Month: October 2022

Farm Animals, General News

USA: The Greatest Farm Animal Protection Law is Under Attack!

The Greatest Farm Animal Protection Law is Under Attack! | Shmuly Yanklowitz | The Blogs (timesofisrael.com)

While the fight to create sweeping change on the justice issues we care about can sometimes seem hopeless, California’s Prop 12, which prevents animals from being held in “a cruel manner” has been a source of optimism in the realm of animal rights.

“Prop 12 is the strongest farm animal protection law in the United States and possibly in the world,” according to The Human League. “When it goes into full effect on January 1, 2022, it outlaws the use of cages — and stands to free millions of animals from the cruelest forms of confinement.”

However, big agriculture — in this case the National Pork Producers Council and the American Farm Bureau Federation — has been fighting this law, bringing a case to the U.S. Supreme Court claiming Prop 12 “overstepped its bounds by placing regulations on other states over how they raise their animals.”

For those concerned about animal welfare, there is a great deal at stake with this court case as the battle between impactful lawmaking and the big-agriculture lobby comes to a head.

For me, the matter of preventing animal cruelty is a moral and religious one. Even the Mishnah, the earliest rabbinic text, articulates how badly confined animals want freedom of movement.

“If a man brought his flock into a pen and shut it in properly and it went out and caused damage, he is exempt,” it says in Tractate Bava Kamma, 6:1. “If he had not shut it in properly and it went out and caused damage, he is liable. If the pen was broken through at night, or bandits broke through it, and the flock came out and caused damage, he is not liable. If the bandits brought out the flock, the bandits are liable.”

The assumption here is that animals inherently don’t want to be kept locked up. It goes against their natural state of being. All life yearns for freedom.

Further, according to Karen M. Morin of Bucknell University, the confinement of animals, while a morally distinct problem from human incarceration, shares commonalities with the inhumanity involved in the imprisonment of people. These include:

Emotional and physical harm

Tightly restricted movement

Removal of dignity

Disregard for life

Despite all of the challenges to the protections we try to enact for the liberation of animals and human beings, we must continue to stand up for the abused among us. While I certainly don’t advocate for the end of all prisons, which are sometimes necessary to keep society safe from those who have a history of violence, the mass incarceration prison system absolutely must at least be seriously reformed, through the elimination of a level of confinement that strips people of mobility and is a form of physical and psychological torture.

(Shmuly Yanklowitz photographed by Erica Fuchs)

Central to Kabbalah is the notion that the sparks of God are confined. A particularly grotesque instance of this is the way human souls and animal spirits are often literally trapped in human-made cages. A key takeaway we must learn from the Jewish tradition is our obligation to help free those in need of liberation from narrow places. We are called by Torah values to fight modern-day Pharoah in whatever form he takes.

The Maharal of Prague taught: “Love of all creatures is also love of God; for whoever loves the One, loves all the works that He has made.”

We must work to create a country in which big agriculture does not have the power to overturn animal protections. In the near term, we should educate others on Prop 12 and how much is at stake, so that, regardless of the Supreme Court’s decision, we’ll be prepared to respond with clarity and action.

Rabbi Dr. Shmuly Yanklowitz is the Founder & President of Shamayim: Jewish Animal Advocacy and is the author of 23 books on Jewish Ethics.

Regards Mark

Farm Animals, General News

Canada: What ? ! ? – Animal Activists Given 30-Day Jail Sentence After Exposing Pig Farm Cruelty !!!
Suzanne Goodwin – The activists are appealing their case

Hidden camera footage captured workers shocking pigs in the face with electric prods and repeatedly hitting and kicking the animals

Two animal rights activists have been given 30-day jail sentences after exposing animal cruelty at a Canadian hog farm. 

Amy Soranno and Nick Schafer entered Excelsior Hog Farm in 2019. They were convicted on one count of break-and-enter and mischief.

