Posted on September 15, 2016 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Dear Mark,
Around 10,000 non-human primates are used in experiments in the European Union every year. These tests are terrifying, traumatic, and often painful – and it’s time to phase them out.
The scientific world is constantly developing innovative new approaches to research that don’t involve animals – and they’re often cheaper and more reliable than experiments on animals, too. Setting a deadline for ending cruel tests in Europe would encourage even more investment in cutting-edge alternatives to animal testing – while saving thousands of monkeys from a lifetime of suffering in laboratory cages.
The Netherlands has already promised to replace tests on primates with humane, non-animal methods. Now, the European Commission is in the process of updating its policy on the use of primates in experiments, too. This is a key moment to call for change.
Please join more than 25,000 other compassionate people and add your name:
Thank you for everything you do to help animals.
Sincerely,
The Science Team Campaigner PETA UK
AirBridgeCargo Airlines reportedly still ships monkeys to be used in cruel and deadly experiments.
The monkeys are crammed into small wooden crates and loaded into dark cargo holds for as long as 30 hours before being imprisoned in cages, cut open, poisoned, crippled, and killed in laboratories.
Considering that most major airlines in the world have already banned this cruel practice, it doesn’t take a pilot’s license to realize that those still shipping monkeys need a new flight path.
For all animals,
Filed under: CAMPAIGNS - Global Animal Welfare Issues, GENERAL NEWS - International / National / Regional, GLOBAL PETITIONS - Anything Animal, Anywhere ! | Leave a comment »
Posted on September 15, 2016 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
SAV Comment – Seen many obese Vegetarians or Vegans ? – Eat Animal fats and this is the result.
Young people are so out of shape that they’re being turned away from military recruitment centers.
Go to college, get a job, or join the military—those three choices have long been seen as the main paths to becoming a productive member of society. But a new report finds enlisting in the armed services is not an option for most young adults in America.
A full 71 percent of youths and young adults 17 to 24 do not qualify to serve in the military “due to problems with obesity, education, drug abuse, or crime.”
That’s one of the main findings of the 2016 Citizen-Readiness Index, a report released Tuesday by the Washington, D.C.–based youth development nonprofit Council for a Strong America.
The report crunched data from several sources, including Pew Research Center and the Pentagon, to determine whether young people “are workforce-ready, crime-free, and military-eligible.” At a time when about 30 percent of American kids weigh more than they should and roughly 30 percent of adults are obese, being out of shape has become the biggest obstacle to military enlistment.
“Obesity is one of the major issues we see and plays a role in 31 percent of disqualifications,” Kelli Bland, the chief of public affairs at the U.S. Army Recruiting Command, told TakePart. “If the obesity issue in America increases in the coming years, it could have a detrimental impact on our national security because we may not have enough young people willing and qualified to serve in the armed forces.”
Other medical or physical problems disqualify another 30 percent of young adults from serving in the Army, as do issues with drug use.
“In addition to these challenges, we are finding that less than one in four of those who are qualified for service have a strong desire to serve,” Bland said.
The point of the report “isn’t to steer kids into a life of military service,” Amy Dawson Taggart, the national director of Mission: Readiness, a coalition of retired military leaders that is affiliated with the council, wrote in an email to TakePart.
Problems that affect the armed forces extend to the rest of America. The qualifications for joining the armed forces—having a high school diploma or a GED, being physically fit, and not having an arrest record—also represent the basics of being able to contribute positively to the community.
“It begs the question, if you aren’t qualified to serve in the military, what else are you not qualified to do?” retired U.S. Air Force Major General Mike Hall said in the report.
Youths in seven states—Arkansas, Delaware, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada, South Carolina, and Tennessee—are least prepared to meet those criteria, according to the report.
“Retired admirals and generals believe that we all have a responsibility to help young people grow up to stay in school, stay fit, and stay out of trouble so that they can succeed at whatever they choose in life, including a career in the military, if that’s what they wish. We want our kids to grow up with options,” Dawson Taggart wrote.
