For years, exotic and pet bird breeders and aficionados have reveled in the "new" Federal law that protected birds and animals. Medical experiments foregone, dog breeding disrupted, trap testing made more expensive, wild horses "protected", pet owners fined and imprisoned and losing all their animals were all "good" things because they affected other persons and our perceptions of our right to interfere with the rights of other animal owners or animal users. We all "did it for the critters." Like Federal laws concerning cockfighting, our "right" to tell others they have no rights makes us feel good.

The pet breeders and owners are now the ones up for elimination. They have been no different than the rich duck hunter that ignores laws to put bear hunters out of business or the cat owner that sends money to get circuses and rodeos outlawed. Like every other seriously threatened group throughout history, they ask for support and look for help when they are threatened but who answers their plea? Not the cat owners, they are asking for help to defeat ballot initiatives that threaten them. Not the teachers, they are busy packing lies and animal rights/environmental nonsense in their students to make the US more like Britain and the rest of Europe. Not the dog owners, with a few outstanding exceptions, they don't want to acknowledge anything else that is controversial. Rescue issues; local humane enforcers, breed bans; USDA regulations; animal limits; restrictions on training, tying up pets, ear clipping, tail docking, etc. keep them more than occupied.

What about the cockfighters? They have been beaten down, vilified, and ostracized. Are any left? Would the aviculturalists even tolerate them or their help or advice? Could they have any advice, since they have been in the forefront of this battle for years? Can anyone even speak of them or mention them? No, of course not. To suggest that the cockfighters' right to fight his birds has any relevance to the right of a person to OWN a bird or BREED a pet bird or exotic bird or any other animal for that matter is absurd. Cockfighting is DIFFERENT. Those people are DIFFERENT. It is GOOD that they have no rights but that doesn't mean others should be able to apply that to ME!

It was foolish of me to mention them. The idea that if we had protected and were protecting the rights of other citizens to USE THEIR ANIMAL PROPERTY as they see fit, we would not be watching this Federal law spearhead skewer us one at a time is foolish. I apologize. The idea that aviculturalists would fight for hunting rights (birds included) and that hunters (and their organizations) would fight for aviculturalists' rights is foolish as well. The idea that all of us, regardless of our pastimes or hobbies or traditions would fight for our fellow citizens' rights, well that must be foolish too. The idea that we can clearly see how such Federal laws as the Animal Welfare Act, the Endangered Species Act, and Federal cockfighting statutes, and the Wilderness Act, and the Wild Horse and Burro Act, and Invasive Species proposals are BAD, BAD laws that must be either repealed or radically amended to fit within the system of government that made this country the greatest in the world, yeah that is foolish and impossible too.

No, we would rather couch a Presidential election in terms of which is "good for the environment." What does "good for the environment" mean? Why more Federal laws, more Federal land acquisition and closure, more Federal employees, more money for grants, more Federal control of States, more regulations on (fill in the blank), more Federal money for all these things, more, more, more. And what do we all think "more" will do? Well if you say anything other than what is happening to the aviculturalists today, you are either profiting from all this or you live under a rock and are therefore a big part of the problem.

Go back to that 2nd paragraph and check out that site. Consider their plea and help them. BUT don't ignore the fact that you are putting a band-aid on a shotgun wound. The problem is these laws and the bureaucrats and radicals that use them like a baseball bat in a brawl. Either we change the basis for these harms and learn to tolerate and protect each other and rely on the Constitutional protections that served us for over 200 years or we will merely slow our demise from a blitzkrieg to a guerilla war of attrition. That means coming together with (gasp!) all of those "other" people.

This article and other recent articles by Jim Beers can be found at
http://www.allianceforamerica.org/bb/viewforum.php?f=91