BY MOLLY SARGENT
TO THE EDITOR
OK, PETA,
Let’s Dance
Ms. Huntley’s are far from vulgar as they
show a heightened level of sophistication
when it comes to expressing themselves.
Jonathan Seraphim
Eugene
Taking on archaic ideas
BRING IN DA FUNK
P
ETA’s staff writer Lindsay Pillard-Post’s mis-
guided opposition to the No Kill movement
in the letter “No-Kill No Way To Go” May 10
recited the same old lines that all the backward-
thinking, entrenched killers of adoptable animals
use to defend themselves. It’s always warehousing an-
imals and horror stories. Sometimes they use “There
are not enough homes,”and “Death is not always the worst
option.” True, but death sure is the most final. Ask the otherwise healthy, happy
black Labrador retriever with kennel cough that was killed yesterday.
Let me say first that for the last 20 years I have been a staunch PETA supporter
and animal rights activist. But I don’t support their ideas about killing adoptable ani-
mals for space and convenience. Almost everything I know about activism comes
from PETA, and I intend to use that knowledge to fight their archaic ideas about
killing adoptable animals.
PETA says it is a waste of money to build a no-kill shelter. We, the No-Kill
Community, don’t want to build anything, just change the practices in our existing
animal control. We aren’t asking for more money. Many of the programs we are sug-
gesting only need dedicated volunteers to implement.
PETA says no-kill shelters close their doors when they are full. We don’t envision
a shelter that closes its doors or gets full. When the shelter implements our sug-
gested programs, the animals go through the system, quickly leaving room for the
next animal.
PETA says no-kill shelters warehouse animals, and that they go crazy from being
locked up. Our shelter will move animals through the system to the other end: off-
site adoption centers, foster homes, rescue groups and permanent homes. The com-
munity will be involved and will make the difference. And if needed, many animals
do fine short term in a confined situation if they get enough exercise and attention;
otherwise boarding kennels would all be closed down.
PETA says you can’t really have a no-kill shelter; some animals will be killed.
That’s true; we have always said so. No-kill means no killing of adoptable animals.
Animals that are deemed unadoptable (the ones with a poor or grave prognosis re-
garding health and mental stability that can’t be cured or rehabilitated), sadly, will
have to be killed mercifully. But so many have died because of something as simple
as kennel cough or a bad tooth or being terrified. How cruel and inhumane is it to
kill someone who is scared because you are too busy or too unconcerned to help?
PETA says the only answer is spay and neuter. We say there are many answers
including spay and neuter, foster homes, rescue groups, marketing, education,
media involvement, community involvement and most importantly a shelter staff
and management that goes beyond the call of duty, never gives up on an animal and
uses every possible tool and creative idea within their grasp to help save animal’s
lives.
PETA, it’s time to stop chanting the “There aren’t enough homes for all of them”
mantra. There are enough homes or people wouldn’t be making a living selling dogs
and cats. We can find those homes.
A
s PETA founder Ingrid Newkirk has said, “When it comes to pain, love, joy,
loneliness, and fear, a rat is a pig is a dog is a boy. Each one values his or
her life and fights the knife.” Yes, Ingrid, each does value his or her life and
has the right to live it as much as a rescued cow or chicken. How can you have dif-
ferent standards for different animals? We don’t kill children because they are
homeless. I doubt Peter Singer, author of Animal Liberation, would agree with you
that killing adoptable animals is any different than slaughtering a pig for dinner.
PETA, you could be doing so much good on the right side of this issue instead of
spending precious dollars and time fighting a paradigm change that is going to be
the future whether you like it or not. Join us and monitor the new no-kill shelters
like ours will be, making sure we are doing what we promised.
And for pete’s sake, go to www.nokillsolutions.com and read what Nathan
Winograd, the nationally recognized no-kill expert, has accomplished in the last 10
years, like save rates of 92 to 99 percent without closing the doors on the public. It’s
not the no-kill of the past, it’s the future, and it’s coming at you like a freight train.
It’s time to get on board!
Molly Sargent owns Embarkadero Compassionate Grooming in Pleasant Hill. She is a member of the No Kill
Community Coalition and an appointee to the Lane County Commissioner’s Save Adoptable Animals Task Force.
She has been an animal rights activist since 1985. She has worked as a veterinary assistant, managed an
emergency veterinary hospital, fostered, rescued and has worked and volunteered to help animals for the past 42
years.
Dear Michael Franti and Crew: We love
the message, love the show. Got your back
here in Eugene. As fans from way back we
feel a duty to inform you of the current musi-
cal vacuum. This “oh so diverse” community
is awash in a sea of bluegrass, newgrass,
punkgrass, folk music (thankfully the folk
festival is over) and a spattering of
metal/edgy avant garde. All very Anglo, as is
the predominate culture in our valley.
