Poll: Should Stephen Harper Meet With Pamela Anderson to Discuss the Seal Hunt?

[Guest guest]

While I do agree with the sentiment behind getting the

seal hunt banned (and I have written letters in the

LWPs about this), I have to ask: why isn't there a

similar outrage for the 100s of 1000s of pets put down

in animal shelters all around this country? Who am I

to tell the Canadians what to do, when in my own

backyard animals are being killed every day, albeit

more humanely?

 

Ajay

[Guest guest]

Great point, Ajay, and you're right! I used to say that exact

same thing.

Especially when you look at animals killed for food--the baby seals suffer

less than cows and pigs and chickens, and far less of them are killed.

 

However, I do think this matters. It may not be the issue that

kills the most animals, but it's an issue that the public is behind.

Every victory we have for animals now will make future victories, for other

animals, easier.

 

Maybe it's silly that people care about cute seals and not old mutts in

their local shelter, but at least they're caring about an animal--period.

When the Canadian seal kill gets mentioned in the media, compassion for animals

is being mentioned in the media. It shows the world that animals

matter.

 

Right now it's almost impossible to get media for the billions of

sweet, gentle animals killed every day in slaughterhouses or on fur farms in China.

But this will get us one step closer. Tens of thousands of people are

going to animal rights websites because of the attention to Canada, and while

they're surfing they're also learning aobut other animal issues they would

never have learned about otherwise. I hear about it daily--people go to www.FurIsDead.com because of Canada and

then they learn about China fur, and they link to GoVeg.com, or one of the

other animal sites, and voila--they're writing to ask for more information on

these issues. They had no idea these things were happening and their

minds have been blown wide open.

 

I have to respecfully disagree that we don't have the right to tell

Canadians what to do. If my neighbor was beating his dog, should I say,

" That's his business, I have no right interfering or telling him what to

do? "

You bet I would call the police!

 

We're not asking Canada to have a green flag insetead of

a red flag. That really is their business. We're speaking up for a

third party who cannot defend itself, the animals, and speaking up for

innocents being hurt is eveyrone's business. If I was being tortured and

I was helpless to do anything about it, I would want other countries to speak

up and try to stop the violence.

 

I was born and raised in Alaska and the locals there

HATED to have " outsiders " tell them what to do about their extreme

hunting, over-fishing, clear-cutting and oil drilling. I bet most folks

on this list are against drilling in ANWR, even if you've never been there. Should

we just sit back and let Alaska destroy the environment, because it's

" their business? "

 

I do think you're 100% right that people should care about the larger

nuber of animals being killed in other ways. But since they don't (yet),

this is one step towards that goal and a way to raise awareness about animal

suffering. If this is what society cares about, we need to grab it and

use it for all animals.

A

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ajay [ajayboots]

Wednesday, March 29, 2006 11:55 AM

Alex Bury;

Re: Poll: " Should Stephen Harper Meet With Pamela

Anderson to Discuss the Seal Hunt? "

 

 

While I do agree with the sentiment behind getting the

seal hunt banned (and I have written letters in the

LWPs about this), I have to ask: why isn't there a

similar outrage for the 100s of 1000s of pets put down

in animal shelters all around this country? Who am I

to tell the Canadians what to do, when in my own

backyard animals are being killed every day, albeit

more humanely?

 

Ajay

 

[Guest guest]

What difference does it make - animals here, in Canada, on the moon? If animals are being killed, abused, mistreated in any way, we owe it to them to try to put an end to it. Where it's happening doesn't matter. MoyaAjay <ajayboots wrote: While I do agree with the sentiment behind getting theseal hunt banned (and I have written letters in theLWPs about this), I have to ask: why isn't there asimilar outrage for the 100s of 1000s of pets put downin animal shelters all around this country? Who am Ito tell the Canadians what to do, when in my ownbackyard animals are being killed every day, albeitmore humanely?Ajay____BAY AREA VEGETARIANS (BAV) is a non-profit 501 ©(3) community organization for veggies to network, find support and promote veg*nism.Events Calendar - http://bayareaveg.org/eventsNewsletter - http://bayareaveg.org/newsVeg Mentor Program - http://bayareaveg.org/mentorUltimate Guide - http://bayareaveg.org/ug Veg Food Finder - http://bayareaveg.org/finderCharter & Post Guidelines - http://bayareaveg.org/charterCompassionate Living Program - http://bayareaveg.org/clMap It Veg - http://www.frappr.com/baveg____

Our first duty to our little brothers and sisters, the animals, is never to do them any harm. Our responsibilities do not end there, however. We are obligated to help them whenever they require it. – Saint Francis

Messenger with Voice. PC-to-Phone calls for ridiculously low rates.

[Guest guest]

I do think the seal hunt is at that level of grossness, in terms of scale, brutality, and absolute un-necessary-ness, where international outcry is appropriate. It's the type of thing one simply can't allow to happen without comment. And Pamela Anderson is from Canada at least! But sure, the U.S. government (e.g. USDA) also merits reproof, and I think many of us are more familiar with Mike Johanns' mailing address than we'd like to be. Not to mention our reps and other public officials... Ajay <ajayboots wrote: "...Who am I to tell the Canadians what to do, when in my own backyard animals are being killed every day, albeit more humanely?"

[Guest guest]

In response to:

why isn't there a similar outrage for the 100s of 1000s of

pets put down in animal shelters all around this country?

 

Animals being

painlessly euthanized because there are not available homes for them is

completely different from animals being clubbed to death in the wild for

financial gain. And there is outrage for all of those dogs and cats

killed in shelters; you may not see much of it on this list, but there are

rescue groups and people fostering and spaying and neutering animals all over

the country because of their outrage.

 

In response to:

 

Who am I

to tell the Canadians what

to do, when in my own

backyard animals are being

killed every day, albeit

more humanely?

 

Who are you -- and all

of us -- not to speak out against all injustice?

 

 

 

On Behalf Of

Ajay

Wednesday, March 29, 2006

8:55 AM

Alex Bury;

 

Re: Poll:

" Should Stephen Harper Meet With Pamela Anderson to Discuss the Seal

Hunt? "

 

 

While I do agree with the sentiment behind getting

the

seal hunt banned (and I have written letters in

the

LWPs about this), I have to ask: why isn't there a

similar outrage for the 100s of 1000s of pets put

down

in animal shelters all around this country? Who am

I

to tell the Canadians what to do, when in my own

backyard animals are being killed every day,

albeit

more humanely?

 

Ajay