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Jewish Vegetarians of North America (JVNA)
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9/14/08
Shalom everyone,
This special Jewish Vegetarians of North America (JVNA) Online Newsletter is
devoted to material about the positions of the Democratic and Republican
candidates for president and vice president on animal, environmental and other
issues directly relevant to our concerns. As explained later, JVNA can't endorse
any candidates and is presenting this material for informational purposes only.
Please feel free to send in related items or comments on material in this
newsletters for future special JVNA newsletters on these important issues.
The newsletter has the following items:
Overview
1. Humane Society of the U.S. Legislative Fund Statement
2. Sarah Palin on Global Warming
3. Sarah Palin and Big Oil
4. NY Times Op-Ed Article
5 Obama's Response to Animal Issues Letter
6. NY Times Editorial On Energy Issues
7. Statement From a Greenpolis Blog
8. Obama Pledges Support for Animal Rights/Time Magazine Article/Obamas' Plans
to Get a Pet Dog
9. Statements by Author and Animal Rights Activist Norm Phelps
10. Statement by Sea Shepherd Captain Paul Watson
11. Rabbi Barry Silver Comments
12. Comments/Summary From the The Noise Board Blog
13. Statement From Award-Winning Producer Lionel Friedberg
14. League of Conservation Voters Lifetime Environmental Voting Records of
Candidates
Some material has been deferred to a later update/newsletter to keep
this one from being even longer.
[Materials in brackets like this [ ] within an article or forwarded message
are my editorial notes/comments.]
Opinions expressed do not necessarily
represent the views of the JVNA, unless otherwise indicated, but may be
presented to
increase awareness and/or to encourage respectful dialogue. Also, material re
conferences, retreats, forums, trips, and other events does not necessarily
imply endorsement by JVNA or endorsement of the kashrut, Shabbat observances, or
any other Jewish observances, but may be presented for informational purposes.
Please use e-mail addresses, telephone numbers, and web sites to get further
information about any event that you are interested in. Also, JVNA does not
necessarily agree with all positions of groups whose views are included or whose
events are announced in this newsletter.
As always, your comments and suggestions are very welcome.
Thanks,
Richard
=========================
Overview
As a non-profit, tax-exempt organization, JVNA can't endorse
candidates and we will not do so. However, we can inform readers of the
positions of the candidates on the issues that JVNA is concerned with. Hence,
this special newsletter. A previous regular JVNA newsletter indicated that
material on these issues for inclusion in this special JVNA newsletter was
welcome.
We plan to have 2 additional special JVNA newsletters on these issues, so new
material and responses from readers to material in this newsletter can be
included. So, please send your comments and/or relevant material for possible
inclusion. Also, please use material in this and future special JVNA newsletters
on these issues to help promote vegetarianism and our related objectives, such
as reducing global warming, animal abuse, energy dependence and pollution.
Of course, there are other issues, domestic and foreign, that should also be
considered in making voting decisions, and these are generally covered in the
media. To maintain a focus on JVNA-related issues, I have removed material on
other issues from the material below.
=========================
1. Humane Society of the U.S. Legislative
Fund Statement
Where Do the Veep Candidates Stand on Animals?
Posted August 31, 2008 | 04:54 PM (EST)
The political talk over the last couple weeks has swirled around two
subjects: the party conventions, and the vice presidential nominees. Now that
Barack Obama and John McCain have both selected their running mates, it's time
to look at the animal protection records of the two vice presidential hopefuls.
As of today, the contrast could not be more clear: While Sen. Joe Biden
(D-Del.) has been a leader in the Senate to protect marine mammals and exotic
wildlife, Gov. Sarah Palin (R-Alaska) has denied the threats facing polar bears
and has led her state's efforts to gun down wolves from airplanes and
helicopters. McCain announced this morning that the GOP ticket now includes Gov.
Palin, who is a lifetime member of the National Rifle Association and, despite
her youth and good looks, is a throwback on animal issues. Having her one
heartbeat from the presidency should strike fear into any animal advocate in the
nation. The Palin Administration has waged an all-out war on Alaska's predators
to artificially boost the populations of moose and caribou for trophy hunters,
and has tried to pass legislation making it easier for state officials to gun
down wolves and bears from the sky.
