I actually really enjoyed most of the posts because i was learning new things that i was actually interested in knowing, like all of the information about the lawsuits and criminal activity and what not.

I do not think that i will delete this blog the day after we get our grades, frankly because i do not think i would remember to. Which is good, i think. It will be interesting to come back later on and look back on what we did and what i wrote and all of that fun stuff. I think if anyone randomly came across my blog they would actually learn a lot about the subject. I have tons of articles, pictures, and even videos on here that are filled with information. The more i read the articles the more interested i became. I could actually even use it to give an example of how to do research without actually having to write a paper or something. I could probably refer back to it if i ever discuss the subject later on (which i probably will, i like animals). overall i enjoyed this and learned a lot more than i had expected to in the beginning.

I don’t think i will blog in this sense after this, but i do have a myspace and a facebook so i am nowhere near cut off from the internet and/or talking about something interesting on the internet. I never really blogged before so it hasn’t become a major interest of mine as much as what i was researching did. You never know though, one day i might just get the strange urge to come back and write something new haha

I suppose only time will tell what the future holds for this thing.

I am glad i chose the topic of animal cruelty, specifically in the circus, for my theme. I was always an animal lover as i have stated in this blog before, but i have learned more than i expected through my research and blogging assignments. I would say that the majority if not all of us have learned more than we expected at first. There is so much information out there; it just takes a little time and curiosity to find it all.

I never really was informed about all the different issues pertaining the circus animal cruelty. I had no idea there was a lawsuit against the Ringling Bros. (which i think is legit despite their denials of the charges). The most shocking and probably the most interesting information that i found was that PETA members aren’t as heroic as many make them out to be. I was so shocked to find out that they have (and i dont doubt they still are) disposed of dead animals illegaly… none the less in a grocery store dumpster!!! I mean really? PETA members..? I hope others were just as shocked and disgusted with PETA as i was when i discovered this information. How could so many people who claim to be for “the ethical treatement of animals” actually treat animals is such a way? If you really have no idea what i am talking about you can click here and it will take you to the extended blog page that i wrote which includes a link to the article.

I think after working on this blog all semester long that i will take a lot more knowledge about the topic than i had before. I have somewhat of a feeling that you cant really trust what people say? i guess, if that makes sense.  Or even that you may not know what is really going on “scenes.” It is exactly what i had been talking about all semester… you dont know about the animal cruelty unless you do the research or you know what happens behind the scenes at the circus! And many wouldnt know about PETA’s not so ethical actions because of what their reputation is and what they are known for. i am not so much distrusting in everything that major companies say but i will just be more careful about what i actually believe to be true.

Since the attack, many speculations about whether or not the animal should have been removed from owner Sandy Harold earlier have been continuously growing.

This article talks more about the horrible incident and even provides links to other articles about the issue. (Fair warning though, ther are many pictures of her injuries that are graphic and disturbing. If you prefer not to see them, then i would suggest not going to the article linked above). The article gives a basic outline of what happened to Charla. It also has links to other websites with even more articles and pictures of the incident. Check it out if you are interested (but don’t say i didn’t warn you if you get grossed out!).

Another article i found and read suggested that Herold was very devastated over the death of her chimpanzee which she had considered her child and only “concerned” about her neighbor and friend. Something about how she felt doesn’t sit right with me. Clearly the animal was not its typical self which only makes society question the care and upkeep of the animal provided by Herold. I mean honestly… how did the chimp even escape? Clearly someone is at fault here, but the question is who?

What do yall think? Should Sandy Herold be punished? If so, what for? How do you feel about this situation and what happened?

a fish!!!

I was thinking about animal abuse and pets and what not and i came to the conclusion that i have never had any problems with all the fish (which is a lot) that i have had. Well, at least until they died :/

My favorite kind is the beta fish. I have had several over the past years actually. The one i have now is named Cricket. I got the name from the book the ultimate hitchhiker’s guide (if anyone has ever read it).  The ones before that were Bella (a gift from my friend Paul), Tito (named after UFC fighter Tito Ortiz and a gift from my sister), and i can’t remember much of the other names. I have also had numerous goldfish. First, it was polo & chanel… then sadly, chanel passed so i bought boo. Boo was so adorable! When she died i was pretty upset. So then, i just had good ol’ Polo! Until he died of course… thats when the beta fish came into play.

Cricket has been a trooper though! he even made it through the move from my old house to my new place with me.

All in all though… i guess what i am saying is that i like fish. I think everyone should have a pet fish someday…

Hope you enjoyed reading my ramblings about my fish, but everyone should take my advice and get a fish!

What if it wasn't the elephants in chains? What if it was you?

Dog fur coat for winter? I don't think so.

