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About Photographer -- Journalist

It is time to embrace wisdom, as ignorance is inexcusable, do I write about and photograph nature to convey its significance to us all. My opinions are conveyed from life, and are just what they are with no excuses. Just a simple thought here and there, take it or leave it.

CLONING HORSES: Ethically Challenging and Questionable Dynamic of Horse Slaughter

Article Written by John Cox, M.A. Cascade Mountains

There are things, mostly corruption and misinformation to support it, going on constantly in the Horse World. To say the “exploitation of horses is nothing more than greed,” in this case “correct”. So, let’s meander out in the pasture, start talking about Cloned Horses.

I am aware, through experience, half of “cloned foals” have issues at birth; in which, the major problems are weakness and maladjustment, contracted tendons in the front legs, and enlarged umbilical remnant, some of which required surgical removal. In this area, I am also aware that Two foals died, one from pneumonia and one from complications after anesthesia.

In one report . . “.50% of live-born cloned foals had some health issues, also included neonatal maladjustment, contracted front legs, and enlarged umbilicus, which some were resolved with medical care.” It was unfortunate that of that 50%, 30% of owners could not afford medical-care at that level (nor did they know they bought a Cloned-Horse), which means, they were either “Put-Down” or pastured-only. . .

Right now, cloned-horses are not allowed to compete in either Thoroughbred or Quarter horse races, despite the tremendous numbers that are cloned-genetically, of these particular breeds. However, Arabian horse races allow cloned-horses to participate – and the International Federation for Equestrian Sports (i.e. Olympics, et al.) also permits cloned-horses . . .

Now I can confront more issues, and I discover that not just health problems exist in cloned-horses, but suddenly the ugly-head of “slaughter” plays a very extravagant part in this discussion, as well as ethics, morals, and issues concerning what it is we all are sacrificing to venture into such extravagance.

I take issue in the fact, beyond ethics, that horses go “unchecked” in the slaughter industry. Not only does this show us “deprivation” of intellect and ethics, but greed is so outstanding in this controversial cloning of horses’ subject, that the confidence of those in charge making these decisions, are compromised – neutralized. Bias decision-making a normal situation here, and may the general public be damned, as far as these people concerned – that is, as long it is not one of them sickly from the unidentified meat product . . . So when one of them have to choose between health issues or profits? Simple decision for them — Profits, of course.

It may seem a subjective shame to lose some of Our Nations Rare Equine Breeds. The “reality” that Wild Horses perform an environmental function which no other species, nor other wildlife can accomplish alone (although, we do find through credible research, Diversity and Moderation in Population Dynamics, in areas – on a natural basis, works to enhance sustainability within our environment) and is a Natures’ answer to Sustainability — yet, ignored.

Indeed, the environmental function of some rare-breeds, such as the overall genetics and diversity of Wild Horse Herds, has decreased significantly with the mechanization of agriculture. Even the management of small farms and ranches, to which the rare breeds of plow-horses – or, of the logging industry as well, for example, made significant contributions and especially the dynamic of environmental-health was respected rather than denied (as industry disrespect’s Nature today, primarily for monetary exceeding standard profits), can nowadays be undertaken by other methods.

Thus, although governments’ may face legal obligations under the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (1992) to promote biodiversity, the ethical imperative to do so by subjugating the welfare of individual animals to the desire to preserve an equine breed is simply ignored.

So, what is my objective here? I understand the Quarter Horse Association has found so many “Cloned-Horses” registered in their files, that they have stopped looking – Interesting — As when I read their article I seen they were hinting at a 40% of their (i.e. then) registered-base of Quarterhorses’ already did exist, and made the excuse no one told them they were cloned-horses – Interesting – since that particular organization supports Slaughter of Horses, as well, as a necessity, here in the United States, and, ironically, due to the ever-present overpopulation of domestic and wild horses present in the United States. Ignorance? Bias? Totally lack caring about horses, other than too exploit?

