
the Co-operative Wholesale Society, which owns the Co-op Bank and 
more than 700 shops. Chris Hirst, investment manager for CIS, said 
that they were reviewing their shareholding in the laboratory. But he 
Added: "If huntingdon does not do the animal experiments, then 
someone else will."
Date: Sun, 30 Nov 1997 15:47:56 -0500 (EST)
From: JanaWilson@aol.com
To: Ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (US) Oklahoma Weekly Outdoor News
Message-ID: <971130154756_-1994087874@mrin84.mail.aol.com>


A/w Oklahoma City hunting news:

Oklahomans wanting to see a bald eagle will have a no. of
opportunities this winter a/w Mr. Mark Howery, Okla. Wildlife
Dept. biologist.  "Overall, 23 sites statewide are providing more
than 100 chances for Oklahomans to see eagles at a lake or
reservoir near them.  A no. of sites are providing specail programs 
guided opportunities to view eagles up close.  And actually seeing
eagles shouldn't be hard.  Our state historically ranks among the
top five for the no. of visiting eagles each winter," a/w Howery.
Oklahoma averages 830 wintering eagles although a record 1,540
eagles were recorded in 1991.  The birds should arrive in late
December and January.  Besides hosting wintering eagles, 
Oklahoma is also home to more than 50 resident eagles.
Last year 23 pairs of birds were reported to have fledged at least
12 young.
To receive a schedule of eagle tours, send a stamped self-addressed
envelope to: Bald Eagle Tours, Wildlife Diversity Program, 1801 N.
Lincoln, OKC,Ok., 73105.

The Oklahoma Wildlife Commission will hold its monthly meeting
tom. at the state capital complex.  On the agenda is the 
controversial extended deer hunting season for 1998. Following
the regular meeting the Wildlife Commission will travel to Enid
where it will be hosted by member John Groendyke at his 
Groendyke Lodge.  The commission will discuss department
programs and proposed 1998 legislation.  No action will be
taken.

Less than two years after reintroducing 31 wolves to Yellowstone
National Park, wildlife officials are talking of dropping the
"two strikes" rule for volves that kill livestock outside the
park.  The wolves are protected under the Endangered Species
Act's "experimental, non-essential" population designation, 
giving officials some wiggle room when it came to livestock
depredation.  Under this rule, if a wolf killed livestock it would
be trapped and moved.  If it headed back to the sheep pasture
the "second strike" doomed the offender.
Ed Bangs, the US Fish and Wildlife Service wolf recovery
coordinator, said the two-strike rule may be dropped so any
wolf caught in the act of killing livestock can be shot.

                                                  For the Animals,
 
                                                  Jana, OKC
Date: Sun, 30 Nov 1997 19:24:36 -0500 (EST)
From: LMANHEIM@aol.com
To: veegman@qed.net, ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Re: Wilkes-Barre, PA proudly adds one more FFF arrest
Message-ID: <971130192436_-355127960@mrin86.mail.aol.com>

In a message dated 97-11-30 10:11:21 EST, you write:

<< >Also...I did not organize this demo.  Don't want anyone to get the wrong
 >idea.  These young people travel en masse--going to concerts together and
 >doing good works.  If only the whole world were like them...
 
 
 Lynn,
 
 What's wrong with organizing a demo that is made up of mostly straight edge
 kids?  I am not a straight edge-er (although I do not dring, smoke, eat
 animals or thier products etc.) but alot of these kids are a nice asset to
 have at demos.  When I plan a demo for NJARA I welcome ALL people to join
in. >>


Whoops.  I'd better clarify what I meant by my assertion that I didn't
organize it.  I  simply didn't want to seem to be claiming credit that
belongs to someone else.  I was just a participant.  Looks like at least one
person thought I was trying to distance myself from the straight edge kids.
 Nothing could be farther from the truth.  I think they're WONDERFUL.  OK?
 Are we clear on this now?  

Lynn Manheim
Letters for Animals
Date: Mon, 1 Dec 1997 09:04:29 +0800
From: bunny 
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: [UK]CJD (NEW VARIANT), TEENAGER DIES
Message-ID: <1.5.4.16.19971201085759.2d8f250a@wantree.com.au>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

CJD (NEW VARIANT), TEENAGER DIES - UK
*************************************


Date: Fri, 28 Nov 1997 14:30:16 -0500
 


Vicky Rimmer, 20, the first teenager to be diagnosed as suffering from
suspected Creutzfeldt- Jakob Disease, which Britain has said has probable
links to mad cow disease, fell sick in 1993 and lay in a deep coma for more
than four years. 

