Protest scheduled for Charles River Laboratories in Co. Mayo

by Damien again Sun Oct 25, 2009 22:22

Stop calling me Damo, it makes me cringe especially when the picture I have of you in my head is of some geek who spends her time fleeting between the laboratory and a nice free lunch. And stop with your fancy words, it must make you feel like your are saving the earth's population by finding the cure to some exotic disease. that nobody actually caught until relatively recently. What was the name of Steffanson's book again? And why did some of the natives in his and Dr Price's study never suffer from cancer and in fact had no word in their vocabulary for 'cancer'? Makes a mockery of your claim that fancy in viva vitra bollocks to that whatever you calll it is saving the world.

by Redless Sun Oct 25, 2009 01:43

Beyond ideals here Damo, I spend my time developing in vitro alternatives to in vivo, and have done so for the past 20 odd years... unlike the NARA shower, I am actually doing something about it.

by Damien Sat Oct 24, 2009 23:21

Nigeria, is in Africa. Last time I checked anyway. Nigeria, where they tested the Trovan on the lil black babbies. Where you got Brazil from I'll never know. Another random assumption plucked out of Cloud Cuckoo Land. Unless they tested it there as well? My point regards Brazil, was that it is one of many countries that suffer from Pfizer's shady practices.

'My' NARA 'shower'?

I told you I'm not a member, but help out in anyway I can. I can't join every sigle activist group going, but I'll try help out if possible. As opposed to sitting behind a computer bemoaning the fact other people have ideals and morals.
You should check out Dr Mercola's website, and maybe subscribe to Natural News as well. Quite interesting updates on big Pharma's Sordid Little Scams.

Finally, I don't control my dog, she turned up one day and hasn't left since. You should be set free in the woods.

by RedBitch Sat Oct 24, 2009 22:59

Ok,,, we have done Science, History...now Geography
Brazil is in South America .
Are you Britney Spears by any chance ?

And your NARA shower do not allow "non human animals" to be controlled or owned as "pets" so set your doggy free in the woods now.

by Damien Sat Oct 24, 2009 20:03

You're missing my point. The 'scientist' in this study ,much like in all other clinical trials is paid handsomely to conduct clinical trials that are in favour of a particular drug. Then you come on here touting the efficacy and safety of them and how they are meticulously scrutinised. Nonsense, to repeat my point again, a pharmaceutical company, after 'inventing' a disease (disease mongering) will conduct 10-12 clinical trials, cherry-pick the more successful ones and slip a few dollar$ to the FDA. The drug will then net the company billion$ while killing a few hundred-thousand souls.

At no point in my post did I mention I would like them to give the drug out for free in South America, I never even mentioned the place. But I'm getting used to you inventing stuff about me. Business as usual in your fantasy land.

Therefore it shouldn't be unreasonable to expect them to sell it at a reasonable price i.e. no price gouging, and when the patent expires then equally it's not a big ask to let them allow the generic version become available as opposed to fighting lengthy legal battles.

Disease Mongering= Restless Leg Syndrome/ Social Anxiety Disorder/PMDD/Mild Discomfort Disorder/Motivational Deficiency Disorder/Shiver When It's Cold Syndrome etc etc

Now I'm off to check on my dog, she has recently been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Doggy Disorder

by Damien Fri Oct 23, 2009 22:33

Ok, I hate it when it happens, and I can't help feeling smug. And I've succumbed to temptation, and did a little background check on the authors of that 'ground-breaking' study.

http://jac.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/full/57/6/1235

"L. J. W. is on the speaker panel for Pfizer, Fujisawa Healthcare Inc., and Merck and is a consultant and investigator for Schering-Plough".

What else is the guy going to say, he's on Pfizer's payroll FFS!

Case closed. Vindicated.

by Damien Fri Oct 23, 2009 22:29

"how did I guess I was going to get Pfizer, Roche, Merck blather from you"

You brought them up first.

Whoever said I was a member of NARA? There you go surmising again. I didn't, but I help out in any way I can. Similarly there are other groups who's ethos I don't follow 100% but who I will give full support to.

