Will Potter's Blog, page 28
March 1, 2012
URGENT: What Are Iowa’s Factory Farms Trying to Hide?
Iowa is set to become the first state to pass one of the recent “Ag Gag” laws introduced across the country to target undercover investigators who expose animal welfare violations on factory farms.
House File 589 creates a new crime of “agricultural production facility fraud,” and it has already passed the Iowa House and Senate with bipartisan support. It is on the desk of Gov. Terry Branstad for signature or veto.
The bill, and similar efforts such as Utah’s Ag Gag bill, carve out special protections in the law to shield factory farms from public scrutiny.
As Randall Wilson of the Iowa Civil Liberties Union of Iowa said: “We all know it’s a thinly veiled attempt to eliminate investigative reporting and whistle-blowing regarding abuses in our food production chain.”
It should come as no surprise who is behind these efforts. For example, Iowa State Rep Annette Sweeney, a proponent of the bill, is the former Executive Director of the Iowa Angus Association. And Simpson Farms, Florida’s second biggest egg producer, helped draft the language of that bill target animal welfare activists with up to 30 years in prison. It failed.
These Ag Gag bills comes at a time when undercover investigators have changed the national dialogue about factory farms, and brought images of standard industry practices into the pages of national newspapers and the evening TV news.
Rather than take responsibility for systemic animal welfare violations, corporations would much rather punish, and silence, the whistleblowers.
Do you want to know what Big Ag trying to hide?
Check out this video from Mercy for Animals that includes undercover footage from factory farms in Iowa.
Then call governor Terry Branstad at (515) 281-5211 and urge him to veto the bill.
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URGENT: What Are Iowa's Factory Farms Trying to Hide?
Iowa is set to become the first state to pass one of the recent "Ag Gag" laws introduced across the country to target undercover investigators who expose animal welfare violations on factory farms.
House File 589 creates a new crime of "agricultural production facility fraud," and it has already passed the Iowa House and Senate with bipartisan support. It is on the desk of Gov. Terry Branstad for signature or veto.
The bill, and similar efforts such as Utah's Ag Gag bill, carve out special protections in the law to shield factory farms from public scrutiny.
As Randall Wilson of the Iowa Civil Liberties Union of Iowa said: "We all know it's a thinly veiled attempt to eliminate investigative reporting and whistle-blowing regarding abuses in our food production chain."
It should come as no surprise who is behind these efforts. For example, Iowa State Rep Annette Sweeney, a proponent of the bill, is the former Executive Director of the Iowa Angus Association. And Simpson Farms, Florida's second biggest egg producer, helped draft the language of that bill target animal welfare activists with up to 30 years in prison. It failed.
These Ag Gag bills comes at a time when undercover investigators have changed the national dialogue about factory farms, and brought images of standard industry practices into the pages of national newspapers and the evening TV news.
Rather than take responsibility for systemic animal welfare violations, corporations would much rather punish, and silence, the whistleblowers.
Do you want to know what Big Ag trying to hide?
Check out this video from Mercy for Animals that includes undercover footage from factory farms in Iowa.
Then call governor Terry Branstad at (515) 281-5211 and urge him to veto the bill.
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February 27, 2012
Coca Cola Hired Spy Firm Stratfor to Investigate PETA
Coca Cola hired the "global intelligence" spy firm Stratfor to investigate People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, according to company emails released by Wikileaks.
In a reply email, Stratfor's vice president for counterterrorism and corporate security said: "The FBI has a classified investigation on PETA operatives. I'll see what I can uncover."
The exchange is part of the 5 million Stratfor emails that Wikileaks promises to release in coming weeks. Stratfor, an intelligence firm that works closely with corporations and the government, has verified that company emails were stolen but refuses to say anything more.
