If you’re even kind of into fashion, then you know that Nicole Miller is a pretty big deal. So, we were beyond excited to see this story about Miller’s recent announcement that she is going totally fur-free.

FashionEncyclopedia/Creative Commons

The grassroots group NYC Animal Rights had their sites set on Miller for protests during the upcoming fashion week, but it looks like they are shifting their focus to Michael Kors instead. Good luck NYC Animal Rights!

Did you happen to see The Tonight Show on Tuesday night? Leno unveiled his new set, which includes—drum roll please—a spiffy new set of pleather couches. Yes, pleather. Leno even made the comment that no animals were used to make them.

Maybe 2007’s Sexiest Vegetarian contest winner Kevin Eubanks had a little something to do with the switch to synthetic sofas . . .

As lawyers go, Ringling Bros. has some pretty fancy, expensive ones, but despite their best efforts last week, they couldn't keep the circus from being dragged into the courtroom once again, this time on charges of (surprise, surprise) elephant abuse. Judge Emmet Sullivan announced Thursday that a last ditch attempt by Ringling's attorneys to hold up the proceedings was a "waste of a considerable amount of [the court's] time and resources," and that the case, which was brought by a consortium of animal protection groups and a former Ringling Employee, will go forward. The circus stands accused of violating the Endangered Species Act by "abusively training and disciplining elephants with sharp implements such as bullhooks, by intensively confining and chaining the multi-ton animals for prolonged periods, and by forcibly separating baby elephants from their mothers." Given that the ol' Endangered Species Act doesn't look too kindly on those training practices, it sounds like Ringling's going to be in a world of trouble. 'Cuz that's pretty much all they do.

As part of a Marketing ploy to tap into the feminist "post-punk chic" demographic (OK, I just made that demographic up, but it sounds like it could be a real thing), handbag designers Hogan recently launched a line of leather bags named after badass rock chicks. Given that Joan Jett, Kathleen Hannah, and Pink, (to name a few) have all worked with PETA in the past on our anti-animal-skins campaigns, this was kind of landmine territory for Hogan, and the whole thing went downhill fast when they decided to name a pony-skin bag "The Chrissie" after The Pretenders' Chrissie Hynde-who is a lifelong animal rights activist and has staged protests around the world against the cruelty of the leather industry:

"I never thought I'd be moved to consider filing a lawsuit, but as soon as I heard my name was being used to promote bags made of dead-animal skin, I started exploring my legal options with my friends at PETA. At first, I thought this must be a joke, it's so outrageous and thoughtless."

I love you, Chrissie Hynde.

You can read the full story here.

Hope you enjoy this week’s installment of DeFlocked!

Click for a larger version

To check out the archives of past strips, click here.

Ummm, OMFG. Think Wynona Ryder in Beetlejuice meets that scary 35 year old Hot Topic employee at the mall, and you’re on the right track to getting your head around our annual “I’m Too Sexy For Leather” contest.

Granted, I’m more of a Paul Frank flannel nightshirt kind of guy, but all joking aside, there’s no denying that all of these pics are super hot in their own way. . . Even for sticks in the mud like me who aren’t all that into dreadlocked dudes riding vintage bikes while wearing pleather pants and straightjackets.

In case you thought we were just kidding when we wrote to Al Gore urging him to go vegetarian to help stop global warming, maybe this ad will clarify our position for you.

The evidence is in, and though it may be a little inconvenient for Mr. Gore to hear, the facts don’t lie. This U.N. report shows that animals raised for food generate more greenhouse gases than all cars and trucks combined, and goes on to say that meat is "one of the top two or three most significant contributors to the most serious environmental problems, at every scale from local to global," including land degradation, air pollution, water shortage and pollution, loss of biodiversity, and of course climate change. And according to a recent University of Chicago study, switching to a vegan diet is more effective in countering global warming than switching from a standard American car to a Prius. We even went so far as to offer to cook him faux “fried chicken” as an intro to vegetarian meals, since, no matter how many of those cool little energy saving light bulbs you put in, the reality is that there just isn’t such a thing as a meat-eating environmentalist.

This story about the whole issue ran in The New York Times today, but Gore declined to comment. Mr. Gore, you’ve done so much good by putting yourself out there as the face of the anti-global warming movement, and you’re so right on so much of it, but come on, it really is high time to put some substance behind it by leading by example and doing the single most effective thing you can do to address the issue: simply going vegetarian.

If you’re into food at all then you’ve probably heard of Mark Bittman, author of the New York Times’ “Minimalist” column. But even if you don’t know Bittman by name, I’m sure you’ve heard of his book, How to Cook Everything. It’s been wildly successful because of its relaxed, accessible and realistic approach to everyday cooking. Well, that’s all well and good but it ain’t a vegetarian cookbook, you say. Well, Bittman is just about to release a new book, How to Cook Everything Vegetarian, and it looks pretty darn good to me.

HamiltonSpectator/Creative Commons

Here’s an interview from Publishers Weekly that explains why Bittman decided to write a vegetarian cookbook.

If you didn’t happen to catch Year of the Dog in theatres, don’t fret, it’s coming out on DVD today. Written and directed by Mike White—of School of Rock, The Good Girl and Nacho Libre fame—and starring Molly Shannon, Peter Sarsgaard, John C. Reilly, Regina King and Laura Dern, this is a sure thing date night rental. I’ve already added it to my Netflix list, so hopefully it comes soon, though I’ll probably wind up watching it with Joel and Princess Cuteyface. And in the meantime, I’ll just have to fill the time making these amazingly cute e-cards from our feature on the movie here.

This week, Vick’s dogs became the “property” of federal authorities, which means that they are no longer legally required to be held as they have since April, awaiting what is widely accepted as the only safe and humane fate for dogs bred, raised and trained to kill each other and other animals: a painless release from this world. Some people are saying “we must save the Vick dogs!” That sounds good, but let’s think for a minute. These dogs are not only hot fighting stock but a hot “star” commodity and will always be in danger of being stolen. For four months now, they have gone stir crazy in cages at animal control agencies around Virginia. Because they can’t be trusted to be around each other or any other animals, they are isolated, kept in solitary confinement, 24/7. Although this has likely been the only time in their sad lives when humans have shown them any kindness, life in a cage is no life. Some people have gone as far as to suggest that the dogs should have their teeth removed so that they can stay alive. Warehousing and mutilating these dogs is not the answer; it’s cruelty. Keeping them solitary and caged for the rest of their lives, no matter if in a “sanctuary” pen or in a pen in a yard, won’t be much different from how they spent their non-fighting time on Vick’s property. In this case, we must not only think about what makes us feel good. We have to think carefully about these dogs, the other animals, too, and perhaps children, who could well be at risk if “the Vick dogs” are released. Let’s also think about the tens of thousands of homeless dogs languishing in animal shelters at this very moment who desperately need our attention—the thousands upon thousands of dogs who can actually be walked or run in a dog park without fear of a mauling or worse; who are social and happy-go-lucky and won’t have to be kept isolated for life due to the unpredictable behavior that results from abuse.

Every day that these dogs remain in kennels at animal shelters is a day of increased euthanasia rates for the potentially adoptable animals that the shelters must put to death for lack of space. There is only so much space, and resources are limited. May I humbly suggest that instead of raising hell and raising money to try to “rehabilitate” these dogs, and instead of flying to Virginia to “save the Vick dogs,” we do less “heroic” but even more important things to save dogs’ lives. When it comes to euthanasia, every day’s real world choice is of which not if—making the choice to demand that fighting dogs be “saved” is a soothing fantasy, more about public relations and, in some obvious cases, about fundraising, than about truly helping the most dogs in the most productive ways. If you have been tempted to join the call to “save the Vick dogs,” please think about sponsoring a spay surgery instead. That simple wonderful act will prevent the births of countless homeless dogs who will never have to be “saved” because they will never be homeless, thanks to you. Or call your local open-admission shelter and find out how else you can get involved. It makes more sense and helps more dogs.