You sent me a clinical trial? I can't be bothered but if I really wanted to check, as I've done and proved before, each of them names at the start will no doubt have strong financial ties to Pfizer. The revieww board, will seat several high ranking figures in the pharmaceutical world. And the trial will no doubt have been cherry picked, you didn't send me the other 9 whose results weren't favourable? ;-)

by RedFaces Fri Oct 23, 2009 21:22

Good man Damo, you make less sense as you continue. And how did I guess I was going to get Pfizer, Roche, Merck blather from you ... oh and fluconazole was also tested on guess what... apart from corporate scumbags making a profit on their patents (how dare them)... they tested the stuff on our furry friends.

Anyhow maybe posting on a NARA discussion blog isnt for you or your sharp little incisors;
from their mission statement...

"We all follow a strict vegan diet. We feel that one cannot campaign for animal rights while consuming any animal products. Apart from the murder and extreme suffering involved, nothing that comes from an animal is ours to take. To do so would be a rights violation in itself. "

So lets all turn the world into the Hunza valley and live forever...tra-la-la ... in the meantime while Laura Broxson and her 6 merry vegheads are saving the world in Ballina ... you go ahead enjoy your rump steak, (ps, it is safe, dont worry).

meat is redrum redrum redrum ....

by Damien Fri Oct 23, 2009 15:23

"No not london during the plague ... neanderthals lived to just past 30... lived in caves... they didnt have cures for simple ailments, often got poisoned by the food they thought was safe... their "healthy" diet of nuts, berries and mushrooms often caused their death.... you should try that lifestyle, see how you get on."

The Hunza tribe live in the foot of the Himalayas, they eat a diet predominantly consisting of nuts, berries, mushrooms, in fact its all plant based. Haven't seen too many of them keeling over.

by Damien Fri Oct 23, 2009 15:20

"By the way your turn of the century missionary mate Vilhjálmur Stefánsson also promoted a 100% meat diet, based on studies he carried out on the Inuit. Imagine eating the flesh of those cuddly seals and little fishies ... Another own goal... huh...Damian?"

Not really, at no pint in my post did I mention being a Vegan, Vegetarian or anything of the like. So again, your arrogance comes to the fore in surmising what I am and what I am not. I have incisors etc and I have these for a reason. It is an evolutionary fact I need to eat meat. I also eat it because I like it. This attitude towards animals however doesn't extend to injecting them with poisons and dripping chemicals into their eyes, in the name of profit.

"Go and get the facts before you spout forth... think outside your own smug optional-vegan tree hugging lifestyle ... there are millions of people who depend on "drugs, made from chemicals" for the basics that you take for granted."

Again you're surmising , I don't follow a vegan tree-hugging lifestyle, but I do what I can to protect the environment and end the suffering of animals.

"think about kids dying from malaria in the tropics... and how a simple preventative antimalarial drug can prevent this. Now go read up on this and see how new anti malarials urgently need to be developed to combat inherited resistance of the malaria parasite. And dont feed me back the Pfizer/ Roche/Merck blah blah"

You're obviously not familiar then with the kids continuing to die in the tropics as you probably envision some noble scientist toiling away in a laboratory through the night trying to find a cure for malaria or AIDS. Ironic therefore that you mention Pfizer; Global Exchange Corporation Watch, (amongst other multinational monitors) continually target Pfizer for their practice of price gouging, price fixing, monopolising drugs etc. http://www.globalexchange.org/getInvolved/corporateHRvi....html
(AIDS killed 3.1 million people in 2004, a shocking death rate that could be greatly reduced if treatment was made available to people who right now cannot afford it. Pfizer and other drug companies have refused to grant generic licenses for HIV/AIDS drugs to countries like Brazil, South Africa, and the Dominican Republic, where patients are forced to pay $20 per weekly pill for drugs like fluconazole, though the average national wage is only $120 per month). Not to mention Pfizers paltry fine for trovan or their whpping fine last month $2.3 billion for peddling Bextra for other diseases.

"Food safety... yes your food (even your organic health foods) are subjected to many tests before they can be sold. So is your water... go read up on that.... then if you dont like it, it'sback to the cave with you."

