Guest guest Posted August 5, 2004 Report Share Posted August 5, 2004 Hi, I've just learned that the Guardian (the Bay Area's respected & usually progressive independent paper) ran a story against the foie gras bill because of amendments that were made to it. The amendments are bad: They delay the effective date of the bill until 2012, which means foie gras can continue to be produced in California until 2012. They also shield foie gras producers until 2012 from lawsuits for any acts that would violate the bill after 2012. But without the bill, foie gras production will continue to be legal after 2012. And the protections for foie gras producers until 2012 -- although infuriating! -- are basically meaningless because without the prohibitions the bill will enact in 2012, we would have very little chance of winning any lawsuit against a producer anyway. Morever, Senator Burton, who introduced the bill and is fighting for it, is the most powerful member of the California legislature but is termed out this year. So even if we can find someone else to reintroduce the bill next year, chances are the sponsor won't have the same power to get the bill through. It's already made it through the Senate & the Assembly committee with Senator Burton's help -- we don't want to have to fight these battles again without him. Finally, the Farm Sanctuary still supports this bill. So, please, please, continue to urge your Legislators and the Gov to get this passed now! Go to: http://vote-smart.org. I'm really swamped at work right now. Does anyone else have time to right a letter to the Guardian, hopefully for publication, explaining that this is the best shot at getting protection for the birds? Please let me know if you will, at tlangsam, otherwise I'll try to find the time. Thanks! Thea Mail is new and improved - Check it out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 5, 2004 Report Share Posted August 5, 2004 It's not just the BayGuardian. Friends of Animals and Humane Farming also oppose SB 1520. As to Senator Burton fighting for the bill, "(foie gras producer)Gonzalez may be able to make pate politically palatable before the deadline. If he thinks it's possible, I assume it's possible. He's a nice guy." -Senator Burton, as quoted in The Los Angeles Times 7/7/04. Apparently Senator Burton accepted the amendments that cancel the pending lawsuit and prohibit any civil or criminal suit from the time the bill passes until 7/1/12. So, if those amendments are "meaningless", why did they get added to the bill? According to the Santa Rosa Press Democrat of 7/12/04, the foie gras producer "dropped his opposition to the bill and is now listed as neutral". "If the bill is enacted in law, Gonzalez says he'd use the 71/2 -year grace period to conduct research that he believes will prove that all of his ducks are treated humanely. Through a public-relations campaign, he hopes to reverse a perception fueled by images of penned birds with tubes in their throats, writhing in pain. Ultimately, he hopes the law would be overturned. "The impression is it is harmful and injurious, and it is not," Gonzalez said. "We need to demonstrate that." The bill to ban foie gras, by Senate President Pro Tem John Burton, D-San Francisco, gives Gonzalez the chance." Is it possible that in our desire to alleviate the suffering, we could be helping to secure the status quo? Yes, there's pressure to hurry - the ducks are experiencing their hell 24/7, but this bill guarantees that they will continue to experience it for at least the next 7 years and11 months. Robert Thursday, August 05, 2004 10:28 AM foie gras update Hi, I've just learned that the Guardian (the Bay Area's respected & usually progressive independent paper) ran a story against the foie gras bill because of amendments that were made to it. The amendments are bad: They delay the effective date of the bill until 2012, which means foie gras can continue to be produced in California until 2012. They also shield foie gras producers until 2012 from lawsuits for any acts that would violate the bill after 2012. But without the bill, foie gras production will continue to be legal after 2012. And the protections for foie gras producers until 2012 -- although infuriating! -- are basically meaningless because without the prohibitions the bill will enact in 2012, we would have very little chance of winning any lawsuit against a producer anyway. Morever, Senator Burton, who introduced the bill and is fighting for it, is the most powerful member of the California legislature but is termed out this year. So even if we can find someone else to reintroduce the bill next year, chances are the sponsor won't have the same power to get the bill through. It's already made it through the Senate & the Assembly committee with Senator Burton's help -- we don't want to have to fight these battles again without him. Finally, the Farm Sanctuary still supports this bill. So, please, please, continue to urge your Legislators and the Gov to get this passed now! Go to: http://vote-smart.org. I'm really swamped at work right now. Does anyone else have time to right a letter to the Guardian, hopefully for publication, explaining that this is the best shot at getting protection for the birds? Please let me know if you will, at tlangsam, otherwise I'll try to find the time. Thanks! Thea MSN Toolbar provides one-click access to Hotmail from any Web page – FREE download! BAY