Fwd: Go Vegan Texas! March 24, 2008: Nathan Runkle (MFA), and the truth from behind the locked doors of slaughterhouses

[Guest guest]

Tune in every Monday at 10:00 AM CST on 90.1 FM KPFT Houston (89.5 in Galveston), or live on the web at www.kpft.org For local events, visit www.GoVeganTexas.org and to the Society of P.E.A.C.E. Events Calendar. Monday,

March 24, 2008 We'll have an exclusive interview with Nathan Runkle, Executive Director and founder of the award-winning national advocacy organization Mercy for Animals (MFA). We'll also take you inside America's slaughterhouses through the eyes of two undercover investigators --

one who went undercover for HSUS to expose the torture of "downed" cows at the Hallmark dairy cow slaughterhouse in Chino, California, and another who worked undercover for MFA to expose atrocities inside the House of Raeford poultry slaughterhouse in North Carolina. Today on Go Vegan Texas! Featuring our guest Nathan Runkle Executive Director and founder Mercy for Animals (MFA) Nathan Runkle is the Executive Director and founder of the national advocacy group Mercy for Animals (MFA). MFA is a 501©(3) non-profit animal advocacy organization that believes non-human animals are irreplaceable individuals who have morally significant interests and hence rights, including the right to live free of unnecessary suffering. MFA is dedicated to promoting nonviolence towards all sentient beings through public education campaigns and demonstrations, undercover investigations, and open

rescues. Nathan founded the group in 1999, which is now over 12,000 members strong! In 2006, Mercy for Animals was awarded "Non-profit of the Year" by VegNews Magazine. (An excerpt from the Satya Magazine 2007 interview with Nathan Runkle) "Growing up on a small farm in St. Paris, Ohio, population 2,000, Nathan Runkle learned two things: he loved animals and too many people around him were harming and eating them. At the young age of 11, Nathan saw activists protesting fur on the news, motivating him to learn more about animal issues. He became veg, and after attending the FARM Animal Rights conference in 1997 in Washington, DC-and meeting a real, live vegan-he decided it was time to act. Returning to Ohio, Nathan realized no one was doing anything locally about animal cruelty. Without support from family and friends, he decided to do something. At 15, Nathan founded his own nonprofit animal rights organization, Mercy For Animals." Mercy For Animals has a powerful new "Hidden from View" pro-vegetarian TV commercial playing the airwaves on MTV, MTV2 and Bravo in Chicago, Illinois and Columbus, Ohio. Click HERE to view Mercy for Animals' latest Pro-Veg commercial being aired on MTV! This chilling 30-second spot takes viewers behind the closed doors of America's factory farms, giving a shocking glimpse into the unseen suffering endured by billions of chickens, pigs, and cows. Viewers can then request a free copy of MFA's Vegetarian Starter Kit. and we'll feature exclusive reports by Undercover Investigators Reporting the hidden TRUTH that America's factory farms and slaughterhouses DON'T want you to see or hear! Click HERE to see the Humane Society United States (HSUS) undercover video investigation of the Hallmark beef slaughterhouse in California, which shows graphic abuse and torture of "downed" cows (animals too sick to move) by slaughterhouse workers. (Warning: video contains images of graphic animal abuse) When

this video aired on national news, it set in motion the largest beef recall in U.S. history! HSUS recently responded to the March 12 testimony by a slaughterhouse executive to the House Energy and Commerce investigative subcommittee -- read the HSUS response HERE. Click HERE to see

the 2007 Mercy for Animals (MFA) undercover video investigation of the House of Raeford poultry slaughterhouse in North Carolina, which takes you behind the closed doors of one of the country's largest poultry slaughterhouses. (Warning: video contains images of graphic animal abuse and slaughter) Numerous acts of callous and malicious cruelty against turkeys were filmed in this undercover investigation. According to MFA, the workers responsible for the abuse cannot be charged under federal law because the USDA refuses to protect turkeys and chickens in its enforcement of the Humane Slaughter Act. As such, MFA is seeking felony cruelty-to-animals charges against House of Raeford Farms, Inc. for violating North Carolina animal cruelty statutes. (From MFA's website on undercover investigations) "Undercover investigations have been successful throughout the history of the animal rights movement by bringing to light the horrific, and often unseen, exploitation and abuse that animals endure behind locked doors. They have helped launch national organizations, bring animal cruelty charges against the parties involved, and in some cases, shut down abusive facilities. Since 2001, MFA has conducted undercover investigation at four of Ohio's largest egg factory farms, each of which have exposed egregious acts of animal cruelty, neglect, and abuse." (From MFA's ChooseVeg.com website on "The Power of One") "Choosing to go vegetarian is simply a matter of living according to the values so many of us hold dear, such as being fair

and kind to others. Most people would never dream of cramming up to 11 egg-laying hens into a file drawer-sized cage, ripping the testicles out of a screaming baby piglet, or cutting the throat of a cow as she stares back at you with her big brown eyes. How then, as compassionate individuals, can we justify paying others to carry out these atrocities on our behalf? The average vegetarian saves the lives of approximately 95 animals each year. That adds up to thousands during a lifetime. Every time we eat, we are making a powerful choice that has profound consequences on the lives of animals. At each meal, we make a decision between supporting cruelty or living compassionately." There are a billion reasons to go Vegan. Please, make the compassionate choice!!! Go Vegan Texas! "A Peaceful Diet for a Peaceful Planet" Airs every Monday @ 10am (Central) on Pacifica Radio KPFT-Houston 90.1 FM and 89.5 FM-Galveston. Listen live at www.govegantexas.org, or later on the KPFT Archives at www.archive.kpft.org Today's show Produced and hosted by Kristen Lee Ohanyan President & founder, Society of PEACE and a member of the Go Vegan Texas! Collectivekristen (AT) govegantexas (DOT) org Filling in for Mike McGuire Laura Slavin KPFT Sound Engineer Thank you for listening with an open heart and mind! Contact Go Vegan Texas! via email at info (AT) govegantexas (DOT) org Contact information for today's guest Nathan Runkle Executive Director and founder Mercy For Animals (MFA) P.O. Box 363 Columbus, OH 43216 info (AT) mercyforanimals (DOT) org nathan (AT) mercyforanimals (DOT) org Phone: 866-MFA-OHIO www.chooseveg.com www.mercyforanimals.org

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