Matching Tracksuits

Day: January 23, 2007

PETA Suit (Taken Off)

Tuesday 23 January 2007

I heard about this on NPR coming home the other day: Jury selection begins in animal cruelty trial of PETA activists. According to the article,

Jury selection began Monday in the trial of two animal rights activists charged with animal cruelty after they were discovered dumping dead animals in a trash bin.

Adria J. Hinkle, of Norfolk, Va., and Andrew B. Cook, of Virginia Beach, Va., are charged with 21 counts each of animal cruelty in addition to charges of littering and obtaining property by false pretenses. Both volunteered with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, or PETA.

PETA on the receiving end of an animal abuse case?

According to NPR, this is all just a big misunderstanding, the PETA defense team explains. This local PETA chapter had some kind of agreement with the shelter from which Hinkle and Cook were taking the animals. They were apparently supposed to be euthanizing animals, and the volunteers’ only mistake, PETA lawyers explain, was where they chose to leave the bodies.

There’s something more than a little odd about this. PETA, euthanizing animals? That sounds about like the NRA melting down illegal assault rifles.

I went to PETA’s web site this morning to see if I could find anything out about this odd ly ironic case. Instead, I got distracted by PETA’s State of the Union Undress (Warning: the video contains nudity). Apparently, PETA thinks if it has buxom volunteers undress while talking about animal rights, it will get a more attentive audience. One has to wonder what demographic the animal rights organization is targeting with such tactics, and whether said demographic will be receptive to PETA’s vegan animal rights position.

This End Up

Tuesday 23 January 2007

L has problems with reflux (or call it colic). That is to say, heartburn. That is to say, she can’t lie down for too long.

Which means we have to keep her upright most of the time.

Which is why a baby wrap is essential for us.

Basically, it’s a sling for your kid. It goes criss-cross (applesauce) across L’s back and between her legs, giving her whole body support. And freeing up both hands.

K uses it most of the time, since she’s still at home on maternity leave and, much as she loves our daughter, doesn’t want to spend all her time hovering over a reflux-y baby who requires constant soothing. This allows K to do all the wonderful things attached to having a newborn: laundry, laundry, and, from time to time, laundry.

When going out on a cool-ish day, it has the added benefit of keeping L close to a source of warmth.

Lastly, when you’re dealing with a newborn, you don’t want to have a lot of people touching her. Keeping the infant wrapped keeps her in your own personal space, and while strangers will willingly and gleefully (and with the absolute best intentions) invade an infant’s personal space, they’re not so willing to do so if the infant is close to the parent.

For those interested/curious, the kind we got (Hug a Bub) can be on the expensive side if you’re not careful. Looking back on it, we overpaid. Still, it was worth it even at that price.