In a June 2, 2009 email, Anya Alfano of Stratfor relays the intelligence request from Coca Cola (as background, Peta has protested Coca Cola for its involvement in animal testing):
From: Anya Alfano [mailto:anya.alfano@stratfor.com]
Sent: Tuesday, June 02, 2009 10:56 AM
To: Fred Burton; scott stewart
Subject: Public Policy Question for Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola just sent me a long list of questions regarding PETA/Animal
Activism and the upcoming Olympics in Vancouver–I've pasted the
questions below. I'm not entirely clear on how much we can task the
public policy group at this point–is there any guidance you can give me
on that front? Coke has asked for a short teleconference with one of
our analysts to discuss this issue–is that something I could ask Kathy,
Bart or Joe to do, or would that be off the table at this point? Stick,
are these questions something that you have a handle on, if we aren't
able to get info from the policy folks?
Any thoughts or guidance would be helpful. Thanks, Anya
Questions—
– How many PETA supporters are there in Canada?
– How many of these are inclined toward activism?
– To what extent will US-based PETA supporters travel to Canada to
support activism?
– What is PETA's methodology for planning and executing activism?
(Understanding this better would certainly help us to recognize
indicators should they appear.)
– To what extent is PETA in Canada linked to PETA in the US or
elsewhere?
– To what extent are the actions of PETA in one country controlled by
an oversight board/governing body?
– To what extent could non-PETA hangers-on (such as anarchists or ALF
supporters) get involved in any protest activity?
In response, Fred Burton, which Random House describes as "one of the world's foremost experts on security, terrorists, and terrorist organizations," said the FBI has a classified file on PETA.
These emails reflect an ongoing pattern of surveillance and misinformation by the FBI, Stratfor, and corporations against animal rights and environmental groups. In fact, the Justice Department warned the FBI against wasting resources investigating PETA and other activist groups (the FBI refused to alter its policies). Also, the USDA has classified PETA as a terrorist threat.
As I have reported here previously, Stratfor is one of many private intelligence firms that have profited signficantly from post-9/11 "terrorism" hysteria. Stratfor and others, such as the Inkerman Group, are paid by corporations to identify business "threats," including special interest groups, key activists, and legislation. It is a niche industry built upon fear: the business of risk mitigation depends upon the identification of a constant stream of threats.
Let's step back and look at how Orwellian this has become:
-Corporations created the term "eco-terrorism," and manufactured it as a national security threat.
-The FBI and homeland security got on board, labeling animal rights and environmental groups the "number one domestic terrorism threat."
-Corporations hire other corporations to investigate this "threat."
-In turn, intelligence firms like Stratfor consult with the FBI about the bureau's own classified files.
It's a cycle of fear that flows between corporations, counter-terrorism firms, and the FBI. It's self-replicating and self-fulfilling, and a reflection of the erasure of all lines separating corporations and the state.
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February 26, 2012
Occupy Movement Challenges ALEC’s Corporate Influence on Legislation
More than 70 cities will be protesting corporations that are part of a secretive lobby group called the American Legislative Exchange Council, or ALEC, that helps corporate interests literally write our laws.
Occupy Portland has called for a national day of protest on February 29. The protests will focus on corporations that pay tens of thousands of dollars to be part of ALEC, in exchange for the power to draft model legislation which is then introduced in state legislatures across the country — all the while, most state lawmakers have no idea the bills were actually written by corporations.
Corporations have used ALEC to draft model “eco-terrorism” legislation that classifies civil disobedience as terrorism. Other bills drafted by corporations attack union rights, environmental protections, and any attempt to restrict corporate profits. Here is a closer look at how ALEC stealthily drafts legislation.
In other words: ALEC is a trojan horse used by corporations to sneak legislation into statehouses across the country.
As organizers explain in their collective statement:
There has been a theft of our democratic ability to shape and form the society in which we live. The corporations, which run our government, place profit over people, self-interest over justice, and domination over equality. This situation stems from our society’s obsession with profit, consumption and greed, which corporations only take to its logical and frightening conclusion. In this obsessive pursuit of profit above all else, our voices have been drowned out…
I think this is a sentiment shared by countless Americans, whether they identify as part of any movement or not. It’s quite common even in apolitical crowds to hear people talk about the power that corporations have over the political process. However, the omnipresence of this corporate influence in our culture can make it difficult to identify the specific mechanisms that allow it to exist.
