Peta Urges New Orleans Mayor To Abandon Cruel Rat-poisoning Plan

[stephanie]

WT????:poke:

For Immediate Release:
March 21, 2007

Contact:
Stephanie Boyles 757-622-7382

New Orleans, La. -- Today, after learning that New Orleans plans to poison rats living in the city as part of its "Rat Busters" program, PETA fired off a letter to Mayor Ray Nagin urging him to work with PETA to develop a humane, effective program to permanently reduce the rat population instead.


PETA points out that poisoning rats is not only cruel but also ineffective. Rats from surrounding areas will simply move in to fill the void left by those who were killed, and as long as habitats such as abandoned buildings and food sources such as garbage are accessible, rats will thrive.


PETA also points out that rat-control expert Dr. Bruce Colvin had success in reducing Boston’s rat population by studying rats’ habitat preferences and breeding patterns. PETA offers to work with New Orleans officials to implement a similar program. Possible steps the city could take include the following:


· Bring together city officials, scientists, and community activists to develop a plan of action for the city.

· Create a "Rat Coalition" with the city’s hotel and restaurant associations in which all participants agree to keep the area rodent-proofed.

· Impose fines on hotels, restaurants, and apartment buildings for improper sanitation.


"Mayor Nagin needs to control rat populations with effective, humane means—instead of by cruelly poisoning them," says PETA wildlife biologist Stephanie Boyles. "New Orleans is a city that can overcome any adversity—even a ‘rat problem’—with creativity and heart."


PETA’s letter to Mayor Nagin follows.

THE LETTER at their site...
http://www.peta.org/mc/NewsItem.asp?id=9629

[Gunny]

Rats = targets.

[avatar4321]

Don't they have better things to do than save rats?

[Gaffer]

They want to have meeting and they want to impose fines. But there is nothing mentioned about how to get rid of the rats.

Poison is the most effective means.

[Nienna]

· Bring together city officials, scientists, and community activists to develop a plan of action for the city.
Waste months or years talking about the problem.


Create a "Rat Coalition" with the city’s hotel and restaurant associations in which all participants agree to keep the area rodent-proofed.
Create bureaucracy with no accountability.


Impose fines on hotels, restaurants, and apartment buildings for improper sanitation.
Punish the producers who have little control over the situation in the first place.


Sounds like plan to destroy common sense and effectiveness, installing in their place an expensive bureaucracy which serves little purpose but filling itself with pride and funds. Very typical liberal viewpoint.

[Gaffer]

Waste months or years talking about the problem.


Create bureaucracy with no accountability.


Punish the producers who have little control over the situation in the first place.


Sounds like plan to destroy common sense and effectiveness, installing in their place an expensive bureaucracy which serves little purpose but filling itself with pride and funds. Very typical liberal viewpoint.

It doesn't address the problem but it makes beaucrats happy. And someone will be appointed to oversee all this at a salary of 100k plus a year.