“MINE” opens today in San Francisco, CA. May it crash and burn for lack of an audience! I will not put one penny into the AR arsenal.
Disasters are a part of life and Hurricane Katrina was a tremendous disaster, to say the least. Phenomenal amounts of property were lost but much also survived. Those who escaped Katrina had expectations of losing what the storm took but it seems that others have been looting their property from nearly the moment Katrina passed and that looting continues to this day in many forms. Some of that property was alive – pets.
“Harris's story is just one of a host of accounts of distraught pet owners forced to abandon animals they consider part of the family. In the wake of the hurricane thousands of survivors clinging to their pets were told by emergency workers to leave them behind. Some did, but others refused, choosing to stay with their animals despite dangerous conditions.” And then came the well funded “rescuers”, swooping in to take the pets. It’s sad really; the way most of them blew in picked up a few animals, did their photo ops, broadcast their pleas for donations, and then left. Some did much more than that. But either way they carted the pets off declaring their intent to reunite them with owners but little attempt at that was really made.
While the displaced survivors of Katrina were housed in substandard situations simply trying to locate family members and without funds or government permission to return home and while struggling to feed and clothe themselves, their pets were removed and the organizations began to sell (aka adopt) them to others.
To me this is all very simple. Pets are personal property. Alive but still property in which each of us has constitutionally protected and often statutorily protected property rights. PERIOD. Most of us have close bonds with our pets and we often call them family. That does not change the simple fact that they are personal, private property; nothing more and nothing less. Debate the value, emotional and in dollars, property does have a variety of characteristics to be considered in valuation. Nonetheless, it is property. If someone swooped in and took a family farms productive animals like this, there would be less debate about their character as property. Ah, but that day is actually already here but not on the front pages much, not yet at least.
If someone is in a position to help animals after a disaster, to care for them while they are in need, that’s wonderful. It is always wonderful when we reach out to help one another. What is not wonderful is to gain access to a disaster area under that pretense and then proceed to permanently deprive others of their property, their animals. That is looting. That is conversion. It is unethical and despicable. It is usually a crime and, if the animal rights activists are correct that pets have a high value (a point on which I would willingly agree), then it should be a felony to take them from the rightful owner.
MINE is being described as a documentary. I’d say it’s closer to yellow journalism.
“Randy Turner. An attorney in Texas, Randy is an animal lover who is working pro-bono on behalf of the shelter that rehabilitated Linda Charles' German Shepherd. His clients are being sued based on Louisiana property laws, which consider pets property and give original ‘owners’ 3 years to reclaim their animals. ‘It's unfortunate that animals are being treated as property, that the animal has no rights. Someone needs to look at these cases and decide what's best for the animal,’ he comments. ‘It's not about who's richer, who has a bigger yard, but there needs to minimum standards of care and should be determined whether Ms. Charles can provide that care for this dog.’”
Obviously, the law here is clear. Interesting how they put the word owner in quotes. That alone tells me the film makers have no respect for property rights, for the rights of animal owners; that their film is intended for other purposes. The film “tells the story from both sides -- from the perspective of the original guardian who has lost their dog, and the new family who has adopted it.” Same here: “original guardian” v. “adoptive family”. NO, NO, NO. There is an owner and a purchaser; plain and simple. The purchaser bought stolen goods. Generally, when you buy stolen goods and that fact comes to light, you have to GIVE IT BACK and we all know that. This film doesn’t tell a news type story, it exploits the Katrina victims one more time.
Maybe the “rescuers” didn’t know they were stealing, you ask? If they didn’t, then maybe they weren’t qualified to be there in the first place! I believe they knew and didn’t care. They are members of the animal rights movement that believes your pets don’t belong to you; that others (especially they) have the right to tell you what you may or may not do with your pets. They would dictate what can be bred (or prohibit it), when it must be spayed/neutered (despite deadly consequences and life long medical problems from too early procedures), if, when, and to/from whom you sell/buy. In fact, they think they can dictate every element of your relationship with your pet. They are all over the world attempting to take property from others. In reality, their motive is simpler than that. They want to control, to dictate. Just that simple. We all know people like that who simply have to be dictating to others. These groups have merely found a sympathetic cause to spin while they enjoy the control, the high from forcing others to buckle to their will.
You can see the trailer for the film here. Please note how they capture the owners’ insecurity and pain and saying their pets are “family”. If someone had my animal after Katrina, I would be screaming at the top of my lungs: GIVE MY DOG BACK RIGHT NOW!!! I can assure you that, if I could locate my animals, I would simply go get it; no doubt about that one. In case you still have some doubts about the intent of the film makers… Their sponsors are “In Defense of Animals” and “PAWS”. “Potential avenues for outreach Providing the film to animal rescue, rights and welfare groups free of charge for educational and fundraising events.”
Everyone on their SPONSORS page is on my DO NOT SUPPORT list. Ouch, this one’s going to hurt. My girls ADORE Nylabones. Well, too bad because we’ll have to make due without them.
GIVE THE KATRINA ANIMALS BACK TO THEIR REAL OWNERS!
DO IT NOW
If you decide to BOYCOTT to express your opinion, don’t forget to tell the company you’re boycotting and exactly why.