My rump steak that I buy in the butchers has had to be subjected to a Clinical Study before it's safe to eat?

by Feudal castrato Fri Oct 23, 2009 11:46

my "spawn of satan" comment was just a humourous reference to the name of the person I was responding to. It refers to the (I thought) mainstream film "the omen" plus infinitely worsening sequels where the child, damien thorn was thought to be the "spawn of satan"

by d.j. jazzyjeff Fri Oct 23, 2009 11:27

Petrol-bombing Oxford University and targeting of student residences? “The end justifies the means” in the fight for animal liberty, says Laura Broxson, spokesperson for the National Animal Rights Association. NARA has stepped up its campaign against Trinity College in the past week, offering students a “reward” for any photographs of animal experimentation. So far, NARA has had no luck.

The association’s website champions twelve sentence-serving “Vegan Animal Rights Prisoners”, each imprisoned for their part in the extremist Animal Liberation Front’s ‘New Wave’ of violent activity. The ALF has been named the “most serious domestic terrorist threat within the United Kingdom” by the former director of the University of St Andrews’ Centre for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence.

During the 80’s they sent a string of letterbombs to high-profile targets such as then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. Of ALF convicts, NARA says that “the only thing these people are guilty of is having the courage to speak up for animals, and for being brave enough to stand up against the cruelty that is inflicted upon them. They are not criminals, they are freedom fighters.”

Amongst NARA’s listed heroes is the “Animal Liberation Front’s top bomber” Donald Currie. Currie was arrested after he rigged a car to explode, throwing another bomb into a nearby family garden during his flight from the police. NARA encourages visitors to their website to send Currie cheques, postal orders and messages of support.

Another prisoner being supplied with cash by NARA is Mel Broughton, arrested for the 2007 planting of petrol bombs in Oxford University. Broughton was the spokesperson for the SPEAK campaign, which had been leading an animal rights campaign in protest against the university’s lab testing. Oxford had won an injunction against the protesters a year before attacks became violent, claiming that vandalism had increased and that the entire town of Oxford was “living under constant threat”. ALF head Robin Webb told the media that student accommodation was a legitimate target. Yet another of NARA’s heroes is Johnny Ablewhite, currently serving 15 years for blackmailing the Hall family, then owners of a guinea pig farm in Staffordshire. He offered the return of their deceased mother-in-law’s remains, which recently had been exhumed.

It’s not just the website that has links to the ALF. So too does Laura Broxson, NARA’s spokesperson, a Trinity News investigation has revealed. Broxson has been behind the release of communiqués she claims were passed on to NARA from the Animal Liberation Front. One such press release claimed responsibility for the attempted release of 200 mink from a farm in Laois. The farm had been picketed for a number of months by the Coalition Against the Fur Trade Ireland, whose spokesperson is also Laura Broxson. The message is typical of the tone of the ALF, stating “Una and Michael Heffernan are responsible for murdering over 45,000 Mink on this death camp every year. It’s time to make them pay for this. The ALF will be back, Una and Michael”.

While picketing outside the Arts Building, NARA handed out leaflets headlined “Wanted: verifiable, usabel, releveant photos/footage of animal experimentation at Trinity College. Let’s expose Trinity College’s hidden shame”. When asked whether any volunteers have come forward with videos, NARA replied that so far they have not received any replies despite offering a reward.

“NARA will not stop its campaign against Trinity until animal testing is abandoned”, Broxson told Trinity News. Confronted about the violent methods condoned on the NARA website, she responded “We‘re not going to distance ourselves from those methods. I would say the end justifies the means. A car is an inanimate object, it doesn’t harm anyone if it’s bombed.” When asked whether Trinity College should step up its security, Broxson laughed.

by RedFace Fri Oct 23, 2009 01:51

Damian... gobby fools like you make perfect recruits. Your arrogance is only equaled by your ignorance. Some clarifications that you didnt understand...

No not london during the plague ... neanderthals lived to just past 30... lived in caves... they didnt have cures for simple ailments, often got poisoned by the food they thought was safe... their "healthy" diet of nuts, berries and mushrooms often caused their death.... you should try that lifestyle, see how you get on.

