Chinese on a cat killing spree to "clean up" before Olympics

[kaiser soze]

Just another great idea towards making a "Green" Olympics (n)

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/worldnews.html?in_article_id=528694&in_page_id=1811

Thousands of pet cats in Beijing are being abandoned by their owners and sent to die in secretive government pounds as China mounts an aggressive drive to clean up the capital in preparation for the Olympic Games.

Hundreds of cats a day are being rounded and crammed into cages so small they cannot even turn around.

Then they are trucked to what animal welfare groups describe as death camps on the edges of the city.

The cull comes in the wake of a government campaign warning of the diseases cats carry and ordering residents to help clear the streets of them.

"It is the abandoned pets that suffer the most and die the soonest. They relied so much on their owners that they can't cope with the new environment.

"Most refuse to eat or drink and get sick more quickly than the feral cats."

Ms Yan's group has now been denied access to the pounds. "We do not believe any of the cats that go in there survive," she said. "They are like death camps."

Boycott The Summer Olympics

[QueenAdrock]

That's sick. First dogs, now this. I wonder when they'll turn on their "diseased" people population? Hmmm...

And I understand your sentiment, but how does one "boycott the olympics"? Just not watch it on TV?

[DroppinScience]

I suppose don't buy any 2008 Olympics-related merchandise either.

But yeah, poor kitties. :(

[Bob]

i was all set to compete, but now...

[kaiser soze]

Dogs, humans, cats....but soon they'll have to deal with the rats

To boycott....hmm, don't watch t.v., tell your friends and families, and don't recognize the companies that'll indubitably slap their mark on these Olympics.

These inhumane acts and injustice grate against the spirit of the Olympics in a modern world. How can a nation deserve to be host when they are hosting a hell for all beings that live within their borders.

This is just another ice crystal on the tip of the iceberg. Pollution still racks China, people will be displaced economically, physically, and politically, animals are being killed in masses. How serious of an issue is this with the IOC and the nations that will be bringing their athletes?

[kaiser soze]

boycott campaign around the world

http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=23332

[russhie]

Haven't they gagged the media of competing countries re: human rights issues?

It's very sad about the cats, didn't they bus homeless people out of Sydney and Atlanta when they hosted the Olympics in an effort to 'clean up'...

[Fan with a fan]

Thanks, Kaiser -

I hardly know how to put in context the killing of Tibetans that just broke today.

Dear God. We've got our tongue so far up their asses - it boggles the idealist mind.

boycott campaign around the world

http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=23332

[ericlee]

Why don't they just make cat kebabs for snacks at the olympics?

The games must go on!!

[ericlee]

I'm not huge into this section, I've got alot of debates in my mind and shit but when it comes to Chinese relations and having a first hand experience on this stuff, I'll chime in.

Yeah, in Manhattan where my wife is a journalist, she covers alot of issues as this, mainly because it involves Chinese and the U.S. relations.

We had a great dispute about this issue. It was more like a dispute that became a sweet agreeable conversation.

So many families have been torn because of the dog issue that had recently occurred. This cat issue is big too. Real big.

You have to think on their end. They've got such a big population of sick, diseased and homeless people with such a hard government to work for trying to take care of these people.

I'll tell you that even though their economy is increasing by the days, it will never grow up to par to take care of the amount of sick people over there.

Needless to say, we're so worried about some cats that are treated wrong when they can't even but, are trying to take care of their own people?

It's bullshit little nit-picks on how other countries handle their pitty stuff that starts wars.

You name me a country that does everything within your standards and compliance, then you may see peace and harmony with no reason to gripe.

You want to gripe about things are handled thier way and push our ways, then every side is going to gripe.

[kaiser soze]

Well, I don't think people should be tolerant just because China is host of the Olympics. This animal issue is just the tip of the iceberg. Why does China deserve to be host when they are committing human and animal rights abuses and ironically enough in preparation for the Olympics?

[ericlee]

Well, I don't think people should be tolerant just because China is host of the Olympics. This animal issue is just the tip of the iceberg. Why does China deserve to be host when they are committing human and animal rights abuses and ironically enough in preparation for the Olympics?

maybe because China has always had these issues previous to the Olympics? Maybe they've always been tryin to resolove these issues?

