Act Now--I'M MAD/ Downer Ban? USDA Says Forget It. Cross Post, Please

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I'M MAD/ Downer Ban? USDA Says Forget It KINSHIP CIRCLE PRIMARY - PERMISSION TO CROSS-POST AS WRITTEN 3/1/08: Downer Ban? USDA Says We Don’t Need It http://www.KinshipCircle.org The Cost Of Cheap Meat: Utter Inhumanity photo: Farm Sanctuary From Brenda Shoss, Kinship Circle: I try to keep my

personal opinions out of letter-writing campaigns. So, I apologize for the intrusion. But I am livid. I see videos, photos and cruelty reports daily, with the silent motto: I can cry later. The HSUS videos from Hallmark Meat Packing Co. are about the worse I've seen. Cows with huge, bewildered eyes as they're rolled, clubbed, thrown down chutes, dragged on caved-in legs... The first letter campaign Kinship Circle ever posted was to Congress, asking for humane euthanasia of downer animals. That was nearly a decade ago...and NO DOWNER LAW EXISTS. So, you'd think the recall of 143,383,823 pounds of beef would finally prompt a downer law. Or that the government would be so embarrassed it took some animal guy with a video camera to bust their inept inspections, they'd...well...pass the downer law. But you'd be wrong. Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer, perhaps the most moronic individual

currently promoting beef for the Bush admin, struck down calls from Democratic senators for a ban on the slaughter of downer cows (at Congressional hearings, 2/28/08). Schafer feels downers can enter the food supply safely: "The rules say if one goes down, you call the veterinarian to make a judgment... Today I'm convinced the rules in place are such where we are protecting the food supply." (In the meantime, the one who “went down” is in agonizing pain). And so it goes. Torturing animals under the radar. AN ANIMAL WHO CAN'T WALK IS AN ANIMAL WHO CAN'T TURN A PROFIT. "GET 'EM UP!" I now believe it is a waste of time to lobby Sec. Schafer. But your Senators and Reps, especially Democrats (who called for the hearing), can support the Downed Animal and Food Safety Protection Act (H.R. 661/ S. 394) which bans slaughter of downer cows, pigs, sheep and all "livestock." If you already wrote to

your Senators and Rep, please write again. As background, our original letter campaign is here: 2/23/08: USDA-Certified Cruel: Downers Dragged, Shocked, Rammed http://www.kinshipcircle.org/letter_library/letter_new.asp?LetterID=1725 & seriesfirst=true Don't let the downer law sit on a shelf for another 10 years. Brenda Shoss, KC =========================================================== SAMPLE LETTER -- This letter is prepared to inform you about the issue. Try to shorten and personalize your letter before sending. =========================================================== To identify your federal legislators and find contact info, try: Congress.org: http://www.Congress.org USA Senate: http://www.senate.gov USA House of Representatives: http://www.house.gov Congressional Switchboard: 202-224-3121 Dear Representative and Senators: As an American citizen, I am embarrassed Secretary of Agriculture Edward W. Schafer represents my country. One imagines the recent Westland/Hallmark Meat Co. undercover video that led to a recall of 143,383,823 pounds of beef would initiate a permanent no-downer law. One hopes a humiliated USDA would rally behind an enforceable ban on the transport and slaughter of ALL downer animals -- after one animal guy with a video camera exposed their lax food-safety protocol. But they'd be wrong. At last week's hearing to assess food inspection blunders, Secretary of Agriculture Edward W. Schafer asked the Senate Agriculture, Rural Development and Related

Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee to strike down a ban on slaughter of downer cows. He even claimed it's okay for downer cattle to occasionally enter the food supply. Perhaps, but it's certainly a gamble. And such sentiment fails to address the sheer torture these animals endure as they're kicked, rammed, shocked, dragged, water-hosed and rolled. Apparently cheap meat comes with a hefty price tag: Utter inhumanity. As your constituent, I implore you to stand up for what is right. Please protect animals and people with your strong support for the Downed Animal and Food Safety Protection Act (H.R. 661/ S. 394) which bans slaughter of downer cows, pigs, sheep and all "livestock." The Hallmark Meat travesty is not about one bad slaughterplant. It’s about a bad system. Please help fix it by: * Co-sponsoring the Downed Animal and Food Safety Protection Act (HR 661/ S 394).

* Requiring humane euthanasia for all downer animals. A current loophole lets immobilized animals suffer until they undergo USDA inspection. * Forbidding use of downed animals for "pet" and "livestock" foods. * Co-sponsoring the Farm Animal Stewardship Purchasing Act (HR 1726) to install basic animal protections at producers selling food to federal programs. * Requiring training to prevent animals from becoming downers in the first place. This issue is of great concern to me. Please inform me of your stance on downer legislation. I look forward to hearing from you. Thank you, =========================================================== SOURCE OF INFORMATION / REFERENCE LINKS =========================================================== 2/27/08, HSUS SUES FEDERAL GOVERNMENT OVER LEGAL LOOPHOLE: Humane Society files suit in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., alleging USDA’s rule change of July 2007 -- which permits some downers into food supply -- jeopardizes human health and animal welfare. The lawsuit asks USDA to close the loophole. American Meat Institute, a trade association, calls HSUS allegations “alarmist and unfounded.” * These Are Downed Animals (FACT SHEET) http://www.kinshipcircle.org/fact_sheets/DownedOnTheFarmPHOTOS.pdf * DA offers cruelty deal / Lawyer: Meat worker did his job http://www.dailybulletin.com/ci_8401481 * VIDEO: Charged with Cruelty / Slaughterhouse Employees Charged http://video.hsus.org/index.jsp?fr_story=38247e8c8ea570aca40146c9477f280b28113254 * VIDEO: HSUS Investigates Slaughterhouse/ Cruel and Unhealthy Practices Uncovered http://video.hsus.org/index.jsp?fr_story=38247e8c8ea570aca40146c9477f280b28113254 * VIDEO: Cheap Meat - Working in a Slaughterhouse http://tinyurl.com/yul2lw Action

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