Defenders Photo Contest 2013 Winners

The votes are in! We received thousands of fantastic photos of wildlife and wild lands in this year’s photo contest, and had our supporters vote for their favorites. It was close competition, but here are the winners of Defenders of Wildlife’s 4^th annual photo contest.
Our grand prize winner -- with more than 12,000 votes -- was a great photo of a mother polar bear protecting her cubs, taken by Pam Hartman. She’ll be going on a professional wildlife photography tour in Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Park with photographer Jess Lee. First place in the Wildlife category went to Casey Clark's photo, Sleeping Bear; and Joe LeFevre took first place in the Wild Lands category with his photo, Milky Way over Second Beach.  Take a look at the rest of our winners below, and visit our blog for a slideshow of some honorable mentions.

These beautiful images are an amazing reminder of what all of us are fighting to protect. Congratulations to our winners and thank you to everyone who entered the contest this year!

Grand Prize - Pam Hartman

1st Place - Casey Clark

2nd Place - Daniel Behm

3rd Place - Nick Tucey

1st Place Wild Lands - Joe LeFevre

2nd Place Wild Lands - Philip Kuntz

3rd Place Wild Lands - Brad Orsted

Dear Jenni,

 

Thank you for contacting me regarding nutrition programs administered by the Department of Agriculture (USDA).

 

Like most programs administered by USDA, nutrition programs are authorized in the Farm Bill, legislation that is reauthorized approximately every five years.  As you may know, we are currently operating under a one-year extension of the 2008 Farm Bill while Congress debates a new, long-term authorization bill.  While the bill is called the Farm Bill, it is important to note that about three-quarters of spending in the bill is dedicated to nutrition programs. 

 

The Senate recently passed a Farm Bill, with my support, which would authorize more than 90 percent of federal spending on nutrition assistance programs.  The bill reauthorizes and reforms programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP), and international food aid to improve their function and save taxpayers money.  Reforms included closing a gap in standards for utility allowance, improving the quality of food at stores that participate in the SNAP program, and cracking down on food benefit trafficking and misuse of SNAP benefits.  I'm hopeful that the House and Senate will be able to build on this legislation and pass a long-term Farm Bill this year. 

 

As the President and Congress continue to discuss our budget priorities and deficit reduction, I will work to ensure that that those who require food assistance receive the help they need, while working to prevent waste, fraud and abuse.

 

Again, thank you for contacting me. I look forward to continuing our conversation on Facebook (www.facebook.com/SenatorBlunt) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/RoyBlunt) about the important issues facing Missouri and the country. I also encourage you to visit my website (blunt.senate.gov) to learn more about where I stand on the issues and sign-up for my e-newsletter.

Sincere regards,

Roy Blunt
United States Senator

The USDA: Working Hard for Animal Abusers (Infographic)

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is slacking. The agency is responsible for enforcing the Animal Welfare Act, the only federal law that protects animals used for entertainment. But despite the countless animals depending on its vigilance and action, the USDA has been silent and indecisive.
Check out our infographic below for the shocking proof, and please share it on Facebook.

Want to help animals used for entertainment? Urge the USDA to start taking meaningful action that protects animals and not their abusers!

Collapsed Horse Tied Up, Dragged, and Hoisted on Forklift (Warning: Disturbing Images) Written by Michelle Kretzer 08-20-2013

Like all horses who are forced to pull carriages, Jerry has to work in all weather extremes, including the scorching summers and the bitter winters of Salt Lake City. He hauls tourists through the busy, congested downtown streets, inhaling fumes and competing for road space with honking cars. Last weekend, while pulling tourists, he apparently succumbed to the 98-degree heat and collapsed. The heat radiating off the black asphalt on which he was pulling a carriage would have been far, far hotter than 98 degrees.

Jerry was too weak to stand, so his handlers tied ropes around his body and dragged him into a trailer.

They drove him to the stable, but he was still too weak to stand, so his handlers put straps around his limp body and hoisted him into the barn with a forklift.