I also see, other organizations have done so, as well. At the level of False-Narrative’s, we are told there are so many horses out there, throughout our Country, that Horse Slaughter cannot be denied. This is what I refer to as False-Narrative – or bullshit at its worst, because we are all led to believe there are over-populations, at every level, of horses in the United States. And now they clone them . . . It is time that business take a subordinate-place in our World, in order to save our world and us, at the same time, from these types of exploiters.

There is a lot of information out there, on Horse Cloning. I suggest people read more, as watching a video, just as in any subject today, is limited, and normally upholds commercial aspects of life in general, rather that factual-details of truth. Read and know what it is your looking at, as that, indeed, is what will save America, Our Wild Horses and Wildlife, and our World. And oh yes — Us as well.

Horse Cloning serves all of us, as a good example, on “How – Not – To Go About Business!” And keep in mind, I am just hitting the tip of the iceberg, of this particular subject.

_________________________________

References

·  Aizaki, H. , Sawada, M. and Sato, K. (2011) Consumers’ attitudes toward consumption of cloned beef. The impact of exposure to technological information about animal cloning. Appetite 57, 459‐466.

·  Anon (2008b) Food safety, animal health and welfare and environmental impact of animals derived from cloning by somatic cell nucleus transfer (scnt) and their offspring and products obtained from those animals. EFSA J. 767, 1‐49.

·  Anon (2009a) Further advice on the implications of animal cloning (SCNT). EFSA J. RN 319, 1‐15.

·  Anon (2009b) “Human Cloning”: a Discussion Paper for the World Medical Association. British Medical Association.

·  Anon (2009c) Ethics report on interspecies somatic cell nuclear transfer research. Cell Stem Cell. 5, 27‐30.

·  Arnold, D.R. , Fortier, A.L. , Lefebvre, R. , Miglino, M.A. , Pfarrer, C. and Smith, L.C. (2008) Placental insufficiencies in cloned animals: a workshop report. Placenta 29, Suppl A, S108‐S110.

·  Campbell, M.L.H. and Sandoe, P. (2015) Welfare in horse breeding. Vet. Rec. 176, 436‐440.

·  Chavatte‐Palmer, P. , Remy, D. and Maillot, J.P. (2003) Health status of cloned animals at different ages. Cloning Stem Cells 6, 94‐100.

·  Galli, C. , Lagutina, I. , Crotti, G. , Colleoni, S. , Turini, P. , Ponderato, N. , Duchi, R. and Lazzari, G. (2003) Pregnancy: a cloned horse born to its dam twin. Nature 424, 635.

·  Gamborg, C. , Gunning, J. and Hartlev, M. (2005) Farm Animal Cloning: The Current Legislative Framework.

·  Gjerris, M. , Lassen, J. , Meyer, G. and Tveit, G. (2006) Ethical Aspects of Farm Animal Cloning. A Synthesis Report.

·  Harris, J. (1997) “Goodbye dolly”?: the ethics of human cloning. J. Med. Ethics 23, 353‐360.

·  Herrera, C. (2015) Social acceptance of equine ARTs: situation in South America. In: Proceedings of the IETS Equine Reproduction Symposium, Paris: pp 30‐31.

·  Hill, J.R. (2014) Incidence of abnormal offspring from cloning and other assisted reproductive technologies. Annu. Rev. Anim. Biosci. 2, 307‐321.

·  Hinrichs, K. (2005) Update on equine ICSI and cloning. Theriogenol. 64, 535‐541.

·  Hinrichs, K. (2006) Equine cloning. Vet. Clin. N. Am.: Equine Pract. 22: 857‐866.

·  Hinrichs, K. (2012) Assisted reproduction techniques in the horse. Reprod. Fertil. Dev. 25, 80‐93.

·  Hinrichs, K. and Choi, H.Y. (2015) Health of Horses Produced by ARTs. In: Proceedings of the IETS Equine Reproduction Symposium, Paris: pp 42‐43.

·  Houdebine, L.‐M. , Dinnyés, A. , Bánáti, D. , Kleiner, J. and Carlander, D. (2008) Animal cloning for food: epigenetics, health, welfare and food safety aspects. Trends Food Sci. Technol. 19, Suppl 1, S88‐S95.

