All posts in the topic a humane city ... or not? (Short link)

2007 Aug 31 22:28 UTC

It appears that another animal "protection" amendment has been or is being
introduced by some city council members. It fails to get at the heart of the
problem, and misses the mark in a dangerous, obfuscating way. It counts on
all of us being naive.

As I read it, the new proposal merely adds tremendously to the regulatory
duties of an understaffed/overworked city  animal control department. This
is a city department that can't even handle its current basic duties in a
city that has fallen behind its adjacent neighboring municipalities in the
ordinances it has in place to deal with  DOMESTIC animal affairs, let alone
WILD ones! I still can't believe the problems I had earlier this summer with
these poor folks trying to run every which way day and night, and basically
having their hands tied by the city's outdated domestic animal ordinances,
among other factors. (I later received a call saying the city had formed a
Work Group to look at  updating its domestic animal control ordinances.
Good.) The Ostrow (and apparently Hodges') proposal mentions hiking wild
animal permit fees, but then having city animal control staff travel to
other cities and states as needed to observe and monitor those circuses or
wild animals in action that think they are coming to Mpls. to do their dirty
business. Surely the permit fee hike would be eaten up and then some by all
this expense and the need to hire more staff, travel, hang out at circuses,
etc. Good grief, what are these council members thinking?? How on earth can
this be carried out??

The answer is to just ban wild animal circuses and be done with this
inhumanity. Make up for any "lost money" (a figment of certain peoples'
imaginations) via bringing in more of the "real" circuses -- the ones that
don't use wild animals -- and promoting this city as finally joining the
ranks of other towns around the country that are going in a humane
direction. Step up to the 21st century. Council members, you cannot regulate
an inherently inhumane act. No amount of lipstick will work on that pig. You
are only sinking lower by trying to make a buck off of it.

In addition, I received this e-mail from Circus Reform Now stating:

"...The Ostrow-Hodges Amendment is a nightmare for the animals and anyone
who cares about them. Their amendment is a list of regulations meant to look
good, but makes no real change for the animals. Their amendment is overly
broad and vague, but what it really means is that:

*    Elephants will continue to be chained up to 20 hours a day in
Minneapolis - chained one front leg and one back leg, unable to do anything
except sway back and forth
*    Trainers will still carry whips and hooks and use them as painful
reminders to the animals they'd better not step out of line
*    The city of Minneapolis will make MORE MONEY from the circus permit
fees - but who really pays the price?"

Gayle Bonneville
Northeast Mpls