There is little in life I hate more than being scooped by the hipper-than-thou scenesters over at the peta2 blog, or “blizzy,” as they call it. But, it happened here in a big way, and I’m man enough to admit it. They reported on the PB&J Campaign, oh, like a month ago, but it’s so cool I wanted to give it a shout out here too.

I love the PB&J Campaign’s mission statement. So simple and to the point: "The PB&J Campaign is working to combat environmental destruction and improve animal welfare by reducing the amount of animal products people eat. The PB&J Campaign approaches positive change one meal at a time by illuminating the differences one single dining decision can make."

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What's the best reason of all to make a PB&J instead of, oh, say, a chicken breast? As their Web site states: "Saving water, fighting global warming, and preserving habitat are all great reasons to have a PB&J for lunch, but, if you like animals, there's the added benefit of not killing them. It takes about 16 PB&J sandwiches to save a chicken's life, for example."

To read more, check out their Web site here.

Well, despite the occasional offhand remark I may have made about lawyers over the past few months, it turns out our legal counsel really are quite spectacular! And this victory feels particularly good, since it shows that no matter how influential or rich or well-connected the corporation or—as in this case—entire industry that we go up against, we will not be intimidated, and we will not give up our mission of ending animal abuse and torture anywhere we find it, and we will win! This week, Australian Wool Innovation (AWI), a trade group representing the Australian wool industry, abandoned the lawsuit they have been pushing for more than two years against PETA's boycott of Australian wool. AWI has pumped millions of dollars into this lawsuit, and this development is a big victory both for free speech and for animals. Here's what PETA President Ingrid Newkirk had to say:

"Our message is that when animal abusers sue PETA, it's at their own peril. AWI has wasted millions of dollars of woolgrowers' money, only to find that PETA's call for a boycott of Australian wool is going at full throttle as long as lambs have chunks of their rumps cut off with shears and� sheep are herded onto export death ships."

In addition to withdrawing the lawsuit, AWI has had to agree to fast-track the development of genetic alternatives to the cruel mutilation that is one major cause of our boycott. This isn't enough in itself for us to end our demonstrations against Australian wool, but it's good news for the sheep, and it's an encouraging sign that the industry itself is starting to listen to the outrage of consumers over its cruel practices. To learn the full story and to help with our campaign, please click here. And for more on why we launched this boycott in the first place, check out the video below.

Our media maid got a call yesterday from ING, you know, the bench people. They called to ask us—ever so nicely—to remove their logo and the ad we made with Ingrid Newkirk sitting on a bench with a cat looking up at her in the style of their iconic “Life’s Easier on the Bench” ads from the web. We’re all a bit sad to take it down, as we still get a lot of positive remarks about it, but alas, down it shall come.

Ingrid’s response when she heard we had to take her ING ad down . . .

When I asked Ingrid if this turn of events would sway her from her staunch support of the ING/Renault Formula 1 team, she was adamant that “it most certainly will not” and admonished me for even thinking such a thing. She said the “very polite lad” from ING was complimentary of our work, and that the company will actually consider sponsoring our doghouse and SNIP programs. With beloved dogs in many car commercials these days, and a duck working out investments for another company, that would fit perfectly.

Ingrid in training . . .

And of course it doesn’t hurt that among the drivers she roots for are Renault/ING’s Giancarlo Fisichella (who she once let take her taxi in the rain) and Heikki Kovalainen, who recorded the difficult pronunciation of his name for her website, and that she still fantasizes about running off to Magny-Cours to change tires for a living once this whole animal rights thing is taken care of.

OK, I had to admit that I had my doubts when I heard the first rumblings about a giant “fish quilt” we were making to raise awareness about the fact that fish are intelligent, intriguing animals who feel pain just as all other animals do and that they don’t deserve to be violently killed for food, painfully hooked for “sport,” or cruelly confined in aquariums. But now that I see the finished product, I have to admit that it’s pretty cool.

Lucy of Cuba, Missouri’s square.

Each square was handmade for the quilt by PETA members and supporters across the country. Some people also submitted stories about why they no longer support cruelty to fish, including the following:

• A Girl Scout troop from Austin, Texas, submitted several patches. The troop members were inspired by a discussion with a former commercial fisher, who had since gone vegetarian, about the damage that fishing does to animals and the environment.
• A quilter from Winnipeg, Manitoba, shared a story about how she and her grandfather stopped fishing because of the cruelty involved. They found other ways to spend quality time together instead.
• Several quilters made patches that bear the PETA slogan that Finding Nemo made famous: "Fish Are Friends, Not Food!"

From Amanda in St. Catharine’s, Ontario, Canada.

The giant fish quilt is now on a nationwide tour a la the aids quilt, so keep your eye out for it. Click here to see the full quilt. Here’s a shot from its opening display in Manhattan last week.

Check out Jeff Corriveau’s unique take on the story about Bulgaria’s last three dancing bears being released to a sanctuary in this week’s DeFlocked comic.

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Unfortunately, there is no punch line; I am not kidding. The reporter thought this was a fine example of Romney’s “emotion-free crisis management” style, but who knows. Here's what PETA’s president, Ingrid Newkirk said to an enquiring press:

“First, as a charity we can’t and don’t endorse or oppose any candidate for public office, but I can say (and not just as a person who grew up with an Irish Setter!) that any individual who does something like that may have what scientists term the absence of the mirror neuron, i.e., a pin-pointable absence in the brain of the characteristic which allows the individual to feel basic compassion. The implications are frightening. Anyone who suspects that they are not able to feel empathy for others needs to be aware of the existence of this condition. What is also worrying is that Mr. Romney seems to hold the very old fashioned idea that he needs to actively show he is heartless, hence the hunting claims he has made. Not subsistence hunting, but pride in killing defenseless animals for sport, for fun, for show. In the case of the dog on the roof of the car, if this is true, quite remarkably it obviously wasn't for show as only his own children were watching, a lesson in cruelty that was also wrong for them to witness. There was also the obviousness of the situation. Thinking of the wind, the weather, the speed, the vulnerability, the isolation on the roof, it is commonsense that any dog who’s under extreme stress might show that stress by losing control of his bowels: that alone should have been sufficient indication that the dog was, basically, being tortured. If you wouldn’t strap your child to the roof of your car, you have no business doing that to the family dog! I don't know who would find that acceptable. Mr. Romney needs to tell the world he realizes this was not humane. People do stupid things and one day realize it, so better late than never."