She died in hospital in north Wales on 21 November 1997.
===========================================

Rabbit Information Service,
P.O.Box 30,
Riverton,
Western Australia 6148

Email>  rabbit@wantree.com.au

http://www.wantree.com.au/~rabbit/rabbit.htm
(Rabbit Information Service website updated frequently)

     /`\   /`\
    (/\ \-/ /\)
       )6 6(
     >{= Y =}<
      /'-^-'\
     (_)   (_)
      |  .  |
      |     |}
 jgs  \_/^\_/









Date: Mon, 1 Dec 1997 09:19:37 +0800
From: bunny 
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: RABIES, FOX - EUROPE
Message-ID: <1.5.4.16.19971201091306.2d8fbe4e@wantree.com.au>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

RABIES, FOX - EUROPE
********************

Date: Date: Fri, 28 Nov 1997 14:23:53 -0500
Source: Media sources


RABIES is retreating in continental Europe, thanks to the oral vaccine
being dropped on woodland by aircraft. 

However German animal biologists are giving a warning that the decline may
be matched by increases in tapeworm (_Echinococcus granulosus_)
infestations. It is flourishing in the rapidly increasing fox population
and may be transmitted to humans. 

World Health Organisation figures demonstrate the effectiveness the of the
oral vaccination campaign over the past decade. In 1983 there were more
than 9,000 registered cases of rabies among animals in Germany. Last year
the number had dropped to 153; this year, experts expect only about 70.
Statistics comparing the first quarter of 1983 (just before the aerial
vaccination began) with the first quarter of this year are even more
remarkable. Seriously affected areas such as France, Belgium, Switzerland
and northern Italy are now almost free. 

Quoted figures of infected animals for the first quarter of each year:

                1983    1997
Austria         404     5
Belgium         208     6
France          802     1
Germany         2,764   34
Italy           93      0
Switzerland     213     0
The Netherlands 1       0

After the Second World War, a mutated rabies virus infected Polish foxes.
It spread westwards at about 30 miles a year and rabies became a feature of
Central Europe. Traditional culling by farmers, hunters or poison gas
(pumped into foxes' dens) made little impact. Only the oral vaccine has
shown significant results. 

German scientists have noted, however, that if vaccination is suspended
[before areas are rabies-free], as it was by cash-strapped regions of
Germany in 1994, [fox] rabies returns rapidly. The German fox population
has increased between three and fivefold. So many are now straying into
urban areas that the anti-rabies vaccine has had to be placed in some city
parks. 

It is claimed by some that the foxes have brought with them a secondary
problem, an increased incidence of Echinococcus infestations. Dr Ferdinand
Ruhe, Gottingen, says: "The vaccination of foxes has encouraged a parasite
that is an even more serious threat than rabies." Not all biologists agree
about the dimensions of the problem and the long incubation time makes it
difficult to prove the connection between the beginning of the mass
anti-rabies campaign and the increased incidence of the parasite. "We do
not yet have reliable data about the spread of this dangerous parasite,"
says Professor Peter Kern, who has been treating human patients. [However]
"First tests do suggest, though, that many more people have been infected than
previously suspected, especially in southern Germany." 

===========================================

Rabbit Information Service,
P.O.Box 30,
Riverton,
Western Australia 6148

Email>  rabbit@wantree.com.au

http://www.wantree.com.au/~rabbit/rabbit.htm
(Rabbit Information Service website updated frequently)

     /`\   /`\
    (/\ \-/ /\)
       )6 6(
     >{= Y =}<
      /'-^-'\
     (_)   (_)
      |  .  |
      |     |}
 jgs  \_/^\_/









Date: Mon, 1 Dec 1997 09:24:47 +0800
From: bunny 
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: [US]Salmonella,dead calves and dead people 
Message-ID: <1.5.4.16.19971201091816.0d572e1e@wantree.com.au>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

SALMONELLA TYPHIMURIUM DT 104 - USA (VERMONT)
*********************************************


Date: Mon, 17 Nov 1997 20:11:33 -0500

Source:U.S. News and World Report and news sources


[There are] several stories about food safety in the new issue of U.S. News
and World Report, including a [picture of a] dead calf on the cover. The
first story begins at Heyer Hills Farm, in Franklin County, Vt., 50 miles
south of Canada. Cynthia Hawley of the farm was cited as saying [that] one
day she noticed a sick calf; by the time the vet arrived in the afternoon,
all the calves were running high fevers. The first calf died that evening.  

