http://www.tvguide.com/News/Joanna-Krupa-PETA-1012829.aspx

Joanna Krupa on PETA Ad Criticism: God Would Disagree with Catholic League

·        Dec 4, 2009 03:58 PM ET

·        by Joyce Eng

 

Joanna Krupa

Joanna Krupa came under fire this week after unveiling a provocative new PETA ad — in which she wears only a cross — deemed "totally inappropriate" and exploitative by the Catholic League. The outrage is exactly what the Dancing with the Stars alum expected and wanted, she tells TVGuide.com, because controversy is "the only way" to alert others to a cause. "Sometimes I am ashamed of being a human being because of what we created and how we hurt the defenseless and less fortunate," Krupa says. "That is shocking and despicable to me. All I've done is to raise awareness through a controversial ad that I am truly proud of." See what else Krupa has to say about the criticism, what positive reaction she's received and her plans for future ads.

TVGuide.com: Who came up with the idea for the PETA ad? Why the Catholic theme?
Joanna Krupa: When PETA approached me to do an ad again, my team told them we wanted to make sure the concept is controversial, sadly, because that's the only way to get your message out there. It takes controversial photos for us to think about pressing issues. Otherwise, we would rather go on watching and debating Jon and Kate [Gosselin]'s financial fights or Lady Gaga's costumes, while millions of helpless animals are dying. We all brainstormed and came up with the church theme, which I love. 

TVGuide.com: Did you anticipate this reaction?
Krupa: The reaction is far better than I expected. Of course I was prepared to earn criticism and create controversy, but that was the whole point — to stir up emotions. To make people think, talk, discuss and direct attention to the horrific fact that millions of innocent animals are being euthanized each year. Millions!

TVGuide.com: Are you bothered by the criticism?
Krupa: I respect [that] everyone has his own sensitivities. But I, like many, see no clash or contradiction between a partially nude body and a cross. I am a proud Catholic and I am sure God is looking down shaking His head in disagreement with the Catholic League's comments. ... My mom is very supportive while being a very old-school Catholic. ... The cross I am wearing in the ad represents pain and hope, which is all these animals have when they are dumped in shelters or put in tiny cages and bred their whole life, and hope is what we are trying to bring to this extremely tragic situation.

TVGuide.com: PETA has been criticized for using "shock tactics." Does that take away from the causes they're trying to highlight?
Krupa: If it wasn't for PETA's shocking ads and videos, most people like myself would never be aware of the troubling truth. It wasn't until my sister accidently opened a PETA link to their investigations on China's fur farms and how they skin these poor animals alive while they bleed to death [that] I took the stand for animals, not caring about the possible consequences, and posing nude for the anti-fur campaign. Human beings created this and I believe my job as a human being is to make noise to put a stop to all this cruelty.

TVGuide.com: What kind of positive reaction have you received?
Krupa: I have received tons of amazing, positive e-mails and Twitters supporting me and congratulating me for standing up for these poor creatures and ignoring what the Catholic League is saying. Some said that the Catholic League needs to worry about the half-billion dollars they spent on child abuse cases and not criticize an innocent ad to save millions of animals and spread the awareness.

TVGuide.com: What can people do?
Krupa: If you suspect animal cruelty, call the right sources. Don't buy fur, adopt from shelters instead of buying from breeders and puppy stores, and make sure to spay or neuter your pet.

TVGuide.com: After this, what's your next ad going to look like?
Krupa: I did my anti-fur campaign some years ago, noticed it made an impact and saw how several fashion designers now have switched from fur to fake fur. PETA played a vital role here; I know that as a fact. Many other celebrities are doing an amazing job drawing attention to the brutality against animals and I know they'll make an impact. If there is another pressing issue, be it for animals or children, I will always do what I can when asked. For here and today, I simply want to make sure people know that this Christmas they can be an angel by adopting a pet from a shelter.

http://lubbockonline.com/stories/120409/loc_531825286.shtml

HSC stops practicing on live cats

By Sarah Nightingale | AVALANCHE-JOURNAL

Friday, December 04, 2009
Story last updated at 12/4/2009 - 12:39 am

For the first year in more than two decades, Texas Tech's Health Sciences Center did not use cats from a West Texas shelter to train professionals in emergency medical techniques.