Thanks to Ana Marie Cox, founder of Wonkette, now Time.com’s Washington Editor, for noticing the story on Boston.com and jumping on it.

I’m pretty excited about this one, as it’s the first time PETA is dipping its toe into Second Life. On July 12, we’re teaming up with cruelty-free designer Stella McCartney to co-host an event on a specially created island in the virtual world. Visitors to the island—which is inspired by the English countryside, with stables, picnic tables, and a Linda McCartney veggie burger stand—will be able to show support for PETA in virtual terms. All visitors will receive a bunch of cool anti-fur gear for their Second Life character to wear; you can donate money in Linden dollars, the community's currency, which PETA will be able to exchange for real U.S. dollars, and you’ll be able to dress your character in a sweet T-shirt with the slogan "I'd rather be pixilated than wear fur."

And check this out; there are real-world prizes to be won as well. We’re holding a competition on the island from July 12 - July 19 for a new PETA slogan based around the iconic tag line, "I'd rather go naked than wear fur." Prizes include two tickets to McCartney's spring 2008 show in Paris, one of the designer's Appaloosa bags and her entire Care skin care line.

For those of you already on Second Life, I’d be glad to email you when the island goes live. Just send me an email so I have your address.

Even though I work here, I didn't quite realize the full extent of the glory in store for the winner of PETA's World's Sexiest Vegetarian title. But Kevin Eubanks—this year's “Sexy Veg” co-winner with the stunning Carrie Underwood—learned exactly how prestigious his new title was last night, when Jay Leno and two dancing vegetables presented him with a lovely sash and tiara on The Tonight Show. And in case you're wondering—no, it does not get better than that.

Here's what Kevin told us when we informed him of his victory: "I'd like to thank everyone who voted for me. I hope this encourages people to eat better and to remember that animals are our friends and a key to a better environment. Not to mention, it's just cool!"

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I totally understand that it must suck to be 25 years old and have the best years of your life well behind you, and I do realize she probably gets lonely at home between her stints in rehab, but somehow I just don’t think Britney Spears should be responsible for the care of another living thing. Seems to me she’s got enough on her plate just getting herself out of bed in the morning . . .

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OK ladies and gentlemen, congratulations are in order. The votes are in and following an impressive week-long rally by Jay Leno, Tonight Show band leader Kevin Eubanks has been voted PETA’s World’s Sexiest Vegetarian man for 2007, while American Idol superstar Carrie Underwood has been voted World's Sexiest Vegetarian woman.

Well over 100,000 ballots were cast, and the other finalists include Milo Ventimiglia, Joaquin Phoenix, Kristen Bell, Bryce Dallas Howard, Jared Leto, TV Guide columnist Michael Ausiello and Maggie Q.

I’m sure Leno couldn't be happier about Eubanks' win. He mentioned the contest several times during the past week and said that he stopped by to vote for Eubanks, noting that he wanted Kevin to win to bring honor to the Tonight Show stage. And Tonight Show viewers logged on in large numbers, pushing Eubanks ahead of his competitors. I’m not saying Eubanks wouldn’t be up there in the rankings without it, but Leno’s repeated stump speeches had to have given him an edge. Leno even brought out some rather revealing shots from Kevin’s past to get viewers excited . . .

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Previous winners, in case you’re keeping score, include Prince, Natalie Portman, Shania Twain, Chris Martin, Andre 3000, Tobey Maguire, Josh Hartnett, Alicia Silverstone, and Lauren Bush.

Congrats Carrie and Kevin, from all of us at PETA. And Jay, how about a segment with both winners on the show?

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So now that you know that I love Wimbledon—and Amelie Mauresmo—more than is healthy for any man, I guess you know what I’ll be doing this weekend. And one of the high points for me is always the fact that John McEnroe is the commentator. The guy had an amazing career as a player and now brings perfect balance and a nice edge to his coverage of the genteel sport of tennis. It’s just plain fun to listen to the man.

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And in case you haven’t seen it, McEnroe starred in this amazing spay/neuter PSA for us. I think he’s perfect in it.

So yeah, don’t call me on Sunday afternoon. I’ll be watching my girl Amelie kick ass and listening to McEnroe talk about it.

As the Michael Moore juggernaut continues unabated, I thought it might be nice to take a quick breather and check out some of the amazing work that PETA India has been doing this week, which, because it's not quite so sensational, probably won't be getting the attention it deserves. Animal Rahat is a program that works closely with PETA India to bring relief to working bullocks, donkeys, ponies, and horses in India by giving them the rest, drinking water, and veterinary care that they so desperately need.

The sad situation for most working animals in India is that the people who use them simply can't afford to ever give them a day off, let alone veterinary care, and the reports and pictures that we get from India about these animals' lives and deaths are heartbreaking.

Which is why it's always so great to get photos like these, from the team at Animal Rahat, who spent last weekend fixing water troughs in a local square near their facilities.

If you'd like to sponsor a working donkey, buffalo, bullock, or pony in India through Animal Rahat, you can learn more here.

Michael Moore on the animal rights movement: “This shit makes me want to kick my dog”

First of all, if you know Michael Moore, you know he can take it. Seriously. The guy is not going to cry himself to sleep because we offered him some diet advice. For anyone who has seen a Michael Moore documentary or read one of his books, you'll know that he doesn't pull punches when it comes to issues he's passionate about, or miss an opportunity to take a potshot at those he disagrees with. Compared with the letters Michael Moore writes (see, for instance, this letter he wrote to the president), Ingrid's letter was incredibly polite.

Secondly, I should probably provide a little context to our own relationship with Michael Moore—which goes back a long way. We've written to him several times over the years, starting back in the days of Roger & Me with ever-so-polite appeals to embrace animal rights. We don't hold it against him, but the only response we ever got from him was when his people showed up outside the PETA building with a donkey, two goats, two sheep, a rabbit, a chicken, three dogs, a fish in a bowl(!), a guinea pig, two gerbils, and a rat in a cage "wearing" offensive signs, like “You are wasting your lives.” He arranged to haul these animals out on a hot day to taunt hard-working people just to get a cheap laugh for his show. In addition to that little stunt, whose real victims didn’t even have the luxury of understanding what was happening to them, Michael Moore has made comments throughout his career glorifying meat-eating and hunting, and mocking people who care about animals. Now, neither I nor any of my colleagues take those comments personally—we dish it out, and we can take it. But, like I said, so can Michael Moore.