Now we can say what we couldn’t mention before. PETA has been talking to Michael Vick’s personal representatives, legal team, and more insiders for weeks. We asked for two things over all others: We wanted Michael Vick to tell impressionable young people not to follow in his footsteps, and we wanted him to openly condemn dog fighting. Today, in his statement, he answered both those requests, calling dogfighting “terrible” and telling kids to pay attention and not go down the same road he did. Mr. Vick also said he has found Jesus. Christian or not, we can agree that if Mr. Vick now asks himself “WWJD?” he will not be led back to dogfighting.

To urge the NFL to speak out against dogfighting as well, please click here.

And you can read the comments that PETA President Ingrid Newkirk made last week on the importance of Vick speaking out against dogfighting here.

My friend and colleague Jason Bayless has been on tour with Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey Circus for three long months now, and I figured it was about time we had a look back at his tireless efforts to make sure that anyone who goes to a Ringling event in any state gets the elephants' side of the story too. Check out the slideshow of the tour that he sent me today:

Brittania/Creative Commons

Anyway, here’s what PETA Prez Ingrid Newkirk had to say about Foxx’s comments, “Black leaders like Russell Simmons and Dennis Courtland Hayes, head of the NAACP would agree, as does PETA, that it is cheap and dirty and wrong to call this a cultural thing -- unless Foxx believes that cruelty is a black thing when it isn't. It may be his thing, but it is not a black thing. PETA encourages people to watch our anti-dogfighting PSA with world heavyweight boxer Lamon Brewster at PETATV.com.”

Yo, I just had to give you this little update to the Veg-Friendly Ballparks entry from a couple of weeks ago. Check out this MSN story, a version of which was just in USA Today. Boo yah.

My friend Ian, a rabid baseball fan, is seriously contemplating a "scouting" trip to sample the food at the top stadiums. What can I say? The man is dedicated.

Once again, Ian with his favorite Tides player, Mike Cervanak, and fellow PETA employee Erin. Ian likes to eat veggie dogs at Tides games.

Ingrid sent me this list of quotes from Rabbis that she received from the Jewish Vegetarians of North America the other day. It's really a fascinating read, whether you happen to be Jewish or not.

"It should not be believed that all beings exist for the sake of the existence of man. On the contrary, all the other beings too have been intended for their own sakes and not for the sake of anything else...There is no difference between the pain of humans and the pain of other animals." Rabbi Moses Maimonides (1135-1204), Guide for the Perplexed

"In the killing of animals, there is cruelty."
Rabbi Joseph Albo, Sefer Ha-Ikarim, Vol. III, Ch. 15

"To make animals suffer is forbidden by the Torah."
Rabbi Shear Yashuv Cohen, Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Haifa, Israel

"The dietary laws are intended to teach us compassion and lead us gently [back] to vegetarianism."
Rabbi Shlomo Raskin

“If This is Kosher . . .” a video narrated by Jonathan Safran Foer

"Being compassionate toward animal life is not just a matter of being responsible for animal life, which we have very clearly laid down in the Torah, expounded by our sages, but is a matter of imbuing ourselves with the right kind of values. If we are insensitive towards animal life, then we desensitize ourselves as human beings.
And therefore a truly sensitive human being, compassionate towards other human beings, should be compassionate towards animals."
Rabbi David Rosen, former Chief Rabbi of Ireland

"The environmental destruction caused by the animal-agriculture industry, by the amount of dung produced, by the amount of sewage that gets poured into our waterways and our systems, there's no doubt that it's damaging our world and it's ... in violation of the Jewish mandate to protect and observe and care for the Earth. ... We are ignoring things that are essential and that are critical to the character of Judaism, in order to meet our selfish desires and wants."
Rabbi Adam Frank

"This is the way of pious and elevated people... they will not waste even a mustard seed, and they are distressed at every ruination and spoilage they see, and if they are able to save, they will save anything from destruction with all of their power..."
Rabbi Aaron HaLevi of Barcelona, 13th century, Sefer HaChinuch 529

"Aside from the cruelty, rage and fury in killing animals, and the fact that it teaches human beings the bad trait of shedding blood for naught; eating the flesh even of select animals will yet give rise to a mean and insensitive soul."
Rabbi Joseph Albo, c. 1380-1444

Don Isaac Abarbanel (1437-1508), commentary on Exodus 16:4 "It [eating meat] is an overall moral shortcoming of [hu]mankind, in that it does not promote good and lofty sentiments"
Rav Abraham Isaac ha-Cohen Kook (1865-1935), 1st Chief Rabbi of Pre-State Israel, Hazon ha-Tzimhonut ve-ha---> Shalom me-Behinah Toranit

"I am a vegetarian precisely because I am a believing Jew who strives to live in accordance with the ethical teachings of my heritage....I believe that if you follow the most sublime and noble values in our tradition, in this day and age, then there is an imperative to live a vegetarian lifestyle. ... It is a halachic imperative. Compassion for animals is a halachic imperative. And being responsible also for your environment and for your globe, which also have ramifications coming out of the whole question of the meat industry and meat consumption, are all fundamental Jewish questions. So I, simply put, am a vegetarian because I am a religious Jew."
Rabbi David Rosen, former Chief Rabbi of Ireland

"I find that the way I eat is in keeping with my Jewish practice...I don't think Judaism tells you 'you have to be a vegetarian', but there is a whole variety of clues in the literature that tell us it is a good thing."
Rabbi David Small

"He who kills an ox is as if he slew a person." Isaiah 66:3

"One who destroys a single life is considered to have destroyed an entire world, and one who saves a single life is considered to have saved an entire world."
--> Talmud, Sanhedrin 4:5

"The fate of men and the fate of animals, they have one and the same fate. As one dies, so does the other, and they all have the same spirit."
Ecclesiastes 3:19

"I don't want my food choices to condone the suffering that occurs in the animal food industry. Judaism takes seriously the idea of personal responsibility. Communal change for the better and improved societal ethical behavior starts with the individual."
Rabbi Adam Frank

"The laws of kashrut come to teach us that a Jew's first preference should be a vegetarian meal."
Rabbi Pinchas Peli, Torah Today

"A higher form of being kosher is vegetarianism."
Rabbi Daniel Jezer

"We should make all our consumption as holy as possible...The more we live as if this were the messianic age the closer we are to it."
Rabbi Rami Shapiro

"What may have once made sense, now can no longer be justified....Let us realize today, in the vast majority of cases, 'kosher meat' is an oxymoron."
Rabbi Fred Scherlinder Dobb

"By not eating meat, I am much more certain to never violate, even accidentally, the Biblical and rabbinic prohibitions concerning non-kosher meat. The traditional production of kosher meat never envisioned mass slaughterhouses or factory farms. It is questionable whether most meat or poultry produced in this country that is sold as kosher is actually in compliance with the traditional rules of kashrut as well as the prohibition against cruelty to animals."
Rabbi Jon-Jay Tilsen

"The simpler way [of maintaining kashrut], which is the better way in the eyes of the tradition, is to be vegetarian."
Rabbi Michael Cohen

"If you don't eat meat, you are certainly kosher... And I believe that is what we should tell our fellow rabbis."
Rabbi Shear Yashuv Cohen, Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Haifa, Israel

"The Nazis explicitly structured their industrial destruction of the Jews on the model of animal slaughter. This is not to compare the suffering of animals and humans, but shows that the way we treat animals is similar to the way the Nazis treated us."
Rabbi Hillel Norry

"Be kind and compassionate to all creatures that the Holy One, Blessed Be He, created in this world. Neither beat nor inflict pain on any animal, beast, bird or insect. Do not throw stones at a dog or a cat, nor should you kill flies or wasps."
Sefer Chasidim [Book of the Pious]