Last year, the state offered a $150 bounty as an incentive for pilots and
aerial gunners to kill more wolves. And leading up to this week's statewide vote
on Measure 2 to stop the aerial shooting of wolves and bears, Palin's Board of
Game spent $400,000 of public money on brochures and radio ads to influence the
election. She not only took an inhumane and unsporting position at odds with the
principles of wildlife management and fair chase, but did it in an undemocratic
and underhanded way.
Gov. Palin also penned an op-ed in the New York Times earlier this year
arguing that it was the "wrong move" to list the polar bear under the Endangered
Species Act. Later, when the Bush Administration announced its listing of the
polar bear as a threatened species, she filed a lawsuit seeking to reverse the
decision. Environmentalists fired back over Palin's lawsuit and said "her
head-in-the-sand approach to global warming only helps oil companies, certainly
not Alaska or the polar bear."
On the Democratic ticket, Sen. Biden has been a longtime friend of animal
welfare in the Senate, and has received high marks year after year on the Humane
Scorecard. In the current session of Congress, Sen. Biden co-sponsored measures
to stop horse slaughter, upgrade the penalties for animal fighting, ban the
possession of fighting dogs and attendance at a dogfight, and call on Canada to
stop its annual massacre of baby harp seals. He has consistently signed onto
letters requesting increased funds for the enforcement of the Animal Welfare
Act, Humane Methods of Slaughter Act, and the federal animal fighting law.
Biden has not only supported animal protection legislation during his
career, but has also led the fight on important issues. He was the co-author
with Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) in the 108th Congress on legislation to ban
the netting of dolphins by commercial tuna fishermen. He was the lead author of
a bill in the 107th Congress to prohibit trophy hunting of captive exotic
mammals in fenced enclosures, and he successfully passed the bill through the
Senate Judiciary Committee.
You'll hear more from the Humane Society Legislative Fund about the
presidential race as we get closer to Election Day. Keep checking the blog for
updates and more information, and send me an email to let me know what you
think.
=========================
2. Sarah Palin on Global Warming
Forwarded message from the “Center for American Progress”
EXTREME DENIAL OF GLOBAL WARMING: Though Senator McCain points to his position
on global warming as a chief difference between himself and President Bush,
Governor Palin shares more of the current president's perspective than McCain's.
Though she admits that climate change "will affect Alaska more than any other
state," she said, "I'm not one though who would attribute it to being man-made."
"During last fall's political campaign, Gov. Sarah Palin said she remained
unconvinced about how much human emissions contribute to current global warming
trends." She has also opposed listing polar bears as endangered due to climate
change. In the New York Times today, Tom Friedman writes, "With his choice of
Sarah Palin -- the Alaska governor who has advocated drilling in the Arctic
National Wildlife Refuge and does not believe mankind is playing any role in
climate change -- for vice president, John McCain has completed his makeover
from the greenest Republican to run for president to just another representative
of big oil."
=========================
3. Sarah Palin and Big Oil
Forwarded statement from the ”Center for American Progress”
EXTREME PAWN OF BIG OIL: "No one is closer to the oil industry than Governor
Palin," the Sierra Club's Carl Pope said. Palin told Roll Call last week, "When
I look every day, the big oil company's building is right out there next to me,
and it's quite a reminder that we should have mutually beneficial relationships
with the oil industry." As a champion for Big Oil, Palin is a vociferous
proponent of domestic drilling. "I beg to disagree with any candidate who would
say we can't drill our way out of our problem," she said. She also dismisses
alternative energy solutions as "are far from imminent" focusing instead on
opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to drilling. During her race for
lieutenant governor, she received a full 10 percent of her campaign donations
from executives and their families at the disgraced oil services company Veco.
In her 2006 race for governor, another 10 percent of her donations came from the
oil and natural gas industry. Though she supported a windfall tax on oil profits
-- an idea McCain has blasted -- she also signed a bill just last week
"suspending Alaska's gasoline, marine fuel and aviation fuel taxes until Aug.