Yeah, we're pretty much blind to all their struggles but wait for a big event to happen till we start noticing and bitching about their different ways of living.

Maybe they can raise some money to take care of the people and animals properly after the olympics.

Just be patiet. Nobody agrees 100% with everything we do in preperation for big events.

[kaiser soze]

I don't think people just started noticing how China treats their citizens because the spotlight is on The Olympics. The struggle of Tibet, Tiananmen Square, and other approaches to political dissidence, sweatshops, and their environmental record have been in the spotlight for much longer than their bid for the Olympics.

What I don't understand is....if China knew they were going to be host for the Olympics, why didn't they try changing their ways and policies well before. Something like the Olympics shouldn't be a catalyst for change (and quite heavy handed and malicious change at that)

This isn't an issue of cultural relativism nor ethnocentrism. It is how China will play off their Olympics as something positive with cutesy mascots and massive changes to their infrastructure (for the sake of looking relevant) while fucking people, animals, and the environment up.

Yeah change can be good, but should it include murdering people and animals alike just for an athletic event

[Burnout18]

I'll boycott the summer olympics. Actually i had no plans to watch any events, so i dont know if it is a true boycott.

[jennyb]

I honestly don't know all that much about China to speak intelligently about it, but the spattering of things I do catch wind of about this place (like this story) really is off putting. I get the impression there is a disregard for living things in general. I'd love to hear a happy fluffy story about stuff that goes down in China. ...and don't get me started on my silent and grumpy coworker who is originally from Hong Kong, she's definately NOT a good ambassador!

[Schmeltz]

This isn't an issue of cultural relativism nor ethnocentrism.

Actually that's exactly what it is. I think it's difficult to demand that the PRC deal with its civic problems in the same way as Western societies do. ericlee is right: China is a huge political and ethnic unit that confronts monumental internal problems of a sort very different from those we experience in North America or Europe, and I doubt it's realistic to expect the Chinese authorities to deal with these problems in any way other than one which reflects their capacities and ability.

The original link only reinforces this sense of cultural diffusion and misunderstanding. "Secretive government pounds"? "Death camps"? Is the Chinese government really mounting some kind of feline final solution, or are they trying to deal with a troublesome and unhygienic pest problem with the tools and structures they have available, in the only way that seems practical? Are the Chinese authorities actually setting out to be deliberately cruel and heartless, affirming their barbarism and decadence through the commission of acts of unusual injustice and cruelty, or does it only seem that way because of the suggestive and sensationalist tone adopted by the Western media in reporting these events? I would think the latter.

There are plenty of valid reasons to dispute the wisdom behind the PRC's domestic and foreign policies, but this is way down on the list. Would it be better if the Chinese government sat back and did nothing about an uncontrolled explosion in an unsanitary and medically hazardous animal population? That doesn't make any sense, and nor does this kind of manufactured and shortsighed outrage.

[kaiser soze]

Would it be better if the Chinese government sat back and did nothing about an uncontrolled explosion in an unsanitary and medically hazardous animal population?

So, waiting just a few months before to do a mass destruction of animals rather than starting a humane neuter and spay program years well before the Olympics is the best plan China could come up with.

This is strictly cosmetic and has nothing to do with public health considering the way they are going about it...dump and destroy.

now that's healthy

[Bob]

Actually that's exactly what it is. I think it's difficult to demand that the PRC deal with its civic problems in the same way as Western societies do. ericlee is right: China is a huge political and ethnic unit that confronts monumental internal problems of a sort very different from those we experience in North America or Europe, and I doubt it's realistic to expect the Chinese authorities to deal with these problems in any way other than one which reflects their capacities and ability.

The original link only reinforces this sense of cultural diffusion and misunderstanding. "Secretive government pounds"? "Death camps"? Is the Chinese government really mounting some kind of feline final solution, or are they trying to deal with a troublesome and unhygienic pest problem with the tools and structures they have available, in the only way that seems practical? Are the Chinese authorities actually setting out to be deliberately cruel and heartless, affirming their barbarism and decadence through the commission of acts of unusual injustice and cruelty, or does it only seem that way because of the suggestive and sensationalist tone adopted by the Western media in reporting these events? I would think the latter.