Preventative pharmacueticals... ok well maybe you have not heard of these, I'm not surprised, in any case it is likely that you probably are already protected by several vaccines that have given you immunity to many diseases, which is more than the majority of our global population who dont have the health care that all the other 1st world "Damians" have. So when you are protesting... think about kids dying from malaria in the tropics... and how a simple preventative antimalarial drug can prevent this. Now go read up on this and see how new anti malarials urgently need to be developed to combat inherited resistance of the malaria parasite. And dont feed me back the Pfizer/ Roche/Merck blah blah... thats not where drug discoveries happen.

Food safety... yes your food (even your organic health foods) are subjected to many tests before they can be sold. So is your water... go read up on that.... then if you dont like it, it'sback to the cave with you.

Go and get the facts before you spout forth... think outside your own smug optional-vegan tree hugging lifestyle ... there are millions of people who depend on "drugs, made from chemicals" for the basics that you take for granted.

RedFace (Ms.)

By the way your turn of the century missionary mate Vilhjálmur Stefánsson also promoted a 100% meat diet, based on studies he carried out on the Inuit. Imagine eating the flesh of those cuddly seals and little fishies ... Another own goal... huh...Damian?

by Damien Thu Oct 22, 2009 12:30

I think you need to read my earlier points, at no stage did I say animal rights activists were the enemy. Erm...if they were then I wouldnt have went to the last Charles River Protests huh?

by Damien Thu Oct 22, 2009 12:27

Wow red faced. you really sound like you know your science. In fact you've mentioned LD50 twice which tells me you must be a really good scientist. Who are we threfore to rgue with such a learned guy. Or gal. Unfortunately, some people apply common sense and logic to solve these wonderful complex conundrums.

"we would still have a life expectancy of 35 were it not for the advent of health care and better diet, if you want to reject the benefits of modern society, go ahead and feel free to go back to the cave. "

Complete baloney. Isolated tribes around the world often lived to 100 and 120 years old. The Missionary doctors Weston Price and Vilhalmour Steffanson who lived with the natives documented this. I know I know, they didn't conduct a Double Blind, Randomized, Controlled, Independent Pairs, Blah Blah Clinical Study on the natives so it probably wont hold up to your rigorous scientific train of thought. What they did find however, and write about in their books "Nutrition and Physical Degeneration and Cancer: A Historical and Anthropological Study was that people eating health foods as nature intented did not suffer from cancer, heart disease or any of the other maladies you described. So where you plucked 35 from I don't know. London during the Plague?

What is this food safety you spout on about? I didn't realise that food, as nature intended anyway, needs to be subjected to 'tests' or 'trials'.

"there are preventitive pharmaceuticals of all sorts of treatments for ailments"

Really, such as? Taking a drug, made from chemicals, will prevent me getting sick? I just thought eating healthy and staying away from chemicals, pesticides and food additives would keep me healthy, silly me. Wish I was a scientist.

by RedFaced Wed Oct 21, 2009 23:28

Folks on both sides of the argument,

There are some animal campaigners who I have the height of respect for, these have worked tirelessly to reduce refine and replace animal testing. There has been great work done by ECVAM the (European centre for Validation of Alternative Methods) and others, however, it is unfortunate that ideology, particularly when it comes to emotive issues is often ruined by those activists that want to get involved, but are usually misinformed or easily steered by others. All I can say to those is: carry on using your animal free cosmetics and cleaning products you are helping reduce the numbers of animal testing, but don't enter discussion on drug testing, LD50 or any other toxicological,development of surgical, food safety or any other knee jerk issues you may have heard about in passing on youtube, google or wiki this or that.... and for that matter ranting about spawn of satan and sociopathic corporation bullshit ...please. Get off your bandwagon , we would still have a life expectancy of 35 were it not for the advent of health care and better diet, if you want to reject the benefits of modern society, go ahead and feel free to go back to the cave.

For the rest of us who are serious about animal replacement, we know there are drugs that many people rely upon for life, there are surgical techniques that save lives, there are preventitive pharmaceuticals of all sorts of treatments for ailments, the safety of the food that we eat and water that we depend on, and these involve testing as part of extensive development that takes years, goes through all sorts of safety evaluations and validation. Professionals in food and drug safety are all working without exception to reduce and replace animals in such safety evaluations. That is a fact. These tests are not carried out without long design considerations and your impression that these are carried out unregulated and are whimsical is absolutely incorrect.