31, 2009," which will only add to Big Oil's coffers.
=========================
4. NY Times Op-Ed Article
And Then There Was One
By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN
Published: September 2, 2008
As we emerge from Labor Day, college students are gathering back on campuses not
only to start the fall semester, but also, in some cases, to vote for the first
time in a presidential election. There is no bigger issue on campuses these days
than environment/energy. Going into this election, I thought that - for the
first time - we would have a choice between two “green” candidates. That view is
no longer operative - and college students (and everyone else) need to
understand that.
With his choice of Sarah Palin, the Alaska governor who has advocated drilling
in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and does not believe mankind is playing
any role in climate change, for vice president, John McCain has completed his
makeover from the greenest Republican to run for president to just another
representative of big oil.
Given the fact that Senator McCain deliberately avoided voting on all eight
attempts to pass a bill extending the vital tax credits and production subsidies
to expand our wind and solar industries, and given his support for lowering the
gasoline tax in a reckless giveaway that would only promote more gasoline
consumption and intensify our addiction to oil, and given his desire to make
more oil-drilling, not innovation around renewable energy, the centerpiece of
his energy policy - in an effort to mislead voters that support for drilling
today would translate into lower prices at the pump today - McCain has forfeited
any claim to be a green candidate.
So please, students, when McCain comes to your campus and flashes a few posters
of wind turbines and solar panels, ask him why he has been AWOL when it came to
Congress supporting these new technologies.
“Back in June, the Republican Party had a round-up,” said Carl Pope, the
executive director of the Sierra Club. “One of the unbranded cattle - a wizened
old maverick name John McCain - finally got roped. Then they branded him with a
big 'Lazy O' - George Bush's brand, where the O stands for oil. No more
maverick.
“One of McCain's last independent policies putting him at odds with Bush was his
opposition to drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge,” added Pope, “yet
he has now picked a running mate who has opposed holding big oil accountable and
been dismissive of alternative energy while focusing her work on more oil
drilling in a wildlife refuge and off of our coasts. While the northern edge of
her state literally falls into the rising Arctic Ocean, Sarah Palin says, 'The
jury is still out on global warming.' She's the one hanging the jury - and John
McCain is going to let her.”
Indeed, Palin's much ballyhooed confrontations with the oil industry have all
been about who should get more of the windfall profits, not how to end our
addiction.
Barack Obama should be doing more to promote his green agenda, but at least he
had the courage, in the heat of a Democratic primary, not to pander to voters by
calling for a lifting of the gasoline tax. And while he has come out for a
limited expansion of offshore drilling, he has refrained from misleading voters
that this is in any way a solution to our energy problems.
I am not against a limited expansion of off-shore drilling now. But it is a
complete sideshow. By constantly pounding into voters that his energy focus is
to “drill, drill, drill,” McCain is diverting attention from what should be one
of the central issues in this election: who has the better plan to promote
massive innovation around clean power technologies and energy efficiency.
Why? Because renewable energy technologies - what I call “E.T.” - are going to
constitute the next great global industry. They will rival and probably surpass
“I.T.” - information technology. The country that spawns the most E.T. companies
will enjoy more economic power, strategic advantage and rising standards of
living. We need to make sure that is America. Big oil and OPEC want to make sure
it is not.
Palin's nomination for vice president and her desire to allow drilling in the
Alaskan wilderness “reminded me of a lunch I had three and half years ago with
one of the Russian trade attachés,” global trade consultant Edward Goldberg said
to me. “After much wine, this gentleman told me that his country was very
pleased that the Bush administration wanted to drill in the Alaskan wilderness.
In his opinion, the amount of product one could actually derive from there was
negligible in terms of needs. However, it signified that the Bush administration
was not planning to do anything to create alternative energy, which of course
would threaten the economic growth of Russia.”
So, college students, don't let anyone tell you that on the issue of green, this
election is not important. It is vitally important, and the alternatives could
not be more black and white.