Michael Moore has never responded with anything but sneering to PETA's requests that he address animal protection issues in one of his documentaries, but we're not giving up hope. And, even if he ignores this particular attempt to reach him in his own style—playful and provocative at the same time—we hope that some of the people who hear about this story will get the message: A vegetarian diet is the compassionate choice, it's the healthy choice, and it's the right choice—for us and for animals. I'm glad that this letter has given us the opportunity to say that again.

P.S. Judging from some of the comments I read yesterday, I should probably also point out for a few people that “elephant in the room” is an expression that means “an important issue that people are avoiding.” Not, like, an actual pachyderm in someone’s living space. Like this one.

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We’ve been getting a lot of questions on this since the European Parliament voted on it this week, so I thought I’d clear the air a bit.

I realize that it’s going to come as a huge shock to some but PETA is completely opposed to the ban. Obviously, the cruelty involved in the slaughter of dogs and cats is beyond hideous and has to be stopped, but we feel like this “ban” is really nothing more than a feel-good measure that is likely to harm more animals than it would help.

First off, the entire point of the proposed legislation, as it states very clearly, is to protect the fur industry. The language in the proposed legislation couldn’t be more clear on this fact: The bill is intended to and would in fact “facilitate the placing on the market of fur and fur products from species other than cats and dogs and prevent disturbance on the international market for fur and fur products in general.”

Even more insane to me is the fact that the proposed legislation would do absolutely nothing to actually stop the trade in dog and cat fur in Europe, since it would exempt fur from dogs and cats who have been killed for any other purpose, including meat. Millions of dogs and cats are killed for their meat and fur in China, where we did an investigation and found horrendous cruelty.

Our concerns really boil down to the fact that the ban will help the fur trade by giving consumers a false sense of security that it is safe to buy fur because they’ll believe it isn’t from dogs and cats. In the United States and other countries, similar bans on dog and cat fur simply haven’t worked; dog and cat fur is still sold, but it is relabelled as fur from other species. A ban like this won’t work any better than self-regulation, which, in the fur trade, means no regulation. The ban’s only practical effect will be to promote the acceptance of fur from other species of animals, including canine and feline species such as coyotes and lynx, who are just as abused as dogs and cats in the fur trade.

Essentially, this legislation will just grease the wheels of the fur industry so it can kill millions of animals for their skins while assuring consumers that none of them is like their family pets. And of course, it’s just as messed up to skin minks or foxes alive and wear their fur as it is to skin dogs or cats alive for their fur.

I hope this helps make our position a bit more clear. Where do you stand? Comments much appreciated.

I don’t know about you, but I always get a little bristly when my “almost” vegetarian friends tell me that they “only eat fish.” Of course, I totally believe that nobody is perfect, myself included, and that every small step people take to help animals is important. I just don’t understand how fish got so removed from the compassion radar that some people actually call themselves vegetarians while scarfing down tuna melts?

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They may not be as cute and cuddly as dogs and cats, but they feel pain and value their lives just as much.

Anyway, my point here is that everything I read about fish intelligence and sentience just blows me away. And this story from the UK put a smile on my face. It’s just kind of nice to see the plight of our piscine friends finally being taken seriously . . .

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… apart from the fact that most of them are reprehensible hedonists who care more about living the high life than living a good life—though they probably knew that already. Turns out that foie gras is a carrier for a rare but exceptionally nasty little disease called amyloidosis, which is akin to Mad Cow disease—another little gift from the meat industry to its buying public. You can read more about the discovery here, though as far as I'm concerned, the only reasons that anyone could possibly need to boycott this particular “delicacy” are right here:

In other foie gras news, my good friend Noah, who works for a group called Central Texas Animal Defense, has been very busy this month helping restaurants in his hometown of Austin get the foie gras off their menus for good. You can read about his efforts here.

Check out the gaggle of nearly naked PETA members who converged on the Spanish Embassy in Washington D.C. yesterday in a warm up for PETA UK’s sixth annual Running of the Nudes in Pamplona, Spain, to protest the cruelty of the Running of the Bulls. OK, so I guess this demo is more like the Running of the Almost Nudes since they were all rocking underwear, but still . . .

Of course in the real Running of the Nudes, most of those participants roll buck naked, save for running shoes and the red scarves that are traditionally worn during the bull run. And lots of body hair. Come on, it is in Europe after all.

Here’s the video from last year’s event.

Attention: Only watch this video if you are over 18 and if seeing naked people protesting cruelty to animals is legal where you live (the lawyers made me say that).

Click here if you want to get in on this year’s run in July.

Michael Moore, for those of you not familiar with him, is a fat, bearded dude who makes political documentaries and occasionally angers conservatives. His latest work is a film called SiCKO—which exposes the inadequacies of health care in the U.S. and played to rave reviews at the Cannes Film Festival. It's going into wide release on June 29. Well, PETA's president, Ingrid Newkirk, has a few words of advice for him: As she points out in the letter she sent him this week, the best way to fight the U.S. health care bureaucracy is to take some personal responsibility and make positive changes that will lead to a healthy lifestyle—and there’s no better way to do that than by adopting a vegetarian diet. As Ingrid puts it,

“Although we think that your film could actually help reform America’s sorely inadequate health care system, there’s an elephant in the room, and it is you. With all due respect, no one can help but notice that a weighty health issue is affecting you personally. We’d like to help you fix that. Going vegetarian is an easy and life-saving step that people of all economic backgrounds can take in order to become less reliant on the government’s shoddy healthcare system, and it’s something that you and all Americans can benefit from personally.”

PETA is challenging Michael Moore to reduce his risk of fat-related illnesses by taking PETA's 30-day Veg Pledge. The idea is that if people didn't make themselves unhealthy in the first place by eating meat products that are known to cause heart disease, high blood pressure, and strokes, the situation would easier for everyone. As Ingrid puts it, "Yes, America’s health care system needs to be fixed, but personal responsibility is a big part of why people look and feel as ill as they do." Here's hoping Michael Moore puts his money where his mouth is.

