Martin Seamus “Marty” McFly is a fictional character and the main protagonist in the Back to the Future motion picture trilogy, played by actor Michael J. Fox.  It’s one of my favorite movies of all time, and he’s a hero of mine both on and off screen.  His cause is finding a cure for Parkinson’s disease through an aggressively funded research agenda, and to ensure the development of improved therapies for those living with Parkinson’s today.  It’s a worthwhile cause I believe in, and encourage you to learn about. 

Doc Brown: “Roads? Where we’re going we don’t need roads.”

http://www.michaeljfox.org/

March 25, 2009 Larry King will talk with WWF CEO Carter Roberts about Earth Hour, tonight at 9:00p.m. EDT on CNN.

I rarely, if ever, do personal plugs, but in this case, I’m making an exception. We’ve got a lot in common.  She’s a fighter and is out there making a real difference. She brings it – I love this chica.

Everyone please tune into my girl Jackie Guerra today on the Tyra Show. Check your local listings for times and stations. Jackie wanted me to convey to encourage everyone to go to the “Ask Jackie” section of the website and send her in your questions and ponders.

Make sure you check Jackie out on Facebook, Twitter and her website! Check back next week when Jackie answers more of your questions!

NC Law Enforcement Agencies Praised for Bringing ‘Dogfighting Godfather’ to Justice

The Humane Society of the United States, the nation’s largest animal protection organization, today praised the Wilkes County (N.C.) Sheriff’s Office, Wilkes County Animal Control and Wilkes County District Attorney’s Office for putting a globally recognized dogfighter behind bars. 

For more information on my friend Jonathan Sinani and his foundation to help troubled and homeless LGBT youth, visit his official website here. A great cause.

During the Great Depression, the charitable sector was quickly overwhelmed by the crisis, and the federal government stepped in to provide needed support. Something similar may happen this time around, too, but because the social priorities of the administration will undoubtedly focus on pressing human concerns, it’s difficult to see, at the moment, how animal protection organizations could directly benefit.

That’s our unique challenge, of course, but it’s the one to which we are accustomed. There’s no social safety net for animals. Together, the thousands of local, regional, and national groups have built that system of support for animals, and together, we have to maintain it—all the more so in hard times.

In light of this shared responsibility, I was encouraged by a late September survey of online donors which revealed that seven of ten adults queried plan to give the same amount online as they did during 2007. Twenty-four percent of the respondents explicitly stated that they planned to support animal welfare organizations. 

I hope that you’ll be one of them, and that you’ll continue to show your support for The HSUS and other groups as 2008 draws to a close. We’re not going to let up in our efforts to make this world a better one for animals, and we’ll do our best to make the funds we receive go further than ever in our pursuit of humane goals. We’ll consistently demonstrate the impact of what we’re able to accomplish through your generosity, and show you why that ongoing support is so important.

When you invest your dollars in The HSUS, I want you to feel you are getting a good return. To that end, it’s important not just to look ahead to the challenges for 2009 and beyond, but also to look back in order to see what progress has been made.

To commemorate the year and show you all that your support has helped to achieve, we’ve prepared this special video highlighting some of our collective successes for 2008.

Tomorrow we’ll be releasing the video more broadly, but I wanted to give you—as my loyal blog readers—a special sneak peek. Watch and enjoy and know that you played a major part in making progress for animal protection. After you watch, if you are able to make a special year-end gift to help keep our momentum going, I’d be so grateful. I thank you in advance, and I know we couldn’t have done it without you.

http://hsus.typepad.com/wayne/

Having trouble seeing the video? Click here.

Barack Obama.  The 44th President Of The United States, 11/4/08 11:00pm est.

Jamie –

I’m about to head to Grant Park to talk to everyone gathered there, but I wanted to write to you first.

We just made history.

And I don’t want you to forget how we did it.

You made history every single day during this campaign — every day you knocked on doors, made a donation, or talked to your family, friends, and neighbors about why you believe it’s time for change.

I want to thank all of you who gave your time, talent, and passion to this campaign.

We have a lot of work to do to get our country back on track, and I’ll be in touch soon about what comes next.

But I want to be very clear about one thing…

All of this happened because of you.

Thank you,

Barack

      http://www.barackobama.com/live/

Dear Jamie,

Take a bow. You rewrote history for animals.

Thanks to you, 20 million animals in California will soon be spared the worst abuses of factory farms. And I’m confident that we’ll look back at Prop 2 as a pivotal moment in how our nation treats animals who are raised for food.

Early returns tonight show that more than 60% of Californians voted for Prop 2. This is a tremendous victory for animals, for The Humane Society of the United States…and for you. We were able to reach millions of California voters with our message of compassion only because you stood with us – by taking action, by donating to the campaign, and by telling those you knew in California about Prop 2 and what it would do for animals and for citizens there.

This was a momentous election for the nation. I’m so grateful and honored for everything you did to make Prop 2 a big part of the story. Please read my blog over the coming days for my take on Prop 2 and what it means for animal protection.

Sincerely,

Wayne Pacelle
President & CEO
The Humane Society of the United States

On the other side of the country, Question 3 passed, which will ban greyhound racing in the state of Massachusetts by 2010. We have long supported the fabulous team of activists there and thank all of you who have worked so tirelessly to see this victory become a reality. Dogs who are used for racing typically spend 20 hours per day confined to cages measuring only 32 in. by 42 in. by 34 in. Many of the dogs can’t even stand completely upright. The animals are also highly susceptible to injuries, including fractures, dislocations, lacerations, and amputations. And because injured dogs are no longer of use to the industry, they are often simply killed.

Together, we can keep the momentum going!

Sincerely,

 Ingrid E. Newkirk

Peta, Humane Society Global Team Inc.