FW: Working against Rodeo Cruelty; New Videos

September 20, 2007

SHARK Update <afinleyshindiSubject: Working against Rodeo Cruelty; New VideosThu, 20 Sep 2007 14:53:24 -0400 (EDT)

In This Issue

SHARK submits evidence of abuse to City of Cheyenne

US Air Force Thunderbirds, Denver Broncos Football Team Caught Supporting Cruelty

NHSFR Stock Contractor Tries to Wiggle out of Court Order

Illinois Ag. Dept. expect SHARK to pay to do their job

Dodge City still dodging

Dogfighters and Rodeos - What's the Difference?

Why your support of SHARK matters

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Dear Friends,

The repercussions of our efforts for this season's rodeos are rocking the world of the cowboy wannabes. But if they think things are tough now, they are in for a number of rude awakenings. Here's an update as to where we are for the moment, and you can rest assured that this is just the beginning.

SHARK submits evidence of abuse to City of Cheyenne

Video footage DVDs and CDs with still pictures of horses being shocked at the 2007 Cheyenne Frontier Days (CFD) Rodeo have been sent to the Cheyenne City Attorney's Office, along with copies of the evidence for members of the Cheyenne city council.

Right, a horse is about to be shocked at the 2007 CFD Rodeo.

We have asked to speak to the Cheyenne city council in the fall to discuss the violations of Cheyenne's city ordinance against shocking animals for entertainment and other cruelty issues. In the interest of protecting its image, we hope the Cheyenne city council will do right by the victims of the Cheyenne Rodeo. We will keep you updated as there are further developments.

In the meantime, check out some of our videos from the 2007 CFD Rodeo on YouTube.com. SHARK's latest YouTube videos are exposing the cruelty of rodeo like never before. As a result of taking on the most infamous rodeo in the world, the Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo, we have an overwhelming amount of abuse evidence.

Here is a list of the YouTube videos already posted documenting abuses at the Cheyenne Rodeo:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50nf7Io52c0: Helpless steers dragged by scared, out-of-control horses become a joke for Cheyenne Rodeo announcers who make wisecracks, while the crowds delights in the animals' misery. Announcer Justin McKee even applauds a judge for being "a little lenient" when it comes to so-called rodeo humane rules.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LOOiu2UdHeM: SHARK investigators at the Cheyenne Rodeo utterly destroy the myth of the rank, mean, killer rodeo bulls. Watch as these big babies show that with caring people they are as tame as a feline family member.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ofsFxJgYfqs: Cheyenne rodeo announcer Justin McKee is caught lying about animal injuries. As a dying calf is dragged out of the arena, McKee claims it is the first. Our video evidence proves what a dastardly lie that is, as four other calves were sledded out on the first day alone!http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7poZuhymtRo: See some of the horses shocked at the Cheyenne Rodeo, and watch the rodeo judges ignore everything that is going on. The corruption of the Rodeo Mafia is as clear as it can be in this video.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eoNGCROCOH8: Even the horse ridden by the "winner" of the Cheyenne Rodeo's saddle bronc competition was shocked, showing just how little it takes to be a "champion" in the world of rodeo.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_Oe5t8PvbE: Rodeo "humane rules" are once again exposed as a complete fraud, as rodeo contestant Vin Fisher brutally kicks a steer in the ribs for not staying down. Not only is Fisher not penalized, but the crowd thinks it is terribly funny. That speaks volumes about both the Rodeo Mafia and its supporters.

US Air Force Thunderbirds, Denver Broncos Football Team Caught Supporting Cruelty

In our last update we discussed how the US Air Force Thunderbirds aerobatic team and the Denver Broncos professional football team supported the Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo. Informational packages including video footage and still pictures of horses being shocked, as well as newspaper articles exposing the abuse, have been sent to both organizations.Given the scandal of pro football player Michael Vick, the Broncos in particular should be sensitive to the damage that animal abuse can cause. Above, The Denver Broncos sent their cheerleaders and mascot out to root for the animal abusers at the 2007 Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo.