By the next day, all the calves had bloody diarrhea, a sign that bacteria
were destroying their intestinal walls. In the vet's experience, cows fought
off _Salmonella_ on their own, just as most healthy people do. But these
animals weren't fighting it off. And the odd thing was that the antibiotic
wasn't working either. An autopsy on the second calf that died revealed
massive damage to the lining of the intestine confirming _Salmonella_ [of
course, this confirmation would require a positive culture -Mod.ES].  

The vet suggested that the young grandchildren be kept away from the barn.
But, like many dairy farmers, the Heyers drank their own, unpasteurized
milk. They'd never had a problem with contamination at the farm before; why
should their raw milk be unsafe now? Within days, nine members of the family
would fall ill, and one would nearly lose her life.   

The pathogen was eventually identified as _Salmonella typhimurium_ DT 104,
identifiable by its resistance to five or more antibiotics including
ampicillin, chloramphenicol, streptomycin, sulfonamides, and tetracycline.   

The story also described the heart of the CDC's operation as the electronic
network it has built with local health departments in every state. The
health departments feed raw numbers to the CDC weekly. The public hears
about _Salmonella_ or _E. coli_ [infections] when large numbers of people
[are] already hospitalized. But most foodborne illnesses are not associated
with large outbreaks. They are "sporadic" or isolated cases among
individuals that may never be reported to health departments or the CDC. The
CDC estimates that for every reported case, 10 to 100 go uncounted.  

The story also describes how epidemiologist Frederick Angulo had watched
_Salmonella typhimurium_ DT 104 sweep through Germany, Denmark, England, and
Wales, eventually emerging in the United States. [This pathogen] was
identified in [the US] in 1985. By last spring, when the Heyers were trying
to save their dying calves, Angulo had discovered that 10 percent of all
_Salmonella_ cultures being sent to the CDC were the DT 104 strain. He knew
of only one large US outbreak, among 19 Nebraska schoolchildren in October
1996. The source was never determined. 

In England, _Salmonella typhimurium_ DT 104 already had become epidemic. It
was killing 40 percent of infected cattle and putting 36 percent of people
who became sick in the hospital, twice the number expected from food
poisonings.   

Angulo was cited as saying that in the United States, he knew _Salmonella
typhimurium_ DT 104 had already been found in sheep, pigs, horses, goats,
cats, dogs, elk, mice, coyotes, squirrels, raccoons, chipmunks, pigeons, and
starlings. The birds were a real concern because their droppings spread
disease everywhere.   
USDA microbiologist Paula Fedorka-Cray was quoted as saying if it's in birds
"it would just be a matter of time before it would show up in a lot of
animal species." There was some evidence in England that _Salmonella
typhimurium_ DT 104 had first infected exotic birds, parrots, and parakeets,
which had spread the infection to cattle through feed.  

The English experience with _Salmonella typhimurium_ DT 104 is notable for
several reasons. Ten years ago, the bacteria began infecting cattle and
killed many of them. Farmers in the UK treated infected cattle with several
types of antibiotics. Within about two years, the bacteria became resistant
to the antibiotics. The first humans infected in the UK were like the
Heyers, dairy farmers who had direct contact with sick animals and drank
their own raw milk. But the bacteria soon moved into other food animals.  

The story says how Hawley's doctor gave her a fluoroquinolone called
ofloxacin, because the only drug _Salmonella typhimurium_ DT 104 was clearly
not resistant to was a powerful class of new antibiotics called
fluoroquinolones, "the drug of last resort."  

