Stop animal exploits in fairs and circus

This weekend was my home town's annual fair. In the past there has been a circus and exotic animals such as a brother and sister black panther pair, ring tail lemurs, tortoises, kangaroos, etc... Though I wish these animals could have more space to roam, they all seemed in good health and there were lots of opportunity to educate the masses about these animals. So when I heard that a group of tigers and a lion was going to be at the fair I was excited. How wrong I was!

There was about nine tigers maybe more since I didn't count and one lion. All were housed in cramp cages with just enough room to lye down and turn around in. Then the presenters were nothing less than cheap Las Vegas rip offs waiving sticks at the animals and making them stand up on their back legs. Then to make matters worse, the lion was forced to stand upon a tripod of sorts while the tigers walked underneath the graceful lion to the tune of the old nursery rhyme song London Bridge.

This event was nothing less than emotional torture. Sure, these beautiful creatures looked in good physical condition but having to do such stupid tricks is degrading. I support animals being in sanctuaries and zoos because their homes are being taking away and are murdered daily by poachers. I also support animals traveling in fairs as educational ambassadors but NOT AS ACTORS IN A CHEAP TRICKS SHOW. Instead of doing what these idiots did, they could have housed the tigers and lion in a large enclosure equipped with a variety of stimulating landscape such as ropes, trees, caves, water pool etc... Then while people count their blessings for being able to simply observe, educators could be at hand to explain the big cats' current plight at survival and being a severely endangered animal. Instead, over one hundred people huddled around and clapped as the animals performed stupid pet tricks.

Which leads me to the following conclusion about animal welfare - as long as people come, animals will always continue to be exploited.

And my solution to this is simple, stop the exploitation of animals in circus and fair environments. Instead, provide suitable habitats to stimulate their senses and let them teach us humans as ambassadors of nature. It really is that simple.

Massachusetts outlaws devocalizing dogs and cats

Tomorrow, Massachusetts will become the first state outlawing the procedure to devocalize dogs and cats for non-medical reasons. Under the new law which was signed by Gov. Deval Patrick in April, anyone found cutting the vocal cords of dogs and/or cats without any medical cause will be subject to fines and up to five years in prison. Animal rights activists hail this law because in a way it is giving back a voice to animals.

Devocalizing any animal is cruel and inhumane treatment. It serves only the owner in that it makes their lives easier by having a silent pet. California is currently considering adopting a similar law and a US congressman introduced a bill in May of this year which will support states following Massachusett's lead.

To read further, click on this link: Reuters

Keep your pets safe during hot weather

Last week, a 6 year old Maltese died after succumbing to temperatures reaching 140 degrees when locked inside his owner's van. Heriberto Palacio, the dog's owner, pleaded innocent to charges of animal cruelty because he claims he was unaware of the dangers from locking his dog inside the van when it was nearly 103 degrees out. It is also worth mentioning that the reason the dog was locked in the van was because the owner stopped off to go swimming. Personally, this is a complete cop out from taking responsibility for his stupidity. Unless you live at the North Pole, you would have to be a complete and utter idiot not to know of the risks from locking any pet inside a car when it is over 100 degrees. Would Mr. Palacio have locked a child in the car? Hopefully justice will be served on behalf of the poor Maltese, who officials confirmed the animal pretty much cooked to death.

In the mean time it is important to take precautions when dealing with hot weather. The NY Daily News published an article giving a refresher on tips to keeping your pets safe. I would suggest reading it because it does offer useful information.

Keeping your pets safe is common sense and entails simple things such as providing fresh water through out the day, keeping your pet home instead of taking him or her with you on errands, and limiting outdoor exercise no matter how active your pet may be. Basically, treat your pet like you would a child to avoid severe consequences from over exposure to the hot weather.

domestic violence double standard

I was watching one of those court tv shows today. This lady was being sued by her ex for a loan and as a defense argued that the ex used to beat her. At first I was all for the lady but later the story came out that she would attack the ex first usually by slapping him in the face. The judge went off on the guy about having no right to put his hands on any woman but never said anything to the lady. This is my problem. Domestic violence should not be limited to man beating woman. It should encompass both. No person has any right to put his or her hands on any other person period. The judge should have yelled at the lady too for slapping the man. She had no right to do so just like the guy had no right too. Right now there still is a double standard here and until the issue of no one having a right to touch another is addressed can domestic violence finally be controlled and eventually eliminated.

