Newsgroups: talk.environment,alt.politics.greens From: ladasky@netcom.com (John J. Ladasky II) Subject: Ca. Green Platform, Ecology Section Message-ID: <1993Jan19.193507.6542@netcom.com> Organization: Netcom - Online Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest) Date: Tue, 19 Jan 1993 19:35:07 GMT Lines: 871 >Is no one going to respond to my request for a Green position on the >Gas Tax? >- Cris Moore, NM Green Party Hi, Cris, The following article is an excerpt from the platform of the Green Party of California. This is the Ecology section of the platform. Many sections of this document are relevant to the issue of transportation and taxation, so I though it would be best to simply post the whole thing. I hope this helps. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- /* Written 8:48 pm Nov 5, 1992 by greens@igc.apc.org in igc:gpoc.lit+media */ /* ---------- "1992 Platform" ---------- */ ECOLOGY AND EARTH STEWARDSHIP Recycling Nature uses and reuses everything through continual recycling. We should pattern our use of resources after this model; we should use resources in sustainable cycles. Our motto should be reduce, reuse and recycle. California alone produces more waste than does the whole of China. We are squandering our resources through wasteful practices like excessive packaging. We are throwing away useful resources by burying them in massive and useless landfills. The Green Party demands conservation and recycling: + Through legal and tax incentives, we should create a market for recycled goods. + We should institute convenient curbside recycling (including yard clippings) in all urban areas. + We should manufacture "recycled" paper, to be labeled as such, out of a specific percentage of post-consumer waste paper. + We should rapidly phase out composites and other materials that cannot be recycled. + We should educate our children on the benefits of recycling. + We should simplify procedures that let people choose not to receive junk mail. + We should legislate deposits on glass, metal and plastic beverage containers. + We should legislate limitations in packaging and impose penalties for wasteful packaging. + We should remove the obstacles to the sale of items in bulk. We should standardize containers to make their reuse easier. + We should restructure garbage rates to encourage reduction in the volume of waste. + We should design and produce high quality goods that are durable, repairable and, then, recyclable at the end of their useful life; this concept is the opposite of the current "planned obsolescence". Water Conservation (reduce, reuse, recycle) must be an essential element in any water policy. Similarly, the principle of bioregionalism - living within the means of a region's natural resources - should give direction to future water policies. Like the oxygen we breath, the water we drink is an essential of life. We must have a reliable water supply and it must be unpolluted. The present drought in California has shown that we need to reorder our priorities to assure that we always have a sufficient water supply for our essential needs. Water tables in many parts of the nation, including California, are dropping drastically. At the same time, they are being polluted by chemical farming and the dumping of industrial wastes. The Green Party calls for measures to protect and conserve our water supply: + Conservation must be an essential element in a viable water policy. + We must legally mandate that water efficient appliances be used in new construction and encourage modification of existing appliances to be more water efficient. + We should design drought-tolerant landscaping. + We should install household equipment to collect rainwater. + We should make full use of gray water and reclaimed water systems using solar aquaculture water treatment methods. We should install dual piping systems: pure water for drinking and washing, and reclaimed water for lawn watering and similar purposes. We should investigate the possibility of reclaiming water to potable levels. + We should pre-treat industrial wastes to eliminate the presence of metals, solvents and other toxins in sewer water . This would allow the more complete reclamation and reuse of sludge. + We should eliminate storm drain pollution of the ocean through education, enforcement of bans against toxic dumping into storm drains and treatment near outflow to allow for reclamation. + We should eliminate water subsidies for agriculture. Higher water prices would give agribusiness an incentive to conserve. + We should use drip irrigation systems in agriculture and landscaping. + We should authorize desalinization processes only if they are powered by renewable energy resources. + We should establish community organizations to monitor water tables, determine and regulate draw, and to oversee the enforcement of restrictions. Protection of the Atmosphere A healthy atmosphere is essential in maintaining human and animal health. The atmosphere must be protected and restored. The Earth's protective ozone layer is being depleted by chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and other ozone-destroying chemicals. This has already resulted in an increase in cancer-causing ultraviolet radiation. The extent of this ozone destruction has been confirmed by data from satellites and is far greater than most experts had predicted. Doctors fear a serious increase in skin cancers and related disorders. Our fossil-fuel dependent lifestyle releases huge quantities of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Cattle release large quantities of methane. These and other gasses tend to trap the earth's heat and prevent it from being radiated back into space. This contributes to a gradual destabilization of the earth's climate (the warming trend known as the greenhouse effect). Fragile ecological systems cannot adapt quickly enough to survive expected climate