Things we didn’t
January 22nd, 2010 by admin
Monday was Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a holiday to honor one of history’s greatest advocates for equality. 
On Monday at the South Florida Fair, one of the featured events was “Mutton Bustin’,” a rodeo event in which young children ride terrified sheep. The ridiculous event is not good for the child or the sheep, and it is certainly inappropriate to encourage brutal treatment of animals on a day when children should be taught the value of respect and kindness toward people and animals. Please contact the fair’s agricultural operations manager and urge her not to include Mutton Bustin’ in next year’s South Florida Fair. Contact:
Bettye Thompson
Phone: (561) 790-5229
Fax: (561) 790-5237
E-mail: bettye@southfloridafair.com
Tuesday night, the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus train arrived in Jacksonville and unloaded its elephants for a march from the tracks to Veterans Memorial Arena. On hand to watch the sad spectacle was Jacksonville mayor John Peyton and City Council member Johnny Gaffney and their families (they were photographed for a story in Jacksonville’s Daily Record).
Animals in circuses live miserable lives of deprivation, confinement and abuse. Please contact Mayor Peyton and Council Member Gaffney and urge them not to lend legitimacy to this circus by participating in circus promotions in the future.
When you write, urge them to take a look at the recently-released photographs of cruel elephant “training” sessions taken at Ringling’s so-called “Center for Elephant Conservation” in Polk City. Follow this link to view the photos. Contact:
Mayor John Peyton
Phone: (904) 630-1776
Fax: (904) 630-2391
E-mail: jpeyton@coj.netDr. Johnny Gaffney, City Council member
Phone: (904) 630-1384
Fax: (904) 630-2906
E-mail: Gaffney@coj.net