"One does not ask for forgiveness of sins while wearing articles made from the skins of slaughtered animals."
Shulchan Aruch [Code of Jewish Law]

"Perhaps the most powerful argument in favor of vegetarianism today more than ever before ... is the prohibition against 'chillul HaShem', the desecration of God's name. Surely it is precisely such a desecration when observant Jews eat animals produced under conditions of cruelty that flagrantly violate Jewish teachings and prohibitions..."
Rabbi David Rosen, former Chief Rabbi of Ireland

"It is not necessary for any human benefit to consume the flesh of animals. In fact it is harmful to human health, destructive of the environment, and wasteful of valuable resources that could be better used to feed the hungry and provide for the needy. All of these are Torah values."
Rabbi Hillel Norry

"I grew repulsed by the idea of killing and eating animals, so I stopped."
Rabbi Jon-Jay Tilsen

"The staples of life do not include meat."
Rabbi David Golinkin

"My decision to abstain from the consumption of animal products is an expression of my adherence to Jewish law."
Rabbi Adam Frank

"Even the Torah itself recognizes that eating meat is not an ideal thing for the human being. It's not the ideal diet for the human race."
Rabbi Simchah Roth

"There is simply no spiritual defense in either the Western or Eastern religious traditions for eating meat."
Rabbi Marc Gellman, "The First Hamburger"

"I relate vegetarianism to Judaism in several ways...the torture of animals and the suffering that they go through, to be raised on these large factory farms and then eaten is really forbidden by Judaism."
Adam Stein, rabbinical student

And in case you've never seen it, check out what PETA found when we went undercover in the largest "kosher" slaughterhouse in existence.

Great news! The NFL has finally suspended Michael Vick indefinitely. This is following his own admission of guilt when he entered his plea today. Now urge the NFL to add cruelty to animals—in all its forms—to its personal conduct policy. We need them to hear from as many people as possible!

You know, this just really makes me very happy. I'm happy because I know that this country doesn't like dogfighting, and dogfighters had better hear that message and get out of the business. Since the Vick case ripped the lid off dogfighting, law enforcement and PETA are getting tips and leads on other cases across the country. PETA is even offering a $5,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of anyone involved in dogfighting, and we are already working with law enforcement in a number of different jurisdictions.

In a plea agreement entered today, Michael Vick, who was indicted last month for his role in a professional dogfighting operation, admitted that he had provided "most of the 'Bad Newz Kennels' operation and gambling proceeds" and admitted playing a role in the deaths of at least 6-8 dogs earlier this spring (some of these dogs were strangled or drowned). You can read CNN's story about the plea agreement and comments from the public here.

It's up to a judge now to decide Vick's sentence and fine. I was appalled to learn that the maximum jail sentence for Vick's offense is only 5 years.

If you're like me, and you want to do something now, let the powers that be know right now that you won't tolerate this kind of cruelty, contact the NFL and urge them to add cruelty to animals—in all its forms—to its "Personal Conduct Policy." This case has shown that NFL fans are just as disgusted by cruelty to animals as by any of the other antisocial behaviors outlined in the policy. Click here to contact the NFL now, and be sure to pick up a "Dogfighters are Cowardly Scum" t-shirt from Café Press.

Dogville, a local hot dog vendor, started selling veggie sausages last week. Of course, they've already been a big hit at the office, but from the looks of this video from HamptonRoads.tv it's not just PETA employees who are digging on the new offerings!

Check out the video which features two of my favorite things: PETA’s sexy Lettuce Ladies and large amounts of veggie kielbasa.

For those of you who live in Norfolk, the Dogville cart is located downtown on Granby St, in front of the World Trade Center. They stock all three of the Tofurky sausages—beer brats, kielbasa, and Italian sausage—and both their chili and all of the dogs are available for delivery.

For those of you who don’t live in Norfolk, apply already!

Sometimes in this line of work it's the small things that really hit home the strongest. Of course it's great to win major campaigns, but it's also great to see progress happening because people are starting to question archaic cruel practices on their own. Case in point: State-run Spanish television has quietly yanked live coverage of bullfighting from its programming, ending a decades-old tradition of showcasing the "national pastime" out of concern that cruel spectacle is just too violent for children.

Should they have taken it a step further and banned the bloodsport from national TV altogether? Of course. And do I wish they'd recognize that it's more than a little odd to even have a "national pastime" that is too violent for children to even witness on TV? Yep. But the reality is that progress usually comes in itsy bitsy baby steps, and this is most definitely a step in the right direction. It sends a clear message to the citizens of Spain and to the rest of the world that there is something very wrong with bullfighting. Of course, some people will whine about it, since some people just can’t deal with change of any kind, and there's not doubt that it will take many more years to rid the world of this hideous bloodsport, but it will happen, and this move by Spanish TV moves us that much closer.

If they're looking for something to replace the bullfights with, maybe some footage of the annual Running of the Nudes in Pamplona would do the trick.

Actually, maybe not, as the lawyers are screaming at me to warn you that if you're under 18 and you watch the video on RunningOfTheNudes.com, very bad things will happen to you.

Wal-Mart quietly stopped selling Chicken Jerky Strips from Import-Pingyang Pet Product Co. and Chicken Jerky from Shanghai Bestro Trading in July, after customers said the products sickened their pets. But as of now, there has been no official recall. If you happen to have either of these products at home, you can return them to Wal-Mart for a refund.

Just wanted to give everyone a quick heads up, and remind you that all of our pet food info is here.

Remember the movie Bonfire of the Vanities from, like, twenty years ago? Well, I don't either and this post has nothing to do with it. What this post is about is a new demonstration one of our Skins campaigners Melissa is out on the road doing. She takes some leather pants, a fur coat and a wool hat (all donated of course) and sets them up on a rack and then burns them on the sidewalk in a funeral pyre to focus attention on the fact that these products were once living beings who valued their lives. Pretty wild eh?

Here are a couple of shots from Melissa's first demo, in Pittsburgh, and here is a link to a news story about, complete with a cool slideshow on the right.

I didn't invent the iconic and timeless Saturday Night Live character Mr. Subliminal. I am not the rich and famous star of the Showtime series Weeds. And I'm not the guardian of millions of pet fish. But Kevin Nealon is all of these things, and he’s also the star of this hilarious new "veggie testimonial" video.

And make sure to watch Kevin's interview here as well. It's frikkin hilarious.

Click for a larger version

I love love love this week's installment of DeFlocked. The ending hits on an, umm, interesting bit of Ringling trivia, that, along with the inherent animal abuse involved, pretty much flies in the face of the whole "family fun" image the circus tries to portray. Check it: Ringling employees have been arrested or convicted—either while with the circus or prior to their employment—for the following: possession of child porn, sexual battery, bank robbery, murder, felony drug possession, burglary, assault and battery, and disorderly intoxication. Souvenir program or cotton candy, anyone?

To check out archives of past DeFlocked strips, click here.

PETA's Circus Specialist RaeLeann Smith, and former Ringling employee Archele Hundley, just got back from the National Conference of State Legislators, where they spoke with over 80 state legislators who heard Archele's account of daily abuse at the circus. The pair also distributed over 400 Training & Tragedy DVDs to this influential group.

One high point in the conference was when a group of kids from Project Citizen stopped by our booth to watch the video, and it got them so riled up that they stormed over to Ringling's booth, which was located conveniently behind ours, to grill them about what they had just witnessed. The kids backed away as the Ringling goons tried to hand them free bags and shirts, and at one point, they even asked to take our display bullhook to Ringling to confront them. In the end, despite Ringling’s best efforts, the kids weren't buying it, and told RaeLeann and Archele "They just lied to us; they claim they use treats to train the elephants. Yeah right!"

Face it Ringling, your days are numbered. This generation of kids is just too smart for you . . .