AREA VEGETARIANS (BAV) is a community group for veggies to network & find support. Event Calendar, Charter, FAQ and More!http://www.bayareaveg.org/Bookmark this page! Don't miss local events!http://www.bayareaveg.org/events.php Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 5, 2004 Report Share Posted August 5, 2004 VivaUSA and Farm Sanctuary are still in favor of this bill. I haven't researched it myself, but was told by a person from Farm Sanctuary that the European bans had a long implementation period as well. I know the bill's not perfect, but without it there are no legal protections for birds before or after 2012. As to the lawsuit, yes, the amendments will mean any lawsuit is off until 2012, but how many lawsuits has the animal rights movement won without legislation anyway? As to the concern that the bill will be revoked before 2012 (meaning Gonzalez gets the benefit of having the lawsuit dropped, but then the prohibition never goes into place), it's really, really difficult to get any legislation enacted, even legislation that revokes something done before, so I don't think that should be much of a concern. Plus, it's one thing for the legislature not to prohibit cruelty to birds, it's another for them to revoke protections. Look, now we have no protection for birds. We can get force-feeding outlawed after 2012. That's the choice. >"R.P.Belsher" <pbelsher ><SFBAVEG >, "thea langsam" <tlangsam >Re: foie gras update >Thu, 5 Aug 2004 13:49:40 -0700 > >It's not just the BayGuardian. Friends of Animals and Humane Farming also oppose SB 1520. > >As to Senator Burton fighting for the bill, "(foie gras producer)Gonzalez may be able to make pate politically palatable before the deadline. If he thinks it's possible, I assume it's possible. He's a nice guy." -Senator Burton, as quoted in The Los Angeles Times 7/7/04. >Apparently Senator Burton accepted the amendments that cancel the pending lawsuit and prohibit any civil or criminal suit from the time the bill passes until 7/1/12. So, if those amendments are "meaningless", why did they get added to the bill? > >According to the Santa Rosa Press Democrat of 7/12/04, the foie gras producer "dropped his opposition to the bill and is now listed as neutral". >"If the bill is enacted in law, Gonzalez says he'd use the 71/2 -year grace period to conduct research that he believes will prove that all of his ducks are treated humanely. > > >Through a public-relations campaign, he hopes to reverse a perception fueled by images of penned birds with tubes in their throats, writhing in pain. > > >Ultimately, he hopes the law would be overturned. > > >"The impression is it is harmful and injurious, and it is not," Gonzalez said. "We need to demonstrate that." > > >The bill to ban foie gras, by Senate President Pro Tem John Burton, D-San Francisco, gives Gonzalez the chance." > >Is it possible that in our desire to alleviate the suffering, we could be helping to secure the status quo? > >Yes, there's pressure to hurry - the ducks are experiencing their hell 24/7, but this bill guarantees that they will continue to experience it for at least the next 7 years and11 months. > > Robert > >Thursday, August 05, 2004 10:28 AM > > foie gras update > > > Hi, > I've just learned that the Guardian (the Bay Area's respected & usually progressive independent paper) ran a story against the foie gras bill because of amendments that were made to it. The amendments are bad: They delay the effective date of the bill until 2012, which means foie gras can continue to be produced in California until 2012. They also shield foie gras producers until 2012 from lawsuits for any acts that would violate the bill after 2012. But without the bill, foie gras production will continue to be legal after 2012. And the protections for foie gras producers until 2012 -- although infuriating! -- are basically meaningless because without the prohibitions the bill will enact in 2012, we would have very little chance of winning any lawsuit against a producer anyway. > > Morever, Senator Burton, who introduced the bill and is fighting for it, is the most powerful member of the California legislature but is termed out this year. So even if we can find someone else to reintroduce the bill next year, chances are the sponsor won't have the same power to get the bill through. It's already made it through the Senate & the Assembly committee with Senator Burton's help -- we don't want to have to fight these battles again without him. > > Finally, the Farm Sanctuary still supports this bill. So, please, please, continue to urge your Legislators and the Gov to get this passed now! Go to: http://vote-smart.org. > > I'm really swamped at work right now. Does anyone else have time to right a letter to the Guardian, hopefully for publication, explaining that this is the best shot at getting protection for the birds? Please let me know if you will, at tlangsam, otherwise I'll try to find the time. > > Thanks! > > Thea > > > > > MSN Toolbar provides one-click access to Hotmail from any Web page - FREE download! > > BAY AREA VEGETARIANS (BAV) is a community group for veggies to network > & find support. > > Event Calendar, Charter, FAQ and More! > http://www.bayareaveg.org/ > > Bookmark this page! Don't miss local events! > http://www.bayareaveg.org/events.php > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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