The tragedy of happy meat

Posted on May 19, 2013 by Kathleen Stachowski

http://openwalls.com

If you’re familiar with the Onion, you know it’s the print and online precursor to Jon Stewart’s Daily Show. Fake news, heavy on satire. That’s not to say that people, including high-profile people–heck, including entire governments–haven’t been taken in by Onion “reporting.” More on that in a moment, when we end up back at the Onion by way of a pig named Eddie, now deceased.

Our local, alternative weekly paper recently carried a personal essay on “Responsible Meat: A lesson from a pig called Eddie.” In it, the author told of her epiphany upon learning about factory farms when she thumbed through a book called “CAFO: The tragedy of industrial animal factories” (check out its fantastic website).   Continue reading →

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Hey Chicago–animal suffering lies behind that scenic splendor

Posted on May 13, 2013 by Kathleen Stachowski

Dear Chicago:

We need to talk. You can trust me–I’m practically a native daughter. Heck, from my hometown in Indiana, we can look across Lake Michigan and see your skyline (well, on a clear day). I’m a Cubs fan, ’nuff said! But I’ve lived in Montana for going on 14 years now, and if all this doesn’t qualify me to have a frank discussion with you about those tourism ads papering the city…I’m just sayin’.

Well I remember Chicago Tribune columnist Barbara Brotman’s mock hissy fit back in 2010 when Montana’s Office of Tourism started targeting the Windy City. She wrote:

The pictures plastered all over the CTA are bad enough. Majestic mountains, green valleys frosted with white snow, a turquoise glacial lake ringed by pine trees — it’s cruel, dangling that sort of thing in front of Chicago commuters packed glumly into “L” cars.

She went so far as to challenge Chicagoans to fight back with a “Take THAT, Montana” photo campaign (view photos here) wherein Tribune readers were to match Montana’s scenic glory, photo for photo, with their own Land of Lincoln natural splendor.   Continue reading →

Posted in Animal ethics, Animal exploitation, Animal rights, Environment, Global warming, Hunting, Montana, Mustelids, Rodeo, Trapping, Wild bison, Wildlife, Wolves | Tagged | Leave a comment

The wolverine: one gnarly dude…who needs our help

Posted on May 2, 2013 by Kathleen Stachowski

Click image for Gulo gulo natural history

Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who’s the stinkiest, snarliest, gnarliest, wildest of them all? Why, Gulo gulo–the amazing wolverine–of course!

And the gnarly little being needs our help within the next few days (5/6/13 deadline). Unless you’re one of the lucky ones, you’ll probably never see a wolverine in your lifetime, at least not outside of a zoo–and that’s a hideous thought for any wild animal, but especially for this wide-ranging, endlessly-moving dynamo. But even so–a mere few minutes to help save the wildest of the wild? A bargain at any price! Read on…   Continue reading →

Posted in Animal exploitation, Animal research, Environment, Global warming, Montana, Mustelids, Trapping, Wildlife | Tagged | 1 Comment

Rabbit ranching: Pat the bunny, whack the bunny

Posted on April 7, 2013 by Kathleen Stachowski

Easter morning dawned bright and beautiful in Western Montana. I glanced out the window and there sat Sylvilagus nuttallii, the mountain cottontail. Though our mostly-wild, predominantly-native property is perfect habitat, rabbits don’t show themselves readily, and  the sighting was a special treat. I mean, who doesn’t love a bunny?!? Then I recalled the day a few years back when we heard gun shots across the road and saw the neighbor throw a limp body from his then-unfenced garden. No, not everyone loves a bunny.

Later, relaxing with the Sunday paper, a feel-good Easter story about a “bunny rancher” left me feeling decidedly bad. “I only have three Easter bunnies left right now,” the breeder told the reporter. “This time of year, they go as fast as I can make them.”    Continue reading →

Posted in Animal ethics, Animal exploitation, Animal rights, Companion animals, Diet, Montana, vegan/vegetarian, Wildlife | Tagged | Leave a comment

A tale of two horses

Posted on April 3, 2013 by Kathleen Stachowski

GirlsHorseClub.com - click

Horses need your help and they need it now. It doesn’t matter if you’re not a “horse person”–you’re an animal person, and this domestic animal needs 10 minutes of your time, my time, our time. More on that in a moment, but first, a tale of two horses. One, a beloved Irish Draught cross thoroughbred, euthanized recently when his old body finally gave out; the other one executed in the prime of his life and butchered as a taunt to animal activists opposed to horse slaughter.    Continue reading →

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Wielding words for animal rights: Rapping, religion & blogging

Posted on March 22, 2013 by Kathleen Stachowski

Do you ever suffer from weariness of words? I do. Words piled on words. Remember when Polonius–attempting to determine if Lord Hamlet had gone mad–asked him what he was reading? “Words, words, words,” was Hamlet’s crafty reply. So many words. Too many words. Animals suffer; we write words. Animals die; we read words. We log on, post to Facebook, read blogs, write blogs, comment on blogs, link to blogs, blog about blogs…meh. At the end of the day I ask myself, “What’s been accomplished?” Animals are still suffering, still dying, and all I’ve done is shuffle words, words, words. Have they changed anything?

