Guest guest Posted May 6, 2009 Report Share Posted May 6, 2009 - <emine <undisclosed-recipients:> Wednesday, May 06, 2009 4:31 PM [cm_brisbane] The truth about swine flu > Dear friends, > > > > > > Evidence is emerging that traces swine flu to giant factory pig farms > that are dirty, dangerous, and inhumane. Sign the petition to the World > Health Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization to > investigate and regulate these threats to our health: > > > No-one yet knows whether swine flu will become a global pandemic, but it > is becoming clear where it came from - most likely a giant pig factory > farm run by an American multinational corporation in Veracruz, Mexico.(1) > > These factory farms are disgusting and dangerous, and they're rapidly > multiplying. Thousands of pigs are brutally crammed into dirty warehouses > and sprayed with a cocktail of drugs -- posing a health risk to more than > just our food -- they and their manure lagoons create the perfect > conditions to breed dangerous new viruses like swine flu. The World Health > Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) must > investigate and develop regulations for these farms to protect global > health. > > Big agrobusiness will try to obstruct and scuttle any attempts at reform, > so we need a massive outcry that health authorities can't ignore. Sign the > petition below for investigation and regulation of factory farms and tell > your friends and family and we will deliver it to the UN agencies. If we > reach 200,000 signatures we will deliver it to the WHO in Geneva with a > herd of cardboard pigs. For every 1000 petition signatures we will add a > pig to the herd: > > http://www.avaaz.org/en/swine_flu_pandemic > > Last week the flu was all that we talked about -- Mexico has been nearly > paralysed and across the world leaders halted air travel, banned pork > imports and initiated drastic controls to mitigate the spreading virus. As > the threat shows signs of subsiding the question becomes where it came > from and how we stop another outbreak. > > Smithfield Corporation, the largest pig producer in the world whose farm > is being fingered as the source of the H1N1 outbreak, denies any > connection between their pigs and the flu and big agrobusiness worldwide > pays huge sums of money for research to argue that biosafety is ensured in > industrial hog production. But the WHO has been saying for years that 'a > new pandemic is inevitable'(2) and experts from the European Commission > and the FAO have cautioned that the rapid move from small holdings to > industrial pig production is in fact increasing the risk of development > and transmission of disease epidemics. The US Centers for Disease Control > and Prevention warn that scientists still do not know the extent that > infectious compounds produced in factory farms affect human health.(3) > > Studies abound of the horrific conditions endured by pigs in concentrated > large-scale operations, and the devastating economic impact on small > farmer communities of bloated large-scale operations.(4) Smithfield itself > has already been fined $12.6m and is currently under another federal > investigation in the US for toxic environmental damage from pig excrement > lakes.(5) > > But even with all of this damaging evidence, a combination of increased > global meat consumption and a powerful industry motivated by profit at the > cost of human health, means that instead of being shut down - these > sickening factory farm operations are propagating around the world and we > are subsidising them (6). In the wake of this swine flu threat, let's hold > industrial pig producers to account. Sign the petition for investigation > and regulation: > > http://www.avaaz.org/en/swine_flu_pandemic > > If we resolve this global health crisis boldly by reassessing our food > consumption and production, and urgently calling for an inquiry into the > impact of factory farms on human health, we could put in place tough farm > practice rules that will save the global population from future animal > borne lethal pandemics. > > http://www.avaaz.org/en/swine_flu_pandemic > > in hope, > > Alice, Pascal, Graziela, Paul, Brett, Ben, Ricken, Iain, Paula, Luis, Raj, > Veronique, Milena, Margaret, Taren and the whole Avaaz team > > (1) Biosurveillance report tracing the disease to the Smithfields farm: > http://biosurveillance.typepad.com/biosurveillance/2009/04/swine-flu-in-mexico-t\ imeline-of-events.html > Reports on the link between the Mexican factory farm and the flu: > http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-wellbeing/health-news/for-la-\ gloria-the-stench-of-blame-is-from-pig-factories-1675809.html > > http://www.latimes.com/features/health/la-fg-mexico-flu28-2009apr28,0,1701782.st\ ory > > http://www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode.cfm?id=can-swine-flu-be-blamed\ -on-industri-09-05-01 > > http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20227063.800-swine-flu-the-predictable-pan\ demic.html?full=true > > http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-kirby/swine-flu-outbreak----nat_b_191408.htm\ l > > (2) WHO pandemic information > http://www.euro.who.int/influenza/20080618_19 > > (3) FAO, EC and CDC reports on the risks of industrial farming on public > health > FAO and CIWF and http://www.cdc.gov/cafos/about.htm > > (4) CIWF and PETA video reports of the disgusting conditions for animals > in factory farms and the disease ridden manure swamps: > CIWF and PETA > > (5) Reports on Smithfield's animal welfare and environmental damage > http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-wellbeing/health-news/for-la-\ gloria-the-stench-of-blame-is-from-pig-factories-1675809.html > > http://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/press/releases/new-report-highlights-the-troubl\ e-with-smithfield-article03132008 > > http://avaazimages.s3.amazonaws.com/SmithfieldJan08.pdf > > (6) Reports on UK tax payers subsidising factory farms > http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/agriculture/farming/5225298/Taxpayers-forking-o\ ut-700-million-for-factory-farming-in-England.html > > --------- > > > > > > ABOUT AVAAZ Avaaz.org is an independent, not-for-profit global campaigning > organization that works to ensure that the views and values of the world's > people inform global decision-making. (Avaaz means " voice " in many > languages.) Avaaz receives no money from governments or corporations, and > is staffed by a global team based in Ottawa, London, Rio de Janeiro, New > York, Buenos Aires, and Geneva. Call us at: +1 888 922 8229 or +55 21 2509 > 0368 Click here to learn more about our largest campaigns. Don't forget to > check out our Facebook and Myspace and Bebo pages! > You are getting this message because you signed " Rome Summit: Stop the > Food Crisis " on 2008-06-03 using the email address > piginmud123. To ensure that Avaaz messages reach your inbox, > please add avaaz to your address book. To change your email > address, language settings, or other personal information, > https://secure.avaaz.org/act/index.php?r=profile & user=af731aba5c02c9a54c554336f4\ ba5e95 & lang=en, > or simply go here to . > > To contact Avaaz, please do not reply to this email. Instead, write to > info. You can also call us at +1-888-922-8229 (US) or +55 21 > 2509 0368 (Brazil) If you have technical problems, please go to > http://www.avaaz.org > _______________ > Looking for a fresh way to share your photos? Check out the new Windows > Live Messenger > http://windowslive.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=792335 > > > > > > --- > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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