Jerry's owners said that he collapsed because he suffers from colic. We are doubtful and suspect heat exhaustion, although colic can be brought on or exacerbated by heat, dehydration, and stress—three factors that essentially define daily life for horses who are forced to pull carriages.

What You Can Do
PETA is once again calling on Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker to prevent tragedies like this one and support efforts to ban horse-drawn carriages on city streets. More regulations on this practice won't solve the problem. Regulations can't reshape Salt Lake City's densely urban environment, and they can't change the fact that horses are extremely sensitive to loud noises. Contact Mayor Becker and let him know that you oppose forcing horses to pull carriages.

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Police Officer Saves 100 Baby Sea Turtles From Certain Death by Judy Molland August 24, 2013

• 5:30 pm

Remember the cop who responded to a “vicious dog” call and ended up making a new best friend? Here’s another story of a very cool cop, who went out of his way to help some tiny turtle newborns.
Florida police officer Derek Conley, from Sarasota, saved nearly 100 baby sea turtles when he gathered the newly hatched creatures from a hotel parking lot and street, put them in a cardboard box (see above), and released them into the Gulf of Mexico.
Conley was on patrol at 1 a.m. on August 3, when he noticed a baby sea turtle crawling toward the front door of Sarasota’s Lido Beach Resort. A passerby told him that he’d seen more hatchlings in the parking lot.
When he checked up, he saw that there were dozens more turtles swarming toward the hotel. He grabbed a cardboard box, and with the help of some of the hotel’s guests, he gathered up the slow-moving creatures from the parking lot and surrounding streets, stopping the traffic a few times in the process.
Conley delivered the turtles back to the beach and across the water line, effectively saving their little lives.
Turtles have been in the news recently: it turns out that many of them are dying because they are chewing on discarded plastic bags, which they mistake for jellyfish.
These sea turtle hatchlings are much luckier, thanks to this caring man.
Conley spotted three dead turtles, according to a news release, but he estimates that 90-100 were saved.
All sea turtles are protected by the federal Endangered Species Act and the Florida Marine Protection Act, and it is against the law to touch or disturb nesting sea turtles, hatchlings or their nests. However Conley checked with two marine rescue groups, who verified that these creatures were clearly in distress, and not helping them would have made their situation even worse.
Florida has five types of nesting sea turtles, and they nest along the beaches from May until late October. According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the turtles make 40,000 to 84,000 nests in the state each year. All are protected under state statutes.
Adult females nest every two or three years and lay several nests in one season. They emerge from the water to nest on the beach mostly at night. Nests average 100 eggs, which incubate in the sand for about 60 days, depending on the species.
The hatchlings usually emerge from their nests at night. Only about 1 in 1,000 baby turtles survive to adulthood. Their lives are perilous, starting with the earliest stages, where simply moving from the sand into the water can be much more complicated than it appears.
Were the turtles deciding to check into the Lido Resort, maybe watch some TV or hang out at the bar? Probably not: according to biologists, hatchlings crawl towards the brightest light they see, which on an undeveloped beach is the moonlit ocean.
However, artificial light can disorient sea turtles and cause them to head in the wrong direction, which is presumably why the turtles Conley saved were headed toward the hotel.
Whatever the sea turtles’ reasons for heading to this beach resort, thanks to Officer Conley, they’re back in the water now, where they belong.

Read more: http://www.care2.com/causes/police-officer-saves-100-baby-sea-turtles-from-certain-death.html#ixzz2d06JBfJr

allowing the belugas to be imported could hurt "the population that these whales are taken from" and that it would "contribute to the demand to capture belugas from this stock for the purpose of public display in the U.S. and worldwide."

Dear Jennifer,

Because of the huge success of eye-opening films such as Blackfish and the HBO documentary An Apology to Elephants, more and more people are learning what PETA supporters already know from our motto: that animals are not ours to use for entertainment. It's clear that the public outcry against holding orcas, elephants, and other animals in captivity and denying them the life that they deserve is growing, and judging from our most recent victory, our motto is now even being taken to heart by some government officials.