changes. Damage to the crop producing capacity of many agricultural areas will lead to widespread hunger. Global warming could also lead to a dangerous rise in sea levels. The Green Party demands that these dangers be countered: + The U.S. Government must ban the use of CFCs and other ozone destroying products. Environmentally safe alternatives exist for most purposes. + The U.S. should legislate the reduction of its carbon dioxide emissions to 35% of 1990 levels by the year 2005. + We should cooperate with the rest of the world in reducing the use of fossil fuels by large scale conservation and by converting to safe, renewable energy sources. + The U.S. should implement the provisions of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED). The U.S. should work on other international agreements to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. + Deforestation must be halted. Global warming is aggravated by deforestation since plant life, primarily forests, breaks up CO2 through photosynthesis. We must undertake domestic and international reforestation programs to help preserve the atmosphere. + The U.S. should establish an environmental trust fund with money raised from pollution fees and other public revenues. The fund should be administered by an appropriate governmental agency and used to assist programs such as reforestation, conversion to non-polluting energy sources and the development of substitutes for ozone-destroying substances. Ocean Protection Our oceans, with their enormous diversity of life and function, are essential to life on Earth and must be preserved. Yet today the oceans are threatened by both governments and businesses who want to exploit ocean resources without considering the consequences. Exploitation of undersea mineral wealth is often done without regard for the environmental damage to land and sea. Greed and indiscriminate harvesting techniques lead to needless devastation of marine species. Ocean vessels contaminate the sea through leaks large and small and the dumping of their refuse with impunity. Whole oceans are threatened with radioactive contamination by ships transporting weapons grade plutonium and by oceanic testing of nuclear weapons. The oceans are further contaminated by heavily polluted streams and rivers and undersea toxic dump sites with secret contents. The Green Party demands that the oceans be protected: + The U.S. Government should sign the Laws of the Sea Treaty which establishes the global sharing of ocean resources. + The U.S. Government should sign the National Oceans Protection Act (H.R. 989) which would ban offshore drilling to a distance of 50 to 175 miles from U.S. shores. + We support the California Sanctuary Act (A.B. 10) which calls for the permanent protection of State waters. + We should establish environmental standards for ocean-going vessels. + We should ban the ocean transportation of nuclear and toxic wastes. + We should map undersea toxic dump sites and ,where possible, recover and treat the toxic wastes. + We should ban drift-net fishing, a practice that indiscriminately kills marine mammals and other species not intended for the catch. We should ban the importing of fish and fish products from countries that use drift-nets. + We should ban the importing of coral products and the destruction of breakwaters which are necessary to protect dying reefs. Forestry Practices Forests are indispensable to human and animal life and must be protected. Vast forests once covered most land. They moderate the Earth's climate and provide habitats for myriad species of wildlife. The Earth's remaining forests are a critical resource in that useful products, especially medicines, originate in the forest. Today's global market economy, in the hands of multi-national corporations, irresponsibly uses and often destroys this valuable and irreplaceable resource. The governments of many countries are selling off their rain forest land to cattle growers for the production of cheap beef, most of which is exported to First World countries such as the U.S. Unsuitable rain forest land is also given to subsistence farmers who, in a few seasons, ruin the soil, while in the meantime landowners hoard prime agricultural land for speculation. In California, on both state and federal lands, trees are harvested and the raw logs are exported, thus exporting jobs. The Green Party demands that our forests be protected: + We must overhaul California and U.S. Forest Service rules to protect our forests and use them wisely. + We must review, reform and restructure all Federal and State land-use policies so that our practices become environmentally sustainable and will provide a continuing supply of high quality wood products. + We must ban the harvest of Ancient Forests. + We must ban the export of raw logs and other minimally processed forest practices, (i.e., pulp, chips, carts, slabs, etc.) which cost American jobs. + We should offer subsidies to local watershed-based mills which maximize employment opportunities through value-adding processing, demonstrated sustainability, and worker control. + We should use work projects, goats, and similar methods to control undergrowth rather than spraying herbicides, especially near communities. + We should grow and use hemp as a plentiful and renewable resource for the manufacture of paper and other forest products. + We should protect significant archaeological, historical and cultural sites. + We should support the rights of indigenous rain forest people to their ecologically sound use of rain forests, such as rubber extraction, nut gathering and the gathering of medicinal herbs. We should end the importation of rain forest beef. + We should forgive the debts of Third World countries that need help in halting the destruction of their rain forest lands. (See also "Third World Debt" plank) + We should develop labels that identify ecologically sound forest products. This