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Tuesday, 06 February 2007 15:11 |
Ringling Bros. taken to task over treatment of animals
Ringling Bros. will soon be in Greenville, S.C., and they are already advertising on our local airwaves. They are calling this yearës show the "All New Red Tour." Donët be fooled; itës the same old, pathetic act. Elephants will again be traveling in cramped boxcars, and they will spend most of their time in chains. Tigers will be confined to tiny cages.
As always, Ringling will claim that they are good to their animals. But itës all about economics; they use animals because they profit from their suffering. In nature, tigers donët jump through hoops, elephants donët stand on their heads, and bears do not ride bicycles. Animals donët do stupid tricks because they want to. They "perform" because they have been subjected to fear and intimidation with electric prods, bullhooks and whips, and they know that failure to do as told will result in punishment.
If
you care for and respect animals, why be complicit in subjecting them
to a miserable, unnatural life on the road full of abuse and cruelty?
Wild animals belong in the wild. To learn more about how Ringling and
other circuses abuse animals, visit www.circuses.com.
Stewart David
Asheville
Jesus on DVD for masses? Not all are wired, reader says
Thanks for the
review (by Daily Planet spirituality columnist Marc Mullinax) of the
Jesus Video. I got one, but I donët have a DVD player. I have a VCR and
collections of tapes of good old winners.
Iëm retired and
many of my friends do not have DVDs or are on the Internet. My son and
grandchildren probably have all the latest gizmos, but many of us do
not buy everything new in the market.
When will
someone out there realize there are many of us out there who have
reasonable funds, reasonable brain power and interested in world
events, but we donët want to be attached to a machine, hence no
computer or online activity? (Iëve had carpal-tunnel surgery, so no
hours on the mouse for me!)
Kathryn B. Johnson
Asheville
EDITORëS NOTE:
The following letter was sent in response to a column headlined
"Hopefully, global warmingës threat prompts changes before itës too
late" by Janese Johnson in the Jan. 24 edition of the Daily Planet.
Global warming concerns? Give up meat, reader says
A University of
Chicago study put the numbers to substantiate the natural law, which
says that when you eat lower on the food chain, less energy is wasted,
and vice versa.
The energy,
specifically fossil fuels, that is needed to support the standard
American diet, which consists of 6 to 9 billion animals annually,
produces a significant amount of greenhouse gases.
The average
American diet requires an extra ton and a half of carbon dioxide
equivilent, in the form of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases,
compared with a strictly vegetarian diet.
In 2002, energy
used for food production accounted for 17 percent of all fossil fuels
used in the U.S. And the burning of these fossils emmited three
quarters of a ton of carbon dioxide per person.
And farm animal production, i.e. gas from animals, and their feces, produces large amounts of methane and nitrous oxide.
So when you
replace your hamburger, ham and cheese and a glass of cowës milk, with
a salad, you are doing more than leaving your car home and walking to
the grocery store.
Asheville is the
number one rated small city for vegetarian and vegan options, so it is
easy to find great plant based food at a grocery store, or restaurant.
Youëll not only be saving the planet, you will also be eating much healthier.
For more information, see www.pcrm.org, www.earthsave.org, and www.goveg.com.
MARK CRIMAUDO
Candler
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