Is the NFL losing touch with its fans

Yes, I admit it. I am spoiled. My father has been driving me to and from work so I can save money by avoiding parking. In exchange for his services, I let him drive my car and listen to a morning talk show by this guy named Mike and Boomer Esiason. In the past few days, the topic of interest besides the end of the baseball season has been football - the only sport I really follow. Apparently, teams such as the Giants are coming up with programs that cost an exorbitant amount of money to buy and/or keep season tickets. This has something to do with obtaining a personal license for the season tickets which gives you rights to a set of seats; remember you also have to buy the season tickets (sounds like double dipping). I also learned that even if you have season tickets, you still have to buy the game day tickets. About a month ago I went onto ticket master to see if I can buy tix for my dad and I. The cheapest tix I could find (a pair) would've cost me over $500 bucks. I think the prices charged for going to a football game is disgusting. Teams are losing site of the fans which has helped make football just as important to our society as baseball. Unfortunately, like any other corporation, the only goal at hand is the almighty dollar. Eventually, at this rate, no regular American who wants to go to a game with his or her father will be able to. The stadiums will be empty and the only ones watching the game live will be pigeons. In which case I am sure management will come up with a way to charge them too.

p.s. go bears!!!

What is the difference between blogger and journalist

Can anyone explain to me the difference between blogger and journalist?

According to the Merriam-Webster online dictionary: A blog is a "web site that contains an online personal journal with reflections, comments, and often hyperlinks provided by the writer." A blogger is the author of the blog in question. On the other hand, a journalist is "a person engaged in journalism; especially (a.) writer or editor for a news medium (b.) a writer who aims at a mass audience."

In addition, journalism is described as the following: "1 a: the collection and editing of news for presentation through the media b: the public press c: an academic study concerned with the collection and editing of news or the management of a news medium 2 a: writing designed for publication in a newspaper or magazine b: writing characterized by a direct presentation of facts or description of events without an attempt at interpretation c: writing designed to appeal to current popular taste or public interest."

As you can see, journalists tend to write about news events and facts without interpretations, but is this really the case. As we saw from the 2008 election, the news media were disgustingly bias in favor of Obama. They interpreted their coverage based on personal opinions and wanted professional gains. Bloggers also write about facts uncovered by the news media. They just tend to throw in their own two cents. Does this make them any less than a journalist? In addition, like journalists and the media which strive to reach the masses, bloggers write on sites which have equal opportunity to reach the masses. They are open to the public 24/7 via the world wide web.

A couple of months ago I decided to apply for a slot at an online news agency. Actually, anyone can basically write for them just like a blog site. The only difference is you have to fill out an application, submit a writing sample of what you would write about and agree to a criminal background check. Blogger does not do that. Maybe they should (LOL). But it was not like a job interview and I was granted permission to write for them. You basically get 1 cent per view. My hits have been great compared to all my other sites. In just two months I had over 1000 hits. It took me two years to achieve that on Earth Chatter. Anyways, over the last four days, massive debates have been going on in the google group site due to a recalculation of compensation. This resulted in journalists putting down other writers with no journalist background. These people think they are better. Are they? I think not. Despite what these journalists think, the only difference between bloggers and journalists in my opinion is venue. We bloggers write on free sites open to the public. Journalists traditionally go through newspapers and publishers. However, the outcome is the same. We all write! Sure journalists write just about the news while we have the flexibility to write about whatever. But I think we are all the same. What do you think?

Too many opinions

A few months ago I joined the Examiner, which is an online news agency. I had to submit an application and writing sample proving myself to be a reliable independent contractor on the issue I choose - environmental issues. I tried to raise the bar from my normal blogging habits which included researching more issues and trying to write just a little better than normal. I have really enjoyed myself and still am. However, the comments started coming in which I am not use to receiving and was surprised that almost all were negative. People were resorting to calling me uninformed and unprofessional, etc... They even said I was stating untruths. I am not implying that this has never happened. My post prior to this one contained a comment implying the same. I was just not prepared for the the higher level of emotion these commentors had.

This gave me a thought. Everyone is entitled to their opinions; I will always believe this. But there seems to be a little problem emerging. More and more people are becoming less open minded. For example, an individual who believes whole heartedly in man made global warming immediately concludes that an individual believing that global warming is natural is stupid and uninformed. There is no acceptance that for every opinion, there is an anti-opinion so to speak. This frame of mind is damaging to progressive debates on important issues such as the environment, health care, etc... Therefore, unless people can stop believing that they are always right, absolutely nothing will be resolved.

So, what do you think?