You can read Ingrid's letter to Michael Moore here. I'll let you know how he responds.

Jason Bayless, our Lead Circus Monitor (i.e., the dude whose nerve-wracking job it is to follow Ringling Bros. around everywhere and document their abuse of animals), is about to embark on tour with the circus next week, so we fitted him out with a nice new set of wheels that will let circusgoers know exactly what he's there for. Jason's just going to have to rely on his natural charm if he wants to make friends with any of the Ringling employees during the six-month tour—the van itself isn't exactly designed to ease the longstanding tension between PETA and the circus …

As Scandinavian countries go, Finland is actually pretty awesome. They've got some kickass modernist architecture, the world's finest sauna technology, and—if you're into bands that play Metallica covers on the cello (which, honestly, who isn’t?)—an unbeatable music scene. Unfortunately, Finland also kills more foxes for their fur than almost any other nation, and we'd really, really like for them to go ahead and just stop doing that. Enter the wonderful Pamela Anderson, who's going to be visiting the country for the annual Rauma festival this year (Pam's ancestry is Finnish), and who took the opportunity to raise the issue with Finland's president, Tarja Halonen. You can read Pam's letter here, and I'll keep you posted on Tarja's response. Thank you, Pamela, for everything that you do. Don't forget to bring me back a souvenir.

As promised, here’s this week’s DeFlocked comic by Jeff Corriveau. I love it.

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Check out last week’s comic here, and click here to learn all about the world of DeFlocked.

Yeah, that's right. We got a giant bird costume.

For a little bit of context, you should check out our undercover investigation of two PetSmart locations which revealed appalling conditions for the animals sold by the stores. There's also a handy little factsheet here, which explains (for anyone who hasn't figured it out by themselves) why big birds don't belong in small cages. This picture's from a demonstration outside yesterday's PetSmart shareholder meeting in Chicago.

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In a fantastic victory for animals, Schumacher Furs suffered quite a blow last year when the downtown Portland store decided to close after years of protests by concerned Portland residents. But, much as I'd love to take credit for the great protests, PETA really didn't have an awful lot to do with them—a fact which had our lawyers more baffled than concerned when ol' Gregg and Linda filed suit against us for more than $2 million in damages. Fortunately for everyone (and as Mr. and Mrs. Schumacher learned the hard way this week), being really sad and grumpy because your unethical business got shut down isn't enough by itself to convince a court of law that someone owes you over $2 million. The claims against PETA were thrown out as being frivolous earlier this week, and Schumacher Furs will, more than likely, be paying PETA's legal fees. As PETA Counsel Bonnie Robson puts it:

“The court's decision is a victory for the First Amendment—and for animals, who must rely on human voices to protest their torture and slaughter for fur. The court did not give in to the fur industry's desire to keep the public in the dark about how animals are turned into fur coats and collars."

Well guys, now that you've failed at making your living through hurting animals and suing charities, what's next on the agenda? I'm not sure I even really want to know.

OK, so a few days ago, I posted this little entry about a video for a song called Mommy Kills Animals. I thought that was going to be the end of it, until I started hearing from my colleagues about a certain “lack of enthusiasm” they had detected in that particular post. Apparently, the music video has made an impression so deep on the employees of this Virginia office that they are willing to turn on their humble blog-writing coworker with an almost insane fury when he fails to recognize its full brilliance. Truth be told, this thing kind of freaked me out, but I wouldn’t be doing my duty as a blogger if I didn’t give the people what they want—so here it is again. Brace yourselves.

For anyone who’s not familiar with the title, by the way, Mommy Kills Animals refers to one of PETA’s more inspired anti-fur pamphlets, also posted here for your viewing pleasure. I don’t anticipate any controversy with this one.

And in other completely (and I mean completely) unrelated news, there’s this federal bill up for a vote right now that is about to seriously jeopardize some turtles. If you could take a moment to help by clicking here, I would be very grateful.

Here at PETA, it’s not uncommon for us to get ideas for ads sent to us. In fact, it’s a rare day that we don’t get more good ideas than we can ever use sent our way. But this one really struck me. It’s from Scottish member Kfir Bolotin, and I think it sums up the fur issue pretty well, especially with so many dogs and cats being killed for their fur in places like China . . .

Gianfranco Ferré, one of Italy's most well-known designers, died this weekend of a brain hemorrhage in a Milan hospital at the age of 62. When I heard the news this morning, I knew that PETA VP Dan Mathews—who famously crashed a Ferré fashion show wearing a priest costume and holding a "Thou Shalt Not Kill" sign a few years ago—would have something to say about it. And so he did. This is from the letter of condolence that Dan sent to the company:

“I hope Mr. Ferré’s death is the last death at the company, and that the new design chief eliminates all the dead skin from upcoming collections. I hope that during this sad time of reflection they’ll see more clearly how the fashion house can be creative without being destructive.”

I think that sums things up rather nicely. Sad as it is, I hope the designers at GF Ferré will see this as an opportunity for a fresh start. I’m sure Gianfranco Ferré wasn’t a bad person, despite his inability to see how much suffering he was causing, but that doesn’t mean that his bad habits shouldn’t be buried with him.

One thing I forgot to mention about Ingrid and Pam’s birthday party at Sublime last week was that the real star of the show for everyone setting up the event was “Charlie the Tooth.” Charlie is the boss of Jenny Brown of J. Brown signs, who deserves props for the awesome backdrop, but more importantly, for giving Charlie such a loving home.

The man, the myth, the legend: Charlie the Tooth.

If you agree that Charlie is the cutest dog ever, you can join his fan club by sending an email here.

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"There's nothing 'peaceful' or 'relaxing' about torturing sensitive, intelligent beings. There are plenty of opportunities for fathers and sons to bond that don't involve killing animals."

You can read the letter that Ingrid wrote to Senator Webb this morning here. I'll let you know if we get a response.

I’m not entirely sure what to say about this video, but it is interesting to say the least . . .

Warning: Parental advisory, explicit lyrics, and all that.