would help consumers to support ecologically sound forestry. + We must maintain and restore values such as the protection of wildlife habitats, fisheries, biodiversity, scenery and recreation. We must accept responsibility for the effect local actions have on the global economy and ecology. Organic Farming/Ecologically Sustainable Agriculture Ecological wisdom demands that we practice a sustainable agriculture that conserves water, soil and energy and results in a minimum of pollution. However, the bulk of our current agriculture consists of large-scale agribusiness that relies heavily on the use of chemical biocides and fertilizers, as well as economic subsidies. It mines water resources to grow monoculture crops and to raise grain-fed animals in factory farms. The system has resulted in the loss of half the nation's topsoil, pollution of ground water and waterways, a massive waste of water and energy and a decline in the nutritional quality of our food. This agricultural system is not sustainable. The Green Party demands that we convert to a more environmentally sound agriculture: + We should encourage small-scale family farms, polyculture crops and regional food supplies. We should discourage large-scale agribusiness and the transportation of food over long distances to its markets. + We should encourage agricultural colleges to teach organic and sustainable farming methods. Schools like the University of California Agricultural Extension should perform research in organic farming methods and should research integrated pest management as a way to replace our present emphasis on chemical biocides and fertilizers. + We should ban the development of plant varieties that are tolerant of increased levels of chemical biocides. We should end genetic engineering in agriculture and the release of genetically engineered organisms into the environment. + We should place pollution fees on fertilizers and use the revenue from these taxes to clean up pollution from the use of fertilizers. + We should ban the importation of products treated with chemicals banned in the U.S. and those grown with slash and burn farming methods. + We should replant stands of trees as windbreaks to curb topsoil loss and to prevent future dust bowls. + We should educate the public to increase its acceptance of organic produce rather than favoring appearance-enhanced produce grown with biocides. Biocides (Pesticides/Herbicides/Fungicides) Ecological wisdom demands an end to methods of pest and weed control which poison the earth, disrupt ecosystems, and threaten both the health of people and other living things. Massive biocide use is a failed policy perpetuated by agribusiness and the chemical industry. These businesses value profits over human and ecological health. The more biocides are used, the more target organisms develop resistance to them. Biological controls are disrupted. Pesticides directly endanger farm workers, neighboring populations and wildlife and ultimately also consumers. Aerial spraying is particularly dangerous since it results in a wider distribution of the poisons involved. The Green Party demands a rapid curtailment of pesticide use: + We should quickly phase out biocide use. Sustainable, organic pest control methods should be substituted. + We should immediately halt the aerial spraying of biocides. We should halt biocide spraying by cities, school boards, Caltrans and other government agencies. We should immediately stop the spraying of herbicides by state and national departments of forestry, especially near human communities. + We should establish neighborhood groups acting in concert with government agencies to monitor local pesticide use. The California EPA should investigate violations in biocide use, with appropriate public oversight provisions to diminish bias from government and industry. The EPA should improve standards by which it determines the safety of chemicals allowed on the market. + Pesticides that are illegal in the U.S. should not be exported to other countries. Toxic Wastes We must adopt attitudes and practices that respect the rights of present and future generations to a healthy environment. Toxic waste poisons the ecosystem, rendering it unhealthy and often unliveable. Through pollution, toxic wastes and radioactive contamination, our society is seriously damaging our environment. Once toxic materials are released into the environment it is difficult, and sometimes impossible, to contain or neutralize them. EPA standards for the control of toxins are inadequate, poorly enforced, and allow for the export of known toxins to other countries. The identification and clean-up of toxic sites, even critical superfund sites, are severely inadequate. The Green Party demands an aggressive policy to control and counter toxins: + We must develop alternatives to toxins so that we can eliminate their use. + Toxins must be contained and neutralized at their point of use. Once the toxins are introduced into the environment, controlling them becomes difficult or impossible. + Companies convicted of dumping toxins should be fined more than it would have cost them to neutralize the poisons in the first place. + We should apply a standard of "dangerous until proven safe" to questionable substances, with the burden of proof on manufacturers and industrial users rather than on the public. + Toxic wastes on military and industrial sites must be cleaned up. Companies hired to perform toxic clean-ups must be able to show that they have not previously profited from the production, supply or use of those substances. Companies that previously profited should be required to perform clean-up services at cost. In the case of military sties, at least 50% of the clean-up costs should be borne by the companies that supplied the toxins, with government funds from the military budget to be used for the balance. + We must set and enforce stringent standards