www.easyvegan.info/2008/05/22/kinship-circle-may-digest-p...
If you decide to take action on issue #6, "Stop Korea From Legalizing Dog Meat", please edit out the third paragraph in the sample letter. In particular, I take objection to the following sentence: "South Korea does not want to be seen by modern nations as a culture that is backward, barbaric or uncivilized..." Eating dog meat is no more uncivilized than eating cows, pigs, chickens, ducks, lamb, etc. All are sentient beings capable of feeling joy, sorrow and pain. However, to vilify an entire culture for eating an animal we regard as special is inherently racist; in the United States, we treat "food" animals no better. The push should be towards a vegetarian (or, better yet, vegan!) diet for all, not towards outlawing specific species of meat that we find objectionable due to cultural reasons.
And do I really need to explain how offensive the "modern nations" remark is?
=======================
6. Stop Korea From Legalizing Dog Meat
ALERT FROM / REPLY TO:
Forwarded Message: mentayflor [at] ciudad.com.ar, planetanimal [at] msn.com
WestSouthAsia [at] VOANews.com
BACKGROUND (edited for length):
Anger as Seoul aims to reclassify dog meat
www.admh.org/data/kimhs.htm
4/8/08: The Seoul city government seeks to classify man's best friend as livestock in order to set food safety standards for South Korean lovers of dog meat. Between two and four million dogs are estimated to be consumed in South Korea every year but slaughtering and processing are carried out in dirty environments that pose risks to diners' health, officials said...
"Dogs are consumed in their millions in this country every year. That's a fact. We have to take care of this situation," Lee Hae-Woo, head of the city government's department of food safety, said. "We plan to recommend to the central government that dogs are classified as livestock...”
South Korea's capital has always been ambivalent about dog meat. To avoid adverse publicity before the 1988 Olympics, the city banned dog meat and snake meat as "abhorrent food." The order is now largely ignored and an estimated 500 dog meat restaurants operate in Seoul alone...
"No other country in the world but South Korea gives a legal green light to dog meat consumption," the Korea Association for Animal Protection said in a statement... Lee Won-Bok, association president, said if the proposal became reality, dog meat consumption would increase drastically.
CONTACT INFORMATION / TAKE ACTION:
Korean President Lee Myung-bak: webmaster [at] president.go.kr
Cheongwadae: 1 Cheongwadae-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul, Korea
Mayor Oh Se-hoon: ohsehoon [at] seoul.go.kr
Cc: president [at] cwd.go.kr, webmaster [at] korea.net, webmaster [at] president.go.kr
SAMPLE LETTER from Zelda Penzel, zpenzel [at] nyc.rr.com
Honorable President Lee Myung-Bak, Honorable Mayor Oh Se-Hoon:
The civilized world is shocked by the news that South Korea is planning to classify dogs as livestock. Appeals from compassionate people everywhere to end the consumption of dog meat, seem to have fallen on deaf ears in the past, but we pray that as the new President of Korea, you will be open to reason and appeals from caring and concerned people around the globe.
Throughout the world, dogs and cats are considered to be companion animals; they have evolved through millions of years of evolution and, in modern times, through selective breeding, to be loving, affectionate, protective and faithful family members. Their gifts of pre-cognition and a superior sense of smell, hearing, etc. have made them invaluable companions to blind, deaf, sick and handicapped people. They have made extraordinary contributions in times of war, natural disasters and even as K9 units helping law enforcement in the wars against terror, drugs and illegal trafficking. Their natural and intuitive instincts have helped to save lives, find lost children and because of their readiness to please, to bring companionship, devotion and affection to the old, lonely and afflicted.
Dogs are not livestock or commodities. They are living beings, capable of suffering and pain. Surely, South Korea does not want to be seen by modern nations as a culture that is backward, barbaric or uncivilized, one that will be shunned by tourists, businesses and consumers worldwide. Rather than taking measures that will result in the sanctioning and consequently, the expansion of the dog-meat industry, we urge and implore you to take every action possible to educate, legislate and enforce laws against the vile and hideous practice of eating dogs or exploiting them in any cruel and inhumane manner. Citizens around the globe await your response.
Respectfully,
********************
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