The first image is of a woman chained up almost exactly how elephants from the circus and entertainment shows are. The text in the image says : “Shackled, beaten, abused. Stop cruelty to elephants.” That text is exactly the proposal of the image. The proposal to stop cruelty to the elephants is calling for an action, focuses on the future by suggesting it needs to stop because it is still going on, and they center on the audience. Visual arguments shape behavior and change lives (pg418 EA). That is exactly what this image does. The image is visually asking “what if it were you in these chains?”  or “How would you feel if you were in the elephant’s place?” This is what shapes behavior. The view can literally imagine themselves chained up just as the elephants are which in turn makes them empathize for the animals and reflect back on how they treat animals.

The next image is also a proposal as well as a visual argument. The text states : “If you wouldn’t wear your dog, please don’t wear any fur.” This is a rhetorical statement ending with a request to stop wearing fur. The image is of a man and his dog. Anyone who has a dog or any pet can most definitely relate and understand the relationship between a pet and its owner. This image suggests the viewer to think about their pets and their relationships with their pets and then makes them think about the horrible experience of wearing their own pet’s fur, which in turn makes the viewer rethink and reflect on their current values of animals.

Both images are suggestive of an action and also communicate through the image itself which makes the viewer rethink their current actions.

*first image found here

*second image found here

Vet Dr. Proctor on CNN discussing the incident.

In my previous blog i talked about Ingrid Newkirk, the founder and president of PETA, and and interesting yet disturbing discovery. Summing up what i had discovered: two PETA members were caught on tape illegaly disposing of dead animals. Apparently PETA had terminated the lives of the animals that were found to be “unadoptable.”

What really makes an animal unadoptable though? According to veterinarian Dr. Patrick Proctor, he gave PETA a cat and two kittens to care for with the faith that PETA would do so. Also, according to Dr. Proctor, the members told him they would care and find homes for the animals. Can you imagine what it felt like to realize you gave animals to PETA with the hopes of finding a good home for them and later (that same day) find out that those animals were killed for being so-called unadoptable? That is exactly the feeling that Proctor felt. He discovered later that day what the fate of those animals was. He claimed the cat and kittens he gave to PETA were perfectly healthy and completely adoptable, especially the kittens.

I used to support PETA. I wasn’t a crazed PETA member who hated people who wore fur or owned leather… but i was all for animal rights. When i heard this news and researched more for this blog, i am now quite unsure how i feel about PETA. How could some association who claimed to be for “the ethical treatment of animals” kill innocent animals? Killing animals because they are “unable to care for” them or because they are apparently “unadoptable” doesn’t seem too ethical to me. I never expected an organization such as PETA to do such things as this, but then again i never really expected the circus to mistreat their animals either. I am no PETA member, but i can’t even fathom being able to inject innocent animals with fatal drugs just to get rid of them… so how could such die-hard animal rights activists do so? None of this makes sense to me whatsoever.

Isn’t there some other way to “get rid” of these animals? Give them to another shelter? Find homes for the animals? Maybe even give them to PETA members to care for personally until they find permanent respectable homes?

What do you think about all of this?

Ingrid Newkirk co-founder and president of PETA

In ,1980 Ingrid Newkirk along with Alex Pacheco started PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) with the motto of  : “Animals are not ours to eat, wear, experiment on, or use for entertainment.” For those of you who don’t know about PETA, this is an organization fighting for animal rights.

Many people who are avid animal rights activists see Ingrid as almost a hero. She started the largest organization for animals rights. They use campaigns with celebrities to promote their organization and motto. Although PETA has been seen in the media for being a little too intense while protesting for animal rights, many activists still support and look up to Ingrid.

As for the people who aren’t the biggest animal rights activists, whether they don’t know anything about it or they aren’t as dedicated towards animal rights, would most likely see Ingrid as “that lady who started PETA.” Rather, they don’t really know much about her if they even know who she is. Like i said, PETA has been displayed in the media as overly active and almost ridiculous during their protests so many people who are on the outside of this group probably think these PETA members are weird and ridiculous. I mean honestly, if i wasn’t the animal lover that i am i would probably be really confused and wondering why all these weird people are so intense in seeing the PETA members who yell and antagonize people for wearing fur.

What do you think about PETA?

As far as most of the world knows, PETA is the most dedicated animal rights organization, but the media has proved otherwise.  According to Authorities in Ahoskie, North Carolina, two PETA members were caught in the act and were charged with 31 felony animal cruelty acts for illegally disposing of dead animals. According to the article the two members were disposing of the dead animals in bags and dumping them in a grocery store dumpster. The animal control officer for the county that the members were arrested in stated that the animals they had disposed were picked up “just a few hours earlier.” He also said that the PETA members told him “they were picking up the dogs to take them back to Norfolk where they would find them good homes.”  The manager of the supermarket where they had dumped the animals added a disturbing comment on the issue saying : “they just slung the doors open and started throwing dogs…beautiful cats. I saw a dead beagle last week that was pregnant…last week it was 23 or 24 dogs… it’s happened to us nine times…they drove strahgt from there, stright here, and disposed of the dogs in 30 seconds.” Currently the members are out on bond thanks to the president of PETA (Ingrid Kewkirk), but the findings of more dead animals illegally disposed of are thought to be connected to PETA.