Of course, they could have just asked us. But this recent finding by the US National Research Council is very good news for animals suffering in laboratories. According to the study,

"Recent advances in systems biology, testing in cells and tissues, and related scientific fields offer the potential to fundamentally change the way chemicals are tested for risks they may pose to humans. …The new approach would generate more-relevant data to evaluate risks people face, expand the number of chemicals that could be scrutinised, and reduce the time, money, and animals involved in testing."

I guess research councils take longer than the rest of us to figure out that animals just don't work the same way as humans, but it's great to see that they've finally figured it out. You can read The Daily Telegraph's take on the study here, and for those of you with a more academic disposition—or just a whole lot of time on your hands—the full study is available here.

Jeff Corriveau, who has written for Saturday Night Live and Jay Leno and served as head writer on the Emmy Award-winning Talk Soup, has now turned his full efforts to print media, and the hilarious result is the nationally syndicated comic strip DeFlocked, starring Mamet the sheep and his supremely odd friends Cobb, Tucker, and Rupert. Where we come into the equation is that Jeff, a strong supporter of animal rights, has partnered with PETA in our worldwide campaign to end abuses of sheep in Australia.

I'll be putting a new DeFlocked strip on the blog every week, and we'll also be featuring the exclusive strips Jeff makes for our Australian wool campaign biweekly on SaveTheSheep.com. You can learn more about Jeff's work on his website, but in the meantime, let me introduce you to Mamet the sheep. You may never be the same.

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For one reason or another, Taiwan is proving to be something of a golden child these days when it comes to passing progressive legislation that benefits animals. If things continue this way, the Dutch are going to need to start watching their backs or they'll lose their current status as "most animal-friendly country" before you can say "Dude, where the hell did you get these 'animal-friendly-country' statistics from anyway?" Under Taiwan's latest piece of legislation, the Wildlife Conservation Law, all animal circuses will be banned, exports of exotic animals as pets will be prohibited, and the punishment for "harassing, hurting, or abandoning animals" will include a maximum one-year prison term. Way to go, Taiwan!

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“Skinny Bitch combines a ‘take no prisoners’ attitude with cogent analysis and scientific proof to make an engaging, wickedly irreverent, and iron-clad case for eating healthfully. If I had it in my power, I’d provide a free copy to every young woman in the developed world; we could then become, instead of the fattest next generation in history, the healthiest.”

Enjoy the new diet, Victoria. And thank you, Rory—you’re amazing.

You can read more about the story here.

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"Hunting. Beef, sheep farms. Piggeries. Millions, billions die. We can be so cruel to animals."

He went on to discuss vegetarianism—noting that he himself gave up meat, dairy, and eggs in 1965, though he has occasionally eaten meat since then. In my few years in the animal rights movement, I've learned from experience that animal issues like these can sometimes be tough for people to take on board. When you're asking a person, or an organization, to make a fundamental change in the way they've always done things, tensions are likely to flare, regardless of how compelling your argument is. Which is why moments like these are so important. If anyone's looking for advice on how to live a compassionate lifestyle, the Dalai Lama's a pretty solid choice for a consultation. We're so used to listening to experts when we make decisions about how to live our lives, and it follows that we should sit up and pay attention when an expert on something as essential as kindness makes a pronouncement. I hope a lot of people pay attention to this one.

If you haven’t heard about the little tiff we’re having with eBay at the moment, the point of contention is that the company refuses to prohibit the sale of live cats and dogs—as well as items lined with dog fur—on its Chinese website. Which, honestly, this is really an issue that everyone can get on board with, especially once you see the photos posted by eBay sellers showing animals chained to cages on the streets, puppies trapped in wire-bottomed cages, and other horrors that would be more suitable in an animal-cruelty case file than on an international auction site that’s supposed to have a code of ethics. Well, since the company has been turning a deaf ear to our pleas, this morning, we took them straight to the shareholders: Our fearless campaigner Deedra spoke at the Boston eBay shareholder meeting, while my friends Melissa and Julie stood outside to let passersby know exactly what’s going on at eBay China. Check it out, and if you’d like to write to eBay about this issue, click here.

I honestly don't know how these people get their licenses, but a Florida avian veterinarian named Susan Clubb has just made the astounding decision to auction off 600 exotic birds she's been using for breeding. Apparently (I wish I were kidding about this), Dr. Clubb is selling the animals because she “needs the money” as a result of a divorce. Leaving aside for a second the question of why anyone would consider divorcing a woman who likes to exploit sick birds and sell them to the highest bidder, we need to get this auction stopped right now. You can learn more about the whole sordid affair here, and we've included contact information so that you can ask her to reconsider this supremely lousy idea. Please be polite if you do decide to contact her—the goal here is to help these abused animals, not to antagonize someone with an obvious compassion deficit.

With all this happy talk about Pam and Ingrid's birthday, I totally forgot to mention the fact that today is the very day, 21 years ago, that Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen were spawned. I figured that this would be an appropriate place for a tribute, so here goes:

Mary Kate and Ashley began their careers playing the nauseating baby on Full House and went on to be nauseating in their own right as the no-talent fur hags who are always ready to be the butt of a joke when the gossip press is looking for a punchline. In 2006, Ashley reached the pinnacle of her career by being singled out on PETA's annual Worst Dressed List with the comment: "Wearing fur does add 20 pounds, but if Ashley wants to fill out her frame, we suggest using a fork instead." Inspired by Ashley's achievement and, as usual, completely failing to grasp the point, the twins are condemning a new generation of animals to death this year for their aptly titled fashion label, The Row. Now that the terrible twins have finally reached the legal drinking age, the world is waiting with bated breath to see what they'll do next. Happy Birthday, the Olsen Twins. You guys really freak me out.

Pamela Anderson and PETA prez Ingrid Newkirk celebrated a joint birthday party in Florida yesterday with a gigantic vegan birthday cake at Sublime restaurant in Fort Lauderdale. Asked how she felt about turning 40, Pam said ''I have no problem with being 40. … I think 40 is the new 20,'' which—I can't help but point out here—is easy to say when you look like Pamela Anderson. Happy Birthday, ladies! Check out the beautiful pics:

The wonderful Bea Arthur, whose record in terms of helping to advance the rights of animals is as impressive as her unforgettable performances in Golden Girls, has gone out on a limb once again for animals—this time to help the rats, lizards, and other animals who get a raw deal in pet stores, where they're inadequately cared for and often destined for a miserable life even if they do survive the lousy conditions they're kept in.