·  Jang, G. , Kim, M.K. and Lee, B.C. (2010) Current status and applications of somatic cell nuclear transfer in dogs. Theriogenol. 74, 1311‐1320.

·  Johnson, A.K. , Clark‐Price, S.C. , Choi, Y.‐H. , Hartman, D.L. and Hinrichs, K. (2010) Physical and clinicopathologic findings in foals derived by use of somatic cell nuclear transfer: 14 cases (2004‐2008). J. Am. Vet. Med. Ass. 236, 983.

·  Kim, M. , Oh, H. , Kim, G. , Park, J. , Park, E. , Jang, G. , Ra, J. , Kang, S. and Lee, B. (2012) Lessons learned from cloning dogs. Reprod. Domest. Anim. 47, 115‐119.

·  Kim, M.J. , Oh, H.J. , Kim, G.A. , Jo, Y.K. , Choi, J. , Kim, H.J. , Choi, H.Y. , Kim, H.W. , Choi, M.C. and Lee, B.C. (2014) Reduced birth weight, cleft palate and preputial abnormalities in a cloned dog. Acta Vet. Scand. 56, 18.

·  Kuhholzer‐Cabot, B. and Brem, G. (2002) Aging of animals produced by somatic cell nuclear transfer. Expt. Gerontol. 37, 1317‐1323.

·  Lagutina, I. , Lazzari, G. , Duchi, R. , Colleoni, S. , Ponderato, N. , Turini, P. , Crotti, G. and Galli, C. (2005) Somatic cell nuclear transfer in horses: effect of oocyte morphology, embryo reconstruction method and donor cell type. Reproduction 130, 559‐567.

·  Loi, P. , Clinton, M. , Vackova, I. , Fulka, J. Jr , Feil, R. , Palmieri, C. , Salda, L.D. and Ptak, G. (2006) Placental abnormalities associated with post‐natal mortality in sheep somatic cell clones. Theriogenol. 65, 1110‐1121.

·  Nolen, R.S. (2007) The ethics debate over animal cloning. J. Am. Vet. Med. Ass. 230, 467.

·  Petersen, A. (2002) Replicating our bodies, losing our selves: news media portrayals of human cloning in the wake of Dolly. Body Soc. 8, 71‐86.

·  Reis, A.P. (2015) Acceptability of Biotechnologies in the Horse Industry in Europe. Proceedings of the IETS Equine Reproduction Symposium, Paris: pp 34‐35.

·  Renard, J.P. , Qi Zhou, R. , LeBourhis, D. , Chavatte‐Palmer, P. , Hue, I. , Heyman, Y. and Vignon, X. (2001) Nuclear transfer technologies: between successes and doubts. Theriogenol. 57, 203‐222.

·  Savulescu, J. (2005) Equality, cloning and clonism: why we must clone. Bionews. The Progress Educational Trust. 308

·  Shapiro, H.T. (1996) Cloning Human Beings: Report and Recommendations of the National Bioethics Advisory Commission. Georgetown University, USA.

·  Simpson, J.L. (2007) Could cloning become ethically permissible? Reprod. Biomed. Online 14, Suppl. 1, 125‐1.

·  van Wagtendonk‐de Leeuw, A.M. , Mullaart, E. , de Roos, A.P.W. , Merton, J.S. , den Daas, J.H.G. , Kemp, B. and de Ruigh, L. (2000) Effects of different reproduction techniques: AI, moet or IVP, on health and welfare of bovine offspring. Theriogenol. 53, 575‐597.

·  Yang, C.Y. , Li, R.C. , Pang, C.Y. , Yang, B.Z. , Qin, G.S. , Chen, M.T. , Zhang, X.F. , Huang, F.X. , Zheng, H.Y. , Huang, Y.J. and Liang, X.W. (2010) Study on the inter‐subspecies nuclear transfer of river buffalo somatic cell nuclei into swamp buffalo oocyte cytoplasm. Anim. Reprod. Sci. 121, 78‐83.

