World reels at Puerto Rico animal cruelty
By: Peggy Ann Bliss

The world is still reacting to the early December finding of probable cause by Judge José Esteban Pérez Marrero to arrest the alleged killers of beloved pets from Barceloneta. Letters to the local animal protectors are coming in from as far away as Australia, Argentina and Russia.

Julio Diaz, owner of Animal Control Solutions, and his employees Lucas Montaño Rivera and Roberto Rodríguez Ceballo face three charges each of felony animal cruelty for their part in seizing 80 cats and dogs at three housing projects and throwing them off a bridge in Vega Baja.

The local animal protection community met the decision with relief but is still waiting for the other shoe to drop. When will the investigation lead to the culpability of Mayor Sol Luis Fontanes?

Ironically, the news came almost simultaneously with the announcement that Barceloneta had been named a finalist on the list of “smart communities” compiled by New York-based Intelligent Community Forum. From the Smart 21, the forum will select the top seven in January, and the grand winner in May.

The ICF has been informed of the irony, and it is hoped that Barceloneta will receive no further honors. Ideally, the think tank should rescind its original distinction with apologies to the other communities. However, all that rests on the presumption that the mayor has done something wrong, and was not just the victim of a scam. Pure Bliss believes that he definitely had the upper hand in this contract, but that Julio Díaz not only used poor judgment in accepting the immoral task of taking pets away from poor people, but acted criminally in not humanely euthanizing them.

He says he is a scapegoat, but he is just further down the line of command in an unforgivable travesty against poor people who have not yet learned to stand up for their rights.

The prestigious think tank said it was the first time Puerto Rico had made the list, which had five nominations from the United States and represented 14 countries.

Barceloneta is “a ‘well kept’ secret in attracting technology-oriented businesses, having become one of the largest and most important hubs of pharmaceuticals and biotechnology processes in the world,” the announcement said.

The judge’s groundbreaking decision should show others that animals are being taken seriously. However, the arrest of Díaz was tinged with sadness for many who had believed him one of the good guys, having conducted some excellent seminars in animal cruelty investigation.

Díaz claimed he had “always protected animals,” and said the truth would come out at the preliminary hearings, which were scheduled to be held Dec. 20 in Room 405 of Bayamón Court.

British gays to probe church-backed bias
By: Peggy Ann Bliss

The event, “Faith and Homophobia,” will take place in London in February.
 
The conference sponsored by the Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement will look at whether faith groups are 'entitled' to expect their views on sexuality to take precedence in society over those who hold no faith. It will also look at the divisions among Christians and other religious groups over issues of sexuality.
 
Ideas will be proposed for how the state, local authorities and employers might show respect to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people, as well as to people of faith who deny them full equality.
 
Under British law, it is legal to discriminate in employment, the provision of goods and services, and education, on the grounds of religious faith, as well as sexual orientation. Some Christian groups and churches have lobbied government to gain such rights to discriminate. The morality of such exceptions will also come under the spotlight.
 
The conference takes place on 17 February 2007 at Rich Mix, 35-47 Bethnal Green Road, London E1 6LA. More details from The Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement (LGCM)

Peggy Ann Bliss