That’s what is so inspiring to me to see the Occupy Movement focus on ALEC. It demonstrates an increasingly sophisticated movement willing to engage complicated political processes, and merge widely-held public sentiments with concrete strategies that aim for the wheels of the trojan horse.
To learn more and get involved in your city: #F29 Shut Down The Corporations
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Occupy Movement Challenges ALEC's Corporate Influence on Legislation
More than 70 cities will be protesting corporations that are part of a secretive lobby group called the American Legislative Exchange Council, or ALEC, that helps corporate interests literally write our laws.
Occupy Portland has called for a national day of protest on February 29. The protests will focus on corporations that pay tens of thousands of dollars to be part of ALEC, in exchange for the power to draft model legislation which is then introduced in state legislatures across the country — all the while, most state lawmakers have no idea the bills were actually written by corporations.
Corporations have used ALEC to draft model "eco-terrorism" legislation that classifies civil disobedience as terrorism. Other bills drafted by corporations attack union rights, environmental protections, and any attempt to restrict corporate profits. Here is a closer look at how ALEC stealthily drafts legislation.
In other words: ALEC is a trojan horse used by corporations to sneak legislation into statehouses across the country.
As organizers explain in their collective statement:
There has been a theft of our democratic ability to shape and form the society in which we live. The corporations, which run our government, place profit over people, self-interest over justice, and domination over equality. This situation stems from our society's obsession with profit, consumption and greed, which corporations only take to its logical and frightening conclusion. In this obsessive pursuit of profit above all else, our voices have been drowned out…
I think this is a sentiment shared by countless Americans, whether they identify as part of any movement or not. It's quite common even in apolitical crowds to hear people talk about the power that corporations have over the political process. However, the omnipresence of this corporate influence in our culture can make it difficult to identify the specific mechanisms that allow it to exist.
That's what is so inspiring to me to see the Occupy Movement focus on ALEC. It demonstrates an increasingly sophisticated movement willing to engage complicated political processes, and merge widely-held public sentiments with concrete strategies that aim for the wheels of the trojan horse.
To learn more and get involved in your city: #F29 Shut Down The Corporations
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February 25, 2012
Utah “Ag Gag” Bill Passes House — Urgent Action Needed
A Utah bill that targets anyone who photographs or films factory farm abuses, which supporters describe as “terrorism,” has overwhelmingly passed the House.
HB 187, “Agricultural Operation Interference,” passed 60-14. (Here is a full list of those who voted for it.) The amended bill removes the sentencing provision that would make a second offense equivalent to assaulting a police officer. However, the bill remains dangerously overbroad. As Rep. David Litvack noted, the bill not only targets animal rights groups: “There is no whistleblower protection.”
“Ag Gag” bills are being considered in multiple states, but, if the Utah Senate approves, this would be the first of these proposals to become law.
The bills have been opposed by a broad coalition of 27 national organizations, including the animal protection groups (ASPCA, Humane Society of the United States, Mercy For Animals, and others), environmental groups such as the Natural Resources Defense Council, and others including the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union and National Press Photographers Association.
In a statement, the coalition said: “These bills represent a wholesale assault on many fundamental values shared by all people across the United States. Not only would these bills perpetuate animal abuse on industrial farms, they would also threaten workers’ rights, consumer health and safety, and the freedom of journalists, employees and the public at large to share information about something as fundamental as our food supply.”
I recently spoke with Sonali Kolhatkar at KPFK radio, Los Angeles, about these attempts to criminalize anyone who exposes what corporations don’t want consumers to see. As KPFK notes:
Hidden camera footage of situations like cows being dragged to slaughter and chickens packed into cages so tightly they cannot sit down have become a common educational tool of animal rights groups. Even mainstream news channels use the shocking footage when covering debates around animal cruelty and farming practices…Will Potter is the author of Green is the New Red: An Insider’s Account of a Social Movement Under Siege, in which he chronicles the ways in which environmental activists and others are increasingly being branded as domestic terrorists. We had interviewed Will when his book first came out and he now joins us once more.