=========================
5 Obama's Response to Animal Issues Letter
Posted by: "jeffery l. termini" Humanehuman@adelphia.net
humanist452000
Sun Sep 7, 2008 8:45 am (PDT)
Dear Friends:
Below is a response from an individual who contacted Senator Obama regarding
animal rights /welfare issues:
Dear Friend,
Thank you very much for contacting us about animal rights.
Senator Obama realizes that animal welfare means protecting the wildlife whose
ecosystems are being threatened by global climate change. To combat this serious
problem, he has proposed an aggressive plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions
by the year 2050. To read more information about Barack's plans to protect the
environment, please visit the following link:
http://www.barackobama.com/issues/pdf/EnvironmentFactSheet.pdf
When Barack Obama first sat down to discuss running for president with his
two young daughters - Malia, 8 years old at the time, and Sasha, 5 - they
thought for a moment before giving their response: "Does that mean we can get a
dog?" So, Barack Obama understands the integral role that dogs and other pets
play in the American family. He believes that we must respect the dignity of
animals and their rightful place as cohabitants of our environment.
As an Illinois State Senator and United States Senator, Obama has been a
champion of animal-friendly legislation and policy. He has repeatedly voted to
increase penalties for animal cruelty and violence, and to require psychological
counseling for those who engage in this behavior. He has co-sponsored bills to
ban the slaughter of horses and wild burros, increase penalties for animal
fighting, prohibit dog fighting, and penalize spectators for engaging in dog
fighting. He has supported additional funding for the Animal Care division
within the Department of Agriculture, and sought funds to enforce the Animal
Welfare Act, Humane Methods of Slaughter Act, and the federal animal fighting
law. He has cosponsored legislation to promote the veterinary profession,
including providing grants to encourage graduates to work in underserved rural
and inner city areas or specialize in public health and biomedical research. And
Obama voted to require the Food and Drug Administration to update labeling
standards for pet food and create a national registry or early warning system
for adulterated pet food.
As president, Obama will continue to respect and support animals. He will make
sure that we treat animal cruelty, exploitation, and neglect like the serious
crime it is, and address its connection to broader patterns of violence. He will
support the role pets play as companions by crafting policies that honor the
bonds between family and pet. Obama will encourage and support the role animals
play in assisting humans, from search and rescue to aiding persons with
disabilities. This means we need to support their trainers and the people they
assist, and, most importantly, make sure that animals employed by humans are
well-treated.
Thank you again for contacting us.
Sincerely,
Obama for America
=========================
6. NY Times Editorial On Energy Issues
EDITORIAL NY Times
John McCain's Energy Follies
SHARE
Published: September 7, 2008
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/07/opinion/07sun1.html?emc=tnt&tntemail1=y
The industries that create energy - coal, wind, nuclear, ethanol, and, of
course, oil and gas - all clamored to be heard at the Republican convention. At
cocktail receptions and in hundreds of ads, each claimed to welcome the
challenge of creating a cleaner, greener energy future.
A lot of that was corporate boilerplate. But one advertisement, from Chevron,
seemed strikingly on point. “It took us 125 years to use the first trillion
barrels of oil,” it said. “We'll use the next trillion in 30.” This nicely
framed a big part of the energy challenge. It was also a reminder of why John
McCain is proving, so far, to be such a disappointment on issues he once seemed
to understand better than almost anyone else in his party.
The world is consuming oil at a ferocious pace because of runaway demand in
India and China and because America - the world's largest consumer - is only
beginning to confront its addiction. This cannot go on forever. Even the
conservative United States Geological Survey predicts that oil production will
peak by midcentury, meaning that future prices will make today's $3.70 gas look
like chump change.
Emissions from fossil fuels - not just oil but the coal and natural gas used in
power plants - are the main drivers of global warming. Mainstream scientists
have warned that unless they are sharply reduced the planet will face rising sea
levels, prolonged droughts, widespread famine and other frightening
consequences.
Global problems obviously require a global response. As the world's most
profligate user of energy, and as one of its most technologically gifted
nations, the United States can and should lead the way by developing more
efficient vehicles and by expanding carbon-free energy sources like wind and
solar power.
