Letters to the Editor

>Prevention and support

I never thought I would categorize the Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life as rational, but compared to Ben Powers and the Constitution Party, they look logical, pragmatic and middle-of-the-road according to Thursday's letter to the editor.

The Constitution Party is a racist, extremist, hypocritical hate group, and given that Powers speaks for Students for Family Values, one assumes that they are, too. One merely has to look at their Web site to see that.

They'd like to abolish the U.S. Department of Education, the FDA and repeal the Voting Rights Act of 1965 " the one that removed the discriminatory requirement for literacy tests before voting. They oppose immigration into the country, even if it's legal " something about not importing "people with low standards of living" (because we know that people from other countries are poor, uneducated idiots who are just here to feed off our country's charity. I'm sure all the idiotic foreigners attending graduate school or teaching at the University would certainly agree).

Their preamble states its desire to "restore American jurisprudence to its Biblical foundations," yet ironically, especially for a "pro-life" party, fully supports the death penalty for criminals. I guess they missed the whole New Testament and all that "turn the other cheek, love thy neighbor" stuff. They consider welfare "morally destructive," and would like to let any state withdraw from the Union whenever they want (good idea guys, remember that Civil War?).

Ironically, the Constitution Party's positions are exactly what won't reduce, much less end, abortions in the United States. Making health care more difficult to access, removing welfare benefits, getting rid of government-sponsored education and safety of drug regulation, including birth control " all of this will increase the number of unintended pregnancies, and with that increase the number of abortions. The number of abortions in the United States is shamefully high. A developed country should not have so many unintended pregnancies, about half of which end in abortion.

But prevention and support are the keys, not extremist fantasy. Access to birth control, emergency contraception and comprehensive sex education, removing red tape surrounding adoption, funding welfare and other programs to encourage and support single or low-income pregnant women, and a society that doesn't look upon an unwed mother with a disapproving frown are what will reduce the need for abortions.

The Constitution Party is truly the ones who are more interested in ignoring reality than reducing what they see as "infanticide." If they actually wanted to reduce abortions, they would wake up and take real steps to prevent unintended pregnancies. But then, there wouldn't be that extremist party making other anti-choice groups look so reasonable.

Bree Richards

University law student

Claiming compassion

Gene Gregory's Jan. 23 guest column, "Battery cages are good for chickens," is a desperate effort from an industry insider to defend his organization and the horrors they inflict on helpless birds in the name of profit.

Gregory, as senior vice president of United Egg Producers, has the awful obligation of defending the outrageously cruel system of battery-egg production. I wouldn't want his job, simply because he has to wake up every day and lie to consumers about how wonderful small wire cages are for birds. Battery cages.

Why does Mr. Gregory need to defend them? Because this is how he and his comrades in the giant egg industry make gobs of money. They cram tons of cheap birds into little cages and steal their eggs, then call it compassionate! Battery cages, or any other mass-confinement apparatus used in modern agribusiness, were developed to maximize economic output, not ensure animal welfare.

This list, with my comments in parentheses, is what Gregory's group states on their Web site as their "commitment:"

1. Protect hens from disease and injury (Because sick and dead hens don't produce eggs.)

2. Allow enough space so hens can stand comfortably upright. (This is compassionate? No walking around? No spreading their wings?)

3. Provide space that allows all birds to eat at the same time. (Because undernourished birds don't produce many eggs.)

4. Assure continuous access to clean drinking water. (Birds need water to produce eggs. Eggs equal money)

5. Maintain a continuous flow of fresh air. (No air equals dead birds equal no money.)

6. Provide enclosures that keep hens clean. (Dirty birds equal sick birds equal dead birds equal no money.)

7. Prevent hens from injuring each other. (Injured hens will produce few or no eggs. Again, it's about money!)

8. Transport hens in a safe and protected manner. (Transport hens where? To slaughter when they're "spent?" Is that safe?)

9. Undergo an annual audit by an independent, third-party to confirm our compliance. (The USDA is not an "independent entity." They're in bed with these industries.)

It's time UDS. Go cage-free. It's one small move that would alleviate lots of suffering.

Nick Coughlin

Carlson School of Management staff member