Bea, who was deeply affected by PETA's undercover investigation of a PetSmart store in Scottsdale where scores of small hamsters, birds, and other animals were left to suffer and die, has written to PetSmart CEO Philip L. Francis urging him to permanently end the sale of live animals in his stores. As she puts it in her letter,

“This was a store that, according to one of your executives, has ‘an outstanding pet care team and an exceptional pet care record. But PETA’s findings show a sad and different story. . . . I look forward to the day when you stop selling live animals. Until then, I cannot in good conscience shop at PetSmart, and neither can my friends or family.”

You can check out her letter here, and the investigation that she's referring to is below. Thank you, Bea Arthur. You rule.

I am very, very excited about the fact that it's finally summertime and, by extension, barbeque season. My roommate and I kicked off the season a couple of weeks ago with a Memorial Day barbeque to end all Memorial Day barbeques—Boca burgers, chick'n patties, grilled portabella mushrooms, vegan potato salad, veggie bratwurst, veggie dogs, and pretty much every other fake meat you can think of. Doubtless inspired by our legendary cookout, the folks in PETA's Vegan Campaigns Department have cooked up a little BBQ recipe contest of their own, with a sweet-ass portable grill as first prize and some other cool stuff, including a cookbook and some barbeque sauces, for the runners-up.

Anyway, if, like me, you have an unbeatable vegetarian recipe for a summertime barbeque, you should enter that bad boy here—the winners will be featured on VegCooking.com and PETA.org, so even if the portable grill isn't enough of an incentive for you, you may enjoy that opportunity for instant Internet celebrity. Also, if you have any cool vegan BBQ recipes that you'd like to share, feel free to post them. Barbeque king though I may be, I'm not above learning something new every now and then.

In a bizarre move for a network that prides itself on shocking viewers, Fox Television’s New York affiliate has banned a paid PETA ad—narrated by Ocean’s 13 star Casey Affleck—despite the fact that the ad has been accepted to run on other networks in Los Angeles and in Affleck’s hometown of Boston. We wanted to run the ad during none other than Gordon Ramsay’s Hell’s Kitchen in a bid to show his viewers what happens to animals before they’re turned into ingredients in his kitchen.

Remember when this version of the ad was rejected a couple of months ago for being too graphic? Well, since then, we’ve toned down the factory farm and slaughter scenes in a big way, which worked in LA and Boston. Could the Fox rejection in New York have anything to do with this PETA UK protest of Ramsay’s promotion of horse meat?

Hey, I say if the animal-hating Ramsay gets an hour to promote ways to slice and dice animals, viewers deserve at least 30 seconds of the animals’ side of the story. Here’s the toned down version so you can judge for yourself . . .

And on a lighter note, yes, I will be first in line for the 9 o’clock showing of Ocean’s 13 tonight . . .

OK, so it’s no secret how I feel about hunting.

But I just couldn’t resist this one. It seems that from the start, hunters have had trouble not shooting each other with their weapons . . . could it be that this was the world’s first hunting accident?

Sometimes, when you have serious concerns about the way something's being done, you just have to take it to the top. And PETA Vice President Bruce Friedrich, who takes in all the latest political happenings with his bran flakes and soymilk every morning, has no qualms about doing exactly that. Bruce just dashed off a letter to President Bush offering a "modest proposal to help you win over your critics" about global warming. As Bruce puts it:

"It is past time for all those involved in the debate over global warming to acknowledge that what we eat has far more impact on the climate than the cars that we drive or the light bulbs that we use."

The letter, which you can read here, details a comprehensive plan of action for fighting climate change by going straight to the source—the meat i

Bruce Friedrich

Bruce's arguments are much more cohesive than mine, though, so you should definitely check them out here. Note how he slips in a vegetarian starter kit for the President to peruse when he has a free moment. Love it.

For all you Internet radio listeners out there, be sure to check out PETA VP Dan Mathews’ interview on Wake Up America this Monday at 9 a.m. If you’ve never experienced a Dan Mathews interview, you’re in for a treat. Dude is hilarious. Check out this site for more details.

I hadn't been planning on writing too much more about Michael Vick, given that most people are on the same page that dogfighting is reprehensible and that if Vick is found to have any involvement in the sport—which is looking more and more likely—he needs to be punished to the fullest extent of the law. But this story I read on The Fanhouse today is just too much. Apparently, the much-maligned Falcons QB is building a second property near the site where 60 abused dogs were found more than a month ago. Vick's plans for the property? To build two horse stables on the land so that he can hunt deer. How is it that, with weeks of scrutiny focused on this guy related to deadly serious allegations of animal abuse, he seems to have completely failed to grasp the fact that now is just a really bad time for him to be seen in public acting out his apparent need to see animals suffer. How about making a donation to an animal charity? Or coming out publicly to talk about the horrors associated with dogfighting? No, Vick’s response to all the outrage is to throw himself into his work building a place where he can kill deer. Regardless of what the legal outcome of this case is, Vick has made it abundantly clear to anyone who's been following this story not just that he couldn't care less about animal abuse, but that he doesn't even see why it's a problem.

Check out this great Boston Globe article about the growth of vegan fashion. While I’m not exactly what one would call an expert in the field, it’s great to see so many companies recognizing that there is a huge market out there just waiting to be tapped. And you know the market is there when there are personal stylists who specialize in vegan fashion . . .

And as always, anyone looking to emulate the ever so hip look I’ve got going on, feel free to get in touch and I’ll try to help you out.

I know I've been going on and on about this, so I wanted to give you guys the good news. It's not over yet, but the California Healthy Pets Act has passed the Assembly, and is on its way to the State Senate Committee! Thanks to everyone who worked so hard to push the bill this far—I’ll keep you updated on the Senate vote as it progresses.

News1130/Creative Commons

But in addition to his amazing TV career, Barker has also been a long-time animal advocate. For years he has offered grants to spay and neuter clinics in all 50 states, he’s pushed all sorts of animal-friendly legislation including the current spay/neuter bill in California, since 2001

LC Shelter/Creative Commons

He was always busy working behind the scenes as well. While I was researching this entry, I ran across this Forbes article that explains how Barker was able to influence the show’s prizes and advertising over the years. Because he is a vegetarian, they don’t advertise meat products on the show, and at his request, they also stopped giving away fur coats as prizes. Snap!