To ensure kids have more options, the report offers policy recommendations for the next Congress and commander-in-chief that reflect “what we’ve known for years: smart, targeted, early interventions can go a long way in preparing our most vulnerable children for success,” wrote Dawson Taggart. That includes investing in “high-quality early childhood education, voluntary parent coaching for first-time teen mothers, and getting junk food out of schools and physical activity back in schools.”
At the same time, states and school districts continue to cut budgets for education—and cutting or eliminating the U.S. Department of Education entirely has been proposed by Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, a move that Democrat presidential nominee Hillary Clinton opposes. Yet Dawson Taggart wrote that there is plenty of “broad, strong bipartisan support for initiatives that help young people get the right start in life.”
That support will be essential to ensuring that being able to join the military is an option for future generations.
“We are not under pressure to relax our enlistment standards, and in fact, we are actually focused on increasing the quality of our recruits next fiscal year. With a smaller Army, it is even more important that every individual is fully qualified to serve in the occupation they choose,” said Bland.
Filed under: GENERAL NEWS - International / National / Regional | Leave a comment »
Posted on September 14, 2016 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
America’s bees are dying in droves, Mark
— And despite mounting evidence that toxic “neonic” pesticides — the most heavily used insecticides in America — are killing bees, the Environmental Protection Agency has failed to take decisive action to stop the onslaught.
Enough is enough! If the EPA won’t do its job, President Obama must step in now — before he leaves office — to crack down on these bee-toxic products from corporate goliaths like Bayer and Monsanto.
The fight is all the more urgent as today, Bayer, the world’s #1 maker of neonics, announced that it will take over Monsanto, the world’s leading seller of neonic-treated seed. This new corporate behemoth could make our chemical-soaked food supply even deadlier for bees.
A staggering 44 percent of honeybee colonies in America collapsed over the past year — the second highest rate ever recorded. Overwhelming scientific evidence points squarely to the deluge of neonic pesticides as a key culprit.
We simply can’t wait another minute for strong government action. And with barely four months left in President Obama’s term, time is running out.
His administration must move quickly to impose a ban on all uses of neonic pesticides that pose a risk to bees. The stakes couldn’t be higher. We depend on bees to pollinate 70 out of 100 major crops, from apples and blueberries to watermelon and zucchini.
If we don’t address this bee crisis now, the economic and ecological impacts on our bees, our food supply and our environment will be disastrous.
It’s crucial that the White House hears from millions of concerned citizens like you — so please, speak out now.
Thanks, Rhea Suh President, NRDC
Filed under: CAMPAIGNS - Global Animal Welfare Issues, GENERAL NEWS - International / National / Regional, GLOBAL PETITIONS - Anything Animal, Anywhere ! | Leave a comment »
Posted on September 14, 2016 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Mark,
The McDonald’s hamburger is an icon of the modern world, and billions have been served worldwide since it was first introduced 76 years ago.
But one detail has been missing from this contemporary legend: the gross amount of antibiotics that have been pumped into the famous McDonald’s beef patty.
Scientists are warning that we’re rapidly approaching the “post-antibiotic era”. As antibiotics are overused, bacteria are becoming increasingly immune. It’s downright dangerous. And fast-food restaurants like McDonald’s are feeding the crisis.
McDonald’s has been under public pressure to change its supply chain before.
After losing unhappy customers due to antibiotics in its chicken supply, McDonald’s cleaned up its menu in its U.S. restaurants and banned chicken raised on antibiotics that are important to human medicine. This shows that change is possible — but it won’t happen without public pressure.
Now we need to see that change for beef and pork too, and beyond just U.S. restaurants. We need a commitment to reduce antibiotics for all of the animals involved in the behemoth McDonald’s supply chain, and for franchises worldwide.
We can’t even explain how important this is — antibiotic resistance is a growing threat with consequences for our ability to survive even the most common illnesses. McDonald’s is worth a staggering $39 billion and operates 36,000 stores all over the world — but its cultural impact as the corporate face of hamburgers and fast food is much more significant. Getting an international, public-facing corporation like McDonald’s to stop the overuse of antibiotics would send shockwaves through the industry.
We know McDonald’s responds to public pressure because we’ve fought it before — and won. Over 200,000 SumOfUs members demanded that McDonald’s stop participating in global deforestation by rewriting its palm oil policy. And that’s exactly what it did. Now we need to do it again — our health depends on it.