As if this weren’t enough, we have a
plethora of radio DJs working through mid-
life crises, playing an unending maudlin med-
ley of melancholy sounds rife with Caucasian
existential angst. What we lack, and are in dire
need of, is the deep dark funk and soul. You
know, the shit that comes from the dirt, crawls
up your legs and sets up house in your loins,
leaving us no choice ... but to dance!
On behalf of the Michael (ain’t afraid of
the funk) Franti fanclub, we beseech you,
give up the funk and bring us what we need to
satisfy our souls. Thanks for the inspiration.
Joe Wattles
Eugene
ANOTHER CONSPIRACY
Chicken Little says, “The sky is falling!”
Christine Gherardi (5/17) says, “I have seen
the sun with rainbow circles around it” and
interprets this as one of the signs of the im-
pact of something called “chemical trails.”
Before we rational Oregonians get drawn
into this “conspiracy theory,” let’s look at the
facts. Ms Gherardi’s “rainbow circles,” those
that she implies are the effect of some nefari-
ous governmental activity, are in fact a natu-
ral phenomena of the atmosphere. Circles
around the sun, sundogs and pillars of light
are all caused by the refraction and reflection
of sunlight as it passes through tiny ice crys-
tals high in the atmosphere. Check out the
following website: www.atoptics.co.uk
Ms. Gherardi also referred to the chemical
trails high in the sky. These “trails” are called
contrails, which form when the hot humid air
from jet exhaust mixes with low pressure,
water-saturated air that has a low tempera-
ture. It is essentially the same thing as exhal-
ing and seeing your breath on a cold day. A
contrail can spread horizontally into a layer
thin cirrus clouds. It has been estimated that
in heavy air-traffic corridors, cloud cover
could increase as much as 20 percent with
two opposing effects: solar energy reaching
the earth is reduced, causing surface cooling;
and reduction of heat loss from the planet re-
sulting in warming. I refer the reader to the
following website: comss.ssec.wisc.edu/wx-
wise/class/contrail.html
I believe that it is very important for the
concerned citizen today to look into the real
science behind a potentially controversial
subject such as this before jumping onto any
grand conspiracy bandwagon. No, Chicken
Little, the sky is not falling.
Maggie Pugsley
Eugene
KISSIN’ COUSINS
Democracy will never work in Iraq be-
cause half of all Iraqi marriages are between
first or second cousins.
6 JUNE 7, 2007
Loyalty between red blood related tribes
will always be stronger than ballot box purple
finger stained loyalty to a central govern-
ment. This “kin and strangers” divide is thou-
sands of years old and is not easily crossed.
The bloody Hatfields and McCoys feud was
driven by just a few generations of cousin
clans.
The Bush administration is ignorant and
naïve to think it can deal with a problem it
doesn’t recognize, let alone understand.
Michael T. Hinojosa
Drain
POWER OVER CONGRESS
I have been worried since early 2005 that
President Bush will not want to leave office
in 2008. I know this sounds absurd, but I be-
lieve it to be true.
A piece of evidence recently came to my
attention to support my concern. It is called
the National Security Presidential
Directive/NSPD 51 and Homeland Security
Presidential Directive/HSPD-20. These two
directives give the president the power over
congress and the judicial branches in the
event of a national emergency. Think, for in-
stance, a war with Iran, another attack by ter-
rorists on U.S. soil or interests abroad, a na-
tional calamity such as a hurricane such as
Katrina. He could declare martial law and
suspend elections in 2008, for example.
The two directives were put in place
without the knowledge of Congress on May
9. I feel that there needs to be more reporting
on these directives. No president should have
this power.
I hope I have misread the directives.
W. Joe Lyon
Eugene
GIVE ME PASTIES
I just wanted to write and tell you how
thoroughly disappointed I am in John Henry’s
burlesque show. The next time I want to see
titties, I will go to a strip club. I walked into
John Henry’s and expected to see a real bur-
lesque show, pasties and all. But that isn’t
what I got. I saw strippers, baring their breasts
for all to see. True burlesque performers are
stripteasers. Where is the tease in what they
do? I moved here from New York and have
seen many a burly-Q — never have I seen true
burlesque performers without pasties. And
honestly, I don’t want to. Don’t get me wrong,
I enjoy going to the clubs; I am a stripper lov-
ing female; hell, I used to be one.
Basically, I just wanted to say that I am un-
happy there is no real burlesque show in Eugene.
Guess I will have to move back to N.Y.?
Heather Atnsley
Eugene
NO NEW STORY
Immigration is one of the hot button is-
sues in Congress and in the media and seems
to produce more heat than light in these dis-
cussions. To me, all of this sounds similar to
the discussions that took place in the U.S. in
1847, except the “Mexicans” were the Irish
who were the first large wave of immigration.
In 1847, Ireland was still under English
control and, similar to today’s Mexico, a
small number of people owned most of the
land and used their land to grow wheat for ex-
port while their serfs were given an acre of
land upon which to grow the food they
needed. One of the most common uses of the
land was to grow potatoes When this crop
suddenly failed, Ireland’s eight million were