December 2, 2008
Dear Tiffanie,
Thank you for recently writing to President-elect Obama’s transition team to express your support for a Secretary of Agriculture who takes animal protection seriously. Over the past week, you may have heard specific names mentioned for this important post, as well as for the Secretary of the Interior. These two cabinet positions have a major impact on animal welfare, and below are our recommendations for these key appointments. We hope you will once again make your voice heard and write to President-elect Obama.
With oversight of the Animal Welfare Act and the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act, the Secretary of Agriculture is responsible for enforcing a broad range of laws -- including those covering puppy mills, animal slaughter, animal fighting, and food safety. We believe that John Boyd Jr., founder and president of the National Black Farmers Association, and former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack, would be excellent choices for this post. However, we strongly object to former Representative Charlie Stenholm, who has been extremely hostile to even the most modest animal protection reforms, and has been a paid lobbyist for the factory farming and horse slaughter industries. It would be a disaster for animals if he were to be appointed to this position or any other position of authority over animal welfare matters.
The Secretary of the Interior oversees the enforcement of key wildlife laws, such as the Endangered Species Act and Migratory Bird Treaty Act, and wildlife management practices on hundreds of millions of acres of federal land. We think the best candidates for this position are Representatives Raúl Grijalva and Jay Inslee and former Interior Department Deputy Secretary David Hayes. Conversely, we oppose Representative John Salazar, as he has been hostile to a wide range of animal protection policies, including efforts to halt the trophy hunting of polar bears and to protect wild horses from slaughter. Salazar was even aligned with former Resources Committee Chairman Richard Pombo in an attempt to weaken the Endangered Species Act. Click here to learn more about these candidates and add your voice to these recommendations.
We hope that President-elect Obama will consider the importance of animal protection when appointing these positions, and that you will join us to express your support for individuals who embrace animal protection as a worthy goal. And don't forget to tell your friends and family to take action, too.
Thank you for all you do for animals.
Sincerely,
Wayne Pacelle
President & CEO
The Humane Society of the United States
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1 comment:
Wayne,
Thanks for what you do. This blog entry was for my readers, but I hope others will find it of use, too.
WHAT GOOD ARE AMERICA's WILD HORSES?
WHO: The federal Bureau of Land Management
WHAT: is considering killing thousands of wild horses
WHEN: about the time fiscal mismanagement comes home to roost
WHERE: across the Western United States
WHY: the Bureau was assigned to protect America’s wild horses in 1978
Thousands of children worldwide have asked me, in letters, emails and in person, to point something out to the government and other adults: killing is not protection.
As the author of "The Phantom Stallion" a series of books about wild horses, I've taken these young readers' requests to heart and tried to sum up their five best reasons that wild horses are good for kids.
1. We identify with mustangs-- We know how it feels to be innocent and free. Though we don't want to give up food, parents and a warm home to be free, we admire them for it.
Wild horses are part of our hearth language. Since humans first sat around campfires telling stories, they've told of wild horses' defiance in the face of capture. Do you want us to forget those stories?
2.Show us that MIGHT doesn't always make RIGHT -- BLM keeps saying it has the right to slaughter wild horses, but it hasn't felt like it yet. But now they might, because of money, and the horses don't deserve it, especially when the federal government, BLM's boss, is giving tons of money to the people who make our parents fight over money every single night.
It is so cool that Madeleine Pickens is rescuing thousands of horses by using her might for right.
3. Wild horses are good for keeping a "home on the range" -- Mustangs eat brush which could otherwise be fuel for wild fires. After eating those plants, wild horses spread the seeds in their poop. Anyone who sees or dreams about a herd of wild horses running free knows learns that not all land should be covered with houses, malls and highways.
4.Where mustang herds have to be smaller, use smart solutions --Don't let BLM bury its "mistakes." BLM knows contraception works on horses. There's a catch and release program for trout, so why not wild horses? Catch them, give them the contraception shot, and then turn them loose. Where the range is damaged by mining and sloppy recreational users, make them clean up their mess, just like we have to do.
5. Teach us that there's a good side to payback -- Horses carried us on explorations. They gave us wings, taking us places we could never have gone on our own two feet. They pulled our plows to help us eat. They fought our wars, running into swords and gunfire just because we asked them to, and we even used their bodies as barricades against our enemies.
When you ask us to be loyal to our families and friends, then tell us not to get emotional when they’re killing horses, remember that.
Sincerely,
Terri Farley on behalf of her readers
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