Last summer, PETA learned that Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta had applied to the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) for a permit to import 18 wild-caught beluga whales from Russia into the U.S. to distribute them to SeaWorld and Chicago's Shedd Aquarium, breed them, and condemn these complex, sensitive marine mammals to a miserable and maddening life confined to tiny barren tanks.

Beluga whales are fascinating and communicative animals who—like their distant relatives, dolphins—use echolocation, their sensitive hearing, and an extensive range of calls to converse with other whales through deep water. Extremely social animals, they live as long as 50 years and roam the sea in tight-knit family groups of mothers, aunts, uncles, and cousins as they swim on journeys that can be thousands of miles long.

PETA jumped into action immediately after learning of Georgia Aquarium's plans and went to work urging the NMFS to deny the permit and spare these wonderful animals a life of misery. Thousands of compassionate people around the world signed our action alert to block the permit, and Georgia native Kim Basinger wrote a heartfelt plea to dissuade the chief of the agency's permits division from signing off on the aquarium's reckless plan.

I'm happy to report that after more than 10 months of intense campaigning by PETA, the NMFS denied the aquarium's permit request—a huge victory in our continued efforts to keep marine animals out of watery prisons. The agency said that allowing the belugas to be imported could hurt "the population that these whales are taken from" and that it would "contribute to the demand to capture belugas from this stock for the purpose of public display in the U.S. and worldwide."

Thanks to the many PETA supporters who helped make this wonderful news possible, 18 whales won't be brought into the country and condemned to a life of misery in the name of entertainment. While there is still much work to be done for the orcas and other animals who are denied their freedom by SeaWorld and other marine parks, this victory is a huge step forward and a sure sign of the influence that caring people like you can have in changing long-held beliefs about whales and other animals.

Together, we are truly making a difference in the lives of animals!

Kind regards,


Ingrid E. Newkirk
President

Dave Mustaine’s Daughter Covers Megadeth’s “A Tout le Monde” on TV Revolver Magazine | Aug 21, 2013 | 22 Comments | Tags: Dave Mustaine, Electra Mustaine, Megadeth

Electra Mustaine, daughter of Megadeth main man Dave Mustaine, recently appeared on a TV show to perform one of her father’s hit tunes, “A Tout le Monde” off 1994′s Youthanasia. The story on the King 5 website describes the performance below:
“Electra and Jason have teamed up for a special concert to benefit Operation Ward 57, a non-profit organization that helps wounded service members and their families. Electra and Jason performed their version of the Megadeth song, ‘A Tout le Monde,”‘ then joined Margaret to talk about their families’ respective musical legacies and why it’s important for them to respect and support the military. Brittney Hamilton, founder of Operation Ward 57, shared more about the work the group does and praised Electra, Jason and other young people who take such an active role to salute and support the military.”
Watch the performance below and let us know what you think in the comments.

Video | News | Weather | Sports

Tue Aug 20 08:14:45 PDT 2013

Jason Kertson and Electra Mustaine perform

view full article

	Dear Jennfier, Any employer in Missouri that's tried to get a construction project off the ground will tell you the same thing: regulations, often from multiple federal agencies, add to costs and delay projects - which results in many of them never getting off the ground. That's bad news when it comes to the need to create more jobs and boost business opportunities in our state. Business owners and project managers I talk to understand that some amount of regulation is necessary, but they want rules of the road that are commonsense and easily understood - especially while we're still in the midst of an economic recovery. To tackle this problem, I've teamed up with my Republican colleague from Ohio, Senator Rob Portman, and we've introduced the bipartisan Federal Permitting Improvement Act. Our bill is directly tailored to get these critical construction projects moving and put more folks back to work more quickly. The legislation applies to proposals for infrastructure, development, and energy projects. Our bill would cut through red tape and expedite projects by taking several commonsense steps. It would require one "lead agency" to be designated for a project when multiple federal agencies are involved. Our bipartisan proposal also encourages greater cooperation with state and local permitting authorities - ensuring that projects aren't stalled as they move through multiple levels of bureaucracy. Lastly, it reduces the timeframe in which major infrastructure projects are vulnerable to environmental lawsuits, from six years to 150 days. This change will provide businesses the certainty they need to invest in projects without the fear that they'll be subject to lawsuits years after the completion of a road or bridge. I've never been afraid to buck my party and work across the aisle if I believed it was the right thing to do, and I firmly believe this is an initiative that folks of all stripes can get behind. This bill has the support of members of both political parties, and is also supported by labor unions and key business groups such as the Chamber of Commerce and the Small Business Roundtable - coalitions that don't often work together in Washington. I'm confident that with solutions that enable projects to get off the sidelines - and put folks to get back to work - our economy can continue to improve and Missouri can continue to prosper. All the best, P.S. I want to hear from you about how we can work together to create more jobs across the state. Stay connected via email, Facebook and Twitter.