There are plenty of valid reasons to dispute the wisdom behind the PRC's domestic and foreign policies, but this is way down on the list. Would it be better if the Chinese government sat back and did nothing about an uncontrolled explosion in an unsanitary and medically hazardous animal population? That doesn't make any sense, and nor does this kind of manufactured and shortsighed outrage.

yeah but it's china man, fuck china

[Audio.]

Italy must not participate at the Peking Olympics. The Olympic Games are tainted by the blood of the Tibetans. At Lhasa, at least a hundred people have died, some of them burned alive. They were protesting on the anniversary date of the bloody Chinese repression of 1959.
Buddhism is not a conquering religion, and it has not brought about centuries-long conflicts like the monotheistic religions have. A Buddhist may be killed, but he does not kill. The Chinese Government has threatened further bloodshed unless the Tibetans stop the protests by next Monday. The Chinese Government threatens them in their own country, an occupied country. It threatens a population, a large part of which has been forced into exile. Whose monasteries have been destroyed. Whose identity it is seeking to destroy by means of savage immigration.
The Tibetans are one of the most peace-loving peoples on the face of the Earth. For decades now the slitty-eyes have been inflicting a mini-holocaust on these people, but the West has continued to look the other way. “Pecunia WTO non olet”. Neither Valium nor the psychodwarf saw fit to receive the Dalai Lama when he visited Italy last autumn. He was treated like a pariah, in other words, business first, then human rights. These are our great strategists: Italy’s shame in the eyes of the international community.
The Italian athletes must boycott the Olympics. They must speak out against dictatorship, as this will certainly be the greatest achievement of their entire lives. Their children and grandchildren will be proud of them. Many Italians will look up to them. I am willing to host them in my home during the Olympics and, as reimbursement, I will pay them to be my personal trainers.
The Peking Olympics cannot be allowed to take place on the back of the massacres at Lhasa. For every Olympic final event and for every prize giving, there will be the memory of a Tibetan killed and a Nation raped under the rest of the world’s indifferent stare. I met with the Dalai Lama in Milan. The man I met with was a good man, open and friendly, but at the same time absolutely determined to give his people back their freedom. I salute him from this blog.
Say No to the bloodstained Olympics.

http://www.beppegrillo.it/english.php

I was looking extremely forward to seeing the Olympics but now, I really dont. They killed it for me.

[Schmeltz]

What the fuck, man. "The slitty-eyes." Did you actually just quote somebody who referred to the entirety of the Chinese nation as "the slitty-eyes"? What the fuck century are we living in?

What incentive is there for the PRC to develop (spontaneously and immediately) programs of humane and considerate pest extermination when people in our very privileged and idealistic society are apparently determined to cast their every effort to deal with such difficult problems as evidence of the essential social failure of Chinese society? This is ridiculous. It may very well be that this is the best way the Chinese government could come up with to deal with a very real problem. It does not mean that the Chinese consider cats and Tibetans to be the same sort of non-human prey for their inhuman imperialist decadence.

It doesn't make any sense to demand that a nation like China instantly develop the tools and capacities that are available to a nation like America. It would be wonderful if the PRC could handle a dramatically explosive and unhealthy pest problem in a way that conformed to the ethical standards we have come to expect from our own societies, but that's a totally irrealistic notion. The Chinese authorities are going about the resolution of this unique problem in the best way they know how. It might not be perfect, but given the historical trajectory of their nation what the hell else are they supposed to do?

It's poor practice to judge other societies by the cultural standards of your own experience. I think that there would be a lot less outrage about this comparatively minor transgression if people devoted more consideration to the colossal and fundamental problems faced by a country like China, and less thought to the fate of a few thousand ill-kept and unhealthy animals. This is a symptom of a much more profound and difficult disease; there is no simple cure that will solve the problem and the Chinese government can hardly be blamed for taking what measures present themselves for the resolution of a real and pragmatic problem, especially given the significance of the notable cultural events slated to take place within their borders.

There are too many assumptions at work in this self-congratulatory condemnation. I don't think it holds up very well.