Not only has PETA failed to make a comment about this issue, but apparently they are planning to open facilities which have been referred to as “slaughterhouses” to terminate and dispose of the animals they are unable to care for.  But don’t worry guys!!! Yes, they plan on terminating innocent animals.. but the facility is coming equipped with furnaces that way they can dispose of the animal carcasses in a “environmentally responsible manner.”  I am sure that makes up for all of the animals they plan on terminating…….. TV analyst Ken Green commented on the issue by saying “Tough as it might be the reality is these animals will be sacrificing their lives for the greater good. When you are talking about the survival of the species you can’t get worried over a little spilled milk.” Ingrid Nerkirk lifted the first shovel of dirt in the groundbreaking of this facility.

Now what do you think about PETA (or Ingrid Newkirk)?

Sources:

article about illegal disposal: (linked in the text)

info on the founder of PETA: found here

opening of facilities: found here

I had already explained in my previous blogs that i had never been to the circus and now that i had done all this research and talked about all the issues dealing with the circus and their abuse towards their animals that i wasn’t really into going anymore because i didn’t want to support the abuse and what not. When i really think about it though… i have no idea what it is even like. What even goes on in the circus? What kinds of tricks and stunts go on? How long is a circus? Is it really all that amazing?

I think my ideal plan would be to go to the circus but being completely aware that there was no abuse. If there was no abuse and it was legitamately proven that there was no abuse what so ever, i would most definitely go and see the show. I honestly have no clue what goes on and would love to see it all…just without the abuse. I don’t think i can sit there knowing what goes on behind everything.

What do you think? Have you ever been to the circus? If so, tell me about it! what happens? is it fun/boring/really amzing and why? Please, fill me in on the so called “greatest show on earth”!

The key features of evaluations (EA 268) are as:

a) An evaluative claim that makes a judgment about a person,idea, or object.

b) The criterion or criteria by which you’ll measure your subject.

c) Evidence that the particular subject meets or falls short of the stated criteria.

Considering these key features, i believe that my argument about animal cruelty in the circus would be considered an evaluative argument. First, my entire blog is arguing the fact that there is animal cruelty behind the curtains at the circus that much of society may not know or believe. This is a problem, many innocent animals are being abused, which has caused psycological damage as well as physical damage. This abuse has even caused death in the animals involved in the circus. Secondly my criteria was created by thinking about something common in america (the circus) and really thinking about how i could discuss this argument. Many many people believe this show is fun and family oriented and simply just an amazing show filled with tricks and stunts. My question was whether or not the animals used within these tricks and stunts are treated as they should be. Instead of just thinking about the circus i attempted to dig deeper and find an issue behind the scenes or curtains so to speak of the circus.  Lastly, the evidence i have used about this argument are many articles, images of weapons used against the animals, as well as a video which allows viewers to clearly see for themselves the abuse to the elephants in action behind the scenes of a circus. An undercover PETA member was able to record and publicize the footage that was captured. Personally, considering my feelings towards animals, this video i found almost made me cry. Even telling my older sister, Lara, about this video that had shocked me made her tear up and eventually cry because she felt so bad about how the animals were being treated. (Can you tell my family likes animals?) It really changed how i personally viewed the circus and most definitely helped me to make the decision of whether or not to support the circus by paying money to go see the so-called “Greatest Show on Earth.”

Now, it is only up to you to see the evidence for yourself and to decide where you stand on this argument.

So, while researching all of this i came across an article from october 2008 on the New York Post website. This article discusses the lawsuit against “The Greatest Show on Earth” and its owners the Ringling Bros. According to this argument “Ringling’s parent company, Feld Entertainment, denied the charges.”What a surprise right? I am sure anyone in that position would most likely deny the charges considering their popular status and the money they make from their shows.

Little did i know, this lawsuit was also influenced by the death of a 4 year old elephant from the Ringlig circus. Apparenlty while swimming its trainer signaled for the elephant to get out. Due to disobeying the signal, the elphant was then struck with a bull hook which ultimately cause a heart attack for the elphent which resulted in the death.

This is the weapon used to strike the now deceased elephant (a bullhook). Would you want to be striked by this thing? I know i would not. So then why treat animals the way we DO NOT want to be treated?All of this cruelty just does not make sense to me. What do you think about all of this? Do you agree or disagree? Is this a matter of discipline or abuse?