Along with activists Roy Sasano and Geoff Regier, Soranna and Schafer were arrested after a mass protest at the farm. Together, they were known as the Excelsior 4, but Regier and Sasano were cleared of their charges. 

Speaking to Plant Based News (PBN), Soranno said that they found pregnant pigs crammed inside metal cages unable to move. They also found dead pigs rotting in pens with other live pigs who were eating their bodies. The dumpsters were full of dead pigs and piglets. 

Cruelty at the farm

The hidden camera footage also captured workers shocking pigs in the face with electric prods, repeatedly hitting and kicking the animals, and cutting off the tails and testicles of screaming piglets with no pain relief.

At the trial, the defense was blocked from showing footage of the animal cruelty at the farm. They were also prevented by the judge from arguing that the hog farm had engaged in unlawful animal abuse. 

“This case shows in stark terms the utter failure of the animal agriculture industry and law enforcement to protect farmed animals from abuse,” said acquitted Excelsior 4 defendant Roy Sasano. 

“The Crown is more interested in criminalizing and jailing nonviolent activists than holding animal abusers accountable. Excelsior Hog Farm has never had to answer for its well-documented criminal animal cruelty.”

A hidden industry

Despite the fact that the majority of the public buys animal products, most are unaware of how they are produced. 

“As it stands right now, the public does not have the right to know what the conditions inside any animal farm in British Columbia looks like,” Schafer told PBN.

“There is a severe lack of transparency within the animal agriculture industry, and they continue to propagate misinformation of quaint, happy, clean farms. We hope that this case has shed some light on exactly what these farms look like and how animals are housed and treated within this industry.

Ag-gag laws, which make it illegal to expose conditions in farms, are being passed in a number of provinces in Canada. British Columbia, where this protest took place, doesn’t have any such legislation, but the activists were prosecuted nevertheless. 

“This demonstrates just how much the animal agriculture industry has to hide, which should be of concern to everyone,” said Sorrano. 

Soranno and Schafter’s sentence will begin on October 21 at the Okanagan Corrections Centre. They are both appealing their convictions. 

Animal Activists Given 30-Day Jail Sentence After Exposing Pig Farm Cruelty (plantbasednews.org)

Regards Mark

Environmental, Farm Animals, General News, Uncategorized

UK: Truss Meets Her Teutoberg – The Conservative General Who Fell On Her Own Sword. The Viper Who Ceases To Hiss.

Give me back my legions !

WAV Comment – On 5th September 2022 I posted the following:  Liz Truss, very bad for animal welfare and bad for the environment.

UK: Liz Truss, new UK Prime Minister – very bad for animal welfare, bad for the environment; and bad for the Conservative Party. – World Animals Voice

Well today, 20/10/22, Liz Truss was forced to resign by members of her own Conservative Party.

UK: Tin-eared Truss is about to embark on the greatest betrayal of animal rights imaginable. – World Animals Voice

She is officially the shortest serving Prime Minister in British history – resigning after just 44 days in office.  With our dinner tonight we made a toast to the environment and animal welfare; 2 issues that have not passed her lips since she was elected.  Is it me, or is the environment, global warming, the turmoil which results in so many nations at this very moment due to it, something which should really be at the forefront of political leaders in boxes ?

I am gonna have another drink later – I am so pleased to see her go; especially if she takes Rees Mogg with her, a foie gras production supporter (and no doubt eater) who hopefully will get his marching orders at the cabinet reshuffle which will take place as soon as the new PM is elected in just over a week.

Liz Truss has refused to enshrine animal welfare in trade deals, says minister | Animal welfare | The Guardian

England: Liz Truss has REFUSED to enshrine animal welfare in trade deals, says minister. – World Animals Voice

England: Liz Truss ‘has sewage on her hands’; Defra, Live Animal Exports, and …… – World Animals Voice

For the Brits; and being English I am one of them; environmental and animal welfare issues are big (maybe massive ?) vote winners; but this woman refused to see that, or even start to get a grip on them and the issues.  We carry on with our hardened battle campaigning for the badgers, live animals in transport, vivisection issues, factory farming and the rest.  We don’t come and go in a matter of just a few weeks – we are in for the long fights; however long the victories take to achieve.