[kaiser soze]

The animals are just the tip of the iceberg Schmeltz

Hundreds Dead (http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=080317090321.tp9mvvpd&show_article=1)

China is not a poor nation and they are not as naive and "culturally challenged" as you think. They know what they are doing and know that nobody will tell them otherwise because of their international economic clout.

If you haven't noticed China does live in the 21st century

[Schmeltz]

Well I'm certainly not going to defend China's human rights record, but the thread is about cats, not human rights, and in spite of its progress in some fields China continues to develop and struggle with its capacities in others. That's just a fact.

I think some of the people writing in this thread are the ones who are "culturally challenged."

[roosta]

They're also on a Tibetan killing spree....

[ericlee]

Fuck the cats. I'd say the Tibetan issue is alot bigger.

What can we do besides boycotting the Olympics? Sanctions?

[roosta]

Fuck the cats. I'd say the Tibetan issue is alot bigger.

What can we do besides boycotting the Olympics? Sanctions?

I dont think anyones gonna do anything large. End of the day, most Joe soaps world wide wont be financially supporting the Olympics either way, just watching it on telly. And even if we didn't its still gonna play and the advertisers will have pre-paid anyway.

Get the athlete's to boycott? I dunno, they've trained for 4 years, it would be a shame to punish them. Even if it is for a truely important cause.

As for sanctions? All the big nations wanna be in bed with the Chinese, its such a huge emerging market. They're not gonna do anything.

Hopefully we'll get some kind of black power salute on the podium type thing.

[Carlos]

yeah the cat issue whilst being sad, is just that; an 'issue'. what is going on as regards to Tibet, and other parts of china is much, much more.

It's the elephant in the room: our governments and media are fully aware that china is as bad if not worse than any other dictator/bannana republic out there.. but just so happens china has been fueling our rampant material desires with cheap goods, therefore bolstering an otherwise delicate (as we are now seeing) economy.

It's sick that those with the greatest power and influence are allowed to do what they like, as long as they keep buying and selling oil in dollars!! Iran is way way way less an axis of evil than china: but just so happens Iran (following Saddam in 2000, and N.Korea) decided to buy and sell oil in euros - see any pattern there?

The chinese probably thought the olympics would be good for them, a chance to show off their economic might, however I have the (warm) feeling it is gonna backfire BADLY. For the first time in a decade the worlds press if again focusing on Tibet... As for what we can do - don't buy any coke products, and Maccy'D's, or any of the other dollar grabbing multi-national fucks that are using this to promote themselves!!

[Audio.]

so dont buy food in USD:confused:

edit: sigh, I'm a dumbass

fine, Its reasonable not to support those that are supporting the Olympics. so I guess that will be my protest.

[ericlee]

and to stay on topic, I'll say this.

I'm probably the most unkeen person on views in politics. But, I'm not unkeen on experiences and p.o.v of actually being there. I can't stand the fact of the media only pushing heart wrenching issues such as this.

We're Americans and westerners who has a heart for animals and take them into our homes. It's terrific to see a dog completely come in and adapt your lifestyle and fit in. Same goes with a cat or any other animal, insect or whatever.

Man, I went down an unpopulated highway in China on a bus and stopped at a rest stop and there was a tractor trailer stacked 6 shelves high that had all kinds of mangy looking dogs in it. I've got pictures to share but, I honestly took no offense to it.

Day by day, at least 400 or more of the same trailors roam through with destinations of what can boggle the mind. You have to think about it.

That's alot of dogs. There's alot of people. Things can spread.

There's alot more stray cats.

[ericlee]

and now to the Tibet issue that really frustrates me the most with our government.

And I'll start with military. First of all, you people that read all the bad shit about the American military, just listen.

I think now is a great time to send us and coalition forces there as a voluntary effort. Not to show guns, hatred or to be misguided as we are in the mid-east.

To provide aid and assistance. I'm sure alot of ancient and timeless artifacts are being destroyed, alot of homes, etc. Not spirit though.

I don't think you could ever destroy a buddhist spirit, no matter how hard you push the war machine.

But hey, we're too busy spending money and effort in a meaningless and nowhere ending war. This is one of the reasons I said fuck it after my last contract.

[battyriders]

did you say you would send in the military? into china?