Posted on 02/15/2003 8:27:48 AM PST by Deadeye Division
`Bonsai Kittens' in jars cause stir with pet lovers
Satirical Web site not real. But some folks are
clamoring to shut it down
Connie Bloom
Beacon Journal
The so-called ``lost Eastern art'' was perverse and sickening. Seal a kitten in a jar, where its developing bones would warp into the shape of the container. Maintain life via drugs and tubes. In three or four months, you'd have an ``aesthetically pleasing, custom shaped'' Bonsai Kitten. That is the essence of the satirical Web site BonsaiKitten.com.
``I was mortified,'' said Tina Hughes, office manager at Berran Industrial Group in Kent. She and Randy Adair, president of the company, couldn't get the images out of their heads, particularly the picture of a diapered toddler sitting on a kitten trapped in a jar.
They had been asked to sign one of the many petitions to shut down the Web site. ``We're getting a lot more permissive about what we allow, especially on the Web,'' said Adair. ``We've got to stop this. We're going backward. Enough is enough.''
The FBI is looking into it, said John Iannarelli, a special agent with the agency's Press Office in Washington, D.C. If the agency determines the site is credible and there's no federal violation of law, it will pass its files along to the relevant state law enforcement agencies so they can take action.
The Humane Society of the United States says the site has been around since 2000. It is the disgusting work of a former student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, who had registered the site at the school under a false name. MIT shut it down, but the student was encouraged by all the negative attention and has continued to promote it on a series of Web hosts, one after another, citing his right to free speech.
``History tells us that creators of offensive Web sites often seek out new hosts until they find one that either has no User's Agreement or allows all content, no matter how offensive, permitted under the First Amendment. The creator of the Bonsai Kitten site followed this pattern, and the site is currently hosted by a new company that refuses to remove it,'' the Humane Society said. Its Web site is www.hsus.org.
Animal cruelty?
Countless newspapers have run stories about it. Cynics may chuckle, but the writing is convincing enough to be considered an incitement to animal cruelty, at the very least. ``Be prepared for your jaw to hit the floor when you see this Web site,'' wrote one reporter. ``It seems like a joke, but its detail and photos place seeds of doubt in your mind.''
Any attempts to imprison a kitten in this or any other inhumane fashion is illegal in the state of Ohio, said Sen. David Goodman (R-Bexley), whose Senate Bill 221 was enacted into law on Jan. 8, at long last yanking the state out of the Dark Ages. ``It increases penalties for animal abuse and cruelty, putting Ohio pretty much above the curve in the United States,'' said Goodman, who represents the 3rd District in Central Ohio.
Penalties vary, depending on the type of abuse, said Goodman. First offenses are misdemeanors. Subsequent offenses may be classified as felonies and can carry prison terms of up to 12 months and fines of up to $2,500.
``The legislation announces that we take very seriously this issue,'' said Goodman. ``If you are convicted, it requires psychiatric counseling, an important part of the bill because there's a direct correlation between animal cruelty and spousal and child abuse. The deterrent is maybe getting people to the appropriate counseling so they are not mistreating animals and people in the future.''
``Animal abuse is a warning, an indication of past, present or future violence. The correlation is very high,'' said Richard Farkas, executive director of the Summit County Humane Society of Greater Akron. Violent acts against people or animals are part of a cycle, a link in a chain of family violence. Children who learn to abuse animals and get away with it are more likely to rape, abuse and kill other humans as adults. That's why the educational component of the Humane Society's mission is so important.
Investigating abuse
The agency investigated 1,000 cases in 2002, 125 of them in the month of January alone. ``This means that someone called in with a report of cruelty or neglect and they are concerned,'' said Humane Officer Tim Harland. ``Ideally, we go out and speak with the individuals and educate them. Sometimes they don't understand how to provide. If they don't comply, we prosecute.''
To report suspected abuse, call the humane society at 330-657-2010.
Animals are easy victims because they can't talk, can't fight back and are often considered lesser beings. Perpetrators are seeking power and control.
The Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and the FBI ``initiated an investigation of Bonsai Kitten's creator, but discovered no evidence of actual animal abuse or the sale of Bonsai Kitten products, though the investigation remains active,'' according to a document on the national humane society's Web site.
``If the creator is not e-mailing the obscene materials to an unwilling audience, violating a User's Agreement, committing the abuse depicted on the site or actually selling products involving animal cruelty, then the site is considered free speech and is protected by the First Amendment.''
That doesn't make it any less offensive or infuriating.
Connie Bloom writes the Pets column for the Akron Beacon Journal. You can reach her at 330-996-3568 or cbloom@thebeaconjournal.com.
And I love animals.
Yup. Still is. - I wonder if the paper will print a retraction when they discover the reporterette has been taken by the hoax?
If the FBI has the resources to investigate hoaxes which were debunked by Snopes many years ago http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/outrage/bonsai.htm then they must be overfunded.
It's been around years and every year it seems to make a resurgance because someone can't be bothered to check out the facts first.
"Hold muh beer 'n watch this!" PING....
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