The Thunderbirds are very popular with the public, and in the interest of maintaining their shining reputation, the aerobatic team should not lower itself to supporting animal cruelty, like it did at Cheyenne's rodeo. SHARK's documentation of the abuse at the Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo should be more than enough to persuade any decent, self-respecting organization to steer clear.You can help in a big way by contacting both the Thunderbirds and Broncos and nicely asking them to withdraw from any future involvement in the Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo, or any other form of animal abuse.Denver Broncos Marketing DepartmentINVESCO Field at Mile High1701 Bryant St. Suite 900Denver, CO 80204Phone: (720) 258-3100

email: suggestions

USAF Thunderbirds

4445 Tyndall Ave.

Nellis AFB, NV 89191

Fax: (702) 652-6367

email: usaf.thunderbirds

NHSFR Stock Contractor Tries to Wiggle out of Court Order

On August 16, SHARK went to court asking for sanctions against Johnson and Jordan, the stock contractor who provided animals for the National High School Rodeo Association, for violating the agreed court order. (Learn more about SHARK's exposure of the National High School Rodeo Assocation.) One aspect of the agreement was that there would be no shocking of animals, but in fact there was shocking--and SHARK investigators captured it. One video clip showed a steer being shocked on and around his head over a dozen times!

We had a nasty surprise waiting for us in court. Stock contractor Johnson and Jordan produced an affidavit stating that it was only responsible for bucking horses and bucking bulls, and that other animals were supplied by other stock contractors not under their control. While we knew that there were other stock contractors involved in the rodeo, it was our understanding that Johnson and Jordan was the "stock contractor of record," responsible for all other stock contractors at the rodeo. We still think that's the way it is, but the burden of proof is on us.

Above, a horse at the NHSFR tries to escape the torment of the chute.In response we have filed Freedom of Information requests with the Illinois Department of Agriculture to figure out who it is who is responsible for the violation of the court order. It's always a matter of passing the buck with these supposedly "macho" cowboy wannabes.

It's funny how these people claim to be so tough and such great Americans, when in fact they are the first to try to squirm out of any situation, and apparently will say and do anything at all to escape responsibility. Hopefully we will soon be revisiting the court order in front of a judge.SHARK posted a video of the most prominent violation of the court order on YouTube.com. Click here to watch.

Illinois Ag. Dept. expect SHARK to pay to do their job

For some time SHARK has been filing Freedom of Information Requests of the Illinois Department of Agriculture as we investigate its highly questionable relationship with the National High School Rodeo Association (NHSRA). Perhaps we are a little too close to the truth.

The Department says we need to send them over a hundred dollars for our latest request. Our response was to request a waiver of all fees, and to point out that we have to investigate the rodeo because they refuse to do their job. Then we filed an additional request, and it will not be the last. The Department has already denied our request for a waiver, and that just shows us that they really don't want to turn this information over.If the Ag. Department and the NHSRA thought that this issue would be over once their abusive rodeo finals were over with, they are finding out just how wrong they are. It isn't over until we say it's over, and we are just getting warmed up. You can help.

Dodge City newspaper prints misinformation, refuses to print correction

In our last update we reported about our visit to the Dodge City Rodeo in Dodge City, Kansas, where we stopped on our way home from the Cheyenne Rodeo. After less than an hour of filming steer busting, the most deadly event in rodeo, we were kicked out Dodge City police, who claimed the property was private.The following day the Dodge City Daily Globe ran an article by reporter Mark Vierthaler that falsely reported what had happened. The coverage was wrong beginning with the very title:Activists delay steer ropingThe article then continued the inaccuracy from the very first sentence:

A small group of activists delayed the steer roping competition at Dodge City Roundup Arena early Tuesday morning.We delayed absolutely nothing. In fact, the event started on time, and continued for some forty minutes before the rodeo organizers, concerned about what our cameras were capturing (one steer had already been crippled), interrupted their own event. The newspaper went on to twice claim that we were protesting, another absolute falsehood. We weren't protesting anything. We were quietly videotaping, and not bothering anyone.Rodeo organizers headed by Dr. R.C. Trotter, released a statement claiming the following:"There are certain PRCA rules regulating who can and cannot take video. They didn't have media credentials so they were asked to leave."If the problem was simply "media credentials," the police wouldn't have insisted that we leave, only that we stop videotaping. More telling, amateur video clips of the Dodge City Rodeo have popped up on YouTube, and certainly that these amateurs didn't have any press credentials either. Also, given the fact that we have been videotaping PRCA (Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association) rodeos for years, and were coming back from the Cheyenne Rodeo, one of the largest PRCA rodeos in the world, Dr. Trotter's claim is pure nonsense.We sent E-mail correspondence to reporter Vierthaler advising him of the inaccuracies. Vierthaler at first replied that he wanted his coverage to be accurate. We waited patiently for a couple weeks, only to receive the following E-mail from Daily Globe managing editor Rick Druse:"After talking with Mark, I have decided not to run a correction on the story. He used credible sources for the story and we are getting into hair-splitting of terms."There was no hair-splitting, the Daily Globe article is wrong at its very core. And how could sources that are proven wrong be considered "credible?" All of this simply proves yet again the ability of the Rodeo Mafia to corrupt weak, lazy publications like the Dodge City Daily Globe.The Daily Globe debacle will soon become our latest addition to our MediaVillains.com web site. Meanwhile, you can see some of what went on in the Dodge City rodeo arena at the following YouTube presentation: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TUFuHMhU2MQ

Feel free to contact Richard Druse, Managing Editor of the "Dodge City Daily Globe" at Richard.Druse , phone: 620-408-9908 and let him know what you think about the situation.

Dogfighters and Rodeos - What's the Difference?

There's been a lot of news of NFL quarterback Michael Vick's role in the vicious world of dogfighting. This is probably the best thing that could happen to the issue, as now there can't be hardly anyone in the United States and well beyond that doesn't know about this horrible abuse. Some, however, are asking what the difference is between what Vick did, and what happens in other animal abuses such as hunting, the meat industry, and so on. Add the brutal, deadly and corrupt world of rodeo to that debate.Some are claiming that what happened to Vick's victims is similar to what happens to victims that are hunted, trapped, slaughtered, etc., that Vick should receive leniency. I say that Michael Vick and his fellow dogfighting cowards deserve no consideration whatsoever. The penalties available for these utterly worthless individuals are completely inadequate for the nature of their crimes.Rather than lower the severity of Vick's punishment, we should elevate the penalties of those who commit other animal atrocities. Vick, and all animal abusers, pose a threat not only to nonhumans, but to humans as well. Criminologists view the intensity of violent behavior (regardless of the victim's identity) as a precursor to future violence. Animal cruelty is a key trait in the American Psychiatric Association's profile for Conduct Disorders. The FBI identifies animal abuse as a stage along the violence continuum.

The world should realize that there is precious little difference between cruel, cowardly and corrupt Michael Vick and an equally cruel, cowardly and corrupt rodeo thug. As Cesar Chavez said:

"Kindness and compassion towards all living beings is a mark of a civilized society. Racism, economic deprival, dog fighting and cock fighting, bullfighting and rodeos are all cut from the same defective fabric: violence. Only when we have become nonviolent towards all life will we have learned to live well ourselves."

Why your support of SHARK matters

We hope you understand the importance of SHARK's efforts against rodeo animal abuse. It has taken us a while, but we have come a very, very long way against a billion dollar industry and its many corporate sponsors and government bodies that seem determined to protect it. Unfortunately, although we have come a very long way, we still have a long way to go.Rodeo is an activity that just about every other animal protection organization refused to take on a decade ago. Even today it is rare for animal protection organizations to go into the rodeo arenas and get the vital evidence needed to prove the abuses. That's why SHARK investigators have to travel as much as we do, because there's hardly anyone else who will do it.It pains me that we are focusing so much of our resources against rodeo, because our methods will work successfully on the vast majority of animal issues. But SHARK's current budget does not allow us to tackle as many issues at once as we'd like.

Dogfighting, bullfighting, circuses, the meat industry, furs, vivisection, hunting, and many, many more issues can be hit hard by SHARK's methods of documenting and exposing cruelties. The late Gretchen Wyler used to say, "animal abuse can't stand the spotlight," and that is exactly how SHARK has operated from it's inception. We knock out the propaganda of animal abuse, and show the world what is really going on.

Your support is vitally needed to help us continue our work on behalf of the forgotten victims of rodeo abuse.

Find out more ways you can help SHARK on our website HERE.

Kindest Regards,

Steve Hindi and Your SHARK Team