Here's the video that changed those kids' lives.

As promised, below are some photos and here is a video from the Janice Dickinson anti-fur march on Monday.

Oh my! I feel like I should have something clever to say!

Photo Credit: Barry King

That's Dan Mathews, the dude who put it all together, on the right in the PETA logo t-shirt.

Photo Credit: Barry King

Work it girls!

Photo Credit: Barry King

BabyGirlCigars/Creative Commons

For those of you who haven't heard yet, I'm a new dad! And I've been giving out these cigars all over the office for the past few of days to celebrate. Granted, I'm celebrating the birth of an amazing new internet marketing campaign, not a baby, but hey, my work is all I’ve got . . . so just humor me, OK?

You see, I've been working on this Super Chick Sisters game (for those that haven't been a teenager at any point in the last 23 years or so, it is a parody of, like, probably the most popular video game in human history, Super Mario Brothers) for what seems like the better part of my adult life. And to be honest, the process has been a lot like what I imagine having a baby must be like, minus the super fun part at the beginning and the gross part at the end though. But now that all the work is done and the game is out there, I gotta say, I'm a damn proud Papa.

Don't get me wrong, there are a ton of people to thank for this little bundle of joy, not the least of which is Karen, who spent God only knows how many hours making changes based on my latest whims. And dear dear Paula, who bless her sweet little lawyerly heart, actually thought that a koopa was a contagious disease when the game's concept was first thrown her way.

My excitement comes not just for finishing the game—but because it's already been extremely successful! It's gotten great pick up on super popular blogs and gaming sites. All in all over 100,000 folks have been to KentuckyFriedCruelty.com in the past couple days to play the game (and learn about how chickens killed for KFC are crueltly treated)! Best of all it's received over 1k diggs on digg.com, driving massive traffic to the game. So play the game, and if you enjoy it give it a digg yourself, or at least tell everyone you know to go play it.

And one more thing. I'm not giving up the cheat codes, no way.

In addition to being an icon of the adult film world Jenna Jameson is also an entrepreneur, a model, and oh yeah, she also happens to be a good friend to PETA. Jenna first got involved in animal rights after watching Earthlings a year or so ago, and we could't be happier to have her on our side in our KFC campaign. She also happens to date the Huntington Beach Bad Boy himself, my favorite UFC fighter, Tito Ortiz, but that's another story for another day.

Anyway, during a recent photo shoot, Jenna made some time to say a few words about KFC. She really is beautiful, inside and out.

Check it, don't wreck it.

Ian with his favorite Tides player, Mike Cervanak, and fellow PETA employee Erin. Ian likes to eat veggie dogs at Tides games.

My buddy Ian, who is PETA's Animals in Film, TV, and Advertising Specialist—as well as the Norfolk Tides' biggest fan—asked me to post the following info as a favor to him.

Here's what's up. It's crappy when advertisers use chimpanzees and orangutans in their commercials and you can help to stop it.

When not "performing," most of these animals live in extreme confinement and are deprived of everything that is natural and important to them, including companionship with others of their own species and a spacious, enriching environment.

I could go on and on about the cruelty—including how investigators have witnessed trainers punching chimpanzees, kicking them in the head, throwing rocks and mallets at them, and beating them with broom handles—but we have a whole web site for that.

So if you're not already convinced that it's cruel to use chimpanzees and orangutans in advertising then please click here now.

When we hear that a national company is exploiting chimpanzees or other exotic animals for their advertisements we contact them, explain the cruelties inherent in the Hollywood animal training industry, and urge them to drop the ad. Unfortunately, smaller local companies can manage to slip under PETA's radar unless someone brings the matter to our attention. That's where you come in.

When you're sitting in front of the tube, be on the lookout for local commercials—you know, those poorly done ads for local car dealerships, law firms, furniture stores, and so on—that feature exotic animals like chimpanzees, lions, bears, etc. If you see any, e-mail Ian with details like the name of the company, what types of animals were used, and how they were used, and we'll jump all over them. Contact them yourself too and tell them you'll never support a company that exploits animals for a lame advertising gimmick.

Vick has admitted his guilt: Michael Vick has accepted a plea deal—with a likely prison sentence—to avoid additional federal charges related to a professional dogfighting operation, one of his attorneys says.

We’re still awaiting details, but please know this: if a celebrity with Vick's money and teams of lawyers has to serve time for dog fighting, then anyone else who fights dogs had better head for the hills.

When Vicks co-defendants entered their plea agreements on Friday, yet more details came out about the dogs being hanged by the neck until death. It is chilling stuff, so kudos to the media outlets who covered it without vomiting.

This article by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, for instance, is very good in a tough to read way. Here’s a powerful excerpt:

They were hung from trees in the woods behind Michael Vick's house, eight dogs left there to die, kicking and screaming.

The pit bulls had made the mistake of failing the test. They weren't mean enough, quick enough, strong enough in the ring, so they were of no more use to Vick's Bad Newz dogfighting operation.

Imagine, killing a dog because it's just too nice.

Five of the dogs finally kicked their last breaths away as the ropes cut deeper and deeper into their throats. Three somehow clung to life.

Vick and two of his henchmen, growing impatient, cut those three down and one by one shoved their heads into five-gallon buckets filled with water, drowning them to finish them off.

Try keeping your breakfast down after hearing that report on ESPN.

The inhumanity, the callousness, the abuse of these innocent, helpless animals is almost beyond comprehension.

There is something you can do PETA is pushing the NFL to add cruelty to animals—in all its forms—to its "Personal Conduct Policy." This case has shown that NFL fans are just as disgusted by cruelty to animals as by any of the other antisocial behaviors outlined in the policy. Click here to contact the NFL now!

OMG. I’m so excited that I don't even know what to say about this one. I just got word from a friend who works in PETA’s LA office that Janice Dickinson, one of the best judges ever on ANTM (America’s Next Top Model, duh), and the star of her own reality show on Oxygen, just held a naked anti-fur demo on Hollywood Boulevard. The one and only Janice Dickinson Modeling Agency just instituted a "fur-free" policy, and to celebrate, Janice and her models took to the streets with signs reading "We’d Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur."

Apparently, Janice had a meeting this morning with PETA VP Dan Mathews, during which he showed her this video of animals being killed for their fur. Well, it turned out that Janice was so horrified that she instituted a “no fur” policy for her agency on the spot.

Details are still a little fuzzy, but I'll get you photos and video as soon as I can. In the meantime, check out this shot of Dickinson and some of her models for an idea of how amazing this demonstration must have been... And Janice, check out my shots on this blog and get in touch if you ever need a super hot boy next door type for anything.

InMag/Creative Commons

CrimeShareTV/Creative Commons

In a bid to whip his fellow officers into shape, Sergeant Scott Cary started a department running team and went vegan. It’s a pretty cool story, and you can check it out here.

And if you’re waiting on a doughnut joke, it's not gonna happen. As Scott says in the article, "The days of coffee and doughnuts are over. It's a latte with soy milk and a bagel."

Virginia Commonwealth Attorney Gerald Poindexter told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that "yes, indeed, we will prosecute" Vick and others on possible animal cruelty and dogfighting charges.

This is, of course, good news—and something that we've been waiting to hear since so far Vick has only been facing federal charges.

Poindexter went on to say, "The execution of these animals—and the manner in which they were executed—is startlingly offensive and demanding of prosecution."

Dogfighting and animal cruelty are felonies in Virginia with animal cruelty charges holding penalties of up to five years in jail for each animal killed. So even with a plea bargain possible for the federal charges as early as Monday it's clear Vick's legal troubles are far from being over

My guess is that this wasn’t exactly what attendees of the Indian Animal Industry Expo on Thursday were expecting when they were told there would be a barbeque outside the event. But life is full of surprises, I guess. Anyway, here’s a little tandoori cookout, courtesy of our friends at PETA India:

Three dogfighters knocked out of the ring (or should that be pit) early! Two more of Michael Vick's alleged accomplices entered guilty pleas in Richmond today, and there is no doubt that Michael Vick is huddled with his attorneys, deciding whether or not he will follow suit early next week.