But still, what nonviolent justice-seeker doesn’t believe that the pen is mightier than the sword? And if it’s mightier than the sword, isn’t it also mightier than the captive bolt gun?     Continue reading →

Posted in Animal ethics, Animal exploitation, Animal rights, Companion animals, Diet, Factory farming, Fish, Horse slaughter, Hunting, Trapping, vegan/vegetarian | Leave a comment

Departures, arrivals, & taxidermy: Welcome to our neck of the woods

Posted on March 5, 2013 by Kathleen Stachowski

NRDC photo

In these troubled times, we’ve come to expect the steely-eyed gaze of TSA screeners and security personnel following us in every airport, everywhere. But what you might find shocking is the glassy-eyed gaze you’ll get from wild animals when you visit Missoula, Montana’s international airport. Rest assured, they won’t charge, butt, or trample if you forget to put your 3-ounce bottle of hand sanitizer in your quart Ziploc. Firmly affixed to the wall as trophies, they are present simply to say (albeit wordlessly), “Welcome to Montana, pardner.” Continue reading for further details on this eternally-mute welcoming committee–after a few words about the all-too-prevalent attitude (let’s call it speciesist) that recruited them for the job.   Continue reading →

Posted in Animal exploitation, Animal rights, Companion animals, Entertainment exploitation, Hunting, Montana, Rodeo, Trapping, vegan/vegetarian, Wild bison, Wildlife, Wolves | Leave a comment

Spectating at dogfights: Still legal thanks to…rodeo?

Posted on February 20, 2013 by Kathleen Stachowski

Enabled by the MT House Ag committee

Can you think of one animal species with whom you’d willingly trade places? Me neither. It’s a bum rap to be a nonhuman animal in a speciesist world, and here in Montana, brutality toward animals is a way of life. Just ask the bobcat thrashing in a trap, the calf viciously clotheslined by the neck in a rodeo roping event, or any coyote who’s the object of a killing contest. “We’re at your mercy,” they might tell us, “and mercy went missing a long time ago.”

On Valentine’s Day, the 200th wolf was killed in the state-sanctioned slaughter (track here), designed to reduce–by projectile and by trap–a population of 600-some animals, even along national park boundaries.   Continue reading →

Posted in Animal ethics, Animal exploitation, Animal rights, Companion animals, Entertainment exploitation, Factory farming, Hunting, Montana, Rodeo, Trapping, Wildlife, Wolves | 1 Comment

Valentine’s Day: Nothing says “I want you (and the pig) dead” like bacon roses

Posted on February 13, 2013 by Kathleen Stachowski

Say "I love you" with bacon - click image

As Valentine’s Day approaches, the question on many a mind–or maybe just mine–is, Where’s the dissonance in “cognitive dissonance”?  According to About.com Psychology,

The term cognitive dissonance is used to describe the feeling of discomfort that results from holding two conflicting beliefs. When there is a discrepancy between beliefs and behaviors, something must change in order to eliminate or reduce the dissonance.

An apt example of cognitive dissonance is the human propensity to love animals and to loathe seeing them suffer–nonetheless, to consider them tasty and edible even while suspecting (if not downright knowing) that the journey from lovable to edible requires suffering. If you’re one of those people, hang in there–we’ll talk you through it. Just relax and allow yourself to cognitively embrace the dissonance…   Continue reading →

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An animal rights Super Bowl fantasy (reprised & updated)

Posted on February 5, 2013 by Kathleen Stachowski

Just say no to pigskin--unless it's on a pig. Click image.

It’s Superbowl Sunday, and even as I type, the six-hour pre-game show has commenced. We’ll tune in later, for the actual game. Yes, we’re football fans, a somewhat shocking revelation to friends who know us only for our more conscience-driven pursuits. We’ll be cheering for, well, who cares. I default to the NFC when I don’t have a dog in that fight, to use a football-related (OK, Michael Vick-related, close enough) term. Go 49ers, ho-hum. Then again, ravens are birds–and birds are good, and the Edgar Allen Poe/Baltimore connection is most compelling to a former English teacher…so…Go team! Continue reading →

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