Vegan speaks out against article

By The Malibu Times · Thu Oct 19 2000

I would especially like to address Pam Linn and her article in the Oct. 5 issue "Certifying happiness down on the farm."

In regards to this article, is Ms. Linn aware that the world's largest meat packer, IBP, is now facing potential criminal and civil charges for violations of state and federal law?!

Here are some of the violations of state and federal law that have been documented on tape and by sworn affidavits from IBP's workers:

• Struggling cows being hoisted upside down and butchered, while still alive! (employees who attempted to stop the machinery to prevent cows alive from having to endure this, were told they would be fired for stopping the production line -- it cost money!)

• Cows being repeatedly hit with ineffective stunning devices.

• Cows being trampled as workers force other cattle to run over them

• Disabled cows being chained at the neck and dragged into knocking box

• Cows tormented and repeatedly shocked with electric prods. Workers shown shoving electric prod into cow's mouth.

Sure, I would love to believe the illusion of loving farmers and friends caring for the farm animals and "just killin' to eat" -- (oh they do it humanly!). However, today too many people just don't care -- money seems to be the main motivation for everything. People are too stressed out just trying to pay the bills … but that's because there are very few benevolent people in this world today. Those who have the money want more … so the prices go up. And, since life is a circle, everybody gets the effect -- even the workers at IBP who tried to do their job correctly, were told they would be fired if they stopped production! (since "what comes around goes around," I wonder, if you eat an animal that has been tortured this way, do you get an upset stomach?)

So, although I do agree that it is sad that there need be so many governmental "protections" -- this is only a reflection of our time, and unfortunately needed in today's world!

P.S. Can you guess, I'm a vegan!

Alessandra DeClario, Ph.D.