Yes I have no doubt that you think you know from your Googling all about all of these things, but don't come on spouting about LD50 etc unless you are fully informed about what is involved in setting safe and effective pharmaceutical dosages, then, and only then if you think that these can be set without animal evaluations, feel free to comment. But please do not ruin your own argument without complete and thorough knowledge of the facts. Also, don't talk about compassion before you ask the view of a mother of a child with cystic fibrosis, or epilipsy... talk to people with chronic diabetes or heart illness, actually... just take a visit to your local hospital and have a walk around and talk to nurses and patients who rely on pharmaceutical that you are ultimately campaigning against.

Once you fully know your science and have some knowledge of true compassion... then decide, and hopefully get involved in the science of safety evaluations, and work along with those of us who are serious about effective reduction, refinement and replacement of animal testing.

by CreatureFeature Sun Oct 04, 2009 02:27

Freely watchable video film "earthlings" about our treatment of our fellow earthlings.
Well worth a watch.

http://www.indymedia.ie/article/85499?search_text=earth...lings

http://veg-tv.info/Earthlings

I'm hoping this plus VG's links (thx VG!) may facilitate a slightly more informed discussion on animal testing and treatment.

Personally I'm rather tired of the same old knee jerk sociopathic irrational trolling responses to any animal welfare posts.
Don't some of you people have even an ounce of compassion in you? No wonder the world is so fucked.

by VG Sun Oct 04, 2009 02:09

Here's some alternatives. apologies.

animal testing factsheets
http://www.hsus.org/animals_in_research/animal_testing/....html

LD50 test
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LD50

alex the amazing parrot (!!)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R6KvPN_Wt8I

household chemicals (useless unnecessary household crap tested wholesale on animals)
(corporate wholesale poisoning doesn't stop with animals either!)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JgKKZNqbLrY

Here's the kind of sociopathic behaviour you can expect from corporations like GSK when they are not busy animal testing or pissing and moaning about a few protestors.:

Glaxo smith kline AIDS drugs licencing Link:
http://www.aegis.com/NEWS/BW/2002/BW020901.html

by VideoGamer Sun Oct 04, 2009 01:14

Kanzi gets hi-score at Ms Pacman
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r7ttRaXlnfs

Seems this ape has the intelligence of the average middle american teen heavy metal fan. And probably a higher score at pacman!! Nicer personality than many of 'em too.
So, should we pump him full of chemical shite until he dies for a new shade of lipstick?

some more on kanzi:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=55...03685

Does this this pea brained parrot have any of that sentience?. Regardless of that, should we pump him full of chemical shite until he dies for a new shade of lipstick too?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZrk6bSz3Ro&mode=related...arch=
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7i9jZNngrg
and this is a really tiny brain we're talking about!

Here's what I'm referring to. Links on Animal testing / the LD50 test
http://www.hsus.org/animals_in_research/animal_testing/...sues/
http://www.hsus.org/animals_in_research/animal_testing/....html

Most humans indirectly support these grubby cruel business practices by our purchases, who we elect, and mostly by our silence in defence of the weak and voiceless, despite our trumpetted superiority. With Sentience comes moral responsibility. If We do not act on that , what good is sentience?

Here's some of that wonderful sentience people talk about in action.

Whats for dinner darling??
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-79606879764016...01534

Perhaps we should eat out?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MY2zgcOs9Q

Would you like a fur coat honey?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLeQBhsqprs

Yes darling, I just have to clear the drain, spray the bugs, clean the kitchen floor, then when I am finished I will try it on with my nice new animal tested makeup
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YdPp7lzPzk

Now a word from those "evil terrorists", the animal liberation front:

Huntington animal sciences
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VDuZIDvulzU&mode=related...arch=

not often mentioned in such discussions but the military conduct a lot of animal tests, often in secret, not answerable to the public and IMHO definitely not for the health and benefit of humankind or democracy

Hmm, those evil animal "terrorists" are getting out of hand. We need some
tazer experiments on pigs to perfect our proportionate response to legitimate democratic protest.
(okay okay apart from that evil terrorist use of paint!)
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-304248985242699498

I'll bet the farm that they are testing all these weapons on animals too.
http://www.wanttoknow.info/nonlethalweaponsnewsarticles

If so, would these animal tests be considered crucial to the welfare and health of humankind? (or democracy for that matter)

Surely animal and human rights activists can at least join up and support each other on common ground issues like these? If we were truly sentient we might!!!

