California isn’t the only place trying to protect ducks from inhumane treatment. Readers also chime in about elder abuse and one of our recent cover girls.
Duck, Duck, Goose
California isn’t the only place looking out for the welfare of ducks and geese. The Compass Group, a British company that caters events such as Wimbledon, has decided it will no longer serve foie gras due to ethical concerns.
It’s an important reminder that California’s foie gras ban was the right thing to do, even as chefs and restaurants look for sneaky loopholes to continue serving diseased livers to diners. Birds force-fed for foie gras have up to four pounds of grain and fat pumped into their stomachs through metal pipes every day. The pipes sometimes puncture the birds’ throats, and the force-feeding process causes their livers to balloon to as much as 10 times their natural size, sometimes causing their livers to burst. It is common for birds who have been force-fed to suffer from hepatic encephalopathy, a serious brain ailment that occurs when their livers fail. This seems radical for a moment of gustatory sensation.
Hopefully other businesses and states will also find their moral compass and agree that it is better to have a big heart for animals’ welfare than to dine on their engorged livers, especially when chefs are capable of creating so many other wonderful options.
Tanya Petrovna
Palm Springs
Cover Girl
I couldn’t help but notice the remarkable resemblance that your “cover girl” of July 25 (“Girls”) had of “young Amy” of The Waltons! She is the adopted daughter of Ike and Cara Beth Godsey who only appears (sadly to write) infrequently on that show, being she is soon sent abroad to finishing school by her Mother Cara!
We, the viewing audience, often wonder why, as her delicate demeanor and impeccable manners make us question the intentions of a vain and perhaps jealous woman (C.B.G.). Amy was Mr. Godsey’s favorite! So truly I am delighted to see little Amy (aired 50 years ago) still alive in possibly her own (cloned) granddaughter.
Kathleene Singer
Watsonville
From The Web
Send Boxtops
[RE: “Guardianship Case Highlights Plight of Elderly,.html” Aug. 4] After reading the excellent comments posted on this page I believe a few words should be said about the regulators who through their negligence have become accomplices for the activities they are assigned to regulate.
In order to become a guardian in California a candidate must attend 58 hours of “online” training and pass a national and state multiple choice exam. After reading the questions from the national and state guardianship question pools, I found the questions to be as simple as “who is buried in Grant’s tomb? In summary anyone can become a guardian, just send two box tops to the National Guardianship Association and pay your dues to the Center for Guardianship Certification and you are considered a guardian in good standing. The center for Guardianship Certification is managed by a lady who is managing approximately 11 nonprofit corporations. She has no budget for enforcement, which allows her members to operate completely out of control. The elderly who need care suffer for this laissez faire regulatory stance. Unfortunately guardians manage millions of dollars of estate funds accumulated by seniors who worked hard and followed the rules for their entire lives. A guardian candidate doesn’t have to have a college degree if he/she worked in a senior care facility for three years. Guardians have more power in some cases than attorneys, accountants and even some physicians.
Charles Pascal
