Human illness is now linked to factory farming practices. Salmonella levels are over 5x higher in factory farm eggs than organic, and when medical researchers at the University of Minnesota took more than 1,000 food samples from multiple retail markets that sold factory farmed food, they found evidence of fecal contamination in 69% of the pork and beef and 92% of the poultry samples. Nine out of ten chicken carcasses in the store may be contaminated with fecal matter.

Great news for progressives in today's Dispatch on two fronts: a defeat for the attempt to repeal health care reform in Ohio and the Humane Society is fast closing in on the number of signatures required to get the farm-animal care amendment on the ballot.

Grassroots political action really works! 

With the real threat of a farm-animal amendment on the November ballot, the Humane Society now has the bargaining power with the Livestock Board to get the job done with or without a constitutional amendment. Which way it goes depends on whether the Livestock Board and state officials will agree to minimum care standards (Columbus Dispatch, June 23, 2010: "Health-care repeal won't be on Ohio ballot, but farm-animal amendment remains on track"):

Pacelle [the Humane Society's president and CEO] said the only reason the petition would not be filed is if the Humane Society reaches an agreement with state officials and the newly formed Ohio Livestock Care Standards Board to enact the proposed reforms without going the route of a constitutional amendment. The biggest stumbling block undoubtedly is a proposal to eliminate the practice of keeping farm animals in very confining cages and pens for long periods.

The minimum standards the Humane Society requires include prohibiting a farm operator from confining a calf, pig or hen on a farm for all or most of the day in a manner that prevents the animal from lying down, standing up, fully extending his or her limbs or turning around freely; and prohibit the killing of cows and pigs on farms by strangulation.

The proposed amendment is designed as a countermeasure to last year’s Ohio Livestock Care Standards, which was Issue 2 on the ballot. That measure — pushed for mostly by agribusiness and large corporate-owned farms — created a board where 12 of the 13 board members are political appointees, meaning they likely will be vulnerable to political influence from big donors like agribusiness, which generally wants looser standards.

The cruelty is shocking. Unspeakable. So brutal that it has sparked outrage, anger, and action worldwide.

Last week Mercy For Animals released heartbreaking footage of malicious and sadistic abuse to cows and calves at a Central Ohio dairy farm. Workers were captured on film violently stabbing cows with pitchforks, mercilessly beating them in the face with crowbars, and punching, kicking, and body-slamming baby calves.

The agriculture industry wants you to believe this is an isolated incident. But it's not.

On factory farms, animals regularly live out their short lives in confinement so extreme that they can't stand up, turn around, stretch their limbs, or lie down comfortably. It's an industry where abuse has become normal.

And Ohio is among the worst. Only four states in this country have weaker animal protection laws than Ohio.

You don't have to be an animal advocate, much less a vegetarian, to want to reform the way we raise our farm animals in Ohio. All it takes is a modicum of compassion and the acknowledgment that animals should not endure unnecessary trauma or abuse while in our care.

Take action now

Here's what you can do:

1. Sign the petition and join the more than 30,000 Change.org members who have already taken action to demand that those involved in the Conklin Dairy abuse case are brought to justice.
2. Volunteer to gather signatures by  attending a ballot signature gathering event. Deadline is June 30, 2010 to get 600,000 petition signatures to the Secretary of State.
3. Donate to Ohioans for Humane Farms: your donation will help get the signatures needed for the ballot initiative

Issue 2 is nothing but a Big Agribusiness power grab.

This November, Issue 2 will be on the statewide ballot, and Ohio voters who care about animals need to know this is a dangerous and harmful amendment. With Issue 2, agribusiness interests are attempting to thwart Humane Society of the United States' efforts to stop the most inhumane and unacceptable confinement practices on factory farms in Ohio. They have advanced a constitutional amendment that sounds good, but that will do nothing to push ahead needed reforms. Issue 2 requires no change in the way animals are treated, rendering this amendment little more than a public relations stunt designed to give the appearance of regulation in Ohio.

Issue 2 is designed to favor large factory farms that will continue to use cruel and inhumane confinement methods, and that's why the measure is opposed by Ohio's family farmers, environmentalists, and animal advocates. The broad coalition of organizations opposing Issue 2 includes the Ohio Farmer's Union, the Ohio Environmental Stewardship Alliance, the Ohio Sierra Club, the Ohio League of Women Voters, and The Humane Society of the United States.