Here is a full list of the Utah Senate. If you live in Utah, please contact your senators and let them know that the state should be prosecuting people who abuse animals, not those who expose the abuse.
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Utah "Ag Gag" Bill Passes House — Urgent Action Needed
A Utah bill that targets anyone who photographs or films factory farm abuses, which supporters describe as "terrorism," has overwhelmingly passed the House.
HB 187, "Agricultural Operation Interference," passed 60-14. (Here is a full list of those who voted for it.) The amended bill removes the sentencing provision that would make a second offense equivalent to assaulting a police officer. However, the bill remains dangerously overbroad. As Rep. David Litvack noted, the bill not only targets animal rights groups: "There is no whistleblower protection."
"Ag Gag" bills are being considered in multiple states, but, if the Utah Senate approves, this would be the first of these proposals to become law.
The bills have been opposed by a broad coalition of 27 national organizations, including the animal protection groups (ASPCA, Humane Society of the United States, Mercy For Animals, and others), environmental groups such as the Natural Resources Defense Council, and others including the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union and National Press Photographers Association.
In a statement, the coalition said: "These bills represent a wholesale assault on many fundamental values shared by all people across the United States. Not only would these bills perpetuate animal abuse on industrial farms, they would also threaten workers' rights, consumer health and safety, and the freedom of journalists, employees and the public at large to share information about something as fundamental as our food supply."
I recently spoke with Sonali Kolhatkar at KPFK radio, Los Angeles, about these attempts to criminalize anyone who exposes what corporations don't what consumers to see. As KPFK notes:
Hidden camera footage of situations like cows being dragged to slaughter and chickens packed into cages so tightly they cannot sit down have become a common educational tool of animal rights groups. Even mainstream news channels use the shocking footage when covering debates around animal cruelty and farming practices…Will Potter is the author of Green is the New Red: An Insider's Account of a Social Movement Under Siege, in which he chronicles the ways in which environmental activists and others are increasingly being branded as domestic terrorists. We had interviewed Will when his book first came out and he now joins us once more.
Here is a full list of the Utah Senate. If you live in Utah, please contact your senators and let them know that the state should be prosecuting people who abuse animals, not those who expose the abuse.
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February 21, 2012
New Information in Earth Liberation Front Prosecution
Animal rights activist David Agranoff has agreed to cooperate with government as part of a plea agreement related to Earth Liberation Front crimes in Bloomington, Indiana, more than 10 years ago.
The prosecution is related to an April 30, 2000 arson in Bloomington, Indiana, that destroyed 14 pieces of logging and construction equipment.
According to an Associated Press report at the time: "Gas tanks were filled with sand, which was also packed into oil crankcases, police said. Fuel and hydraulic lines were cut, and a tractor-trailer filled with wood chips was set on fire. On the trailer had been emblazoned the words, 'Go develop in Hell.' The letters 'ELF' had been spray-painted on several pieces of equipment…"
In March, 2011, Agranoff waived his right to indictment (which means agreeing that the government has reason to bring the charges against him). [Source: waiver of indictment]
In August, 2011, his attorneys filed a motion to push back his sentencing hearing, because: "The Defendant has not yet completed the cooperation he intends to provide to the government in consideration of a motion pursuant to U.S.S.G. § 5K1.1." This is the section of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines related to "Substantial Assistance to Authorities." [Source: motion to continue]
That section of the sentencing guidelines states:
Upon motion of the government stating that the defendant has provided substantial assistance in the investigation or prosecution of another person who has committed an offense, the court may depart from the guidelines. [emphasis added]
In other words, the sentencing guidelines are explicit that providing information about oneself is not enough. "Substantial cooperation" can only mean implicating others.
According to Agranoff's attorney, Michael Donahoe, Agranoff cooperated by providing information about Frank Ambrose and Marie Mason.