The story says that when _Salmonella typhimurium_ DT 104 struck cattle in
the UK, farmers used Bactrim to treat them; since 1993, they have used
fluoroquinolones. By 1995, 14 percent of DT 104 strains in the UK had become
resistant to fluoroquinolones and nearly 30 percent had developed resistance
to trimethoprim, the agent in Bactrim that kills _Salmonella typhimurium_ DT
104 [of course, Bactrim is a combination of sulfamethoxazole and
trimethoprim, two agents that act synergistically to inhibit folate
metabolism in bacteria - Mod.ES]. Patrick Wall, chief of gastrointestinal
disease at the Public Health Service Laboratory in London, was cited as
recounting how last year some turkeys were put on fluoroquinolone drugs by a
farmer in England who feared a respiratory disease would make them ill and
unsalable. But a large number of these turkeys ended up with multiresistant
_Salmonella typhimurium_ DT 104 infections that were also resistant to
fluoroquinolones.   

By the end of the Vermont outbreak in June, 22 of the 147 cows at Heyer
Hills had become ill and 13 had died. 17 other cows had positive _Salmonella
typhimurium_ DT 104 cultures. Three of the family's six dogs were positive,
too, but did not fall ill. The bulk milk tank filter was cultured on two
occasions, one week apart; both samples were positive. Ninety percent of
family members who drank raw milk became ill. 
===========================================

Rabbit Information Service,
P.O.Box 30,
Riverton,
Western Australia 6148

Email>  rabbit@wantree.com.au

http://www.wantree.com.au/~rabbit/rabbit.htm
(Rabbit Information Service website updated frequently)

     /`\   /`\
    (/\ \-/ /\)
       )6 6(
     >{= Y =}<
      /'-^-'\
     (_)   (_)
      |  .  |
      |     |}
 jgs  \_/^\_/


Date: Sun, 30 Nov 1997 20:29:06 -0500
From: "Ronald Schaub" 
To: 
Subject: Fw: index
Message-ID: <01bcfdf8$83a6e180$86d70ad0@default>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: multipart/mixed;
     boundary="----=_NextPart_000_004B_01BCFDCE.9AD0D980"

http://www.dnr.state.in.us/public/deer97/index.htm
Attachment Converted: DELETED

Date: Mon, 1 Dec 1997 09:56:17 +0800 (SST)
From: Vadivu Govind 
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: RFI - Humane methods of crow popluation control
Message-ID: <199712010156.JAA23164@eastgate.cyberway.com.sg>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"


Are there more humane ways of dealing with this?
Please e-mail me privately.
Thanks.

- Vadivu
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

>The Straits Times
26 Nov 97

Need to keep crow population in check 

     I WAS prompted to write this letter by a BBC news report of open season
being     declared on the black crow in Tokyo. 

     The familiar big black bird with the raucous call and opportunistic
behaviour has     proliferated over several years to number some 25,000 there. 
They have become worse than a nuisance because they have caused traffic
accidents,     dive-bombed people and caused train accidents through their
habit of leaving small     rocks on railway tracks. 

     However, the open season declared in Tokyo on the bird has not reduced
their     numbers because few people are licensed to use guns. 

     In Singapore, it looks like the population of carrion crows (corvus
corone) is increasing     constantly. 

     There is no authoritative estimate to go by, but one can see many of
them everywhere,     and in bigger flocks than, say, five years ago. 

     Around places where there is leftover food, like open hawker centres
and canteens, and where there are garbage containers, one can usually see
some 10, 20 or more of     them perched strategically and ever alert to pick
up food scraps. 

     They are also present, though in smaller numbers, around houses in
private residential     areas, waiting to get to open garbage cans. 

     These intelligent and very adaptive birds are able to thrive in our
environment because     they can find food readily and have no natural
predators. 

     It is not the only bird surviving well in our urban environment; there
are also plenty of     mynahs, pigeons, doves and sparrows. 

     If carrion crows keep on increasing in number, will we need to cull
them before they     become worse than a nuisance? 

What are their effects on our environment? They do some cleaning up for us,
picking     up dropped leftover food, eating up the remains of cats and dogs
run over on roads,     and cleaning the seaside of dead fish left by
fishermen and anglers. 

     Besides these debatable benefits of their scavenging habit, they become
a nuisance     when they get audacious in taking food from unattended tables
and snatching away     food from pets being fed and from children. 

     Their droppings, like those of other birds and animals, contain
bacteria and viruses     which, in large amounts, when dried and blown as
fine powder by the wind, could     cause disease. 

