In FY 2007, More than 150 million cattle, sheep, and other animals destined for human consumption were slaughtered in the U.S. The U.S. Dept. of Agriculture¿s (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service is responsible for enforcing the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act (HMSA), which mandates that animals are handled and slaughtered humanely. There have been many reports that address fed. oversight of the U.S. food safety system. This testimony focuses on: (1) a 2004 report on the frequency and scope of reported HMSA violations and enforcement actions by USDA; (2) information on trends in staffing and funding for USDA food inspections; and (3) information on overall fed. oversight of food safety. Illustrations.
Author: United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Subcommittee on Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of Columbia
Veterinarians are essential for controlling zoonotic diseases -- which spread between animals and humans -- such as avian influenza. Most fed. veterinarians work in the Depts. of Agriculture, DoD, and Health and Human Services. However, there is a growing national shortage of veterinarians. This report determined the extent to which: (1) the fed. gov¿t. has assessed the sufficiency of its veterinarian workforce for routine activities; (2) the fed. gov¿t. has identified the veterinarian workforce needed during a catastrophic event; and (3) fed. and state agencies encountered veterinarian workforce challenges during four recent zoonotic outbreaks. Charts and tables.
New technological innovations offer significant opportunities to promote and protect human rights. At the same time, they also pose undeniable risks. In some areas, they may even be changing what we mean by human rights. The fact that new technologies are often privately controlled raises further questions about accountability and transparency and the role of human rights in regulating these actors. This volume - edited by Molly K. Land and Jay D. Aronson - provides an essential roadmap for understanding the relationship between technology and human rights law and practice. It offers cutting-edge analysis and practical strategies in contexts as diverse as autonomous lethal weapons, climate change technology, the Internet and social media, and water meters. This title is also available as Open Access.
Few things get our compassion flowing like the sight of suffering. But our response is often shaped by our ability to empathize with others. Some people respond to the suffering of only humans or to one person’s plight more than another’s. Others react more strongly to the suffering of an animal. These divergent realities can be troubling—but they are also a reminder that trauma and suffering are endured by all beings, and we can learn lessons about their aftermath, even across species. With Phoenix Zones, Dr. Hope Ferdowsian shows us how. Ferdowsian has spent years traveling the world to work with people and animals who have endured trauma—war, abuse, displacement. Here, she combines compelling stories of survivors with the latest science on resilience to help us understand the link between violence against people and animals and the biological foundations of recovery, peace, and hope. Taking us to the sanctuaries that give the book its title, she reveals how the injured can heal and thrive if we attend to key principles: respect for liberty and sovereignty, a commitment to love and tolerance, the promotion of justice, and a fundamental belief that each individual possesses dignity. Courageous tales show us how: stories of combat veterans and wolves recovering together at a California refuge, Congolese women thriving in one of the most dangerous places on earth, abused chimpanzees finding peace in a Washington sanctuary, and refugees seeking care at Ferdowsian’s own medical clinic. These are not easy stories. Suffering is real, and recovery is hard. But resilience is real, too, and Phoenix Zones shows how we can foster it. It reveals how both people and animals deserve a chance to live up to their full potential—and how such a view could inspire solutions to some of the greatest challenges of our time.