Given the scope of his animal work over the years, I’m slightly ashamed to admit that being the sports junkie that I am, my fondest Bob Barker moment will always be him kicking Adam Sandler’s ass in the classic “The price is wrong, bitch” scene in Happy Gilmore.

AllMoviePhoto/Creative Commons

Seriously though, I think this quote from MSNBC speaks volumes to what matters most to the man: “I think I would like to be remembered as a man who loved living things and did everything he could do to make it better for animals,” Barker said. “And when he had time, he did a lot of television shows, too.”

From all of us at PETA, cheers to you Bob Barker. Thank you for everything you’ve done throughout your career to help animals, and we can’t wait to see what’s next.

PETA India's Campaign Coordinator, Rohini Kamath, just sent me some photos from a couple of protests that she and her colleagues held this week to draw attention to, respectively, the cruelty of the dairy industry, and the hypocrisy inherent in eating meat and trying to save the environment at the same time. Check 'em out:

Bound to a wheelchair and carrying a sign reading, “The dark side of dairy,” PETA India’s cow mascot, Ganga, protested the hideous cruelty of the dairy industry on World Milk Day. The activists also held signs emblazoned with the slogan “Doodh: not so cool, Dude,” and, though it's not entirely clear to me what that means, I'm told that if you say that to someone in Ahmedabad, they'll cut the dairy right out of their diet in a hot second.

And …

Eating out of a giant earth and holding signs reading “You Can't Be a Meat Eating Environmentalist” the PETA India folks held a demonstration on World Environment Day to protest the massive environmental devastation caused by the meat industry.

PETA India — you guys are, hands down, my favorite PETA affiliate. OK, fine, I say that to all the affiliates, but I'm totally smitten with that globe-eating demonstration. Keep up the great work.

This will be an exciting announcement for those of you who are interested in PETA's inner workings—and I've included plenty of cool pics for those of you that aren't, so bear with me. Tracy Reiman, who has been a driving force behind PETA's campaigns for 16 years, has just been promoted to Executive Vice President. As PETA President Ingrid Newkirk puts it, "She is a devoted, tried-and-true animal rights activist and a mature administrator." Everyone who works with Tracy agrees that PETA, and animals, are very lucky to have her on their side.

Tracy started out working in Customer Service while she was still in college, and quickly rose through the ranks. She has worked in numerous roles in virtually every department within the organization, and is currently in charge of all things to do with marketing and technology, so she happens to be my boss.

I spent some time searching for pictures of Tracy looking "executive" to suit her new role, but what I came up with was much, much better. Besides, given that this particular organization is one whose core values are creativity, courage, and—almost above all—a sense of humor, I think these are surprisingly appropriate images of PETA's new Executive VP:

Congratulations, Tracy — you've earned it. Also, please don’t fire me for posting those pictures.

It's sad times around the office today. Two of our local volunteers and their friend were killed in a car wreck recently. Here is the tribute peta2 posted this morning:

Last week we lost our friends Ben and Cayce in a tragic accident. Both of these Virginia Commonwealth University students were vegan, animal rights activists, and even volunteered at PETA's office sometimes. Ben and Cayce loved to listen to music, hang out with friends, and spoke out for social change whenever and wherever they saw injustice.

Many staffers, interns, and local activists have fond memories of Ben and Cayce including their efforts to pre-screen Wake Up Screaming for local students and their help at our 'work parties' where local volunteers come in to help with various projects.

PETA President Ingrid Newkirk stated, "Ben and Cayce's boundless compassion was an inspiration to everyone who knew them. The world has lost two of its brightest stars, but their spirits live on in the many people they touched and the animals' lives they saved."

In memory of their short, but inspiring lives we are going to commemorate their dedication to animal rights (and a better world for everyone!) by engraving a brass leaf on our 'Tree of Life' for them. If you want to help honor their commitment to a better tomorrow please click here to learn about the benefits of going vegan from a health, environmental, and animal rights perspective.Also, we are big fans of Ben's great solo music project, Mancub, and urge you all to check it out here. And here's a video too:

Thank you, Ben and Cayce, for all you have done to make the world a kinder place.

I just heard about this awesome protest that went down in The Hague, Netherlands, yesterday. Or, I guess that’s Den Haag for all of you cultured folk out there. Anyway . . .

It was at the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), where South Africa, Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe supported proposals to kill 13,000 elephants per year to sell the ivory from their tusks. The activists wore T-shirts with the name of an offending country on them and smeared blood on their hands to point out that any country not on board with the ivory-trade moratorium has the blood of elephants on its hands.

It wasn’t all doom and gloom for our fine pachyderm friends though, as Kenya and Mali put forward their own proposal asking that the ivory-trade moratorium be extended for another 20 years, and this proposal has already garnered the support of more than 20 other African nations.

Props to Animal Rights Africa and PETA Europe for the great demo. I’ll let you know as soon as I hear the outcome of the meetings.

Check out this amazing song and video made by Bryan Harrell in support of the Chicago foie gras ban. I particularly love the shot of signs that are popping up all over town because Mayor Daley is pushing to bring the Olympics to the city . . .

My friend and colleague Melissa sent me a couple of pics of her baby sisters’ college graduation over the weekend, and when I opened the email, I was totally expecting to see a couple of the usual stock family photos and move on. But instead I saw these amazing shots . . .

World, meet Stephanie and Kimberly Carpel, animal activists extraordinaire. They both just graduated from California State University—Northridge, where they started Students for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. After the graduation ceremony, their Mom and Dad (both vegan as well) threw them a huge reception (all the food was vegan of course) that wowed both the vegans and non-vegans alike.

Kimberly and Stephanie have a pretty exciting summer ahead of them as well. They’re soon heading off to Spain for the annual Running of the Nudes and shortly thereafter, they’ll be arriving here in Norfolk to intern at PETA for the summer.

Can’t wait to meet y'all!