According to The Houston Chronicle, "A statement of facts signed by Taylor as part of his plea agreement placed Vick at the scene of several dogfights and linked him to betting. Taylor said Vick financed virtually all the "Bad Newz Kennels" operation on Vick's property in Surry County."

If Vick is ultimately tied to betting on these dogfights, it is likely to trigger a lifetime ban from the NFL under the league's personal conduct policy, which does not look kindly on illegal gambling. Does anyone else think it might be a good idea for the policy to include a similar stance against charges of electrocution and drowning?

PETA was present at the hearing, and I've posted some images for you below.

Now back to your regularly scheduled programming.

For those who don’t know, I am a big Peter Dinklage fan. He won me over in The Station Agent (if you haven’t seen this, add it to your Netflix list pronto, seriously) a few years ago and I’ve been keeping up with his career ever since. So I was glad to see him getting huge props from super-critic Roger Ebert for his new movie, Death at a Funeral. Ebert said that Dinklage “…is becoming my favorite go-to actor for any movie that needs someone to go to. [H]e has that ability to make you brighten up and take notice, because with such a person on the screen something is bound to happen. Dinklage can look handsome in that menacing way that suggests he’s about to dine out on your fondest hopes and dreams.” Not bad, coming from the guy who can make or break a movie, depending on his choice of two simple words: “thumbs up” or “thumbs down.”

Dinklage is also in the next Narnia movie, due out next April, but to hold you over until then, check out the “veggie testimonial” he shot a few months back.

And speaking of veggie testimonials, the next one in the hopper is so funny that an intern actually had to leave a meeting yesterday because she couldn’t stop laughing. Stay tuned for more on that soon. . .

All you heavy metal fans will probably want to throw devil horns in the air, because long-time vegan and Black Sabbath bassist Geezer Butler just got in touch with us from the road to let us know how he feels about KFC. Here’s what he had to say about the Colonel’s treatment of our feathered friends: “Life is God’s or natures’ greatest gift. All life should be treated with respect and dignity. I am sure most people would be horrified at the way K.F.C. treats its chickens. People have a choice in what they eat, but those chickens do not have a choice in the way they are treated. If people let K.F.C. know of their concerns, then hopefully the chickens will be treated ethically.”

And for those of you who need a little Sabbath fix to get you through the rest of your day, here you go.

Khqaonline/Creative Commons

One of Barker's many accomplishments to help prevent animal suffering was to enact a ban on his show of giving away fur coats as prizes. He wanted to have no part in promoting something as horrible as fur, and The Price Is Right was fur-free right up until Barker's retirement. The good news that we just received this week, after writing to the show's producers to make sure that things were going to stay that way, is that the show's new host, Drew Carey, and the team behind The Price Is Right, share Bob Barker's anti-fur stance 100 percent. Here's the note they sent us:

"The Price Is Right," the show will honor Bob Barker's rule not to give away fur coats as prizes. 'The Price Is Right' is very proud that we were one of the first shows to realize, through Mr. Barker, that glamorizing fur coats as prizes must stop."

Right on, guys—we wish you the best of luck with the new show.

In a horribly misguided attempt to teach Palestinian kids not to abuse animals, a show called Tomorrow’s Pioneers on Hamas’ Al Aqsa TV just featured a costumed “bee” named Nahoul tormenting animals. I watched the video (which I’m purposely not linking to), and I’m sorry, but showing a giant bee swinging cats by their tails and throwing rocks at caged lions is about the worst way I can think of to teach kids to be kind to animals.

And yes, in case you’re wondering, this was the show that was criticized in June when it featured a character in a Mickey Mouse suit, who preached against Israel and the U.S. until an episode portrayed him being beaten to death by an actor playing an Israeli agent.

Anyway, here’s the letter we sent the producers. I’m sure we’ll hear right back from them. Yeaaaaaah.

PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) is the world’s largest animal rights organization with 1.6 million members worldwide.

We have been made aware of an episode of Tomorrow’s Pioneers featuring a costumed character on the Hamas TV children’s show tormenting animals as part of a segment that is apparently meant to teach children to treat animals humanely. Unfortunately, while the intention of these segments may be good, the lesson is almost certainly lost on most children, who are more likely to imitate people they see treating animals cruelly rather than understand that this behavior is wrong. We are asking you to please refrain from harming animals in future episodes of Tomorrow’s Pioneers, even if the intention is to teach children a valuable lesson.

Instilling in children empathy for animals is indeed vital to helping them become compassionate, responsible citizens. Since young people are more receptive to new ideas, and since children have a natural empathy for animals, it is important that we teach them to make responsible choices that will affect how they live the rest of their lives.

Studies around the world have found that a history of cruelty to animals is one of the traits that regularly appear in the records of serial rapists, murderers, and child abusers (because domestic abuse is directed toward the powerless, animal abuse and child abuse go hand in hand). If unchecked, this abuse can later escalate to abuse of their fellow human beings, completing the cycle of violence.

Demonstrating for children a respect for even the smallest and most defenseless among us can help them to value and respect and protect one another. We hope, for the sake of humans and animals alike, that future episodes of Tomorrow’s Pioneers will work to teach children to respect individuals of any species, no matter how “different” they may be, without demonstrating for them cruel behavior in the process.

For more information about teaching children about empathy and compassion, please visit: http://www.islamicconcerns.com/kids.asp.

Sincerely,

Martin Mersereau, Manager
Cruelty Casework Division, PETA (www.peta.org)

Here’s this week’s installment of DeFlocked!

Click for a larger version

To check out the archives of past strips, click here.

Well, our press release went something like this:

GRAPHIC PETA AD CONDEMNING LIVE-SHEEP EXPORTS LANDS ON PAGES OF LLOYD'S LIST

Group Uses Leading Shipping Journal to Make the Point That Sheep Are 'Marinated' in Bodily Waste by the Time They Reach the Middle East

Which was all well and good, until, just hours before the print deadline, someone over at Lloyd's List freaked. I guess sometimes the truth just isn't good for business, and the magazine decided that they'd prefer to keep their readers in the dark about� the gruesome fate suffered by millions of sheep exported from Australia to the� Middle East for slaughter. Best just to sweep this one under the rug, right, Lloyd's List?

The ad in question is below, along with a video narrated by Pink about the horrific conditions that these animals have to endure en route to a cruel death in countries that have never even heard of animal welfare standards. If you'd like to help put a stop to this, you can write to the Australian Prime Minister here.

It’s no secret that Karl Rove is no friend of animals. And given the current state of affairs, I guess it shouldn’t be much of a surprise that Dubya’s bag man plans to spend the days immediately following his resignation literally blowing the international symbol of peace into oblivion. That is, he’s going dove hunting.

As you might imagine, PETA Prez Ingrid Newkirk had a few things to say about that, including some friendly advice that next time Mr. Rove takes a hunting trip, he should invite Dick Cheney along with him.

And reportedly, after his Labor Day killing spree, err, hunting trip, Rove is going back to Washington to fetch his wife and dogs before driving to their home in Florida. I just hope he hasn’t gotten any advice about traveling with dogs from Mitt Romney . . .

Maybe you’ve noticed our new campaign targeting the companion animal overpopulation crisis called the ABC campaign. Because, you know, animal birth control is, like, as easy as ABC. We just launched the campaign with this public service announcement featuring Tour de France rider Levi Leipheimer, which is pretty wonderful, don’t you think?