The John McCain of a few years ago understood this. He sponsored a bill with
John Kerry that would have aggressively raised fuel economy standards, and
another that would have put a stiff price on carbon emissions to encourage
investment in cleaner technologies.
Unfortunately, that John McCain has receded from view just in time for the
presidential campaign. He has dropped his opposition to offshore drilling,
pandered shamelessly by urging a gas tax holiday, and missed several crucial
votes on bills extending credits for wind and solar power.
And while his acceptance speech promised “the most ambitious national project in
decades,” including efforts to improve energy efficiency, increasing oil
production remains the centerpiece of his strategy.
These positions divert public attention from an unavoidable truth: a nation that
uses one-quarter of the world's oil while owning only 3 percent of its reserves
cannot drill its way to happiness or self-sufficiency. And they trivialize the
very hard work that lies ahead.
Mr. McCain's choice of Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska as his running mate raises
even more worrisome questions. Her strategy is drill here, drill there, drill
now.
She would open up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in a heartbeat - something
Mr. McCain continues to oppose. She has sued the Bush administration for
declaring the polar bear a threatened species, fearing it would interfere with
oil exploration in Alaskan waters. She has questioned whether humans are
responsible for climate change. Governor Palin's views are alarmingly out of
touch with reality. No less alarming was Mr. McCain's decision to welcome them
into his campaign.
=========================
7. Statement From a Greenpolis Blog
How Green is Sarah Palin?
Greenopolis Founder
david d
Submitted by david d on Fri, 08/29/2008 - 1:56pm.
Now that we know who McCain's Vice President candidate will be, let's take a
look at her record on environmental issues so that we know where she stands when
it comes to issues we care about here on Greenopolis.
I hate to start any blog involving politics off with a bias note, but in this
case it's nearly impossible to avoid. In all fairness, Alaskans are different
then the rest of the country, they hunt, fish, wear fur and are living in one of
the most pristine environments in the country.
* She has been an avid moose-hunter since childhood and is still a strong
believer in gun ownership.
* A considerable amount of her family's income comes from the gas company BP
as her husband is an oil production operator for BP..
* Palin said that she would sue the Interior Department over its decision to
list the polar bear as a threatened species. Her litigation came from fear
because Alaska produces fossil fuels, although the wording of the Interior
Department decision went to great lengths to ward off any new restrictions on
oil and gas drilling.
* Palin supports the aerial hunting of wolves and bears
* Palin spent $400,000 of state money to fund a media campaign to try and
convince Alaskans to support aerial shooting
* Sarah Palin opposed a statewide ballot initiative to prohibit or restrict
new mining operations that could affect salmon in the state's streams and rivers
* She pushed to build a natural-gas pipeline from Alaska's North Slope
* She is pushing to open Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to drilling
* She has created a committee to forge Alaska's climate-change strategy, and
has made Alaska an observer of the Western Climate Initiative
* She opposes a windfall profits tax on oil companies
* She has a chair on the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission
Since she has as very short career as a politician, these are the facts I could
find regarding her stances on the environment. I'm sure she will have much more
to say on the issues as the candidate for the office of Vice President of the
United States.
Thank you
Submitted by DangerDog on Fri, 08/29/2008 - 7:08pm.
Copyright © 2007-2008 Greenopolis
Design and Development by CommonPlaces e-Solutions, LLC
Greenopolis
=========================
8. Obama Pledges Support for Animal
Rights/Time Magazine Article/Obamas' Plans to Get a Pet Dog
Thanks to Michael Croland and his Heebnvegan blog for forwarding the
article below. Material from that blog re the Obamas possibly getting a dog is
below.
Obama Pledges Support for Animal Rights
By AP/NEDRA PICKLER
Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2008
http://www.time.com/time/politics/article/0,8599,1704179,00.html
(HENDERSON, Nev.) - Democrat Barack Obama says he won't just be a president for
the American people, but the animals too.
