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Animals Now More Than A Pet Cause

© iStockphoto In your concern for animals, you are not alone. Nationwide Mutual Insurance, an industry giant, recently conducted a survey among a sample of Americans and asked them to rate the social causes they consider most important. Concern for animals came in second, behind . . .
Talk Back: Vick’s Script
Readers reacted to the news that a Humane Society of the United States employee discovered talking points discarded at the podium following Michael Vick’s public apology on August 27. The note, with six bulleted points and "dogs have suffered" scrawled in the corner, is now . . .
Whoopi Amends Her Whoops
Good for Whoopi. She knew she stepped in it, and today she made amends. She condemned Michael Vick’s dogfighting, and she let us know that she has adopted many animals. She’s back on our holiday card list. Maybe she can lend her distinct voice again—and . . .
No Excuse for Dogfighting
I like Whoopi Goldberg. I have admired Whoopi Goldberg. But I fear that she has contracted some form of spongiform encephalopathy and her brain has been partially eaten away by a prion. Yesterday, in her debut as co-host of "The View," she spoke about Michael . . .
Talk Back: A Plea for the Animals
Monday, after pleading guilty to a federal dogfighting conspiracy charge, Michael Vick issued a public apology (which you can see portions of here). His statements drew a mixed reaction from readers, with many finding them hard to swallow. Among the mass of comments we received: . . .
Turning the Tide After Katrina

There is no question that the terrorist attacks of 9/11 reoriented us as a nation. In a different way, Hurricane Katrina did, too. We as a society were not prepared for a disaster of Katrina’s magnitude, and she exposed our full array of weaknesses in . . .
Spectacle of Bullfighting Losing Fans

Dogfighting has been in the news like never before. But there are other horrible spectator sports involving the torment of animals that are staged throughout the world, and none is better known than bullfighting. Fortunately, bullfighting is banned in the United States, except a limited . . .
Apology From A Fallen Star
Michael Vick just made a live, direct statement to the public regarding his circumstance. What he said today was spot on. I felt real sympathy for Vick in watching him speak. I saw a man whose life has been turned upside down. No one can . . .
Vick Puts America on Watch

Last Friday, the federal government released Michael Vick’s statement of facts in his plea deal in U.S. District Court in Richmond—and another round of press attention was showered on the case. Vick admitted to being centrally involved in a multi-state professional dogfighting operation, centered around . . .
Talk Back: Food for Thought
Many readers contemplated two recent blog entries—a spotlight of Rabbi Marc Gellman’s essay regarding the ethics of keeping animals in zoos and our responsibilities to animals, and an update on the increased focus on factory farming abuses. Among the reactions to Gellman’s essay: I’m always . . .
Breakthrough Moments Broadcast Our Message

No matter how hard we try in the animal-protection movement, sometimes the message just doesn’t get through, and problems of cruelty are denied the public attention they deserve. So many cruel practices persist, not because reform could not command enough support, but because people just . . .