And not quite as wonderful, but cool nonetheless, is our new line of products bearing the ABC logo. It comes on a bunch of different kinds of T-shirts, sweatshirts, hats, and the like, and if none of that stuff suits your fancy, you can even get your very own Animal Birth Control wall clock, perfect for, well . . . I’m not really sure where a birth control—animal or otherwise—wall clock is perfect for to be honest.

In all seriousness, check the stuff out and let us know what you think. Personally, I’m just wondering why we’re not adding ABC to our ultra-classy thong designs . . .

Michael Vick's attorneys are reportedly engaged in plea negotiations with prosecutors, following the news that two more of his codefendants have stated that they will enter guilty pleas this week. Federal sentencing guidelines dictate that Vick will likely face jail time if he does reach a plea agreement.

PETA has written a letter to Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Gill asking that he include a provision in any plea prohibiting Michael Vick from owning or harboring any animal in the future. It's absolutely vital—though sadly often overlooked—that criminals who are convicted in animal cruelty cases be permanently barred from owning animals, since the likelihood for repeat offenses is extremely high with this kind of crime. This is especially true of dogfighting, and when you're talking about cruelty as gruesome as the charges against Vick and his codefendants allege, the number one priority of the prosecutors should be ensuring that these guys are never allowed near an animal again if they’re found guilty of dogfighting.

You can read our letter to the prosecutor below, and I'll keep you updated on any developments in this case as it proceeds.

August 14, 2007

Dear Mr. Gill:

One small but vital matter with regard to Michael Vick’s possible plea bargain:

We implore your office to include a provision prohibiting Mr. Vick from owning and/or harboring any animal.

Our office is made aware of hundreds of cruelty-to-animals cases weekly. Some involve animal fighting, and involve dogs who have been forced to fight, cruelly trained, and set afire and/or drowned if the match is “lost.” One commonality shared by animal abusers and dogfighters is recidivism—we see this time and time again. By keeping animals from their hands, and off of their properties, your office is in the position to help ensure that Vick (if he pleads guilty) and his codefendants do not cause more harm than that which has already been alleged in the indictment against them. Further, any plea agreement, with respect, must also permit local officials to visit any suspect properties at their discretion, in order to determine compliance with the prohibitive provision.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,

Martin Mersereau, Manager
Cruelty Casework Division

There's a story that's getting a lot of play in Canada right now about a humane society inspector named Tre Smith who has been suspended following what, based on all the facts I've been able to put together on this one, was nothing less than a heroic effort to save a dog's life in extreme circumstances.

Apparently, Smith responded to a call about a Rottweiler named Cyrus who was locked in an overheated car. Given that animals locked inside cars in the summer can die of heatstroke within 15 minutes, even on a relatively mild day, this was obviously a serious situation, and Cyrus was evidently slumped over and foaming at the mouth by the time the humane officer arrived. Smith reports that he smashed the car window to pull Cyrus out, and handcuffed the owner to the car so that he could rush the animal to the hospital rather than waiting for the police to arrive. He later told reporters:

"I was trying to perform my job to the best of my abilities given a very difficult, threatening and abusive situation."

The story gets a bit murky after that—apparently, the dog owner's neighbors were so enraged by his actions that someone took a swing at him, and the cops arrived to find the dude handcuffed to a car with his face bleeding. Which, well, nobody likes getting sucker punched, but nobody likes it when people leave their dogs to die either.

Based on everything I've heard so far, it sounds like Smith should be given a medal rather than being suspended. You can read more about the story here, and you can click here for some more info about why you should absolutely never, under any circumstances or for any amount of time, leave your dog alone in a parked car. Also, here's a picture of some happy dogs cooling off in a paddling pool.

exs/Creative Commons

But I digress. The letter, versions of which were also sent by French singer Renaud, figure skating champion Surya Bonaly, Baywatch's Alexandra Paul, and British supermodel Twiggy Lawson, urges the French president to intervene against the French "Bureau de Vérification de la Publicité" decision to ban a video calling for an end to bullfighting. I've posted the banned video below. Take that, French censorship bureau!

This vegansexuals story just won’t die. I can’t believe all the play it’s getting, especially on the Internet. There was a film crew in the office the other day shooting for this local piece, and it really got me thinking about how, at least here at PETA HQ, the vegansexual thing just doesn’t play. If anything, it’s the exact opposite. I’ve even heard rumors from old timers that Ingrid once forbade intra-office dating, simply on the grounds that she wanted the staff out meeting new people to make vegan.

Take my old boss, for instance. She has a foolproof system for taking the average unsuspecting meat-eating sailor or merchant marine under her wing and turning him into a hardcore vegan animal rights activist within a month. No joke. She’ll show up with these dudes and you can just tell that they’re completely helpless under her vegan goddess natural foods tantric love spell. Of course, once she gets them good and indoctrinated, she cuts them loose and finds her next prey, and with Norfolk being a big Navy town, with new guys arriving in port all the time, there is always another “victim” in line. Sometimes I feel a little bad for them, especially the ones that roll up wearing dress blues in their fancy raised pick-ups and by the time they leave they’re well on their way to joining an organic commune or living in a van and playing hacky sack all day. OK, so maybe I’m exaggerating a little bit, but seriously, you can’t make this stuff up.

Anyway, enjoy the video. And fair warning to the meat-eating readers out there, most animal rights folks aren’t of the vegansexual persuasion, so that hot guy or gal you’re eyeing at the bar just may be on their own personal mission to turn the world vegan one person at a time . . . by any means necessary.

Sure, Steve Carell is funny and everything, but being British and all, I’ve always held a special place in my heart for the cast of the original version of The Office. I absolutely love it. So imagine my delight when I found out that PETA UK just released an ad with Lucy Davis, who starred in Britain’s The Office and stateside, Studio 60. Now imagine my delight to find out that it was a naked ad urging the Ministry of Defense to stop using bear skins for the traditional caps the Queen’s Guards wear. Double wow.

Here’s what Davis had to say about it, “So much money is spent, and so much cruelty is spent, on what at the end of the day is a hat—and that is it. Not only was I horrified to find that it was one bear to make one hat, but also it's not really just one bear—in a way it can be one whole family. … That whole family dies, and again, it's just for a hat." Well put, indeed.

You can join Lucy in pressuring the Ministry of Defense to switch to cruelty-free headgear by clicking here. And be sure to catch her in the much anticipated David Duchovny series Californication on Showtime.

I think I've talked before about how amazing PETA Germany is at coming up with stuff that's totally out of left field. They're literalists, when it comes to demonstrations, and the results are often indescribably compelling. Faced with the problem of how to convey to people just how gruesome the force-feeding of ducks for foie gras is, the Germans simply brushed aside all objections and created the world's first-ever Force-Feeding Demo. Great work, PETA G. You guys rule.

With all the vegansexual talk lately, I thought it was a good time to bring back our “Pizza Boy” Super Bowl ad from a couple of years ago.

Enjoy . . .

That's right. Every year PETA's crack team of baseball and veggie hot dog experts scours the nation's baseball stadiums to rank the ten best according to an incredibly complex algorithm that takes into account such factors as deliciousness of the veggie dogs, crunchiness of the salads, and variety of the selection. The Philadelphia Phillies grabbed the number one spot this year on the strength of their Philly mock steak sandwich—and you can click the banner below to find out whether your city's stadium made it into the top ten. We also ranked the minor leaguers this year, which you can check out here.

As an Orioles fan, I was pleased to see that Camden Yards got an honorable mention. Enjoy it while you can, fellow O's enthusiasts—it's probably the only thing we'll win at all this year.

Since the latest outbreak of foot and mouth disease is such a hot topic of conversation in the UK right now, PETA Europe held this fantastic demonstration in London yesterday pointing out all of the deadly diseases caused by factory farming, and less than subtly pointed out the easiest fix for all of them: going vegetarian. Great job guys!