     If there is a need to cull them, shooting by itself will not be
effective because that can     only be done in a limited way. It will need
more than just some people going out with shotguns. 

     A study of the birds' nesting habits will have to be done so that their
nests and eggs can     be destroyed to cut down their rate of reproduction. 

     FRANK GOH CHOON HEE 


Date: Sun, 30 Nov 1997 21:00:01 -0400
From: tigerwatch@goodmedia.com (Lawrence Pinsky)
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Latest Threat To Orangutans
Message-ID: 
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

[INDONESIA-L] ASIAWEEK - Now An Ordeal by Fire
Sat, 22 Nov 1997 18:22:36 -0700 (MST)
"[INDONESIA-L] ASIAWEEK - Credit
     Where It's Due"


NOW AN ORDEAL BY FIRE

Borneo's dwindling numbers of orangutans are facing a new and deadly
threat to their survival

By Yenni Kwok / Kalimantan, Indonesia

THE FOREST FIRES BURNING in Indonesia have endangered the health of
millions of people across Southeast Asia, strained relations between
Jakarta and its neighbors and earned the Indonesian government the
contempt of environmentalists around the world. Almost overlooked in
all this has been the devastating effect on wildlife -- particularly
on Asia's only great ape (and man's closest relative), the orangutan.

But the consequences are distressingly visible at the Wanariset
research center, a seven-hectare sanctuary carved out of the forests
of East Kalimantan. The facility is home to about 70 orangutans, most
of them orphaned youngsters. They make a pitiful sight, huddled
together for comfort much as human children would after suffering
severe emotional trauma. And that is what has happened to these
infants. Their mothers are dead, slaughtered by poachers after being
driven out of the forest by the fires.

Killing mother apes and kidnapping the offspring is the preferred
tactic of the poachers, who then sell the young orangutans into the
pet trade. The ones at Wanariset have escaped finishing up on a leash,
but their future is still parlous. Once the threat from the fires has
passed, they will have to be put back into the forests -- a process
that is never easy. With the youngsters are three female adults
suffering from serious injuries. One has a fractured skull, another a
slashing wound on the back and the third has had an arm hacked off --
evidence of the way these peaceful animals are cut down with machetes.

There is nothing new about the hunting of orangutans in Borneo, even
though the apes are one of the world's most endangered species and,
nominally, are protected by law. Just as with the illegal torching of
forest land to make way for plantations and other commercial
enterprises, there is a wide gulf between what is said in Jakarta and
what is practiced in the countryside. The difference now is that the
poachers no longer have to track their victims deep into the forests.

With their habitat destroyed by fire or threatened by choking smoke,
apes have been forced to forage for food in plantations or on the
fringes of villages. "Normally, orangutans would never go anywhere
near a village," says Willie Smits, director of the Wanariset center.
"But they are facing a food crisis. There is little fruit." Feeble and
tired, and with nowhere to hide, the apes fall easy prey to the
poachers. Others are killed by villagers or plantation workers simply
protecting crops. A few are taken for food.

A baby orangutan will sell for about $50 in Samarinda, East
Kalimantan. In Jakarta, where a sizable black market in the trade
exists, it can fetch $300. The price jumps to $5,000 in Taiwan, which
is the usual destination. "It is a status symbol to have a pet
orangutan there," says Barita Manullang, a Jakarta-based official with
the World Wide Fund for Nature. A baby orangutan smuggled into the
U.S. could go for up to $25,000.

Just how many have perished as a result of the fires is not known.
Smits puts the figure at about140, based solely on the number of
orphans he has handled. But he fears the true toll could be much
higher. "We cannot check for victims everywhere," he says. He knows of
no orangutans dying in the flames, though he believes this may have
happened.

The red apes, as they are known, once roamed over large areas of
Southeast Asia. But now, according to a World Wide Fund for Nature
report, they live on only 2% of their pre-World War II range --
exclusively on Borneo and Sumatra. Their population has declined by up
to 50% over the past decade and is thought to be below 20,000. The
5,000 or so on Sumatra are concentrated in the Leuser Mountain
National Park, in the north of the island. They have not been affected
by the forest fires, which have occurred further south.