 
 

Gov. Grazing Permit Program: Government created the corruption – Now has no idea how to correct it!

Research & Written by John Cox, MA, Cascade Mountain Range

“Great things are done, when men and mountains meet.” – William Blake

Today we have many things ongoing of a questionable nature at the Department of Interior’s (DOI) subordinate agency, the Bureau of Lands Management (BLM). We see first-hand, those of us that are in the field a lot within the past decade or two, and I might add, have obtained serious knowledge – from education and experience – about what it is we all are seeing directly to our front; or, while perusing an area in fixed-winged aircraft or helicopters. I am speaking now of the adjuvant used within fertility programs on our public lands, by not only the BLM but the USDA Wildlife Services. It is indeed a very dangerous, as well as corrupted situation that needs discussed, by government employees, politicians, as well as Taxpayer’s who are unknowingly supporting such travesties against Nature and Human’s alkie.

Allow me to back-step momentarily. The BLM tells the public, and has done so for quite some time now, there is an overpopulation of wild horses on our Public Lands. But, when we peruse their evidence, their statistical data, and “their” interpretation of data collected, we find not only errors in their interpretation, but errors in their math, paramount to an eighth-grade education style of errors – in their addition, subtraction, and assumptive percentages.

Today we are seeing situations like “Equine Influenza” easily used as a believable false-narrative. This is to pass-off any disease (i.e., Mycobacterium tuberculosis for example, as an adjuvant currently intermixed with wildlife-fertility liquids and other toxic chemicals) or pesticide / toxic chemical poisoning (i.e. the government employees never provide evidence, so they could truthfully pass it off as peanut butter) after wild horses darted with poisonous Pesticides and disease-ridden adjuvant containing Mycobacterium tuberculosis. It is then casually written off to the general public and taxpayer’s, who assume this to be correct – and nobody looks behind this “Curtin of Corruption”, ongoing, by DOI – BLM and USDA Forestry & Wildlife Services, and indeed, the types of corruption they are committing daily now.  

Their conduct pointedly shows us their ability to manage our Public Lands competently, is and remains very questionable. But the most enormous problem we find is the fact their numbers, in their wild horse counts combined with the information, or false narratives they give to the public, develops into many conflicts. Not only on paper but under observation of many of the HMA’s, or areas they define as overpopulated.

Myself and others have discovered, upon observation, the BLM’s numbers simply do not exist, and never have existed; nor, do they reflect truthful wild horse counts roaming our Public Lands. Their motivation to falsely claim an over-population of wild horse’s exists, as evidence shows us quite clearly, is the DOI and BLM increased budgets, higher payroll-salaries, and incentives to Special Interests involved, through less regulatory-situations that enhance their profit-margins. One bit of evidence from all of this within the past decade, is the enormous amount of Soil/Dirt pollution that exists today in the Millions of Cubic Feet – which, did not exist before this time period, or existed in very small amounts. . .

“Evidence shows I can take this a step further. A couple of articles ago I started to bring up the fact of cause-and-effect, or, as in this universe, when corruption takes hold within a government agency and a lie is generated in order to creatively make profits – or increase the agencies budgets, we then see first-hand it is the government agency that created the problem – and obviously, as we see today, does not know how to resolve the issues the problem has extravagantly created, well beyond their comprehension.”

Now we can enter the domain of tuberculosis (TB). I can look back to 2002. Researchers in the field in several countries, including the United States, were starting to find Mycobacterium tuberculosis, et al., in different species of wildlife, feces, water-sheds, creeks, rivers, and dead animals where insects and other predators did not touch the corps. Granted, and at that time, very low percentages were showing up in much of the DNA as well as blood samples during field research. The fact is that escalating supposed (we are told by BLM / DOI employees) competition for natural resources have increased contact between free ranging wildlife and humans – I look at this rather skeptically, especially today, as nothing more than an arbitrary false-narrative. Myself and other interested researchers and people, have traveled by car, airplane, helicopter, and have seen firsthand just how vacant, for example, many regions remain within the United States – in both mountain ranges and high plateau and desert ranges. We all seen the competition is between an “over-population” of both cattle and sheep; neither, wild horses nor wildlife.

