Luxury Furs... Lindsay Lohan listen up! Donate furs to Wildlife Shelters...

Fashion "no no"

Last year, Lindsay Lohan was doused with flour when she trotted the red carpet at a high-profile event overseas in a full-length fur.

PETA's sneak attack was swift and right on target!

The startled actress was  humiliated and made a public spectacle of while the world watched on.

Fashion savvy gals are clued in.

Tossing on furs slaughtered off of wild (and possibly endangered) species  is not stylish!

For this reason, Lindsay may want to consider donating her furs (she can still wear the faux with pride) to a wild life shelter.

Right now, there is an ongoing program to use donated furs as bedding for wild animals left orphaned or homeless for whatever reason.

"This is a creative way to help animals in need," said Danielle Bays, a Humane Society wildlife issues associate.

Wildlife rehabilitators cut the fur into an appropriate size for the animal (whether a chipmunk, raccoon, squirrel or opossum) and put it inside the animal's enclosure. The furry blanket becomes a "surrogate mother" to the orphaned or injured animal reducing stress and giving comfort.

The Humane Society of the United States Cape Wildlife Center on Cape Cod is one of many wildlife rehab centers that make good use of old furs.

 "Orphaned baby animals generally do quite well when raised by a licensed wildlife rehabilitator," said Dr. Rachel Blackmer, DVM, director of the Cape Wildlife Center.

"At the Center, we often give orphaned baby squirrels and rabbits a small piece of a donated fur coat and they snuggle against it readily. It is very important to minimize human contact with orphaned mammals while still providing comfort and a safe environment," she said.

The HSUS accepts all fur and fur-trimmed apparel, including shearling. Fur accessories including hats, gloves, scarves and muffs are also accepted.

"Ideally, we wish no animals were killed for their fur," Bays said.

 "Killing animals for their fur is cruel and unnecessary. Unfortunately, that doesn't change the fact that there are many fur coats and accessories languishing in closets and attics everywhere. Donating furs to wildlife rehabilitation is one way to give back to the animals," she said.

Donating is easy.

Package your fur in a sturdy box or padded envelope for small items and mail it to

Fur-Free Century
The HSUS
2100 L Street NW
Washington, DC
20037.

The HSUS will send a letter thanking you for your donation.

When received, file it with your tax documents for future reference.

If you plan to itemize tax deductions, you can claim the fair market value, the amount you could sell the fur for today.

Furs valued at $5,000 or more must have a "qualified appraisal", according to the IRS.

You must have this appraisal done before sending The HSUS your donation.

Beijing...fudged on smog data! Faces scorn of world...

A week ago - I reported on Beijing's last-ditch efforts to curb smog in anticipation of the upcoming Olympics - by shutting-down factories, limiting the number of vehicles on the road, and so forth and so on.

But, the surge forward to clean up the environment has been to no avail, according to reports out of Beijing over the past forty-eight hours.

A huge cloud of smog still hangs thick and ominous over the horizon - obscuring the dazzling new superstructures built to impress the world - and posing a potential threat to Athletes due next week to participate in the games.

In fact, Olympic Officials have expressed their concerns that the quality of air is less than standard and may be a hazard to the health.

A Greenpeace Campaign Director - Lo Sze Ping - blamed the bad air on what he characterized as a - "develop first, clean up later" - approach by the Chinese Government which has obviously backfired.

Meanwhile, over the weekend, it was reported that smog around the Stadium is "unhealthful for sensitive groups".

The Chinese Government - which won the games on the provisio the environment would be "cleaned up" for the Olympic Festivities - has issued a statement in which they flatly allege they have reached their commitment to make sure the air quality is satisfactory for the Games.

Beijing Environmental protection official (Du Shaozhong) asserted to the press in recent days that seventy-percent of the days were able to boast acceptable levels of pollution or an improvement over last year's figures by twenty percent.

However, some are pointing fingers at the data, and accusing Chinese Officials of fudging the figures.

For instance, Steve Q. Andrews - a U.S. Environmental Consultant (who analyzed Beijing's figures) - alleges that two air monitoring stations in congested parts of the downtown sector were dropped from the Government's calculations for the air pollution index and substituted for monitors in the outskirts of the city.

Notwithstanding this kind of obvious skullduggery, those in-the-know claim that China does not even measure ground-level ozone levels which are a major component of smog, according to scientists in the field.

Andrews got a little ballsy and griped,

"They are manipulating the way they measure and what they measure so much that you cannot say the air quality is improving."

As athletes vow to wear masks during the games, China has been forced to look into novel ways to clear the air. For one, they are exploring the idea of artificially inducing rainstorms to dissipate the smog.

In the final analysis, it all appears to boil down to Karma, in my estimation.

Until China stops violating "Human Rights" and denying Monks "Freedom of Speech", and being "negligent" about the environment, their country will continue to face the wrath of God by virtue of floods, famine, earthquakes, poison air, and the like.

China must commence with a spiritual cleansing now - and pray, ultimately, for forgiveness - or face continued ongoing hardships to her detriment and well-being as a Nation.

What do they say?

Confession is good for the soul!

Blog action day...tribute to the environment!

As a tribute to "Blog Action Day", and the theme of the environment, I've organized a stellar series of film clips, animations, and music videos - in sum, a whole, thought-provoking, delightful, insightful series of works from leading conservationists and activists around the globe...

Trusting that you find the posts appealing as you scroll down...

Environment, quote..."They kill good trees to put out bad newspapers"...James G. Watt

Quote..."When we heal the Earth, we shall heal ourselves" David Orr