Here's another classic from the PETA vaults, which I came across a little while back and filed away for summer barbeque season. The website, which you can find here, starts off like this:

Summer’s Nearly Here! Toss Some Roadkill on the Grill!
PETA is urging die-hard meat lovers to help save animals by scouring the streets and turning vehicular victims into vittles. If you’re wondering why the world’s largest animal rights organization would encourage consumption of roadkill kebabs, read on!

And on it goes. As usual with this sort of pro-vegetarianism campaign—see, for instance, Eat the Whales and Say No to Pot (roast)—the underlying point is the same as ever: "Eating animals is weird and gross, and it sucks for the animals involved." But the sad fact of the matter is that a lot of diehard meat-eaters just zone out when you say stuff like that to them. Telling people that you're thinking of firing up a roadkill barbeque, however, tends to wipe that long-suffering "preached at" look right off their faces. And the message is ultimately the same: “Dude. Go vegetarian.”

Anyway, that's my two cents, but please do check it out for yourself and let me know what you think.

Since 1975, there’s been this kickass law that protects baby turtles from being bought and sold as pets for kids who are likely to mistreat and eventually abandon them. All well and good so far, but all of a sudden this law is facing a serious threat of being overturned from the commercial turtle lobby (no, I didn’t realize there was a commercial turtle lobby either). Turns out that selling turtles for meat is a $9.4 million industry, and some turtle-hating Louisiana farmers have banded together to pressure the federal government into legalizing the sale of baby turtles in the U.S. The bill, introduced in Congress as HR 924 and S 540, is called the Domestic Pet Turtle Market Access Act of 2007, but despite the stupid name, this irresponsible, profit-driven idea stands to cause a huge amount of suffering to animals, as well as putting unwitting purchasers of pet turtles at serious risk from salmonella poisoning (since most reptiles carry the bacteria and often pass it on to humans). Anyway, if you’re looking to give your Monday a bit more meaning by doing something positive for animals, may I suggest that you click the button below to learn more and then contact the House Committee on Energy and Commerce to ask them not to cave to this weird, shady Turtle Profiteers lobby and leave the current, perfectly sensible ban as it is.

I've been refraining from touching this story for a while now, partially because I didn't want to give any publicity to a lousy father who thinks that killing animals on the weekend is a good way to teach his son to be a productive member of society. But the latest twist in the sad tale of "monster pig" seems at least worth a mention. For those of you who missed it, some kid in Alabama shot a 1,000 pound wild hog, and the picture of his senseless act went pretty much everywhere on the Internet because, well, it really was a surprisingly large animal. As it turns out, though, far from being a wild "monster pig," as he came to be known, Fred was actually a companion animal who had been raised from birth by a couple named Phil and Rhonda Blissitt. Don't feel too sorry for the Blissitts, since they saw fit to sell their pet to a hunting preserve for some reason, but I do think this latest development adds a certain poignancy to Fred's already sad story. Hopefully it will be harder for people to take pleasure in this animal's suffering now that they know he had a name.

Update: The California Healthy Pets Act has passed the Assembly, and is on its way to the State Senate Committee! Thanks to everyone who worked so hard to push the bill this far — I’ll keep you updated on the Senate vote as it progresses.

California's Healthy Pets Act just got a lot more Hollywood support with a new celebrity-filled petition. Star Trek's Captain Kirk, Grey’s Anatomy hottie Katherine Heigl, Studio 60's Bradley Whitford, and CSI's Jorja Fox, along with Oscar nominee Ryan Gosling, director Richard Linklater, and more than a dozen other Hollywood stars, including Captain Kirk, have signed a PETA petition pledging support for Assembly Bill 1634—the California Healthy Pets Act—which mandates spay-neuter surgeries for cats and dogs. The bill is scheduled for a floor vote this week. Did I mention Captain Kirk signed the petition?!?! (I know it’s not the first time PETA's teamed up with The Captain, but it’s the first time I got to report on it. Thanks for understanding.)

This petition is just the latest act of celebrity support for the bill. In recent weeks funny guy Bill Maher recorded a “New Rule” supporting the bill and PETA released another PSA for the bill featuring Kevin Nealon, Mike White, Ami James, and other celebs.

It's not just celebrities who are coming out in support of this bill. The Healthy Pets Act has already gained support from hundreds of animal protection organizations, veterinarians, city police departments. The vote is coming up early this week and if you live in California the animals need your support. Please use our handy web form to contact your assembly person today. If you won’t do it for the animals’ sake, do it for The Captain.

Click the image below to view the full petition.

Anyone familiar with lolcats? This is a take on the phenomenon that my friend Joel made with an image that’s been circulating everywhere on MySpace. Childish? Yes, a little. Joel’s particular brand of genius can manifest itself in odd ways sometimes—but the message is still sound, methinks.

How am I just hearing about this? Come on, the first ever veggie dog eating contest, I would have been on a plane to get there faster than the Olsen twins throw up their lunch. Seriously.

The soon to be annual event happened last Saturday in Austin, TX, and the report I got said that over 300 people attended, and 40 contestants devoured some 600+ veggie dogs in about 24 minutes. Not bad, eh? The inaugural World Veggie Hot Dog Eating Champion, at a count of 16 ½ veggie dogs, is Colin "the Tim Duncan of Competitive Eating" Kalmbacher, a vegan.

Full results and photos will be posted here soon. And of course, mad props go out to ilovemikelitt for putting this event on. Fair warning to you, Colin, I’ve already started training for next year. I’m coming for your title. Be afraid. Be very afraid.

Have you heard of Jason “Gummi Bear” Davis? Don’t worry if you haven’t, he’s just another in the long line of disposable tabloid fodder LA rich kids. Usually Gummi’s only real claims to fame are having a slightly less un-famous brother and not getting into clubs, which while funny of course, wouldn’t land him on this blog. But I just heard he was spotted at a KFC event the other day, and honestly, I don’t think I can come up with a better advertisement for vegetarianism than having this kid roll around town in his KFC shirt he’s so proud of . . .

Solar Navigator/Creative Commons

Klast/Creative Commons

Here’s a quote from the ITN story, “I wholeheartedly support this (Peta's) campaign, and with your help I believe that we will soon see an end to this brutal and inherently cruel 'delicacy'.” You can check out the full story here.

Mmmm hmmm, now who is your favorite 007? If your answer isn’t Roger Moore, check out this exposé he narrated for us and see if you change your mind . . .