through a revitalized EPA. We must not let businesses influence or hinder the EPA's work. + Community-based system should be developed to identify and organize "neighborhoods at risk" and to initiate action to counter pollution. + A healthy environment is the right of everyone regardless of income. Poor communities should no longer be convenient locations for toxic dumping. This practice (toxic racism) violates the principles of the Environmental Justice movement. Nuclear Contamination Greens seek the healthiest possible environment with a minimum of nuclear contamination bequeathed to future generations. Ionizing radiation is inherently injurious to life. While unavoidable background levels of radiation exist, further releases of radioactivity into the environment must be minimized. Any increase in radiation, no matter how small, causes damage to living organisms. Historically, nuclear fission was developed for military purposes, first in the second world war and then during the cold war. Nuclear power was a spin-off useful in providing materials for building nuclear weapons and as an ideological justification for the nuclear industry. It also served to make nuclear fission appear more benevolent. In fact, nuclear power is neither cheap nor safe. The mining, use and disposal of nuclear materials, (all parts of the cycle), pose enormous dangers for people and animals, air, water and soil. Some radioactive contamination, like that around Chernobyl, will remain in the environment for millennia. The Green Party demands that nuclear contamination be minimized: + We must immediately put a stop to uranium mining. + We must immediately stop the production of nuclear weapons. Nationally and globally we should dismantle existing nuclear weapons and plan for the safe storage of the radioactive materials involved. + We should prevent nuclear proliferation. We should ratify the global Comprehensive Test Ban (CTB). + We should rapidly phase out the production of electricity by nuclear power plants. We must repudiate the National Energy Strategy (NES) that calls for the construction of 200 new nuclear reactors. + We should curtail the medical profession's overuse of radioactive isotopes in its diagnostic and treatment procedures. + We should recycle medical radioactive materials rather than dump them. We should develop storage-to-decay alternatives for medical wastes. + We must ban the shallow burial of radioactive wastes and ban their incineration. We must develop methods to achieve long-term, safe storage of radioactive wastes. We should emphasize transportable above-ground, dry-cask storage of such wastes for easy monitoring and handling. + We should require all nuclear material generators to be responsible for the safe containment of their radioactive wastes. + We should establish strong criminal penalties for radioactive contamination of the environment. + We must allow no deregulation concerning radioactive wastes that might permit their dumping in community landfills or even their use in consumer products. We must prevent the construction of unsafe disposal sites, like the proposed Ward Valley dump, for so-called low level wastes. Nuclear wastes considered BRC (Below Regulatory Concern) must be reclassified on the basis of far more stringent environmental standards. + We must develop independent radiation monitoring networks for all industrial and military nuclear facilities. + We should stop all irradiation of food products. Energy Conservation should be an essential element of any energy policy: reduce, reuse, recycle. We need ecologically sound and economically viable energy sources. Our current energy practices rely on fossil fuels that pollute the atmosphere and encourage dependence on foreign suppliers and nuclear generators which produce radioactive wastes that will remain a potential hazard for millennia. If we don't act soon, our environment may deteriorate beyond a point where it can be saved. The Green Party demands a radical change in our energy policies: + We should begin the phase-out fossil fuels as an energy source. As quickly as possible, we should convert to renewable energy sources for our all our energy needs. + Through subsidies and incentives, we should encourage the development of such renewable energy sources as passive and active solar energy, biomass, ocean, wind and small scale hydro energy sources. + We should establish high energy efficiency standards for lighting and home appliances. + We should increase the efficiency of our buildings and industrial technologies to reduce the demand for energy. Through tax incentives, we should encourage energy conservation and renewable energy use in the design of new buildings, and similar incentives for retrofitting existing structures. + We should eliminate subsidies, tax benefits and research funding to corporations and businesses that use non-renewable energy sources. + We should enact legislation at the State level to encourage decentralized public ownership and democratic control of our energy system. We should emphasize planning to achieve the lowest overall cost. Transportation We need ecologically sound forms of transportation that minimize pollution and maximize energy efficiency. A major source of atmospheric pollution is the fossil fueled car which releases massive amounts of carbon dioxide into the air. This mode of transport is inefficient, costly and environmentally destructive. The Green Party demands that we develop alternatives: + We should develop high gas mileage and solar, electric and other non-fossil fuel powered vehicles for local travel. + We should schedule an increase in Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards to 60 MPG for cars and 45 MPG for light trucks by the year 2010. We should abolish presidential ability to override these goals. We should legislate a "gas guzzler" tax on new vehicles that get a lower MPG than the CAFE and offer "gas