A few interesting links on GSK and media treatment of animal rights activists here
http://www.indymedia.ie/article/76191

Happy viewing
VG.

Ps: even if you don't give a shit about animals (and most people don't, I know) you should still check out the monkey, parrot and non lethal weapons links.

kanzi, smarter than the last us president, and with a higher score on ms pacman!

by Feudal castrato Sun Oct 04, 2009 00:16

"Hey Doubled there is light at the end of the tunnel. Some Pharmaceutical companies have taken your advice and done away with animal testing. Pfizer were the first to heed your noble call, and went to Nigeria in the 90s and tested Trovan on black babies, who later died.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/20....html
The drug went on to make Pfizer billions. They were recently found guilty and paid a paltry fine- the grand sum of $50 million."

I'd expect a little better rhetoric from the spawn of satan! :-)

This post does not really say anything about animal rights activists. It just highlights what amoral shits the pharmaceutical industry are. They will happily test on animals or third world humans. As long as it gets their poison to market quickly. If they are willing to do this for profit, do you honestly believe they give a shit if some of the highly profitable drugs they are pushing occasionally have a few unexpected side effects for you or your kids?

Your mistake damien is in thinking that there is a disconnect between the blatant disregard for animal life that these scum have, and an equally blatant disregard for you and I or that poor kid in nigeria who agrees to take their dodgy medicines in return for a hot meal. The fact is a sociopath is a sociopath. Corporations are amoral profit driven sociopaths.

Animal rights activists are not the enemy here. Wake up and smell the coffee.

by Cat lover Sat Oct 03, 2009 19:08

Animal rights protestors views are far from distorted, they are highly informed. The reason people think they are distorted is because when you try to tell people what goes on they simply refuse to open their mind and accept that as people who buy cosmetics, cleaning products, toothpaste, shampoo etc. they are part of the problem. Now, before some wiseguy gets on and says 'how else will they test these cancer causing, earth polluting chemicals?, how about not using them? I buy only natural and cruelty free cosmetics and there are alot of old cleaning products on the market that are not using newly tested ingredients that people can use. For example Sainsburys do not test on animals and use old ingredients, Aldi dont test either. As for toothpaste etc. natural is not full of harmful chemicals, which people should not be using in the first place. As for Johnson and Johnson testing on babies eyes instead of rabbits, who wants to use chemical products on their baby to begin with? If they are animal tested they contain chemicals. Also all these products are tested on animals to prevent manufacturers being sued, that is a fact. A rabbit cannot cry, that is why they put these chemicals into their eyes, if a human puts the same thing into their eye it will be different as we have tear ducts to wash it out, aside from the fact that we should not be putting chemicls into shampoo etc. Herbal Essences for example is very animal tested (http://www.uncaged.co.uk/pg.htm) yet you would be inclined to think it was quite natural. If they are testing it on animals they are putting harmful chemicals in it and putting a warning label on the bottle so if something happens to a person they can say they tested it and put a warning on the bottle and some people think this is OK? The mind boggles. Animal rights people know all this because they inform themselves, unlike some posters on this website and that is why they do something about it and appear to be extreme or ridiculous. If everybody knew half of what went on in vivisection labs big businesses would collapse and nobody would be wanting that fate for their own animal. As for drug testing, open your mind and think about it, a drug is either going to help people or its not, giving it to a different species simply confuses the issue as we have all seen in the past. For information on the vast number of alternative and far more reliable (yet expensive, Big Clue Here People) methods of drug testing see here: http://www.drhadwentrust.org/ and here http://www.safermedicines.org/
Why doesnt vivisection work? See here: http://vivisection-absurd.org.uk/
Why do activists protest labs? See here: http://www.shac.net/

by Concerned Sun Sep 20, 2009 11:57

I never really knew what went on in that facility even though I pass it quite often. I'm a bit disturbed to see thats what they do. I would not be as radical as the animal rights people because their logic is always a bit distorted. but I do believe that "research facilities" like these should be monitored more.