In Ohio, tens of millions of egg-laying hens, veal calves, and breeding pigs are confined in crates and cages where they can barely move an inch, many of them unable even turn around or stretch their limbs. Six other states have passed laws to address this type of extreme confinement, but Ohio is lagging behind. Whether or not Issue 2 passes, the inhumane confinement of Ohio's farm animals will remain unaddressed, and it will take hard work from us in the humane community to reduce the suffering of these millions of animals who can barely move for their entire lives.

Don't let Big Agribusiness get away with a power grab that would codify abusive practices through the state constitution. Please vote NO on Issue 2! Click here for more information on why so many people are voting NO on Issue 2.

Join Gov. Ted Strickland on Wednesday, Oct. 8, in support of

Danielle Blue's race to win the Ohio Senate District 16 seat

Evening reception from 7-8:30 p.m.

Hosted by John and Evie Susie, 8682 Hawick Court North, Dublin

$500 per person

RSVP to Laura Pietenpol, 614-581-4759 or laura@blueforohio.com

When she's elected, Danielle Blue will work hard to make our community a better place to live, work, and raise a family.

For details on how she stands on education, Ohio's economy, energy policy, and healthcare, see her campaign web site, www.blueforohio.com.

Ask yourself one question, "Is 391 percent interest too high?" Yes!

Now you know how to vote on Issue 5, Ohio's payday loan referendum that gready lenders are trying to get on the Nov. 4 ballot.

Upper Arlington Progressive Action first brought this to your attention several months ago when we learned about the effort to reform payday lending. We applauded the passage of House Bill 545, which reduced the annual percentage of interest that can be charged down to 28 percent.

Then the national payday lending lobby started its shanaigans. They are trying to overturn the reform measure by putting the issue on the ballot. But their petition circulators have been deceptive and their ballot language misleading.

UAPA joins nearly every major newspaper in Ohio, the governor, the speaker, the senate president, big-city mayors and city councils, and religious, business, civic and social leaders in urging you to remember:

YES to Issue 5.

Spread the word!

Want to help? Visit www.yesonissue5.com.

Six states - Arkansas, Georgia, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio and Oregon as well as the District of Columbia - have now effectively banned "payday loans". Incredibly, Ohio's payday lenders are asking voters to reinstate their 391% interest rates --- eliminating the new 28% interest rate cap just passed in HB 545.

CBS Evening News produced this excellent new segment video entitled 'Payday Advance Loans Seem Simple, But Can Lead To Endless Cycle Of Debt'.

"In the current state of the economy, about 2,600 Americans a day file for bankruptcy. Others are turning to a financial quick fix called "payday loans."

They've now grown into a $59 billion industry.

Incredibly, Ohio's payday lenders are asking voters to reinstate their 391% interest rates --- eliminating the new 28% interest rate cap just passed in HB 545.

The payday loan issue is yet another reason to ensure that Democratic candidates are elected to office this fall:

• Ted Celeste, District 24 Ohio House representative and candidate for re-election, is solidly behind regulating the payday lending industry and co-sponsored a bill this year to cap payday lender interest rates.
• Mary Jo Kilroy's opponent in the race for the 15th Congressional District, former bank lobbyist Steve Stivers, previously opposed efforts to effectively regulate the payday lending industry claiming that it would actually hurt consumers to limit this brutal form of usury. When it became clear that the G.O.P. couldn't prevent genuine payday regulation, Stivers decided to own it instead, attempting to defuse a powerful campaign issue in the general election. Comparing campaign donations between the candidates, it's not hard to see how Stiver's could easily change his mind back again after the election ---- but this time, if elected, his influence would be at the federal level.

Original CBS story: Payday Advance Loans Seem Simple, But Can Lead To Endless Cycle Of Debt

The Battle Ahead!

Ohio is again at the eye of the storm -- and UAPA is ready to batten down the hatches and help commandeer a Democratic victory. Get an inside look at the plan that will elect our next president. Doug Kelly, Executive Director of the Ohio Democratic Party, will present

"Election 2008: The Perfect Storm"

Sunday, January 27, at 7:00 p.m.

in the Little Theatre of Upper Arlington High School, 1650 Ridgeview Road

Sign up to join us.