So, now, Conservative MP’s are trembling at the thought of what the British public will do to them at the next General Election.  So now, more than ever, we have the opportunity to really turn up the gas with them on issues that we all care about – animal welfare and the environment.

THE Conservatives could face an electoral wipeout at the next general election, according to recent polling data.

A YouGov/Times poll published yesterday puts Labour some 33 points ahead of the Conservatives, understood to be the largest lead for Labour in any poll since 1998.

The poll puts Labour on 54 per cent, with the Conservatives down to just 21 per cent.

Another poll, by election forecaster Electoral Calculus and Find Out Now predicted that an imminent general election would see Labour win a majority of over 100 seats, while the Conservatives would be reduced to their lowest share of the national vote in history.

This is how the Conservatives could face a wipeout at next general election (yahoo.com)

So we battle on now after witnessing our opposition anti environment and anti animal welfare general fall on her own sword in London today.

I (Mark) personally have a great interest in (ancient) Roman military history.  The romans lost 3 entire legions (Legio XVII, Legio XVIII and Legio XIX) under the control of Publius Quinctilius Varus in AD 9; ambushed by Arminius, the leader of the Germanic tribes, in Germany, at a battle known as that of ‘Teutoberg Forest’ which is near the modern German town of Kalkriese.

The Romans hated the forests of Northern Europe, as their excellent fighting machines always won best in the wide, open lands of Southern Europe. The North European forests were a haunted danger to them. The fight in the Teutoberg forest which included the slaughter of Varus and his legions, led to the abandonment of any plans to transform Germnmania Magna into a province and which also resulted in the river Rhine acting as a border between the roman world and the German tribes.

Roman casualties have been estimated at 15,000–20,000 dead, and many of the officers were said to have taken their own lives by falling on their swords in the approved manner.  Tacitus wrote that many officers were sacrificed by the Germanic forces as part of their indigenous religious ceremonies, cooked in pots and their bones used for rituals.[37] Others were ransomed and some common soldiers appear to have been enslaved

Read more – Battle of the Teutoburg Forest – Wikipedia

Battle of the Teutoburg Forest | Summary, Facts, & Significance | Britannica

Finally, as the Germanic tribes sliced the tongues out of the Roman soldiers they had captured, they uttered the words:

‘At last, the viper has ceased to hiss’.

The animal rights / environmentalists gained a victory today, with the forced resignation of a viper – a ‘general’ of the Conservative armies that sit encamped in and around Downing Street, London. Waiting now for their massacre ? – time will tell.

Our battles have been long and drawn out for decades; our animal rights movement has tenacity, whilst politicians just come into senate and then go.

Today, one viper ceased to hiss any more; now the Conservatives must very seriously address the issues of animals and their rights and act to the positive; otherwise they will meet their own ‘Teutoberg’ massacre at the next UK general Election.

Regards Mark.

General News, Uncategorized

USA: Article – An animal rights case could impact federalism and weaken the Constitution.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/an-animal-rights-case-could-impact-federalism-and-weaken-the-constitution/ar-AA135H9b

An animal rights case could impact federalism and weaken the Constitution

A case before the U.S. Supreme Court could have surprising, and perhaps counterintuitive, implications for supporters of federalism and the long-protected ability of states and municipalities to regulate their own commerce and pass what is broadly known as “morals-based” legislation.

The nine justices on Oct. 11 heard arguments in National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) v. Ross, which centers around California’s Proposition 12, a law passed in 2018 with overwhelming support from voters of both political parties.