sipper" rebates for vehicles that get a higher MPG. + We should encourage the choice of human powered transportation, including bicycles. We should establish bicycle lanes. We should provide free transportation of bicycles on public transit. We should provide free public storage lockers for bicycles and free showers for cyclists wherever possible. + We should establish multi-zoning in communities so that people can live within walking distance of their work and provide incentives for them to do so. + We should locate services like stores, restaurants and laundries so that most people can easily access them on foot or by bicycle. + We should emphasize affordable mass transit systems. They could be partly subsidized with revenues from taxes on non-efficient vehicles and on gasoline. Mass-transit should be more economical to use than private vehicles. + We should discourage unnecessary auto use by eliminating free parking in non-residential areas that are well served by public transportation. + We should encourage mass transportation, including light and heavy rail for long distance travel. We should de-emphasize air travel. + For freight transportation, we should emphasize the use of light and heavy rail. + We should levy a substantially increased tax on gasoline that would more accurately reflect its true cost - that is the costs of the undesirable affects on the environmental and society (See also the "Economic Measurement" plank). These tax increases should be incremental with the availability of high mileage cars. Some compensatory provision should be made for the impact on low income drivers. + We should eliminate subsidies for airlines and airports. + We should maintain variable toll fees that would be lower for cars containing more than two people. Similarly, we should establish variable parking fees based on the number of passengers per vehicle. + We should require businesses of 100 or more employees to help their employees to achieve a minimum base ridership per vehicle (for example, 1.5 to 2.5). Through the use of gas tax revenues, we should subsidize businesses in buying solar, electric and other environmentally benign fueled vehicles for their employees' use. Urban Land Use Undeveloped lands, wilderness and agricultural lands are necessary for the ecological sustainability of the Earth and must be preserved. Thus, growth must be planned to minimize impact on these precious resources. Because the Earth is a closed system, it cannot tolerate unrestrained growth without serious environmental consequences. Yet growth and development are often seen as desirable in themselves. But the consequences of this over-development are environmental destruction as areas exceed their natural carrying capacities. The Green Party demands that we preserve agricultural and wilderness lands: + We should implement the ideas and principles of the ECO CITIES movement. + We should encourage high density communities as one way to prevent urban sprawl into agricultural and wilderness areas. + An increase in the population density of cities should be preceded by appropriate infrastructure developments to facilitate public transit travel, shopping, recycling and other functions as much as possible. + We should plan these high density communities so that they are comparable with desirable social goals. We should retain open spaces, parklands and greenbelts as components of all development plans so as to maintain a high quality of life. + Schools and places of employment should be located within easy walking or bicycle commuting distances from residences, or along mass transit lines. + We should use water treatment and closed-loop sewage treatment systems wherever possible. + We should encourage urban development which uses solar and other alternative energy sources. + We must stabilize the size of the American population and we must limit American consumption levels. Wildlife Our continuing destruction of animal habitats threatens an ever-growing number of species with extinction. This not only deprives these species of their existence, but will deprive future human generations of the enrichment of having these species on the Earth. As Greens, we believe that humanity should share the planet with all its other species. For this reason, we emphasize the importance of protecting endangered species and their habitats. All policies concerning human settlement, food, energy, natural resources, water (fresh and saline), coastal development and industrialization should be formulated to prevent further disruption of the non-human ecosystems' ability to maintain themselves. The Green Party advocates policies to defend wildlife: + When planning economic developments, we should ensure the protection of native animals and plants in their natural surroundings. + The government should work to sponsor and re-establish habitats for wildlife, instead of practicing game species management for maximum sustainable yields. + We should reintroduce native species to areas from which they have been eradicated. + We should eliminate predator control on public lands and reintroduce native predators where they would contribute to a viable ecosystem. + We should stop any further drainage of wetlands and any further development of shore areas. + We should strengthen the Endangered Species Act and eliminate the presidentially-appointed committee ("God Squad") which has the power to order species into extinction. Animal Farming Animal farming must be practiced in an ethically and environmentally responsible way. The current treatment of animals on American farms is unacceptable for ethical, environmental and health reasons. More than half of the water used for all purposes and 80% of all the grain grown in the U.S. is consumed by livestock. Animal farming is a major contributor to water pollution and the greenhouse effect through the vast amounts of animal waste and methane released into the