Marie Mason is currently imprisoned on a 22 year sentence, the longest of any "Green Scare" prisoner, after Frank Ambrose cooperated with the government against her.
Ambrose had provided information about multiple Earth Liberation Front crimes as part of his own plea agreement for a reduced sentence of 9 years.
Agranoff's attorney said that he agreed to cooperate because Ambrose and Mason are both currently imprisoned.
Five months after filing the motion to push back his sentencing so that he had more time to fully cooperate, Agranoff was sentenced to 1 year and 1 day on January, 2012, for misprision of a felony (knowing about the commission of a felony and failing to report it to the police). The court recommended he serve his time a low-security prison camp. He also received 1 year probation. [Source: judgment in criminal case]
He has been ordered to pay $134,000 in restitution to two companies: $84,000 to John Jones Timber and Cutting, and $50,000 to Crider & Crider, Inc. [Source: judgment in criminal case]
As background, Dave Agranoff has been active in the animal rights movement since the 1990s. In 2005, he was subpoenaed to a federal grand jury investigating a speech by Rod Coronado. He and two other activists refused to testify, and he served 80 days in prison. He was the subject of much controversy for publicly supporting Justin Samuel, a known informant who fellow activists regarded as a "snitch" for cooperating against Animal Liberation Front prisoner Peter Young.
UPDATE 1: This is all deeply troubling news to many in the animal rights and environmental movements, and I do not take this issue lightly. I have been grasping for any bit of information that could help explain these documents in another way.
I have received many emails from others who seem to be grasping as well. These documents were previously sealed, and there is undoubtedly additional information that myself and others have not been able to access. Couldn't it be possible, one person asked, that Agranoff only provided information about himself, and only himself, in order to get a reduced sentence?
I had genuinely hoped this was the case, but these documents, along with the explicit language of U.S.S.G. § 5K1.1 and associated case law, unfortunately do not leave room for misinterpretation.
The only way Agranoff could have received a reduced sentence without providing information about others is if 1) prosecutors generously agreed to recommend a one-year sentence, without any substantial cooperation, or 2) Agranoff negotiated a deal that would literally rewrite this section of the U.S. sentencing guidelines.
UPDATE 2: Agranoff's attorney has confirmed that he agreed to cooperate against Marie Mason and Frank Ambrose. He says Agranoff chose to do this because they are both currently imprisoned.
According to Marie Mason's former trial attorney, John Minock, prosecutors had previously agreed to not prosecute her for her involvement in the April 30, 2000 arson.
However, in a letter from prison to another activist, Mason said she had heard rumors that Agranoff was cooperating against her and she was very concerned.
I will post further updates as they are available (and will do so at the end of this post, rather than editing the existing text).
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New Government Informant in Earth Liberation Front Prosecution
Animal rights activist David Agranoff agreed to become a government informant as part of a plea agreement related to Earth Liberation Front crimes in Bloomington, Indiana, more than 10 years ago.
Details are still emerging about the prosecution, and others who might be implicated. The following information is based strictly on what appears in court documents, signed by all parties:
*The prosecution is related at least in part to an April 30, 2000 arson in Bloomington, Indiana, that destroyed 14 pieces of logging and construction equipment.