"What about animal rights?" a woman shouted out during the candidate's town hall
meeting outside Las Vegas Wednesday after he discussed issues that relate more
to humans, like war, health care and the economy.
Obama responded that he cares about animal rights very much, "not only because I
have a 9-year-old and 6-year-old who want a dog." He said he sponsored a bill to
prevent horse slaughter in the Illinois state Senate and has been repeatedly
endorsed by the Humane Society.
"I think how we treat our animals reflects how we treat each other," he said.
"And it's very important that we have a president who is mindful of the cruelty
that is perpetrated on animals."
-------------------------------------------------------
Material from the Heebnvegan blog re the Obamas' plands to get a pet dog.
http://heebnvegan.blogspot.com/2008/09/news-from-campaign-trail.html
For quite some time, it's been known that the Obama family plans to get a
dog after the election. In July, Humane Society of the United States president
and CEO Wayne Pacelle reportedly
announced that the Obamas would adopt a dog. Earlier that month, Pacelle
wrote, "The overwhelming view
among animal advocates is that the Obamas should go to a shelter or breed rescue
group to obtain a dog. With 3-4 million dogs and cats killed in public and
private shelters, there are many lives to be saved, and the simple act of giving
a home to a dog who might have faced euthanasia would do wonders for the cause
of adoption from shelters."
=========================
9. Statements by Author and Animal Rights
Activist Norm Phelps
In [his book] Dominion, [Matthew] Scully makes an extraordinarily
moving and articulate case against sport hunting. He describes its cruelty in
terms that brought tears to my eyes. Then he went to work for Sarah Palin, who
deliberately defines herself as a trophy hunter who happily engages in the very
practices that Scully condemned in Dominion. Palin is not merely a woman who
happens to enjoy hunting - that would be bad enough. She consistently portrays
sport hunting as being at the core of who she is; hunting is an activity that
she believes defines her essential nature. She is deliberately marketing herself
to America as a trophy hunter.
SNIP
Sarah Palin has made hunting a touchstone of her identity. Most other
politicians simply engage in the forms of animal abuse that the general
public engages in, such as eating meat and wearing leather. Even those who hunt
usually do it quietly, privately, or else just before an election in an obvious
pander to the NRA. They do not make hunting a symbol of why they should be
elected. And that is what Sarah Palin has done, and in doing so, she has
politicized animal abuse in a way that it has not been politicized since Teddy
Roosevelt. How much are Chuck Colson, George Will, etc., going to speak out now,
and undermine their own vice-presidential candidate for the sake of animal
welfare? Supporting Palin sets the animals' cause back in a way that supporting
other politicians of recent vintage does not.
SNIP
=========================
10. Statement by Sea Shepherd Captain Paul
Watson
When you think things couldn't get any worse
Forget John McCain
We need to Defeat Sarah Palin!
Commentary by Captain Paul Watson (http://www.seashepherd.org/)
I have to admit that the up-coming election had not gotten me very excited. I
have not been worshipping at the alter of the Obamassiah. The American elections
always leave me feeling nauseated over a choice between a Republicrat and a
Demopublican. …
And after the broken promises of Kevin Rudd and Peter Garrett in Australia I am
pretty damn cynical about politicians in general.
But now John McCain has done something that has really pissed me off.
In the strangest vice-presidential choice since Dan Quayle, McCain has
selected a polar bear killing, wolf slaughtering, anti abortionist,
gun-toting, moose burger eating, advocate of oil drilling and natural
resource destruction extreme right winger named Sarah Palin, the governor of
Alaska.
This choice could not be more bizarre than if he had selected Michael Palin. At
least we could have had some laughs.
Forget John McCain, we've got to make sure that Sarah Palin does not get
within the heartbeat of the Presidency.
I honestly have not seen much difference on policy between Barack Obama and John
McCain. They both intend to withdraw from Iraq "responsibly" which is political
speak for a prolonged withdrawal. They both want to continue the so called war
on terror. They both want to escalate the war in Afghanistan. They both want to
drill offshore and in Alaska. They both want to build nuclear power plants. They
both display very little substance in their speeches. They both seem ready to
engage the Russians in another cold war.
