Fwd: JOSEPH QUESNEL needs Attitude adjustment

August 19, 2007

This writer is such a hypocrite. He states "I have no problems with factory farming" and then goes on to say that "hurting an animal is wrong". I suppose he has never watched Earthlings or www.meetyourmeat.com, etc., etc., etc.. I'll have to send him the link along with my favorite quote "If you love animals called pets, why do you eat animals called dinner?" Kerri (raging animal activist!! ;O)')J2468 wrote: http://winnipegsun.com/News/Columnists/Quesnel_Joseph/2007/08/18/4427101.htmlLetters to the editor should be sent to:letters--Sat, August 18, 2007Attitude adjustment neededBy JOSEPH QUESNELAttitudes about animals must be changed before incidents of animal abuse will decline.Nothing seems to anger people more -- myself included -- than hearing about an animal being harmed through negligence or, worse, deliberate action on the part of humans.Already rallies are being organized in support of Tre Smith, aninvestigator with the Toronto Humane Society.Smith had his licence suspended after handcuffing an alleged animal abuser in order to save a rottweiler who was trapped inside a vehicle.Just recently, Winnipeg residents were shocked

to learn a North End family faces charges related to the chemical burning of a dog.This reminds me more of a case in which teenage girls in the United States deliberately set a cat on fire for kicks.If not for an intervention, the poor feline would have died ofthird-degree burns to its entire body.People respond with more horror at hearing such things because, unlike human beings, animals are weaker and cannot defend themselves. It is similar to learning about the abuse of a young child.The problem remains that many people still feel that because animals are not human and are vulnerable, they can do whatever they want to with them.In the case of the Winnipeg family, D'Arcy Johnston -- a local animal shelter owner -- correctly identified the problem. She said this abuse is all too common and so many people just look the other way.It is clear attitudes need to change, both in terms of the allegedabuser and residents of the

local area. If investigators discover cases of abuse sooner, they can intervene before it is too late.Before I continue, I should say I am not a raging animal-rights activist and detest groups like People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.I grew up on a family farm where we raised animals for food. I fish and enjoy hunting.I have no problems with factory farming and groan when I hear people say they only eat eggs that come from "free range" chickens.But to be disgusted at animal cruelty does not put you in the same camp as PETA activists. It means you have a conscience.It angers me that groups like PETA will use these incidents to further their misguided crusades to prevent hunting, fishing and ranching, and to make us all vegetarians.To them, there is no middle ground. I think there is.To prevent cases of abuse like the ones above does mean one has to change his attitude towards animals.While recognizing a cat

is not the moral equivalent to your son, itseems self-evident your cat is different on a moral level than yourmicrowave and should be treated with a dignity below that of a human, but more than an inanimate object.The presence of pain receptors should also clue people in to the fact hurting an animal is wrong for the same reason it is for humans.While most provinces have statutes against animal cruelty, it seems attitudes are still decades behind our laws.Once those change, we hopefully won't hear about these cases.Letters to the editor should be sent to:letters.Animals are my friends. I don't eat my friends.http://www.iklipz.com/MovieDetail.aspx?MovieID=b78dcab6-a408-4659-b1f4-72d1fe7cfe0c

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