According to an Associated Press report at the time: "Gas tanks were filled with sand, which was also packed into oil crankcases, police said. Fuel and hydraulic lines were cut, and a tractor-trailer filled with wood chips was set on fire. On the trailer had been emblazoned the words, 'Go develop in Hell.' The letters 'ELF' had been spray-painted on several pieces of equipment…"
*In March, 2011, Agranoff waived his right to indictment (which means agreeing that the government has reason to bring the charges against him). [Source: waiver of indictment]
*In August, 2011, his attorneys filed a motion to push back his sentencing hearing, because: "The Defendant has not yet completed the cooperation he intends to provide to the government in consideration of a motion pursuant to U.S.S.G. § 5K1.1." This is the section of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines related to "Substantial Assistance to Authorities." [Source: motion to continue]
*In January, 2012, Agranoff was sentenced to 1 year and 1 day for misprision of a felony (knowing about the commission of a felony and failing to report it to the police). The court recommended he serve his time a low-security prison camp. He also received 1 year probation. [Source: judgment in criminal case]
*He has been ordered to pay $134,000 in restitution to two companies: $84,000 to John Jones Timber and Cutting, and $50,000 to Crider & Crider, Inc. [Source: judgment in criminal case]
As background, Dave Agranoff has been active in the animal rights movement since the 1990s. In 2007, he was subpoenaed to a federal grand jury investigating a speech by Rod Coronado. He and two other activists refused to testify, and he served 80 days in prison.
The April 30, 2000 arson that Agranoff has provided information about also appears in the plea agreement of Frank Ambrose. Ambrose became a government informant and provided information against Marie Mason in exchange for a reduced sentence. This crime was one of many that Ambrose provided information about. It is unclear at this time how, or if, these cooperating agreements are related.
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February 17, 2012
Utah Bill Would Make Videotaping a Factory Farm the Same as Assaulting a Police Officer
Groups like Compassion Over Killing are targeted under this bill for exposing animal welfare abuses.
Utah is the latest state to consider new laws targeting undercover investigators who expose animal welfare abuses on factory farms. A new bill would make photographing animal abuse on par with assaulting a police officer.
Rep. John Mathis calls undercover investigators "animal rights terrorists," and says video recordings that have brought national attention to systemic animal welfare abuses are "propaganda" and fundraising efforts.
The bill, HB187, targets anyone who videotapes or takes photograph on a farmer's property without permission. It creates the crime of "agricultural operation interference," a class A misdemeanor which is elevated to a third-degree felony on the second offense.
It comes at at time when the FBI has considered "terrorism" charges against undercover investigators.
Rep. Mathis' opening remarks at a hearing by the Utah House Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Committee on February 14th are indicative of the good ol' boy network that is attempting to pass this legislation:
"It's fun to see my good ag friends in this committee," Mathis said. "… all my good friends are here."
Mathis, the sponsor of the bill, said animal protection groups are solely using their investigations as "propaganda" efforts for fundraising drives. He went on to claim that animal welfare reforms, such as allowing chickens to spread their wings, are actually "detrimental to the welfare of animals."
Exposing animal abuse is hurting animal welfare? Photography is terrorism? What Mathis leaves out is that these investigations have led to criminal charges against farm workers. Just this week, undercover video shot by Mercy for Animals at a Butterball farm resulted in six workers being charged with misdemeanors and felonies.
And a recent investigation by Compassion Over Killing (in Iowa, another state considering "Ag Gag" legislation) showed workers pushing herniated intestines back inside injured piglets, then covering the wound with tape.
Only token gestures of opposition were made during the hearing, such as one representative voicing concerns that the bill could target people who take "pretty barn pictures."
But this bill isn't about pretty pictures.
This bill, and similar attempts in Florida, Iowa, Minnesota and New York, is to criminalize anyone who exposes abuses on factory farms.
These disproportionate penalties are solely motivated by the corporate interests affected by animal welfare reforms. As Rep. Craig Frank, a Republican, noted: this bill makes taking a photograph of a factory farm in Utah a third-degree felony on the second offense, the same as assaulting a police officer.
He called it a "Blank Angus Ops" bill and questioned the need for new laws when trespassing is already a crime, but outside of making jokes he and the others on the committee offered no opposition.
In light of the recent criminal charges and systemic animal welfare violations, it's startling to hear Mathis and supporters say the bill is the same as punishing someone who leaves a video recorder "under you and your wife's bed."
This isn't about personal privacy.
It's about corporations attempting to hide their criminal activity, deceive consumers, and deflect public scrutiny onto those who are dragging these abuses into the sunlight.
The committee voted 10-3 to move the measure as originally written to the full House. You can contact Utah representatives about HB 187 here.
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