I have also found the situation of Welfare Ranchers “Leasing-Out” their Grazing Permit Lands (GP) to other ranchers, most often out of state. For example, in Oregon and north of Klamath Falls, two Welfare Ranching Operations Lease-Out their GP Leased Lands to friends from California, where they pay 10-times more for lands to graze their cattle. This is Illegal to do, in accord with Federal Law, as well as tax-fraud. These ranchers in that area pay only $1.35 per AUM Unit (i.e. a cow and calf) per year – they may Sub-Lease GP Lands, taxpayer’s lands in reality, often at $12.50 to $21.00 per AUM Unit per grazing year. Since it is illegal to sub-lease this federal land, they cannot, in reality, say anything about it . . .

I look at this entire landscape dynamic skeptically, because I, as well as many others, see attempts by government agencies such as the BLM and the DOI and the USDA, trying to eliminate tourism or people traveling within or through a lot of our public lands, due to their increase in illegal activity within managing our public lands. Special interests come to mind first and foremost within this discussion, but right now were talking about tuberculosis and the cause-and-effect nature of how it started once again, right here in the United States. So, we find researchers around the beginning of 2000 document the travesty of free-ranging wildlife population – and suddenly I start seeing a very aggressive wildlife overpopulation on paper only, develop within several government agencies. Then I see the enormous number of increases, from then up to now, of increased government budgets and employee salaries, increased government grants to the private sector (we look at this situation as bribes to non-profits and very unethical practices), and an increase in the obvious mismanagement, as well as the destruction of our public lands.

And yet, hidden in the dark-abyss of corruption, in walks Mycobacterium tuberculosis at the same time. This is consistent within many of the research papers myself and others have perused for this particular report. And make no doubt is not just in the United States, it is consistently within all of the other nations, rich and poor, where fertility toxic chemicals and pesticides are being used – and the Mycobacterium tuberculosis is being used. These facts are too consistent to assume anything else exists here.

 It is quite evident all of these situations generate this travesty of false-narratives, and without a doubt, no way out for DOI or the BLM or USDA, other than simply stop what they’re doing. The truth is what matters here, and is the only way any type of resolution to fix the situations that have developed on our Public Lands, can indeed be resolved.

This is not so difficult when one can consider the fact that common sense speaks loudly here. Get rid of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis that is being used as an adjuvant within the toxic chemicals of Pesticide PZP, GONACON, SPAY-VAC, etc., speaks loudly. Or, better yet, the DOI and BLM simply be truthful to the American public and taxpayers – and simply tell us the overpopulation of wild horses on public lands is basically harmless, not destructive, and not over-populated at all – because there is no evidence for either of these situations other than falsified-evidence – and there is no wild horse overpopulation whatsoever.

Part two of this look into Mycobacterium tuberculosis and how it’s used and spreading within the United States; whereas, knowledge is king, and hunters and visitors to our public lands need to be able to identify wildlife that may be infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis (TB) – infections. Lesions within, for example, deer and elk, can clearly be seen. These can be developed from an oral route of infection, because the pulmonary lesions involved – whereas, the observed outcome on the exterior physical body of the deer, wild horses, and elk would appear to be nasal problems, and some lesions on the skin – or flu like symptoms. For example, in horses, the symptoms of TB externally can be similar to Equine Influenza, or similar traits within Pesticide Poisoning. But you will not receive this information from this government of today.

This is all troubling and I will tell you why. The DOI and BLM still, and after years of them being told not to file their reports as such, still have – “phantom forests” listed in their files, and simply do not exist and yet taxpayers cover the cost of maintaining these “phantom forests” within all of DOI and BLM budgets. This is what evidence shows us all, and yet, we find people debating these issues that have no idea this evidence even exists.

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