You have to be careful though, these plants always seem to exist in areas of low unemployment and sparse population where locals are in a difficult position just like the Shell/Corrib Gas terminal 2 mins up the road in Bellanaboy. Another example of an industry being foisted onto an area by powerful big business under the guise of development and local employment.

Maybe you can go to the Rossport Solidarity Camp in Glengad (3mins drive from Charles River) and get some support. After all, there are enough anarchist/tree hugger/protestor types to lend support to your protest. Beware of the Guards in the area, protestors are like red rags to a bull for certain lobotomised members.

by Damien Sat Sep 19, 2009 13:17

Hey Doubled there is light at the end of the tunnel. Some Pharmaceutical companies have taken your advice and done away with animal testing. Pfizer were the first to heed your noble call, and went to Nigeria in the 90s and tested Trovan on black babies, who later died.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/20....html

The drug went on to make Pfizer billions. They were recently found guilty and paid a paltry fine- the grand sum of $50 million.

http://www.in-pharmatechnologist.com/Industry-Drivers/P...court

But hey your elucid dreams of a medical utopia are being realised. Now I'm off to call in my dog, I fear she may have gotten carried away with the whole 'outside' thing and taken off in a bid for freedom.

by doubled Sat Sep 19, 2009 01:13

I really am sorry for all of you out there that are so close minded and can't open your eyes up to see the bigger picture. So here is what I suggest...since youre so dead set on stopping animal research, then I think you should go and sign up and let these large companies test their products on you. Let Johnson & Johnson test their baby products on your childrens eyes instead of the rabbits they may use. Or let doctors perfect their surgery techniques on you instead of the animals that are used. Everyone seems to want something for nothing. But as we all know, everything does come with a price. SO from this moment foward, all of you who object animal testing must do the following..
1. Never visit the doctor again. ( No animals, no meds)
2. Never take your pet to the vet again. (Again, no animals, no meds)
3. Become vegitarians. (Animals had to die so that you could stuff your face)
4. Stop buying any hair care, makeup, cleaning solutions, contact lenses, and so on. ( all those things had to be tested on something to ensure your safety)

I just hope that the next person who replies with a comment on my post can actually be a little more creative than the one liners most of you have come up with.

by kraggi13 - Local Sun Sep 13, 2009 12:10

Biolabs now Charles River Laboratories have been operating in Ballina for more then 30 years and is a local employer. This is the first protest ever at the site. In my opinion if there's been no protest in 30 years, this little one now won't make any difference.
Charles River are an outsourcing test lab, its their customers (Pharmaceutical Multinationals) you should be protesting against, as they're the ones that want these services, and can always go elsewhere.

by M Silverman Sat Sep 12, 2009 13:24

some bless themselves passing that place

by Ex - Erris Fri Sep 11, 2009 17:47

As someone who lived not far from the Glenamoy lab I can confirm that the smell and sound of dogs in obvious pain is so bad that local people typically avoid walking anywhere near the place and when travelling on the road nearby people typically roll up their car windows and put the foot down.

by li'l lulu Fri Sep 11, 2009 13:08

where people are expected to be grateful for any work, however unconscionable or environmentally unfriendly. Shell are building their onshore gas refinery next door; maybe Chas River will give out about extra toxins skewing their results, or gas flaring poisoning their staff. Maybe Shell will just give them a 'sweetener'.

by Catlady Thu Sep 10, 2009 00:48

Great idea to protest in the first place, but even better to distribute the "whistle-blower" leaflets. It both empowers local sympathisers and scares the almighty hell out of the abusers!

(OMG!!!! What if someone working here doesn't actually ENJOY inflicting pain!!!! What if they have a conscience???? Worse... what if someone on the OUTSIDE knows about what we do?!?!?!?!. They might tell someone else on the outside! THE PUBLIC MIGHT FIND OUT AND ACTUALLY MAKE A CHOICE TO NOT PAY US TO STUFF BLEACH DOWN DOGS NECKS!!!!!!! AAAAARGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

Horrific suffering due to loss of jobs involving stuffing poison down dogs throats will certainly ensue. Oh dear.
Cat