Thanks for all that you do,
Liz, Angus, Nicole, and the rest of the SumOfUs team.
Filed under: GENERAL NEWS - International / National / Regional, GLOBAL PETITIONS - Anything Animal, Anywhere !, SUPPORTERS | Leave a comment »
Posted on September 14, 2016 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Cove Monitor Threatened by Japanese Extremists
Less than two weeks into the 2016/17 dolphin hunting season in Taiji, Japan, Dolphin Project documented the first lives lost – and another threatened.
On September 9, in an eerie resemblance of last year, almost to the day, the dolphins’ luck ran out when a pod of Risso’s were driven into the cove and slaughtered. As Dolphin Project live streamed from the cove, the world watched in real time as this once-robust pod of approximately 19 dolphins were killed, their lifeless bodies hidden underneath blue and gray tarps. The remaining Risso’s also watched, awaiting their own slaughter as the skiffs went by, dragging dead pod members.
Two days later, one of our Cove Monitors was stalked by a Japanese Nationalist Group, subjected to repeated aggressive and threatening gestures lasting over an hour. Local police attempted to act as a buffer between the two, but one individual managed to open her car door, hit her vehicle and scream, “Yankee — get out!”
“As a U.S. citizen she has a right to be there and stalking is a serious crime in Japan. We question why the police are allowing them to do this.”
~ Ric O’Barry, Founder/Director of Dolphin Project
Dolphin Project Cove Monitors have visas to be in Japan and are not breaking any laws. Local law enforcement should know that stalking is illegal in Japan. Making obscene gestures is also illegal, and yet the perpetrator/s were not arrested or charged. We are happy that she was unharmed, and will continue her vigilance for the dolphins.
Watch the London Taiji demo (with music by the brilliant David Bowie) which took place on Saturday – 16/1/16 by clicking on the following:
Filed under: CAMPAIGNS - Global Animal Welfare Issues, GENERAL NEWS - International / National / Regional, HUNTING - Primarily UK and Germany | Leave a comment »
Posted on September 14, 2016 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
SAV Comment – interesting that the issue of the South Korean dogmeat trade is being discussed by the UK Parliament. UK voted for Brexit. How many other parliaments in other EU member states are giving time to discuss the dogmeat tade ? – As we have said before, Brexit will enable UK groups to progress and hopefully improve international animal welfare standards. We are not seeing much of this in the way of improvements from the existing EU. People of Europe, have balls, get out and leave Junker and his crew to wallow in their own ???.. Don’t just talk – DO IT !!
“Does the hon. Gentleman agree that it is incredibly important during the forthcoming period of negotiations around Brexit that the UK takes a firm position on maintaining the highest possible animal welfare standards when it comes to how we implement laws on animal welfare—not just for companion animals, but for livestock more generally? Otherwise, the messages we are trying to send internationally will be totally undermined”.
Dear Mark Johnson,
Parliament debated the petition you signed – “Urge the South Korean Government to end the brutal dog meat trade”
Thanks, The Petitions team UK Government and Parliament
And Badgers :
Dear Mark Johnson,
On 7 September, MPs debated badger culling and bovine TB.
This was a debate in Westminster Hall, the second debating chamber of the House of Commons. Dr Paul Monaghan MP successfully entered a ballot system for this debate. This is one way backbench MPs can get debates in Parliament. You can find out more about Westminster Hall debates on the Parliament website: http://www.parliament.uk/about/how/business/debates/westminster-hall-debates/
Thanks, The Petitions team UK Government and Parliament
Filed under: CAMPAIGNS - Global Animal Welfare Issues, GENERAL NEWS - International / National / Regional | Leave a comment »
Posted on September 12, 2016 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Hi Mark
This is in Macedonia, Stip city NGO. Can You help them by SAV, please.
Thanks.
Regards
Slavica
Filed under: GENERAL NEWS - International / National / Regional, PHOTOGRAPHS - **WARNING** (Animal Suffering), VIDEOS | Leave a comment »
Serbian Animals Voice (SAV) 