The US Army has defended a practice of shooting live pigs as part of a medical training exercise for soldiers heading to Iraq. The military says the practice teaches troops emergency lifesaving skills needed on the battlefield when there are no doctors or medical facilities nearby.
"It's to teach Army personnel how to manage critically injured patients within the first few hours of their injury," said Major Derrick Cheng, spokesman for the 25th Infantry Division.
But animal cruelty organisation Peta has labelled the practice outdated and unnecessary and have urged the Army to rethink the plan.
"There's absolutely no reason why they have to shoot live pigs," spokeswoman Holly Beal said.
Peta said the training was brought to their attention by a "distraught" soldier who told them of plans to shoot the pigs with M4 carbines and M16 rifles.
The organisation said there were more humane options available, including high-tech human simulators.
But Major Cheng said shooting pigs was the best option.
"Those alternative methods just can't replicate what the troops are going to face when we use live-tissue training," he said.
"What we're doing is unique to what the soldiers are going to actually experience."
"We understand (Peta's) concerns and point of view. At the same, the Army is committed to providing the soldiers with the best training possible," he said.
Determined to halt the exercise, Peta has asked its two million members to flood the Army with calls and emails
If they have to use living things for target practice,why not use inanimate living things.....like a tree...OR A BUSH
An Irish man walks into a pub. The bartender asks him, "what'll you have?" The man says, "Give me three pints of Guinness please." So the bartender brings him three pints and the man proceeds to alternately sip one, then the other, then the third until they're gone. He then orders three more. The bartender says, "Sir, I know you like them cold. You don't have to order three at a time. I can keep an eye on it and when you get low I'll bring you a fresh cold one." The man says, "You don't understand. I have two brothers, one in Australia and one in the States. We made a vow to each other that every Saturday night we'd still drink together. So right now, my brothers have three Guinness Stouts too, and we're drinking together. The bartender thought that was a wonderful tradition. Every week the man came in and ordered three beers. Then one week he came in and ordered only two. He drank them and then ordered two more. The bartender said to him, "I know what your tradition is, and I'd just like to say that I'm sorry that one of your brothers died." The man said, "Oh, me brothers are fine----I just quit drinking!"
Minutes before coming here I read this in the most amazing book I bought last week......
"Kismet is the word in the Urdu language---- Fate has every power over us,but two.Fate cannot control our free will,and fate cannot lie.Men lie,to themselves more than to others,and to others more often than they tell the truth.But Fate does not lie......
The book is called Shantaram...... if you read it you will enjoy one of the finest books ever.
My third eye! Been stabbed in the back before so seemed practical to have it there!
But seriously. I play gongs.The only instrument on the planet I know of where the player has their back to the audience. The pupil of the eye is my gong (took it to the tattoo studio and played for the guy so he was in a very creative mood!)
The eyebrow is a tsunami wave (was at sea 23 years) with an OM sign in the waves.
A teardrop falls from the eye with a ying yang as the point of reflection of light in the drop of water.
Balance. We can cry from both sorrow and laughter.
It was autumn, and the Indians on the remote reservation asked their new Chief if the winter was going to be cold or mild. Since he was a new Indian Chief in a modern society, he had never been taught the old secrets, and when he looked at the sky, he couldn't tell what the weather was going to be. Nevertheless, to be on the safe side, he replied to his tribe that the winter was indeed going to be cold and that the members of the village should collect wood to be prepared. But also being a practical leader, after several days he got an idea. He went to the phone booth, called the National Weather Service and asked, "Is the coming winter going to be cold?" "It looks like this winter is going to be quite cold indeed," the meteorologist at the weather service responded. So the Chief went back to his people and told them to collect even more wood in order to be prepared. A week later he called the National Weather Service again. "Is it going to be a very cold winter?" "Yes," the man at National Weather Service again replied, "it's going to be a very cold winter." The Chief again went back to his people and ordered them to collect every scrap of wood they could find. Two weeks later he called the National Weather Service again. "Are you absolutely sure that the winter is going to be very cold?" "Absolutely," the man replied. "It's going to be one of the coldest winters ever." "How can you be so sure?" the Chief asked. The weatherman replied, "The Indians are collecting wood like crazy!"
Answer.... Light stove and put pebbles directly in flame until really hot.Remove pebbles wearing gloves (it was winter!) and drop into cup full of snow.the water was hot enough to make tea!
Years ago I was mountain walking in winter.Stopped to "brew up" on opening the rucksack I found I had forgotten to pack the pan to boil water!
I had a stove,a plastic cup,a tea bag and plenty of snow,but no pan. But within 10 mins I had a hot cup of tea (essential for the English don´t you know )
gongman Forum Posts (515)
in the middle of the road?
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Target practice (animal lovers DO NOT READ!)
The US Army has defended a practice of shooting live pigs as part of a medical training exercise for soldiers heading to Iraq.The military says the practice teaches troops emergency lifesaving skills needed on the battlefield when there are no doctors or medical facilities nearby.
"It's to teach Army personnel how to manage critically injured patients within the first few hours of their injury," said Major Derrick Cheng, spokesman for the 25th Infantry Division.
But animal cruelty organisation Peta has labelled the practice outdated and unnecessary and have urged the Army to rethink the plan.
"There's absolutely no reason why they have to shoot live pigs," spokeswoman Holly Beal said.
Peta said the training was brought to their attention by a "distraught" soldier who told them of plans to shoot the pigs with M4 carbines and M16 rifles.
The organisation said there were more humane options available, including high-tech human simulators.
But Major Cheng said shooting pigs was the best option.
"Those alternative methods just can't replicate what the troops are going to face when we use live-tissue training," he said.
"What we're doing is unique to what the soldiers are going to actually experience."
"We understand (Peta's) concerns and point of view. At the same, the Army is committed to providing the soldiers with the best training possible," he said.
Determined to halt the exercise, Peta has asked its two million members to flood the Army with calls and emails
If they have to use living things for target practice,why not use inanimate living things.....like a tree...OR A BUSH