But today, John McCain made a decision that amounts to an open declaration of
war upon the environment and wildlife.
This 44 year old former Alaskan beauty queen makes George Bush look like a
liberal. This mother of five certainly does not see population growth as a
serious issue and as a card carrying member of the National Rifle
Association she intends to train her brood to be killers like her husband
and herself.
Her husband's favorite sport is running dogs to death pulling his ass across the
tundra.
"She stands up for what's right and she doesn't let anyone tell her to sit
down," John McCain has said.
Well if you consider gunning down wolves from aircraft, trophy hunting
bears, running dogs to death on the trail, shooting defenseless animals,
despoiling the wilderness, over-populating the planet and ignoring global
warming as being right, then I guess she is the woman to vote for.
"She's fought oil companies and party bosses and do-nothing bureaucrats, and
anyone who puts their interests before the people of whom she swore an oath to
serve." Said McCain.
Right! She fought the oil companies, not to save the planet, but for more
tax revenue for Alaska. If the corporations and Republican dinosaurs love
her, she is no threat to the oilicratic ogliarchy that rules the United
States.
SNIP
And she is fanatical in her stance of defending gun ownership and promoting
development of the oil and gas reserves in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife
Refuge.
She even makes Bush look like a staunch environmentalist for opposing the Bush
administration' s decision in May to list the polar bear as a threatened species
under the Endangered Species Act because global warming is melting the polar ice
cap. Palin said the decision could damage the economy.
We don't want to damage the business of trophy hunting bears to save them!
She IS the NRA!
SNIP
If we have any hope of dealing with global warming, this woman is not going to
help provide it. She will support the dismantling of the endangered species act,
the marine mammal protection act and environmental legislation that we have
worked hard for decades to place into law.
SNIP
We cannot allow her to become the next potential President of the United
States.
Senator Barack Obama and Vice President nominee Senator Joe Biden must be
elected if we have any hope at all of protecting the natural heritage ofthis
nation and of ending the insane foreign wars initiated by George W. Bush.
=========================
11. Rabbi Barry Silver Comments
Palin is also pro-death when it comes to denying the problem of
global warming and her horrific environmental policies which spell death and
destruction for the planet. What is equally appalling is her support of
shooting innocent and defenseless animals from helicopters and virtually any
other setting. She had a picture taken of her beside a dying moose that she had
just shot, with her young daughter in the background. According to child
psychologists, it is a form of child abuse to subject one's own children to the
suffering of animals inflicted by their parents, who pressure the child to
suppress their natural feelings of compassion and to learn to take pleasure in
inflicting pain and suffering on others. Children who are taught to enjoy such
cruelty often become pit bulls as adults, taking pride in their aggressive
behavior, and who sometimes turn violent against people as well as animals.
Rabbi for Congregation L'Dor Va-Dor in Lake Worth,
Florida, the founder and Co-Chair of the Palm Beach County
Environmental Coalition, an environmental and animal rights attorney,
and a former State Legislator in Florida
=========================
12. Comments/Summary From the The Noise Board
Blog
http://www.thenoiseboard.com/index.php?showtopic=192090
Many people have posted messages to MARC and emailed us about Gov.
Sarah Palin's record on animals and the environment, and we have
compiled a list of "highlights" below.
To sum up, Palin's actions personally and as governor are horrific.
We'll start with the personal then move on to her public record.
1. She is a lifetime NRA member and hunter, as is her husband. They
own a commercial fishing business. She hunts moose, wears fur, ice
fishes, and (from photos) appears to own a bearskin rug.
2. Her husband's favorite sport to participate in is dogsled racing.
3. As governor, she supports the brutal aerial hunting of wolves and
bears and authorized $400,000 in state funds to oppose a ballot
initiative ending aerial hunting. State voters have twice before
voted to ban such hunting.
4. As governor, in order to increase wolf hunting, she offered
hunters a bounty of $150 each for every left front foreleg of a wolf
they could provide the state.
