Readers Hear About Foie Gras Cruelty, Ismael Haniyeh’s Assassination, and Mosquito Spraying

Our courts treat animals as if they were not alive

Tuckahoe, NY: The New York State Supreme Court recently struck down its animal cruelty laws, striking down NYC’s ban on the sale of foie gras, one of the world’s most brutal foods. After ducks and geese are plucked by the throat, the fungus is forced down their throats until their livers explode, causing them to bleed and vomit. Shocking video of birds whose necks were snapped by pipes is available online. Food critic James Beard said, “I guess they secretly like being force-fed.” He should have tried it himself.

A few years ago, I stood outside Trader Joe’s, handing out foie gras literature to a receptive audience and urging the store to stop stocking it. With us were three survivors of duck foie gras: their beaks were mutilated, which is a common practice, so that they could not attack each other due to the intense crowding. This prevents them from eating normally, so they must be bred in captivity.

Modern factory farming is inherently cruel; however, there are also legal degrees of abuse. The court ruled that there is no such thing as “degree of abuse” for farm animals – instead, anything goes. This is a pathetic position to take, whether for the farm lobby or any other reason. Animal welfare laws are miserable and worse for farm animals.

However, animals are sensitive and intelligent. Birds have been shown to sing to babies in eggs. Until the law comes out of the 18th century and accepts current knowledge and consideration of non-human animals, please avoid this sad article. Surely there is enough to eat without contributing to unnecessary suffering. Kiley Blackman

It stops running

Massapequa, LI: To Voiceover Jim Carney, who correctly states that nobody stops for stop signs anymore: The reason for that, Jim, is because people think “STOP” is an acronym for “Slightly Tap On Pedal.” Tom Ascher

Departmental decline

Brooklyn: Re “Commish Lets COVID Cops Vax Lies Slip” (July 1): This is outrageous! The episode involving Lt. Brandi Sanchez and Sgt. Lambros Gavalas, the recently reported inaction of the mayor and others regarding the disrespect of the commissioner’s brother (at his restaurant) are probably only the tip of the iceberg. Starting with Donald Trump down and beyond the New York City Police Department, we have nothing but the Keystone Kops and a mayoral hopeful running this city now. God help us. Henry Brown

beleaguerer

Brooklyn: To Voicer Marilyn Levin: You have to wonder why the Palestinians aren’t going to Gaza to support their people? Try some of these reasons: There is no airport to fly into Gaza. Border crossing points closed. No food, water or fuel and almost no medical care. Constant bombing killing mostly civilians. Destroy all buildings and roads. Are any of these issues happening in Israel? Greg Ahl

State sponsored facts

Pomona, NY: On ‘The End of the Masters of Terror’ (editorial, Aug. 1): You celebrate how “a little bit of justice came to two very bad men,” without mentioning that Ismael Haniyeh was Hamas’s chief hostage negotiator . /ceasefire agreement. are you stupid Are you writing about a complex geopolitical crisis or a children’s fairy tale!? Haniyeh was the head of the political wing of Hamas, not a military man! A politician who had no advance knowledge of the October 7 attack planned by Yahya Sinwar! Now who will negotiate a ceasefire that will free the hostages? The guy who ordered their kidnapping!? The entire editorial reads like a press release from the Israeli and American governments! French and American “peacekeeping” in Lebanon “who were there to help”? The French colonized and occupied that place! And a rape “pogrom” on October 7? The UN investigated — no evidence! Shameful propaganda. Frank Metzger

Victims

Pearl River, NY: To Voicer Terry Hansen: You and B’Tselem seem to know so much about the Israelis, Benjamin Netanyahu and their prison system. At least they have a prison system. Why don’t you and B’Tselem investigate and report on the treatment of Israelis and their own citizens by the Palestinians, Hamas and Hezbollah? Stop the Jew-hatred and one-sided reporting. These groups are more vicious and cruel to humanity than many other terrorist groups. No form of terrorism or hatred is acceptable in our so called humane society. Stop teaching children to hate and maybe, just maybe, the hatred of others will end with their parents’ generation and we can learn to live in peace. Robert Brennan

The trajectory of the catastrophe

Penticton, British Columbia: The throes of the 20th century Zionist (terrorist?) invasion of a sleepy, unsophisticated Palestine, culminating in Netanyahu’s war on Gaza, specializing in the terrorization and elimination of children, innocent Gazans, infrastructure and of the homeland – supported by the US MAGA leadership, Congress and the fractured Christian political peddlers, horribly confessed and condemned by the UN, the international caretakers, the World Court and the world public (including the innocent Jewish community). The culmination of this odyssey of evil will be a US-Iran war enticed by Netanyahu and the Middle East/world conflagration when the severity of climate change challenges, especially hunger and starvation, leaves no time for war. Joe Schwarz

Supervised swimming

Manhattan: As a former lifeguard, I respect the ocean and all its potential dangers. No lifeguard on duty equals no swimming, period. End of discussion. Albert Johnson

Drink better

Staten Island: To the idiots who run my city: You’re disgusting. I have an extensive pollinator garden, and the morning before you sprayed my neighborhood for mosquitoes, I had literally dozens of bees of at least seven kinds in my garden. The next day? None. The next day, three. And since then I haven’t had more than two or three at a time. Nonsense. There are no ponds in my area, no forest, no reason to spray. The few mosquitoes we had? Still here and thriving. You’ve killed all the pollinators and accomplished nothing. Whatever you use doesn’t even have an effect on skeeters so why bother? That beats the abject stupidity of you morons hanging a sign on my corner an hour before the sprinkling starts. This is a tort at its finest and a downright scam at its peak. When will we get a mayor with a clue? Tom McGuire

Out of the air

Carmel, NY: Shock, dismay, anger, sadness! Words and feelings that overcame me on Monday when I heard that WCBS NewsRadio 880, the electronic voice of news in the New York metro area, would soon be gone. Shame on parent company Audacy for making such a decision. I remember like it was yesterday – August 28, 1967 when NewsRadio 880 went on the air with anchors Charles Osgood, Ed Bradley, Robert Vaughn and Pat Summerall. Later, Lou Adler, Jim Donnelly, Bill Lynch, Gary Maurer and Harvey Hauptman joined the family. Today, Paul Murnane and Wayne Cabot wake me up every morning, while Brigitte Quinn and Steve Scott have also become radio friends. Goodbye, dear friends. Shame on the property for making such a terrible decision. NewsRadio 88 will be missed. Eric Gross

delirium

Brooklyn: That’s it! Donald Trump should be required to take a test to see if he is cognitively impaired. He did say that his Jan. 6 speech had more attendees than Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech. After hearing him say this, I thought to myself, “Get this man tested!” He’s out of his mind! Harvey Kaplan

Mentally unfit

Brooklyn: It’s time for Republicans to follow the lead of the Democratic Party and force Donald Trump out of the presidential race. It is obvious that he has very little ability to recognize reality. He claims that his Jan. 6 rally drew more people than Martin Luther King Jr.’s 1963 speech. He also claims that no one died on Jan. 6 and that it was a peaceful rally. Clearly, it should be a concern of all Americans that a potential president is in control of his mental facilities. Alan Podhaizer

Low kicks

Medford, LI: To Voicer Rich Buttermark: You sound just like Trump. The only way you can make a point is by saying something nasty about Kamala Harris. You are part of the problem that promotes hate speech. Betty Miserendino