According to local activists, the deer in Shawnee Mission Park aren't the only animals in need of saving -- monkeys at the University of Kansas Medical Center are in danger, too.
Sunday marked the start of National Primate Liberation Week, a nationwide series of protests organized by Stop Animal Exploitation Now, a non-profit based in Ohio. On Saturday, local supporters will hold a demonstration from 1 to 3 p.m. at KU Med.
Their specific target is the university's "Brain Mapping" research. Conducted by Dr. Paul Cheney, the investigation uses "awake monkeys" to determine which specific neurons in the brain fire to complete various tasks. In a statement about the Saturday rally, the local animal rights group argues that strapping a monkey to a restraining chair and exposing its brain for monitoring is cruel and unnecessary.
"The vivisectors call them trained monkeys, when they are really being starved, while they're also in serious pain and high stress," the statement alleges. "Does this sound like science?"
Yesterday, Jessica Taveau, KU Med's director of communications, didn't have any comment on the impending protest, but she did forward me a statement on the university's research protocols. "All animals involved in research at KUMC are protected by legal regulations and policies to ensure the smallest possible number of subjects and the greatest commitment to their comfort," the outline promises.
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To Chris:
Can I assume you are volunteering to take the animal's place? I agree, humans would make better test subjects, but unless animal rights activists are willing to donate themselves to science (alive, not dead), I don't think they have much ground to stand on. It's a simple principal called "put up or shut up".
Also, I know a few researchers who work with animals, and not a single one of them actually enjoys what they have to do sometimes. They do it because it must be done in order to progress our knowledge. Try telling a diabetic friend that they can't have any more insulin because of the animal cruelty that went into producing it. You won't get a pleasant response.
As to your claim that this research is meaningless, and just used to get your tax dollars, you are completely wrong. All the research I know of going on at KU Med is completely legitimate and necessary to advance our knowledge in a certain area. I admit it's difficult to see this fact if you haven't read the scientific publications that led to the research. To those who understand the questions at hand, the research is anything but pointless.Also, there are very few cases where pain killers are not used. Do you think a squirming monkey actually makes for a good test subject? In almost every case, animals are treated better than could be expected in the wild, in die in a more humane way than most of us will get.
And by the way, have you seen chimpanzees in the wild? Those things are violent! I have no doubt whatsoever that they would do the same to us if given the chance. I'm sure they wouldn't have many problems with human research to benefit chimp-kind.
To Chris:
Can I assume you are volunteering to take the animal's place? I agree, humans would make better test subjects, but unless animal rights activists are willing to donate themselves to science (alive, not dead), I don't think they have much ground to stand on. It's a simple principal called "put up or shut up".
Also, I know a few researchers who work with animals, and not a single one of them actually enjoys what they have to do sometimes. They do it because it must be done in order to progress our knowledge. Try telling a diabetic friend that they can't have any more insulin because of the animal cruelty that went into producing it. You won't get a pleasant response.
As to your claim that this research is meaningless, and just used to get your tax dollars, you are completely wrong. All the research I know of going on at KU Med is completely legitimate and necessary to advance our knowledge in a certain area. I admit it's difficult to see this fact if you haven't read the scientific publications that led to the research. To those who understand the questions at hand, the research is anything but pointless.Also, there are very few cases where pain killers are not used. Do you think a squirming monkey actually makes for a good test subject? In almost every case, animals are treated better than could be expected in the wild, in die in a more humane way than most of us will get.
And by the way, have you seen chimpanzees in the wild? Those things are violent! I have no doubt whatsoever that they would do the same to us if given the chance. I'm sure they wouldn't have many problems with human research to benefit chimp-kind.
To Rosset.
We have nothing agianst research. We have a problem with animals being tortured for our benefit. You have no idea what you are talking about. Would you like to have your skull cut open and a holding bar drilled in so you can't turn your head. Or even being starved for this meaningless experiment, food is used as a reward. It proves and nothing, they just want your tax dollars.
You can't test on animals who have different motor skills, and relate it to humans.
There are no pain killers used in most of these experiments.
Check out www.saenonline.org
This is another attempt by animal rights radicals to smear legitimate research. Every form of conventional medical treatment�including drugs, vaccines, and surgery�rests in part on the study of animals. This fundamental link is frequently not appreciated. Animals develop many of the same diseases as people, including hemophilia, diabetes, and epilepsy. Animals are also susceptible to many of the same infectious diseases as people, such as anthrax, smallpox, rabies and malaria. An animal is chosen as an "animal model" for research only if it shares characteristics with people that are relevant to the research. Louis Pasteur used dogs for studying rabies because the immune systems of dogs and people react to the rabies virus in the same way. Both dogs and humans benefit from the rabies vaccine. All species benefit from vaccine research. Mouse models were used to develop a vaccine to inoculate California condors against West Nile virus to save this species from extinction. Animal research has helped to develop drugs and vaccines to control and cure hundreds of infectious diseases. Until the 20th century, smallpox, polio, diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus, measles, and mumps maimed and killed millions of children every year. But due to animal research on vaccines, there has not been a single natural case of smallpox since 1977, polio has been eradicated, and whooping cough, tetanus, and mumps are rarely seen in developed countries. Recently, animal studies have helped developed new drugs for cancer and other diseases. Gleevec, is the first effective treatment for people and animals with chronic myeloid leukemia. Culture, animal, and human studies each play an important role in the struggle to understand disease and develop cures for all. Finally, it is important to recognize that basic research using these three types are needed to provide a foundation for future medical advances that benefit both humans and animals. The radical animal rights rash of protests fueld by lies about research will only cause more suffering for both humans and animals. These studies enhance our understanding of how the brain works and how it can be cured of illnesses and disabilities. This research benefits both humans and animals and is done only after careful consideration is taken. Animal rights radicals want all medical research stopped that use any animal. They don't care about the benefits to humans or animals in this research.
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