5. In a region west of Anchorage, she authorized the killing of up to
70% of all bears (1400 bears) including mothers and cubs.
6. She sued the federal government to keep polar bears from being
listed as an endangered species. Yes, she sued the Bush-Cheney
administration.
7. She supports and promotes the brutal Iditarod dogsled races.
8. She opposed the closing of an unprofitable state-run dairy and
authorized $600,000 in state funds to keep it open.
9. She supports drilling in the Alaska National Wildlife Refuge
(ANWR), an extremely sensitive region where millions of animals could
be harmed or killed. Senator McCain has long opposed this drilling as
do most energy experts who see it as useless.
10. She has publicly stated that global warming is a "farce" and is
not caused by humans even though her state and the animals in it
suffer some of the most dramatic consequences.
In essence, regarding animals and the environment, she may be the
worst vice-presidential candidate in history.
Related links:
http://www.grizzlyb ay.org/SarahPali nInfoPage. htm (Palin in fur and
with rug)
http://actionfund. defenders. org/palinvideo (aerial hunting)
=========================
13.. Statement From Award-Winning Producer Lionel Friedberg
= THIS IS IMPORTANT
VOTING FOR JOHN McCAIN AND HIS SIDEKICK SARAH PALIN WOULD HASTEN THE DEMISE OF
THIS GREAT COUNTRY.
IT WILL ALSO ACCELERATE THE RAPID DOWNFALL OF THE WORLD AS WE KNOW IT.
THEY DO NOT HEED THE VERY REAL DANGERS FACING US AS A RESULT OF CLIMATE CHANGE
AND GLOBAL WARMING. THEY ARE OBLIVIOUS TO THE FACT THAT SEA WATER MAY START
TRICKLING DOWN THE STREETS OF MANHATTAN WITHIN THE NEXT THREE TO FOUR DECADES.
SNIP
AND IF YOU THINK THAT HAVING A PROUD AND ARDENT TROPHY HUNTER WHO DELIGHTS IN
SHOOTING INNOCENT ANIMALS FOR 'SPORT' JUST A HEARTBEAT AWAY FROM THE PRESIDENCY
[IS OK,] THEN PLEASE THINK AGAIN.
THINK IT THROUGH, THOROUGHLY AND IN DETAIL.
WHILE CHOMPING AWAY ON HER BELOVED MOOSEBURGERS SARAH PALIN IS ANTI-CHOICE,
ANTI-WILDLIFE AND PRO-BIG OIL. HER VOTING RECORD ON ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES IS
ATROCIOUS. SHE WAS INSTRUMENTAL IN KICK-STARTING THE CRUEL AERIAL GUNNING DOWN
OF WOLVES THROUGHOUT ALASKA.
SNIP
THE LIST IS ENDLESS....
BUT THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT FACTOR THAT YOU SHOULD WEIGH UP VERY CAREFULLY IS
THAT OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND GLOBAL WARMING.
A REPUBLICAN WHITE HOUSE, LED BY McCAIN AND PALIN, COULD NOT BE LESS GREEN IF
THEY TRIED.
THIS IS THE 21st CENTURY. TIME IS RUNNING OUT.
WE CANNOT USHER IN A LEADERSHIP THAT IS COMPLETELY AND UTTERLY OUT OF STEP WITH
THE TIMES.
PLEASE PASS THIS ON... AND ON... AND …
=========================
14. League of Conservation Voters Lifetime Environmental Voting Records of
Candidates
Senator McCain 24%
Governor Palin Not applicable, since she is not a senator
Senator Obama 86%
Senator Biden 83%
=========================
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=========================
Richard H. Schwartz, Ph.D.
Professor Emeritus, College of Staten Island
Author of "Judaism and Vegetarianism," "Judaism and Global Survival," and
"Mathematics and Global Survival," and over 130 articles at www.JewishVeg.com/schwartz
President of Jewish Vegetarians of North America (JVNA) www.JewishVeg.com
and Society of Ethical and Religious Vegetarians (SERV)
Associate Producer of A SACRED DUTY (asacredduty.com)
president@JewishVeg.com
**************
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