The law set minimum public safety and animal welfare standards for pork and eggs produced or sold within the state’s borders. Those requirements state that pigs used for breeding, egg-laying hens, and calves raised for veal must have enough space simply to turn around and extend their limbs. Proposition 12’s guidelines parallel those being implemented successfully by hundreds of restaurant, grocery and food companies, and by many farmers across the country. 

Concern about welfare of animals that are destined for human consumption goes beyond that of the animals’ themselves. Many health experts have weighed in on the threat to human health posed by the extreme confinement of pigs. In a brief submitted to the court in the NPPC case, the American Public Health Association, Infectious Diseases Society of America, Center for Food Safety and others wrote that confining female pigs in crates causes them enormous stress, which in turn makes them more prone to disease that can be passed on to their piglets. The implications are quite real: Hundreds of thousands of Americans are sickened every year by contaminated pork.

Indeed, Proposition 12 specifically implemented those concerns, prohibiting sales — within the state — of specified farm animal products if the animals were raised under extreme conditions that are not merely “cruel,” but that state officials determine “threaten the health and safety of California consumers” by (for example) increasing the risk of “foodborne illness.” Some conservative-leaning states, it should be said, have banned gestation crates within their borders, including Ohio, Arizona and Florida.

However, some multinational pork companies are pushing back against the will of voters and have sued to overturn the law. Courts from Iowa to California have rejected those companies’ claims that states cannot set standards on products sold within their borders. 

In the court of public opinion, the pork producers are hoping to capitalize on conservatives’ often reflexive antipathy to California’s progressive tendencies that often do infringe on free-market principles. But there is a vital element that some voices on the right appear not to have fully considered. If the court rules in the pork producers’ favor, it could wreak havoc on the Constitution’s federalist system of government and open the door for liberal activist judges to strike down dozens of state and local laws across the country that are based on values that many conservatives claim as their own. 

The longstanding state power to advance public morals, including preventing animal cruelty, traditionally has included the power to keep immoral products out of the marketplace as well.  The Supreme Court long has respected the “State’s broad powers to regulate commerce and protect the public environment” and the “right to maintain a decent society.” (Paris Adult Theatre I v. Slaton.) If the court were to curtail California’s exercise of its traditional morals-based lawmaking power in this case, that restriction would also strip other states of this authority.

Existing laws that could be jeopardized by NPPC v. Ross include those regulating the sale of liquor, blocking trafficking in stolen goods, banning the sale of fetal tissue, outlawing prostitution, and limiting gambling. 

Conservatives can debate the merits of such laws, but we can agree that these issues should remain at least partially in the purview of state and local governments. Notably, Proposition 12 does not attempt to project California’s moral views out-of-state, and is consistent with the federalist principle of states and municipalities setting laws that are right for their own communities. Blocking this ability would open the door for politicians and bureaucrats in Washington to fill the void with one-size-fits-all mandates, effectively emboldening the federal government to impose its own value judgments.

The Founding Fathers intended for states to retain extensive power and to not cede all of it to the federal government, including the authority to regulate commerce within their own borders. If the Supreme Court sides with the pork producers in NPPC v. Ross, this constitutional principle would be dramatically weakened.

Regards Mark

Environmental, Farm Animals, General News

England: Meet the Animal Rebellion ‘Milk Pour’ Protesters You’ve Been Seeing All Over Twitter.

WAV comment: These guys acted for what they believe in – animal justice and the non abuse of animals in the dairy industry. They both have university degrees – Robert was actually arrested several times just after graduating from Uni of York, with a degree in Politics and International Relations, and Skylar the activist is actually a Uni of Sussex grad, having finished their BA in International Development with a first in 2020. Very intelligent activists; and if you want to see more on dairy abuse; then watch this, especially the end footage. Please, dont do dairy !:

One of them ‘had a nap and read Horrible Histories’ in jail

You’ll have seen it dominating your Twitter timeline over the weekend and, to be honest, you probably have 101 opinions about it. On Saturday (15th October), animal rights group Animal Rebellion staged a nationwide “milk-pour” in different high-end food shops across the UK.

