Advocacy For Animals

A Man, a Dog, and a Lawless 12-Hour Journey

by Liza Franzetta

— Our thanks to the Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF) for permission to republish this post, which originally appeared on the ALDF Blog on July 13, 2012. Franzetta is the ALDF’s Director of Communications.

Dog lovers across the political spectrum have been barking mad all election season over the now-infamous tale of Mitt Romney’s family road trip with his Irish Setter, Seamus, strapped to the roof of his car. The Animal Legal Defense Fund’s new infographic about Mitt’s very own “Crate-Gate” depicts not only the down-and-dirty details of Seamus’ terrifying 12 hour trip—it outlines the anti-cruelty laws in each of the jurisdictions the Romneys passed through that would clearly prohibit such a rooftop journey. As Lanny Davis wrote for Fox News, “This is the ultimate Purple Issue — it cuts across Republicans, Democrats, blue states, red states, liberals and conservatives.”

Thanks to our friends at Datagram Design for creating this infographic!

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Action Alerts from the National Anti-Vivisection Society

Each week the National Anti-Vivisection Society (NAVS) sends out an e-mail alert called “Take Action Thursday,” which tells subscribers about current actions they can take to help animals. NAVS is a national, not-for-profit educational organization incorporated in the State of Illinois. NAVS promotes greater compassion, respect, and justice for animals through educational programs based on respected ethical and scientific theory and supported by extensive documentation of the cruelty and waste of vivisection. You can register to receive these action alerts and more at the NAVS Web site.

This week’s Take Action Thursday reviews bills concerning animals and the military, as well as a novel Rhode Island law allowing animals to have their own advocates in court. continue reading…

Phony Front Groups the Only Chickens in Hen Debate

by Michael Markarian, president of the Humane Society Legislative Fund

Our thanks to the HSLF Animals & Politics blog for permission to republish this post, which first appeared on their site on July 13, 2012.

It’s not uncommon for Washington lobbying groups to set up phony organizations that sound like they are advocating in the public interest, rather than for corporate special interests. Now there’s a new group inside the beltway with the altruistic sounding name “Keep Food Affordable,” set up by the pork industry to attack members of Congress who are backing legislation to improve the treatment of egg-laying hens and provide a stable and secure future for U.S. egg farmers.

So who is this shadowy front group? In this interview, videotaped this summer at the World Pork Expo in Des Moines, a board member of the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) said “it’s funded mainly by NPPC.” And why would the pork producers care about legislation that only deals with laying hens, when they have no involvement in egg production, processing, or sales? Because they have among the worst records on animal welfare—with many large, industrialized operations confining sows in small cages, and producing enormous volumes of waste that pollute the environment. In fact, just this week, The Humane Society of the United States served notices to 51 pig confinement operations in the top pork-producing states for unreported releases of the hazardous pollutant ammonia.

The actual stakeholders involved in egg industry issues agree that Congress should pass S. 3239 and H.R. 3798, the Egg Products Inspection Act Amendments of 2012. This legislation has the backing of animal welfare groups, the egg industry, veterinary groups, and consumer groups. continue reading…

Action Alerts from the National Anti-Vivisection Society

Each week the National Anti-Vivisection Society (NAVS) sends out an e-mail alert called “Take Action Thursday,” which tells subscribers about current actions they can take to help animals. NAVS is a national, not-for-profit educational organization incorporated in the State of Illinois. NAVS promotes greater compassion, respect, and justice for animals through educational programs based on respected ethical and scientific theory and supported by extensive documentation of the cruelty and waste of vivisection. You can register to receive these action alerts and more at the NAVS Web site.

This week’s Take Action Thursday takes a look at chimpanzees used in research, better protection for companion animals in retail pet stores and puppy mills, and the role of science in federal agency rulemaking. continue reading…

Love and Despair

by Nicole Pallotta

— Our thanks to the Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF) for permission to republish this post, which originally appeared on the ALDF Blog on July 9, 2012. Pallotta is the ALDF’s Animal Law Program Student Liason.

Can we realistically expect judges to render trail-blazing pro-animal decisions in the afternoon when they dined on animals’ flesh in the morning?

So asks ALDF senior attorney Matthew Liebman in an article recently published in the Animal Law Review.

Teagan---courtesy ALDF Blog.

We have to recognize that the success of our creativity hinges on forces beyond ourselves and beyond our control… Adjudication is not done in an academic vacuum by unbiased arbiters, but rather by human beings, by judges reared on the ideologies of a legal system, and a society, that is profoundly speciesist … Judicial interpretation is never an objective deduction of plain meaning or congressional intent, but rather the interplay of normative judgments, biases, and subjective values.

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