Killing mother apes to capture the young is dealing a hammer blow to a
species that reproduces slowly. It takes 10 years or more for females
to start breeding, and they give birth only every eight or nine years
in a normal lifespan of 40 years. Says Mark Leighton, a Harvard
University lecturer and rain-forest ecologist who conducts research in
southwest Borneo: "A loss rate of 1% per year -- which means killing
just one female out of 100 -- changes the population from being
relatively stable to declining."

But the orangutan is threatened by more than poachers. The endless
whittling-away of its habitat by plantation owners and timber barons
has left many of them isolated in fragments of forest too small to
support their numbers. This, plus the attendant gene-sapping effects
of inbreeding, points to a further reduction in the population. And
worse may be to come. Says Herman Rijksen, an Indonesian-based expert
on orangutans: "If you overlay these areas with a map of planned
forest conversion and timber concessions, it makes you weep. There is
a 100% overlap. We need a very large structural change to protect
these animals. Otherwise they're gone."

Particularly at risk are about 1,000 orangutans that once lived in
what was a peat swamp area in central Kalimantan. Many have been
scattered by a plan commissioned in 1995 by President Suharto to
convert the 10,000-square-kilometer area into Indonesia's rice bowl.
The cruel twist here is that many agricultural experts believe the
rice project will not work. They argue that converting peat swamps to
sustainable agricultural use is difficult. The Center for Forestry
Research in Bogor, near Jakarta, says that in many cases the best
long-term use might be some form of forestry. With the right
safeguards, would this provide a sanctuary for Borneo's endangered
apes?


Date: Sun, 30 Nov 1997 22:09:45 -0500 (EST)
From: NOVENAANN@aol.com
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Fur Wearer survey
Message-ID: <971130220945_1578237082@mrin51.mail.aol.com>

Fur Wearer survey...

Because many people are afraid of confronting fur wears we are developing a
survey to help get activists talking to fur wearers, to get fur wearers
thinking, and to help us evaluate the most effect means of stopping the fur
trade. All results of the survey will be announced this Spring.

Possible Questions: 

Are you aware of how animals are killed for fur?
How do you think animals are killed for fur?
Would you continue to wear your coat if you knew that
the animals on your coat died by anal or genital electrocution or neck
breaking? 
Are you afraid of your coat being damaged by AR activists?
What do you think of fur protests?
Have you ever been confronted by an activist because of your coat?
Does it upset you that animals suffered and died for your coat?
Why do you wear fur?
Do you think that AR activists have had any effect on the fur industry?

Please e-mail suggestions for questions to RARNKV@aol.com

Richmond Animal Rights Network-
PO Box 4288, Richmond, Va 23220
http://members.aol.com/novenaann/organiz2.htm


Date: Sun, 30 Nov 1997 22:15:31 EST
From: Tereiman 
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: EU Trap Ban Update!!!
Message-ID: 
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit

U.S. offer looks likely to end EU fur dispute

BRUSSELS, Nov 28 (Reuters) - The United States has made a last-minute offer on
the trapping of fur animals which looks likely to avert an imminent European
Union ban on U.S. fur imports, EU diplomats said on Friday. 

The EU ban is set to take effect next Monday unless the United States and
European Union reach agreement on ending the use of steel-jawed leghold traps
to catch animals such as mink, otters and wolves. 

The EU wants to outlaw the practice which it says is cruel. Its threat of a
ban on U.S. fur imports had raised fears of a trade war. 

The United States on Friday offered to phase out the use of steel-jawed
leghold traps within six years, EU diplomats said. 

That was shorter than the eight years proposed by Washington earlier this week
and rejected by the EU which wanted the United States to phase out the traps
over five years. 

U.S. officials in Brussels could not immediately be reached for comment. 

The European Commission presented the new U.S. proposal to representatives of
the EU's 15 member states at a meeting on Friday and recommended acceptance,
the EU diplomats said. 

The EU representatives were consulting their governments and were scheduled to
meet again on Monday morning when the U.S. proposal was likely to be accepted,
the diplomats said. 

``There is a fairly large probability that it will go through,'' one EU
diplomat said. 

If the offer is accepted on Monday, the Commission will sign it and tell
European Customs agencies not to stop imports of American furs, EU diplomats
said. 

Settlement of the fur dispute would remove a thorny issue at an EU-U.S. summit
to be held in Washington on December 5. 

Russia and Canada have already agreed to outlaw some of the traps by 2000. 