Protestors in an Edinburgh Waitrose were the first to go viral, uniting Union Jack Twitter and… well, everyone else, alike. Young volunteers were seen opening bottles of milk and pouring them all over the floor, prompting people to raise questions about food waste and making more work for minimum-wage staff during the cost of living crisis.

These organised milk-pours also happened in London’s Harrods, Fortnum and Mason and Selfridges; as well as different Waitrose, Whole Foods and M&S stores around the country.

While Animal Rebellion has chosen to keep the identities of their volunteers anonymous, two of the demonstration’s organisers have since spoken out about its motives. Here’s everything you need to know about them:

Skylar Sharples

Skylar was among the Animal Rebellion protestors pouring milk in Harrods. They stood at the front of a meat counter and emptied glass bottles of milk onto the floor, before being escorted out. They later told the Daily Mail: “Supporters of Animal Rebellion are back acting because Liz Truss and Ranil Jayawardena (Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) are again deciding to ignore calls to start building a better future.”

The activist is actually a Uni of Sussex grad, having finished their BA in International Development with a first in 2020. Before this, they actually *founded* the Sussex branch of Extinction Rebellion, volunteered for Greenpeace, and worked in Outreach for The Humane League.

Robert Gordon

Robert Gordon has been a vocal orchestrator and supporter of the nationwide milk-pouring. A hugely active member of Animal Rebellion, Robert was actually arrested several times just after graduating from Uni of York, with a degree in Politics and International Relations.

In 2021, he was arrested at McDonald’s Leicester Square for carrying out a “sleep-in” – a demonstration where protestors pitched tents outside the door. He was taken into custody for trespassing and spent five hours “napping and reading Horrible Histories”.

WAV -For overseas visitors – https://www.bbc.co.uk/cbbc/shows/horrible-histories

The volunteer has been incredibly open about his privilege in the past – citing his upbringing as one of the reasons the police haven’t treated him harshly. “I am fortunate that owing to my privileges as a well-spoken, straight white male my arrest experience was relatively pleasant… My mum used to be a criminal lawyer and regularly talks about instances of injustice and police brutality so she was more concerned for me but I assured her I was fine,” he wrote in a blog post.

Animal Rebellion: Meet the grads who organised the Milk Pour Protest (thetab.com)

Regards Mark

Farm Animals, General News

England (London): Whoops, I’ve Spilt Some Milk On The Carpet !

Animal Rebellion protesters ‘may have caused £100k in damage after pouring 20 bottles of milk on Fortnum & Mason carpet’

WAV Comment – F&M, buy carpet tiles !

 Steve Bone, 40, is accused of dumping £38 worth of milk on the carpet of Fortnum & Mason (Image: PA)

The animal rights protesters are also accused of causing damage at Selfridges

Animal Rebellion protesters accused of pouring 20 bottles of milk on to the carpet of Fortnum & Mason may have cost it £100,000, a court has heard. Steve Bone, 40, from Clacton-on-Sea, Essex, stands accused of targeting Fortnum & Mason and Selfridges on Friday along with Sofia Fernandes Pontes, 26.

He pleaded not guilty to a charge of criminal damage in relation to the alleged Fortnum & Mason incident at Highbury Corner Magistrates’ Court on Monday afternoon (October 10). Prosecutors told the court the alleged incident took place at 11.30am.

Allegedly, the animal rights protesters took a basket with 20 bottles of milk to a value of £38 and emptied its contents on to goods and the carpet at the store, reports MyLondon. The carpet which was only laid a year ago would cost at least £5,000 to fix. Should it need replacing in its entirety then the total cost would be £100,000, the court heard.

Bone also indicated a not guilty plea for a charge of theft at the store as well as one count of theft and one count of criminal damage in relation to the alleged incident a Selfridges. He is accused of causing £273 of damage in that particular incident.