Joanna Krupa vs. Catholics: Animal Rights, Not Blasphemy

Today 7:30 PM PST by NATALIE FINN

Hello people,

We had an exciting 3-day storm which left much of the Tidewater region underwater and without power the last few days. Here are some pix:

 

It was fun playing in the streets, which became rivers, until the cops told us there were downed power lines and the water might be electrified. Oh well, I always wanted a perm.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jMmseQ0aBGfs1nWBqKO2dOflesqgD9BTJJNG0

A Falcons player gets on the good side of PETA

By PAUL NEWBERRY (AP)

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — Here's a change in Atlanta: A Falcons player showing some love for animals.

 


Providing quite a contrast to Michael Vick's gruesome dogfighting operation, tight end Tony Gonzalez and his wife, October, posed in the nude for an anti-fur advertisement from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.

The newly released ad, which was photographed over the summer in Los Angeles, shows the couple sitting together on green turf for the group's "We'd Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur" campaign. They're following celebrities who have posed in the buff, including Dennis Rodman, Pamela Anderson and Dominique Swain, while others such as Paul McCartney and Charlize Theron have worn clothes in the campaign.

"It looks good," Gonzalez said Wednesday, glancing at the photo on a reporter's cell phone while standing at his locker. "It's something me and my wife talked about. It's something we feel very strongly about. That's a great cause, especially when you educate yourself and find out what is happening out there in the world."

The long-running PETA campaign has relied on star power in an attempt to persuade people not to wear furs or other clothing made from animal skins. The group claims that animals are often beaten, strangled, stomped, electrocuted and even skinned alive.

Gonzalez said he was appalled when he saw pictures and videos provided by the group.

"I've never done something like this before. I'm usually not a political person," said the 10-time Pro Bowler, who holds the NFL record for most receptions by a tight end. "The pictures I saw were pretty gruesome, pretty cruel. If done the right way, maybe. But done the way I saw it, it's definitely inhumane."

Some of Gonzalez's teammates had not seen the new ad until it was shown to them by reporters. But it's likely to be all over the locker room before the week is out.

"Oh yeah," receiver Roddy White said, breaking into a big smile, "we're going to give him a hard time about that."

Bring it on, said the 33-year-old Gonzalez, who's in his first season with the Falcons after spending a dozen years with the Kansas City Chiefs.

"If you do something like this," he said, "you better be prepared for the guys in the locker room. They're going to let you know what they think about it."

Chris Houston studied the picture closely before offering up a tongue-in-cheek critique.

"He's got his Chad (Ochocinco), T.O. thing going on," the cornerback said. Then, he acknowledged, "I'm looking more at her, though."

Gonzalez was still playing for the Chiefs when Vick's dogfighting crimes came to light before the 2007 season, but players such as White remember all the turmoil it caused. When the team reported for its first day of training camp that year, there were animal rights protesters at the front gate and a small plane circling overhead, pulling a banner that said: "New team name? Dog Killers?"

Vick never played another game for the Falcons. He pleaded guilty to federal charges, served 20 months in prison and signed this season with the Philadelphia Eagles after the NFL lifted his suspension. He has played sparingly in a backup role.

The Falcons (5-3) are again in playoff contention after earning a surprising wild-card berth in 2008 with rookie Matt Ryan at quarterback.

"We've got some good stuff going on around here now," White said. "It's not all this negative stuff with helicopters flying over the practice field and things like that."

While prepared to take some good-natured gibes from his teammates, Gonzalez is serious about the anti-fur campaign. He became interested in animal right issues about three years ago and went on a vegan diet during the season, giving up meats or even foods that come from animals.

Gonzalez didn't last long as a vegan. He abandoned it after three or four weeks, saying the diet caused him to "lose a little too much weight." But he became more conscious of the meats he consumed and wound up writing a book about his methods, "The All-Pro Diet."

"I eat a little meat now, but it comes from clean sources: grass-fed cows, free-range chickens, wild fish, stuff like that," he said. "I'm OK with it as long as you do it humanely."

If nothing else, Gonzalez and his wife have provided a different face (and then some) for those animal lovers who might have still harbored a negative image of the Falcons, remembering they were his employer when heinous crimes were being carried out against dogs.

"We're going to get some good publicity out of this thing," White said.

 

Hey gang,

Pam used her runway show at Toronto Fashion Week to hammer the seal hunt, as seen by this bold outfit:

 
 

This morning, ....Canada.... AM, a national TV talk show, had us on to talk more about it. Check it out. After the show she unveiled her new seal ad in front of the ....Ontario.... legislative building.

Pam is an energizer bunny.

Have a great weekend!

Dan