Ick Magazine/Creative Commons

Bartiromo is quoted as saying “Chic, sexy clothes are the real me . . . The coat is spectacular; the fur cuffs give it just the right amount of glamour.” But when Page 6 asked about it, her rep insisted that despite the More article, the newswoman doesn't approve of fur, doesn't own any, and that wearing the coat for the shoot was a "mistake." Yes it was.

We’re getting in touch to clarify Bartiromo’s position, and I’ll let you know what we find out.

The other day, my pal Michael had a work assignment I’d have killed for. He went to a photo shoot with the one and only Jenna Jameson. Um, wow . . . Apparently, Jenna saw Earthlings a year or so ago and it changed her life, and we’re certainly glad to have her on board.

Unfortunately, the shots that are going to be in upcoming ads are being kept on the super down low for now, but check out this sneak peek of Jenna looking super hot in our Kentucky Fried Cruelty T-shirt that I was able to get my hands on.

Of course, Jenna isn’t the first hottie to speak out against KFC’s cruelty to chicks. If you haven’t seen Pamela Anderson’s anti-KFC video, you can click here to check that out.

Andy Hurley and Gabe Saporta are in a couple of bands called Fall Out Boy and Cobra Starship that have enjoyed a degree of success. Like, the #1 on the Billboard charts kind of success—which is why it was very kind of them indeed to remember their old friends (those hopelessly trendy Rebels With a Cause over at peta2) and do this interview about what got them into animal rights. This is the first in a series in which Gabe and Andy discuss animal issues with each other, and I can't wait for the next ones to come out. These guys are both articulate, thoughtful spokesmen for animal rights, and it's awesome to see them take time to reach out to their millions of fans about veganism.

Seriously. If you have a store that could use a kickass elephant display for a few months, tell us where, why, and perhaps we can deliver it to you. It stands about 5½ feet tall when on its base, and about 3 feet wide. Ella weighs 150 lbs and the base an additional 700 pounds. A permit may be needed. She's leaving NY and looking for a home since the circus took away her mom. You can read more about Ella’s story here.

There is an end in sight, and while this isn't going to stop us from doing everything in our power to end all abuses of cows right now, the announcement this week by the American Veal Association that they will phase out veal crates by 2017 is a major landmark for the animal protection movement and proof that decades of pressure on the industry to end its cruel practices has paid off.

Veal, which rates a full 10 out of 10 on the WTF? scale, is made by chaining calves by their necks inside solitary crates for up to 23 weeks. The AVA's decision to finally abandon this torture means an end in sight for what will one day be regarded as among the most vile practices in human history.

This announcement marks the latest in a series of victories for the animal protection movement in its long struggle to eliminate the solitary, intensive confinement of farmed animals. Earlier this year, three of the world's largest pig meat producers—Smithfield Foods, Maple Leaf Foods, and Cargill Meat Solutions—took steps to phase out gestation crates for pigs, and recently, following years of discussions with PETA, Burger King made a commitment to buy 20 percent of its pig meat from suppliers that do not use gestation crates and 5 percent of its eggs from sources that do not confine chickens to battery cages. Shortly afterwards, Wendy's followed suit, pledging to purchase 20 percent crate-free pork by the end of 2008 and increase that percentage over time.

This is an important step forward, and, put together with these other victories for animals, it's clearly part of a trend. As Ingrid Newkirk puts it, "While the best way to prevent cruelty to animals is to simply stop eating them, any progress made toward mitigating their suffering is commendable."

Griedel/Creative Commons

The piece is incredibly interesting, especially when you consider Gellman’s perspective. Gellman, a Rabbi, uses moving vignettes from his grandfather (a zookeeper) throughout his article, which is one of the most thoughtful pieces I’ve read in ages on the issue of animals in captivity. Here’s just one interesting bit:

"He would patiently explain to me that they did not want to be in their cages but that we put them there so that little boys like me could see up close what they look like, how they move and what sounds they make. Grandpa explained to me that this was a deal we humans made with the wild animals of the world. We capture and display some of them so that people would feel something for them and protect the wild animals that were not in cages. I asked grandpa if he thought the deal was fair. He thought and said, 'It's a good deal for us, and not such a good deal for them.' I still think grandpa was right."

Amazing . . .

You can check out the full piece here.

The folks in our Regulatory Testing Division are pretty smart, I must say. They spend their entire lives neck deep in scientific papers that would squash the brains of most normal people, so to say that they’re a pretty serious lot is like saying Barry Bonds is kind of good at baseball. So imagine my surprise when I found out about their latest little stunt. Granted, it’s hard to make anything containing words like toxicogenomics and bioinformatics even the least bit fun, but I think they pulled it off here.

Yesterday, PETA sent these little alarm clocks to members of the Interagency Coordinating Committee on the Validation of Alternative Methods—the folks charged with helping streamline the validation and use of modern non-animal testing methods—to remind them that an animal dies every two seconds of every day in a US government mandated toxicity test, and to push them to do their job by helping to implement—not block—alternatives to animal testing.

Check out the letter they sent with the clocks here.

Allposters/Creative Commons

"As an Anaheim Duck, I hate to see real ducks tortured so that a handful of wealthy chefs can serve their diseased organs. Please uphold this compassionate law."

If you live in Chicago, please take a moment to follow Scott's compassionate example, and sign a petition to the Chicago City Council here. It takes, like, 15 seconds, and it will make a huge difference for the ducks and geese who have pipes rammed down their throats so that the aforementioned industry lobbyists can make a few bucks.

PETA Files reader Nancy Winebarger just sent me her own version of the Mercury Poisoning fish billboard I wrote about last week. Here’s what she said:

"I saw the blog today about the Mercury Poisoning billboard being rejected based on the image used, so I thought I'd pass along an idea for something that might be a bit more palatable to the squeamish."

I think both concepts do a great job of alerting people to the issue in a way that grabs your attention in a different way. I’ve posted both Nancy’s and PETA’s version below—which one do you like better?

Sadly, this headline isn’t a joke. To say that our history with the so called environmental group Environmental Defense (ED) is sordid is a bit of an understatement. Let’s just say that it more than ruffles our feathers that ED reps sit on all sorts of gov't panels and always advocate for more animal tests—and against first seeing what previous info there may be on whether people are even exposed to a substance. It also didn’t sit too well with us when PETA reps were walking the halls of the EPA pleading for anyone to look at methods to replace lethal dose testing and ED told us to our face that they were not interested in the alternative method. And it really got under our skin when ED fought tooth and nail against our push (eventually successful) to incorporate some non-animal toxicity testing methods into the HPV program instead of injecting animals with toxic substances into their abdomen.

To say that ED is notorious for pushing animal testing is also an understatement, so I guess it shouldn’t be a huge surprise that the group is once again calling for a massive animal-testing program despite clear evidence that animal testing does not protect human or environmental health. Now this organization has set its sights on the new field of nanotechnology and, together with chemical giant DuPont, has designed a testing strategy for nanomaterials that relies heavily on crude and cruel animal tests.

It’s incredibly ironic to me that people involved in a field as cutting-edge as nanotechnology are pushing for the same old animal tests that failed to predict the hazards of asbestos, mercury, benzene, chromium, arsenic, and tobacco smoke, to name just a few. ED should look at the many human-relevant non-animal testing methods available now and use a step-by-step approach to testing. Since even the U.S. Food and Drug Administration admits that 92 percent of drugs that pass animal experiments fail in clinical trials in humans—and since animal tests are expected to fail even more miserably with nanomaterials because their minute size does not allow efficient tracking in animals—ED's position is indefensible.

Notable scientists specializing in nanomaterials safety research are pushing for the use of existing in vitro (non-animal) test methods and the further development of additional ones. A recent landmark report is pushing for the same. But ED remains oblivious to the recommendations of prominent scientists and refuses to recognize that experiments on animals have severe limitations—both ethical and scientific.

And this is where you come in. Click here to take ED’s online survey and tell them what you think about their pushing cruel animal tests. You can also click here to take action from our site.

