TripAdvisor to stop selling tickets to many animal attractions 

TripAdvisor announced this week that by early 2017, it will stop selling tickets to hundreds of attractions that threaten the health or wellbeing of wild animals, such as elephant rides, tiger petting, and swimming with dolphins. Bookings for zoos and aquariums will still be allowed. They already exclude bookings that involve killing or injuring captive animals.   

Nonhuman Rights Project statement on Dolphinarus Arizona 

 There was some disappointing news for dolphins this week. A new aquarium featuring eight bottle-nosed dolphins opens today in Arizona. The dolphins will be kept in small tanks and tickets will be sold to allow humans to interact with them directly in their tanks. It will be interesting to see what the public response to this. The psychological effects of captivity on dolphins and orcas, who spend the majority of their time in small tanks, has been well publicized in recent years, particularly by documentaries like Blackfish and The Cove. which have drawn attention to the issue of cetacean captivity and slaughter. 

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLOeH-Oq_1Y     

Judge rules religious rights trump animal rights 

A temporary restraining order was lifted just before Yom Kippur that would have disallowed the practice of Kaparot in a California synagogue. During the ritual, people twirl chickens in the air above their heads and reciting a prayer to transfer their sins to the chickens, and then they kill the chickens. 

This case helps demonstrate what a bizarre jumble of laws there are regarding nonhuman animals. According to lawyers working on behalf of the animals, “It is illegal in California and most other states to intentionally kill an animal as punishment for sins,” and the case against it will continue. The synagogue that was targeted in the lawsuit is objecting that it violates their First Amendment rights. Ritual animal slaughter is not automatically protected under religious freedom, although in particular cases it has been deemed legal. 

Unfortunately, bans against animal abuse are highly political and don’t always stick. A ban against greyhound racing in Australia was just overturned this week in Australia. Last year in California, business interests challenged a foie gras ban in federal court and the ban was overturned on the grounds that it “was unconstitutional because it interfered with an existing federal law that regulates poultry products.” The ban was passed on moral grounds that acknowledged the sentience of the animals, but notice the economic language of the applicable federal law that refers to the geese as “products.”  

This exotic animal ban could kick Ringling Brothers out of NYC

Let’s hope there’s better luck for a proposed ban on the use of wild and “exotic” animals in circuses in New York City. This would kick Ringling Brothers out. A ban is already in place in Jersey City, and a Los Angeles ban on bull hooks has effectively banned wild animal circuses, since they are unable to control the animals without them.

In response to pressure, changing laws, and economic loss, Ringling Brothers recently announced that starting in 2018 their shows will no longer feature elephants.  

END Wildlife Tracking Becomes Law 

 In other legal news, a new federal law aimed at ending the poaching and trafficking of wild animals has just passed. There is particular concern about elephants and rhinoceroses, and this law will facilitate international cooperation on these issues.   

Jurassic World 2 Will Be a Parable for the Treatment of Animals 

According to Colin Trevorrow, the director of the first Jurassic World movie, in Jurassic World 2  

The dinosaurs will be a parable of the treatment animals receive today: the abuse, medical experimentation, pets, having wild animals in zoos like prisons, the use the military has made of them, animals as weapons. 

The movie isn’t scheduled for release until the summer of 2018, so not much more is known about it, except that there will be more horror and suspense than in the first film and less on the theme of the militarization of dinosaurs.   

Moby releases his most political album

 Moby, a longtime vegan, has shifted his focus more toward animal rights in recent years. He owns a vegan restaurant in the Los Angeles area called Little Pine, and has just released a highly political album called These Systems Are Failing. 

The song below called “Don’t Leave Me” is written from the perspective of animals who are part of the animal agriculture system.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jtL3Jsl2ieE 

You can listen to more on Moby’s website.    

Steemit Articles 

Dragonflies, the ultimate flying machines and inspiration for drone technology  by @quinneaker

Some lovely pictures of snails by @patelincho 

Common animals likes snails usually get no respect, but here they are celebrated in photos when they come out after the rain.   

The problem of moral exclusion and dehumanization by @dana-edwards

This is an old article in internet time, but still before the second payout if you want to give it an upvote. @dana-edwards discusses the problem of moral exclusion and talks about the different ways humans and persons are considered and have been considered historically. 

As noted in the article, this is relevant to nonhuman animals as well since they are morally excluded as a matter of course, and scientific definitions of personhood (which apply to apes, dolphins, elephants, and some birds) are not recognized by the law or society at large.  

Also check out the insightful comment by @krnel at the top of the comments section.  

@telos points out that “Most of the people dehumanizing groups would fail to qualify as human” according to a common definition of “human.”