environment. Grazing on public lands - so called "welfare ranching" because it is largely subsidized by taxpayers - is causing serious damage to ecosystems throughout the Western states. The factory farming of cattle, sheep and poultry is an extremely cruel, wasteful, unhealthy and polluting form of agriculture. Animals are kept in overcrowded, unnatural and unsanitary conditions, causing severe physical and psychological suffering. These conditions also cause diseases so the animals have to be given antibiotics to counteract them. They are also given hormones to induce rapid growth. American consumption of large amounts of animal products causes much of our society's cancer, heart disease and other degenerative diseases. In the interests of the environment, health and non-violence, we encourage individuals to adopt a vegetarian, or even strict vegetarian ("vegan") lifestyle. The Green Party advocates a humane treatment of farm animals: + We should rapidly phase out factory farming, as other countries are already doing. + We should prohibit feedlots, inhumane treatment of food animals and the routine use of hormones, antibiotics and other chemicals, such as genetically engineered compounds like BVT for cows. + We should ban the genetic manipulation of farm animals. + We should ban the exportation of live animals for overseas slaughter. + We should regulate the domestic transportation and slaughter of animals to insure humane treatment. + We should transfer the responsibility for enforcing animal welfare laws from the Department of Agriculture to an agency specifically created to protect animals and the environment. + We should eliminate all government subsidies, including water subsidies, that go to the meat, poultry and dairy industries. + We should terminate permits that allow livestock grazing on public lands. + We should initiate public education to encourage people to reduce their consumption of animal foods, including information on healthy vegetarian diets. We should make vegetarian meals available at all public institutions including primary and secondary schools. Ethical Treatment of Animals As Greens we replace the traditional western belief that our species is the center of creation, and that other life forms exist only for our use and enjoyment, with an ethic that reveres all life. We don't believe that our species has a right to exploit and inflict violence on other creatures simply because we have the desire and power to do so. Our ethic upholds not only the value of biological diversity, and the integrity and continuity of species, but also the value of individual lives and the interest of individual animals. Throughout history, humanity has exploited other animal species with enormous brutality. We have rationalized this through the belief that the rest of creation has been placed here only for our benefit. For too long our society has accepted the medical establishment's claim that animal experimentation is necessary, but a lot of evidence shows that not only do alternative testing methods exist but they might, in fact, be safer and more effective in promoting human health. Animal experimentation is an unnecessary ineffective, and inappropriate research method which must be terminated. The Green Party advocates a truly humane treatment of animals: + We must rapidly phase out all animal experimentation. + We must rechannel the billions of dollars disbursed annually by the National Institutes of Health for animal experiments into direct health care, preventive medicine and biomedical research using non-animal procedures such as clinical, epidemiological and cell culture research. + We must immediately outlaw the use of animals for consumer product testing, tobacco and alcohol testing, psychological testing, classroom demonstrations and dissections, weapons development and other military programs. + Government should mandate the clear labeling of products to tell whether they have been tested on animals and whether they contain any animal products or by-products. + We should establish procedures to develop greater public scrutiny of all animal research. The areas to be controlled should include the welfare of laboratory animals and a halt to wasteful public funding of unnecessary research, such as duplicative experiments. + We must immediately end the abuse of animals, including farm animals, and strengthen our enforcement of existing laws. + We must immediately outlaw all commercial fur ranching and trapping and the use of goods produced from exotic or endangered animals. + We should prohibit large scale commercial breeding facilities, such as "puppy mills," because of the massive suffering, overpopulation and ill health such facilities produce. + State and municipal governments should subsidize spay and neuter clinics to combat the ever worsening pet overpopulation problem which results in the killing of millions of animals every year. Where unwanted companion animals are being killed in shelters, we advocate mandatory spay and neuter laws. + We should ban the exploitation of animals in entertainment and sports, such as dog and horse racing, dog and cock fighting, fox hunting, hare coursing, rodeos, circuses and other such spectacles. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- == John J. Ladasky II ("ii") ========================= ladasky@netcom.COM == "Great composers do not borrow - "Talking about music is like they steal." - John Ladasky ~ - dancing about architecture." (quote stolen from Stravinsky, who o o - Elvis Costello? Laurie stole it from a statement made by > Anderson? Frank Zappa? Pablo Picasso about painting, who \_/ ------------------------------- stole it from...) "Property is theft." - Groucho ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- "A man w/o charity in his heart - what has he to do with music?" - Confucius ============================================================================