A Sad Situation

I don't know all the facts, but this situation with Ellen DeGeneres's dog sounds very unfortunate.

Just reading that account it looks like a case where the letter of an agreement compromises its spirit.

If the dog was in a good home, why not just investigate to make sure? Why yank it away just because it's technically against a policy?

Where's the caring and compassion in that?

Finding My Way Out of the Amazon Jungle

Amazon persists in selling animal fighting periodicals even though the activity they cover has been outlawed in all 50 states. Apparently there's still a good market so they defend the measure on free speech grounds.

I am anti-censorship and pro-free speech in every way, but cruelty is where Jeff Bezos and I stop seeing eye-to-eye, and Mr. Bezos it's on your watch.

As the above-linked SF Gate article notes:

"At last count, Amazon was selling 27 books, monographs and magazines about cockfighting. If your passion in life is watching two tormented birds tear each other to pieces, in a bloody pit surrounded by shouting gamblers, Amazon is the place to go."

For writers Amazon is a "can't-live-with-them/can't-live without them proposition." Yeah, things I wrote are for sale at Amazon. Fact of life. Can't change that so maybe it's hypocrisy to write this post.

But I am looking at ways to cut the money I give to Amazon.

I cut the Amazon affiliate links from this blog.

Beyond that, not buying from Amazon is not as easy as it sounds if you're an online shopper, but I'm trying as is Christine.

Christine's mom e-mailed her to see if I'd updated my Amazon wish list last month. My birthday was coming up and she was going to send me some things.

Christine told her we'd prefer not to have gifts from Amazon and directed her to Powells.com. The Portland-based retailer has a large inventory with easy access to used books and if you're willing to roll the dice, they have sales. You can pick up some items at big savings while supplies are available. (Happily they sell Charles' books and those of other friends as well.)

So, my mother-in-law shifted gears. She's sent us Christmas gifts for years from Amazon, not just books but stoneware and other items.

This year my $25 gift card came from Powell's.

Christine gave me copies of Spook Country and Michael Marshall's The Intruders from Powell's.

Getting some CD's for Christine's birthday has proved a little trickier. I went to CDNow.com and suddenly I was shopping Amazon.

Christine searched herself and found a site called Online Classics or something like that. Shopping cart courtesy of Amazon.

I searched a little further.

Borders - partnered with Amazon.

Virgin Superstore = Amazon.

Barnes and Noble had the CDs but wanted a fortune.

Best Buy - didn't have what I was looking for. Beethoven, specific album, OK?
Plus a Spanish classical guitar album.

Then the choirs of angels sang. I remembered buy.com. They ran a full page ad in the Wall Street Journal a few years ago advertising free shipping to get you to try them.

I ordered a few times then dropped away because I forgot my password.

I started over. They had both CD's, they gave me free shipping on the combination and all went fine.

That's another $35 that won't go to Amazon because of their support of animal fighting periodicals. I'm sure that will hold up the application of maybe one rivet on Jeff Bezos' rocket ship.

And it raises a question -- if they own the online retail universe, why do a few animal fighting magazines matter so much?

Mr. Bezos, turn your thoughts from space just a moment to focus on the suffering you're condoning on earth.

Killing Fred

The picture was everywhere and initially I though it might have been produced "Lord of the Rings" style with trick perspective.

Not so, the 1000+ pound hog that was hunted to it's death was real. It's the reality horror writers might easily spin into a tale of terror.

The story behind the initial headlines is horrific in a different way.

Wayne Pacelle posted a link yesterday to a less publicized news account. The "monster" was raised as a pet and had a name, Fred.

The hunt to his death was a canned hunt.

I'm cursed with a writer's empathy - I can imagine what it must have felt like to a coddled, domestic animal, raised with meals provided and other care to suddenly become prey. Even if you want to argue that the creature did not possess the reason of a human there had to be a feeling of confusion.

Did Fred have the sentience to feel betrayal? Certainly he felt fear and pain even though there are those who argue animals don't have an understanding that they are going to die or of what death is.

As humans with empathy and reason we need to ask these questions. If we don't, we're less human.

More from Black Beauty Ranch

Here are a few more pics from my trip to Black Beauty Ranch on Earth Day.
This guy's right horn points downward. It saved him from a canned hunt venue. Hunters pay to shoot animals in enclosures for trophies they can then hang on their home or office walls. Because he has only one visible horn, he wasn't deemed worthy and will live out his days at Black Beauty.


Above is Babe, the only elephant at Black Beauty Ranch. Omar, a camel has become her closest friend. Elephants are herd animals and thus need companionship. Black Beauty hopes to expand the elephant area and take in another elephant when funds are available.

One of these ponies is blind. The other has become his companion and guide without prompting or training.

Donate to Black Beauty

At Black Beauty Ranch on Earth Day

What better way to celebrate Earth Day (weekend) than a visit to Black Beauty Ranch, the refuge started by author and critic Cleveland Amory?

It proved to be a wonderful time to be on their grounds, 1,300 acres of green pastures, forests and fields all making a home for animals rescued from canned hunt venues, zoos, circuses and now the slaughter house.

I saw Friendly again, one of the original burros rescued from the Grand Canyon in the '70s.

I also got to see two of the newest residents at the ranch, horses Mariah and her daughter Sahara, who came to the grounds last week.

They are being called "Miracle Horses" because they were actually in the last open U.S. horse slaughter house in DeKalb, IL, when a court decision effectively ended horse slaughter in the U.S. at least until someone finds another loophole.

Mariah and Sahara and a few other horses wound up routed to sanctuaries like Black Beauty.

They're currently in Black Beauty's infirmary, a bit thin and rattled from being transported back and forth on trucks, but they will have a permanent home on the grounds.

I believe it was Sahara who came over to the fence as our group passed by, stretching her neck a bit to reach some weeds that were a tad greener than those inside the pen.

Sometimes, the grass really is greener.

Donate to Black Beauty Ranch

A new guest

We have another new resident at our house. Currently he's known as Gray Kitty. We hesitated in naming him because we spent a good bit of time trying to find his original owner.

He showed up after some bad weather, so we thought maybe he was just lost, thrown off course during the wind and rain. He'd been neutered, which we originally interpreted as female, but, at any rate there was a human willing to pay vet bills involved at some point.

Early thoughts
At first, I saw him at the edge of the yard and thought he was just passing through, but the next morning he turned up on the patio, sharing Oliver's food bowl.

And he proved to be very affectionate, a lap sitter, an ankle circler. Christine granted him a temporary patio visa and I fixed up some towels in a box.

Soon he was keeping Fred the Racoon at bay and giving Oliver orders.

So we have to go through the name thing again. Christine was toying with British authors or Greek gods earlier, but nothing's been resolved.

We're now a four cat family.

More on Ashley (Gray Kitty)

• Ashley's EyesAshley's Eyes II