Critics of the traps say they do not kill the animals outright but often break
their legs and imprison them until they drown, starve or bleed to death. 

Washington has said that the EU's demands would jeopardise the livelihood of
trappers. U.S. fur exports to Europe are worth about $20 million a year.
^REUTERS@ 

18:34 11-28-97

Date: Sun, 30 Nov 1997 19:30:15 -0800
From: Andrew Gach 
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Mutton kills Polynesians - the commercial reality
Message-ID: <34822F47.26CE@worldnet.att.net>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

Fatty meat exports cause early deaths among Polynesians.

Agence France-Presse 
AUCKLAND (November 30, 1997 8:35 p.m. EST) 

Pacific Islanders are living off the fat of neighboring New Zealand's
lambs, and may be dying sooner.

Fat cuts of meat exported from New Zealand are causing crippling health
woes and early deaths in the Pacific Islands, says an Auckland medical
researcher. 

Robert Scragg, an epidemiology senior lecturer at Auckland University,
said it was time the country became responsible about what it shipped
overseas, NZPA reported Sunday. 

"We have been making a song and dance about French nuclear testing in
the Pacific but we may have caused more deaths through fatty meat
exports than the last 20 years of nuclear testing," he said. 

Scragg recently returned from a World Health Organization consultancy
post in Tonga, where he reviewed diabetes and heart disease and advised
on prevention programs.

Mutton flaps made up a big chunk of the Tongan diet, he said, and almost
all of it came from New Zealand. 

It was often popular because it was cheap, even though a third of it
could be fat. 

Associated health problems were obvious, Scragg said. Heart disease and
diabetes cases had risen steeply during the past 10 years. 

Although the number of diabetes cases rose from 50 in 1971 to 216 in
1991, the Tongan Government cannot afford dialysis treatment for those
with kidney failure. 

Deaths from circulatory disease were up to about 150 a year, from 105 a
decade ago. 

Scragg said Tongan importers realized they needed to take responsibility
as well. But this was often difficult when the incoming meat was not
well labeled and the fat content was often unknown. 

But a spokesman for the Meat Producers Board, Peter Gianotti, said New
Zealand - home to more than 60 million sheep - offered a range of export
cuts and countries chose what they could afford. 

Each lamb carcass, for example, was graded and labeled on how fatty it
was before being cut, so buyers could tell what they were getting. 

"It's very much a question of people's incomes and what represents value
to them."

Gianotti said Scragg was pushing a medical point of view, but there was
also a commercial reality to the situation. 

If the mutton flaps were withdrawn from the market, the islanders would
simply find a substitute.
Date: Sun, 30 Nov 1997 23:01:28 -0500
From: allen schubert 
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (US) Woman With 'Mad Cow' Donated Eyes
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19971130230124.0071f480@pop3.clark.net>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

from Associated Press htp://wire.ap.org/
-----------------------------------------
 11/30/1997 12:24 EST

 Woman With 'Mad Cow' Donated Eyes

 LONDON (AP) -- Scottish health authorities are investigating how tissue
 from the eyes of a woman who had suffered from the human form of ``mad
 cow disease'' was transplanted into three other people.

 ``We are aware there is a potential infection risk from tissue retrieved
 from a patient in Scotland,'' a spokesman for the government Scottish
 Office said Saturday on customary condition of anonymity.

 ``We do not know the full facts, but we are making urgent inquiries into
 how this could have occurred,'' he said.

 The 53-year-old woman suffered from lung cancer, but after she died a
 post-mortem examination showed she also had Creutzfeldt Jakob Disease.
 The brain-destroying disease is the human form of bovine spongiform
 encephalopathy, which afflicts cattle and is known as ``mad cow
 disease.''

 No further details were given on the grounds of patient confidentiality.

 But the tabloid Sunday Mail said the post-mortem findings were not passed
 on to officials handling organ donor arrangements, and parts of her eyes,
 including the corneas, were transplanted into two men and a woman in her
 eighties.



ARRS Tools  |  News  |  Orgs  |  Search  |  Support  |  About the ARRS  |  Contact ARRS

THIS SITE UNDERWRITTEN IN PART BY:
Gorilla Foundation

The views and opinions expressed within this page are not necessarily those of the
EnviroLink Network nor the Underwriters. The views are those of the authors of the work.