Bone, was granted conditional bail with conditions which include not being allowed to visit the two stores and will appear at Southwark Crown Court on November 7. His alleged accomplice, Fernandes Pontes, 26, of Copenhagen Street, Islington, North London, will appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on November 7.

Regards Mark

Animal Rebellion protesters ‘may have caused £100k in damage after pouring 20 bottles of milk on Fortnum & Mason carpet’ – Wales Online

Environmental, Farm Animals, General News, Uncategorized

USA: There’s a Big Difference Between Stealing and Rescue.”  Animal Activists Found ‘Not Guilty’ After Rescuing Pigs From Smithfield Factory Farm (Utah). Jury Unanimous In Its Verdict – A Big Day for ANTI AG GAG.
Hsiung and Picklesimer took two sick piglets from a farm in Utah in 2017 – MediSA: There’s a big difference between stealing and rescue.” Credit: Direct Action Everywhere
Hsiung and Picklesimer stood trial in the US

WAV Comment – A brilliant day for US activists. And the same day that Ag Gag is kicked into the dust.  Great that this means activists can enter facilities if they are getting evidence of animal abuse and cruelty.  Congats to all !

Animal Rights Activists Found Not Guilty After Rescuing Pigs From Smithfield Factory Farm

Wayne Hsiung said his and and Paul Darwin Picklesimer’s animal rescue trial is “a matter of conscience”

BY POLLY FOREMAN

Two animal rights activists who rescued pigs from a Smithfield meat factory farm have been acquitted after standing trial in the US.

Wayne Hsiung and Paul Darwin Picklesimer, who filmed themselves taking two sick piglets from a Utah farm in 2017, were facing burglary and theft charges. If found guilty, they risked a prison sentence of five years each. 

On Saturday night, the jury unanimously found them not guilty. Activists said the trial has set a “powerful precedent” for the right to rescue animals.

Hsiung, an attorney who represented himself, told the jury in his closing statement: “I don’t actually want you to acquit us on a legal technicality. I want you to acquit us as a matter of conscience. There’s a big difference between stealing and rescue.” 

The rescue

In 2017, Hsiung and Picklesimer entered Circle Four Farms in Utah. The farm is one of the United States’ largest pork producers, processing one million pigs a year. They were investigating the use of gestation crates, which Smithfield promised to ban back in 2007. 

When they entered the farm, they saw “row after row” of the cages. These two foot by seven foot metal stalls offered the pigs no room to turn around. The animals could spend up to five years of their life in them while pregnant. 

The two pigs they rescued, later named Lizzie and Lily, are still alive today. Hsiung previously said in an interview that the pigs were ill and close to dying when they found them. 

The trial

Hsiung and Picklesimer filmed the conditions on the farm, but the footage wasn’t allowed to be used in the trial due to the fact that it may have caused “horror” to the jury. 

The activists claimed this was a violation of their constitutional rights and is part of a broader pattern of undue corporate influence.

Hsuing previously stated that the FBI, dozens of agents, and attorneys tried to prosecute the case “for years.” This is despite the fact that the commercial value of each piglet was around $42.20. The FBI were sent to raid sanctuaries in search of Lily and Lizzie after they were rescued. 

“State and federal authorities have consistently shielded factory farms from transparency and accountability,” said Matthew Strugar, a constitutional lawyer involved in all successful efforts to overturn “ag-gag” statutes. 

“In nearly two decades of legal work, this case is one of the most egregious I’ve seen, in terms of denying defendants’ constitutional right to a rigorous defense.”

Regards Mark

Previous posts:

USA: Animal rights whistleblowers stand trial as supporters rally outside Utah courthouse. – World Animals Voice

USA: Iowa State Finally Sees Sense And Strikes Down ‘Ag Gag’ Law. Animal Cruelty Investigators Can Now Do Their Work. – World Animals Voice

Animal Rights Activists Found Not Guilty After Rescuing Pigs From Smithfield Factory Farm (plantbasednews.org)