Sometimes it’s kind of hard for people to make the connection between their pets and the animals they eat, so here are some masks our Production department made to help with that. What do you think?

In case you haven't heard of him, Tom Regan is a philosophy professor at NC State who has been one of the most important and compelling advocates for animal rights in the academic world since early on in the movement. His clarity of expression and his passion for the subject make his thinking accessible to anyone—whether they've studied philosophy or not—and this video, which I discovered recently on YouTube, is a great example of Professor Regan's prodigious abilities, both as a thinker and as an advocate for animals.

The excerpt is from a debate that took place in 1989 for the BBC—it's well worth watching and passing around to friends who may be new to the philosophy behind animal rights.

My boss, Tracy, sent me this great photo her brother Brad took last week while he was touring Russia with the Rolling Stones (yeah, I know, some people just end up with really fun jobs). Here's what Brad said about the image:

"This photo was taken on a back street around the "Novisky Prospekt" neighborhood of St.Petersburg. I was surprised and pleased to see this message in a place where most of the kids you see are homeless and just looking for their next meal or a stronger solvent to inhale. Most of the graffiti I saw in these neighborhoods reflected the blossoming "white power" or "russia for russians" movements at a time when skinheads have just beaten to death 4 African exchange students in St Peterburg. For this reason, this pleasant image really caught my attention with its positive message."

The View has been in the news a lot lately, with the addition of Whoopi Goldberg to the show. But yesterday, the show was in the news for a different reason. One of the hosts, Elisabeth Hasselbeck, revealed what she thought was the “funny” news that she has decapitated a chicken. She even demonstrated with hand motions how to do it “correctly,” horrifying the audience and co-hosts Joy Behar and Barbara Walters even more than she usually does.

Here’s a video of the incident.

And here’s what a PETA rep told TMZ about it:

"PETA has two words for Hasselbeck, 'Cluck you!' Next to Barbara and Joy, who expressed compassion, Elisabeth sat there chirping about the joys of killing defenseless birds. Conservatives love animals too, and she ruffled a lot of feathers today. Now that Whoopi has joined the show, maybe it's time for Hasslebeck's head to go on the chopping block."

Yesterday in Los Angeles, Paris and Britney look-a-likes took to the streets to lead a hilarious protest against pet stores and breeders at the site of our new ABC (Animal Birth Control) billboard. Obviously, this protest was meant to be lighthearted and fun, but the issue is deadly serious for the animals involved. For every dog or cat purchased from a breeder or a pet store, another dog or cat on death row at an animal shelter must be killed. Here’s what PETA’s Director of Domestic Animal Issues had to say about it all, “Forget jail or rehab; these selfish stars should do a stint in an animal shelter, where they would witness the plight of dogs who end up there after being bought on an impulse."

Sooooooo, a lot of blogs have been talking about this weird new concept of "Vegansexuals". Some psychologist in New Zealand coined the word after conducting a study which found that some vegans just don't really like to do it with meat-eaters. A high percentage of respondents evidently reported that meat-eaters smell funky. Tucker Carlson reported on the story last week, and made the claim out of left field that being a vegan kills your sex drive. I have no idea where Tucker pulled this myth from (maybe a bad experience with a lethargic hippie in college?), but I can guarantee that if he just finds the right vegan girl, he'll change his mind quicker than it takes him to put on that dapper new tie of his in the morning.

Tucker did follow up the story the next day with a nice piece in which he read our statement on the topic—he claims he hasn’t changed his opinion yet, but he’ll come around. … Anyway, onto PETA's position: We're pro inter-dietary dating for about a million reasons; for one thing, if you're ever going to persuade someone that they need to stop eating animals, you need to be around them, talk to them, listen to their point of view, and, hell, sometimes even sleep with them. Being vegan isn't about being in a club, and while there's nothing wrong with having a preference for someone who shares your views, I wouldn't want anyone to think that giving up meat means you have to drain the ol’ dating pool at the same time. As Tucker pointed out, going vegetarian is supposed to get you girls, not cut off your options.

Finally, on a more personal note, sometimes it’s difficult enough as it is. I'll take it where I can damn well get it.

P.S. Eating meat causes impotence.

Jerry Ringlien, who created the disturbing “My bologna has a first name” campaign for Oscar Mayer in the ‘70s, died yesterday of a heart attack in North Carolina. As someone who works in a Marketing Department, I certainly have a lot of respect for people who can craft the kind of iconic ad campaign that Ringlien created, but it’s so tragic to me when such obvious talents are used in the service of promoting something like the pig industry—which crams animals into metal crates and kills hundreds of millions of them a year in the most gruesome ways imaginable—rather than something less hateful, or (God forbid) even helpful.

If you’re someone who can make a product that’s made from stomach, snout, intestines, spleen, and lips and that is known to increase the risk of cancer and (yes) heart attacks seem like a fun lunchbox item for kids across America, you can clearly sell any idea to anyone. I only wish that Mr. Ringlien had used his creativity to help animals instead of hurting them.

PETA’s pig gives her side of the story outside the infamous “Weinermobile,” which Ringlien helped to revive

Today in London, acclaimed novelist, playwright, actor and social justice leader Benjamin Zephaniah helped PETA Europe launch its new “Animal Liberation Project,” which points out some pretty shocking parallels between injustices of the past and the treatment of animals today.

The exhibit forces people to think about whether or not it is appropriate to compare perpetually chained performing bears to shackled human slaves. Or battery-caged hens to child sweatshop workers. Or painful procedures performed on unwilling human subjects to the experiments that torture and kill millions of animals in laboratories. But really at its core, the exhibit is all about challenging the “might makes right” mentality that was the very foundation of human slavery, child labor and the denial of women’s equality and which is also responsible for factory farming, animal experimentation and other abuses to animals—and people—today. The launch of the project was timed to coincide with the 200th anniversary of the British Parliament’s ban on the human slave trade and took place in London along the Thames, where more than 750,000 captured Africans were once traded. Powerful stuff, for sure.

Check out what Benjamin had to say about the exhibit here, in an op-ed he wrote for The Guardian. And click here to see the full Animal Liberation Project and judge it for yourself.

And without further ado, here is this week’s installment of DeFlocked. Enjoy.

Click for a larger version

To check out the archives of past strips, click here.

We've been working on a new-and-improved PETA.org for quite awhile. If you haven’t checked it out yet, you might want to have a look. It's beautiful. Like, Grand Canyon beautiful. The Great Redwood Forest. Frickin’ Niagara Falls. Seriously, have a look. Don't be a stranger!

Not too many years ago, the only way PETA VP Dan Mathews could get a designer's attention was by storming their office and painting slogans on the wall, or disrupting a runway show or two in his underwear (hey, I'm pulling this stuff straight from his memoirs). But now Dan seems to have a foot firmly in the door. After reading his new book, Liz Claiborne big wigs Tim Gunn (of Project Runway fame) and Anne Cashill invited Dan to be the featured speaker at the company's monthly designer roundtable last week, which was attended by several of the company’s designers—many of whom work with leather, wool and even fur—as well as the company’s CEO, William McComb.

In honor of PETA’s visit, the company treated attendees to delicious homemade cookies in the shapes of foxes, beavers, and bunnies, with the words “Save Me” written in icing across the bottom. The fashionistas also received a copy of Committed and were aghast at the cruelty involved in creating animal-based “fabrics” as they watched PETA's fur industry exposé hosted by former fur wearer Martha Stewart, our undercover Indian leather investigation hosted by Pam Anderson, and our Australian wool exposé narrated by Pink. One handbag designer at the event promised never to use leather again! He's quite a charmer, our Dan.

GorillaHaven/Creative Commons

Here are links to the stories.

Cry of the Wild

Gorilla Warfare

Hugely Vulnerable- Q&A with Richard Leakey