The Two Wings of a Bird

Jesus' obedience to the Father didn't start on earth. It was there from eternity past. He was willing to wait 4,000 years, watching the desperate plight of the people He had created, until the Father said it was time for Him to go and redeem them. And then, in human flesh, Jesus waited again for 30 years, working as a carpenter and learning obedience, before He could begin the ministry the Father had sent Him to undertake.
Finally, He had three-and-a-half years to accomplish everything He came for. And every step of the way, He did nothing on His own, but only what the Father told Him to do.
If I were in Jesus' place, I imagine I would have asked myself, "What must I do to make sure all this waiting, agony, sacrifice and suffering will result in getting the Good News to every nation of the world in the fastest and most understandable way?"

The most effective way

Reading through the Gospels, I eagerly looked for Christ's blueprint for this question, but I found none. Then I stumbled upon Scripture portions like this one:"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another" (John 13:34–35).
In other words, the most effective way for people to understand the Gospel is through relationship. "Love one another" is the greatest of all mysteries that ushers in God's kingdom.
We don't really like this answer, because no matter where we live in the world, our biggest challenge is the people we live with. However, Jesus never altered His plan just because we find it hard to love others.
Rules, regulations, procedures and leadership skills are good within any family, organization or body of believers. But in the end, nothing really works unless we understand about loving and caring for one another—and put it into practice.

Two wings to fly

But then we run into the problem of finding balance. We often deal with people who exasperate us and test our patience.
At what point do we tell them enough is enough? Do we love them until the end, like Jesus did with the disciples, taking upon Himself suffering and agony?
As a leader, I have sometimes made decisions on the side of my responsibility, stewardship, morality, ethics and radical commitment to evangelical faith—only to find out a few years later that I was wrong and that I should have loved a little longer. This awareness is one of the most difficult things I now live with.
It's important for us to remember that a bird cannot fly with one wing! It needs two.
Often you hear or read radical messages from me that challenge you to total commitment and extreme sacrifice, asking you to give up everything for the sake of the Gospel and walk away from everyone who holds you back from embracing the cross.
My dear friend, this is all accurate, but it is only one wing of the bird.
The other wing is what God said to Moses when he asked to see God's glory: "The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, . . . forgiving . . . " (Exodus 34:6–7).
If we want to be His children, we too need to love others just as He loves us.
There is not one of us who has not sinned. But I want you to know that love, grace and mercy become authentic only when we fail.

We're all on a journey

That was the experience of the woman who was caught in adultery and brought to Jesus so He could judge her according to the Law. He was the only person who ever walked on earth who was qualified to say, "Go ahead and stone her." But He didn't. Instead, He showed mercy and sent her away in peace, calling her to sin no more.
We so often demand spiritual perfection from our fellow Christians, forgetting that each of us is on a journey to become more like Jesus. This journey takes time, and people will frequently fall short. But instead of showing love and compassion, we judge them. Those whom God has pulled out of the deepest pit and shown the most mercy often become harsh, unbending and merciless toward their children or younger believers.
My dear friend, please don't let your discipleship and militancy drown out kindness and mercy.
Let us remember to fly with two wings: total commitment and unconditional love. Then the world will understand the Gospel and come to know the Savior.


Dr. K.P. Yohannan
Founder & President of Gospel for Asia