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Animal Crusaders • Commemorative Issue • October 2010Animal PeopleThe Pen is Mightierthan the SwordExcerpts from interview givenby Merritt Clifton to AnimalCrusadersQ. What do you say to theargument that there are enoughhuman issues to worry about thanspending time, money andresources on animals? Do youthink that human rights andanimal rights issues can clash andone must be done at the expenseof the other as a matter ofpriority?A. Animal issues mostly arehuman issues. Much of my workon "animal issues," mentionedabove, has also involved exposingthreats to human health, forexample as result of waterpollution caused by factoryfarming and harmful chemicalsbeing put on the market basedon misleading animal test results.Much of my work helps toprevent outbreaks of rabies,leptospirosis, and otherpotentially deadly diseases.There is also the inescapableassociation of violence againstanimals with violence againsthumans. No human was everbetter off because someone wasallowed to abuse a dog; butwherever dogs may not beabused with impunity, women,children, the aged, and the infirmare also safer from abuse.Q. What do you think of the roleof the mainstream press inadvancing the animalmovement? Has the press andmedia done enough to highlightthe animal cause?A. Coverage of animal issues hasincreased about ten times over inmainstream U.S. newspaperssince I started in journalism, andappears to have increased aboutfour times over in Indiannewspapers during the past 20years.Q. What is your assessment ofthe Compassionate CrusadersTrust?A. A very dynamic andaccomplished organization,which will rise to do more asIndian affluence rises, increasingthe support base forCompassionate Crusaders' work.Q. What is your opinion on CCT’scampaign against the Zoos inIndia ?A. I would have to see manymore Indian zoos to form a clearidea about this. As regards Indianzoos, though, I am encouragedthat the Central Zoo Authority isencouraging many to becomeactively involved in wildlife rescueand rehabilitation.(The Indian Zoo Inquiry; a reviewof conditions in the Zoos of Indiaby Compassionate Crusaders Trust& Zoo Check, Canada 2006.)Merritt Clifton is the editor of ANIMALPEOPLE, a US based newspaper thatprovides coverage of animal issues allover the world. He has over 30 years ofjournalistic experience.I am the voice of thevoiceless;Through me thedumb shall speak,Till thedeaf world's ears be made tohear, The wrongs of thewordless weak.Merritt Clifton visits us along withKim Bartlett, President of AnimalPeople, Inc. and the publisher ofANIMAL PEOPLE21
Animal Crusaders • Commemorative Issue • October 2010Sense & SensibilityIn our family, the tradition ofkeeping pets as family membershas been inspired by my mother.In her paternal house there usedto be varied animals as pets, andbeing the youngest, Radharani,my mother had the principalresponsibility and interest in theirupkeep. But her own preferencewas the cats. Later on, at theinstance of my brothers, the dogswere included. My eldest brotherwas a doctor in the army, he wasgifted a Tibetan Chow dog by aTibetan Buddhist monastery in1969, in appreciation of his freemedical service to the villagers inthe Ladakh region. He namedhim Mickey. As he was to moveon to another strategic locationdue to Bangladesh liberation warof 1971, Mickey was left in mymother’s care and became ourfirst family dog! All our22Radharani with Minisubsequent family-dogs arenamed after him.....to never lethim fade away!Like every story, our family’s petlovealso has a preamble! I was achild of six then. As my father wasan engineer in the army we wereprovided with a large armybungalow in the midst of greensin Ranchi. During our stay theretwo local mongrel puppiesappeared from nowhere andgradually became part of ourhousehold. They would go aroundfreely but keep coming back formeals and stay put near the maingate of the bungalow duringnights. Tommy & Kalu wouldMickeyI am the family face;Flesh perishes, I live on,Projecting trait and traceThrough time to times anon,And leaping from place to placeOver oblivion. ~ Thomas Hardyreadily respond to my mother, bytheir name she had given. Myfather was on the verge of transferand would be busy till late. It wasWar-time in 1945. One of ourorderlies Shanischara’s job was totake me and my younger sisterfor daily evening strolls andTommy & Kalu would be a part ofthe entourage.One incident of an evening hasbecome indelible in my memory,as my mother narrated it sographically! On our way back fromthe evening stroll we got caughtinto a hailstorm and heavydownpour. Shanischara took usto a house on the way, waiting forthe weather to become normal.Tommy & Kalu were around allthrough. Once the storm subsideda little, Tommy left abruptly, butKalu remained with us. By thattime my mother was worried, wasalready on the verge of breakingdown. When my father cameback, he set out in search, rightaway. Tommy came out fromnowhere and started followinghim. After a while Tommy startedpulling him by his trousers toindicate the ‘right’ way to wherewe were, and my father took thehint and started following Tommy.After going a distance theystopped, as Tommy startedhowling in front of a house andsure enough Kalu took three ofus out of that house even beforefather could call us out. That day,
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