Fish Sticks and Green Jello

A friend send me an email asking for help spreading the word on this issue. I figured adding it to my blog would at least help somewhat. Some of the following meeting places may not be in your area but you can find out more info via the website if this is an issue that interests you. There's an FAQ explaining what this is about in more detail on the site. I did a very quick Google search for any opposition sites on this issue and didn't find much. If you have an opposing viewpoint or links to clear/concise websites opposing it please post your thoughts and info in the comments section.

Here's the following email I got from my friend Lulu, keep in mind that there are no online petitions for this issue. You'll need to print out the pdf and carefully read the instructions on how to collect signatures.

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From Lulu:

They need petitions signed to get this on the ballot- you can sign up by e-mail to get petition forms and have friends, family, coworkers, etc. sign them.

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October 31, 2007

Join the Californians for Humane Farms Campaign!

Join the campaign to protect California's farm animals!

Your help is needed to put a measure on the 2008 ballot that would outlaw the cruel confinement of veal calves, egg-laying hens, and breeding pigs. This important measure will phase out the use of the gestation crate for pigs, the battery cage for egg-laying hens and prevent the use of the veal crate for male calves.

We have only five short months to qualify this initiative for the November 2008 ballot. If thousands of volunteers join the effort to collect 650,000 signatures, we can secure a place for this precedent-setting measure on the ballot!

Please attend a special campaign event near you starting on November 5. Joining me will be our special guests Mike Markarian, The HSUS's Executive Vice President, and Gene Baur, Founder of Farm Sanctuary. We'll share how you can become a crucial member of the team of volunteers that will put this precedent-setting measure on the ballot.

Santa Monica
Monday, November 5
6:00-9:00 p.m.

Westside Pavilion Mall
Community Room B
10800 West Pico Blvd. #312
Los Angeles, CA 90064

Ventura
Wednesday, November 7
6:00-9:00 p.m.
Century Downtown Theatre
555 East Main Street
Ventura, CA 93001

Marina Del Rey
Friday, November 9
6:30-9:30 p.m.
If you are interested in attending this event, please RSVP to director@humanecalifornia.org for address and directions

Pomona/Claremont
Saturday, November 10
11:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m.
Western University
309 E. Second Street
Pomona, CA 91766

Mission Viejo
Sunday, November 11
9:30, 11:30 a.m. services
Tapestry Unitarian Universalist Congregation
25801 Obrero Drive
Mission Viejo, CA 92691

I look forward to seeing you at one of these special events. If you are not able to attend, we still want you involved! Please contact director@humanecalifornia.org for more information or sign up to be a volunteer. If you are already a volunteer, thank you! Please help spread the word about this important effort.

Thank you for helping farm animals in California!

Sincerely,

Wayne Pacelle
President & CEO
The Humane Society of the United States

P.S. Please make sure to check out the campaign web site at HumaneCalifornia.org.

Labels: current events, friends, politics

I find this kind of hilarious. I think Tigger was my friend Dave's favorite Winnie the Pooh character. I seem to recall him owning Tigger sweatshirts and stuff. Good times.

Labels: current events

Here's something EVERYONE should know. Especially us west coasters that don't live in the snow.

1. You can survive for three hours without shelter.
2. You can survive for three days without water.
3. You can survive for three weeks without food.

I've heard all kinds of crazy numbers like, you can survive 3 weeks without water and 3 months without food etc. It's just not the case. The one that suprised me the most (and I've lived in the snow before albeit when I was younger) was number 1. I didn't know that 3 hours was the limit without shelter in bad weather. Heck I just watched that dog movie Eight Below about the dog sled team that got left in Antartica for 175+ days and lived. I know humans aren't huskies or anything but 3 hours is a very very short amount of time.

If James Kim would have stayed with the car and they'd all died because no one found them what would people think then? Or since he left the car and died of exposure and hypothermia then people think it was wrong because it was too cold out? After nine days I don't know if even I would have stayed with the car and I HATE being cold. After that long you have to think that no one is going to find you and it's a very real possibility. It happens. People die in remote locations in the winter and don't get found until spring. Would you sit there and wait and wait and wait until you and your family died?

3 hours is such a short amount of time. I can't imagine what that must have been like. I was just in their neighborhood Tuesday night in San Francisco before they had found him. I don't know these people but I couldn't stop thinking about them over the last week. Coming from someone who lost a parent at a young age I know how devestating this can be not only for the kids but for his wife too. I'm sorry for their loss.

Wilderness Survivial: The Rule of Threes

CNET TV Tribute to James Kim (he demo's the Zune and gives it a positive review!)

Outdoor Survival/Shelter (an in depth explanation of "the rule of threes")

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Since I brought up the movie Eight Below I thought I'd post a few interesting things about it. .

- This movie was based on a true story of a Japanese expedition that took place in 1958. The original movied based on that story was called Nankyoku Monogatari.
- Only two dogs survived in the true story. Brothers named Taro and Jiro. They were born in Antartica, children of the original dogs that had been left behind. It was a year before the expedition returned and happened to find them there.
- Jiro died in 1960 and Taro in 1970. Both were preserved. Jiro was displayed at The National Science Museum in Tokyo next to Hachiko the faithful dog. Taro was displayed at Hokkaido University.

I found some photos of them preserved. It appears there was an Antarctic exhibit that reunited Taro and Jiro.

Jiro on the far left and Hachiko the faithful dog in the middle.


Taro and Jiro.

Labels: curiosities, current events, death, movies, tips