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Vol 3 • No 29, July 20, 2008
 
The Only Photo We Got This Week
Get Ready For the Third Legalize Ferrets Revival;
Serious Business - Serious Fun
King's Inn in San Diego
 
Mark your calendar for Saturday Oct 11th and plan to join us for our third annual Legalize Ferrets Revival, but this won't be an ordinary ferret meeting as we enter the most promising time for ferret legalization since Ferrets Anonymous started in 1993.
 
Serious Business ; The Environmental Impact Report.  Either our working group will have significant progress to show us, or we will prepare to file our EIR with the state of California.
 
At this point I am ready to unveil the consultant I wish to hire to guide us through the EIR process and he has agreed to speak to us October 11th.
 

G. O. "Geo" Graening, PhD, MSE, REA

 

Principal and Owner, Natural Investigations Company

 
It is very important that Geo is not being considered an advocate for ferret legalization.  His job, should we hire him is to guide us through the process of CEQA (California Environmental Quality Act) and EIR.  Which, as a few people have pointed out to me, I get confused.
 
So I'm not the only one confused, see please see this flow chart.
 
To make it really hard for Geo, he won't know his subject matter until he steps in the room.  We won't know whether we want to file the EIR or go with our working group's recommendations until the 11th.
 
As to what is the "working group,"  when we started planning on an EIR some people of the group started environmental studies.  Later on they said things looked so promising perhaps an EIR would not be needed.  A disagreement surfaced between that point of view and the position that an EIR is going to be needed.  October 11th became the deadline. 
 
I have spoken to Geo at length and I have no doubt that he can explain our options - just don't expect him to have any advance time on our position.

Milo Shapiro

Serious Fun - There won't be an 2 1/2 hour PowerPoint Presentations.  I've hired someone to entertain and energize us - to make this meeting Interactive - not passive.  When you leave the Revival you will have met everyone in the room.  We want Milo to help break the ice, entertain us and show us how to better communicate.  He is an accomplished corporate communicator who works a little cheaper on the weekends.  We adjusted his price by moving the decimal point over one position to the left.
 
Dr Jeff Jenkins of the Avian and Exotic Animal Hospital has tentatively agreed to speak.  I am trying to get Dr. Lorri Greene to speak on Pet Bereavement.  (Ironically Dr Greene cancelled last minute as she had a death in the family).  Local candidate for state assembly and state senate will also be invited to give brief introductions to themselves because we may need a sponsor for a ferret bill next year.
 
 
 
Judge Jan Goldsmith
One person who won't be coming is Judge Jan Goldsmith.  When he was in the Assembly Jan Goldsmith sponsored the first ferret legalization bill back in 1993.  It has taken five weeks to get an answer from his campaign, which was "no." Donna Cleary called to say that his campaign is interested in law, not policy and he is declining.
 
This is a big shame.  I've been doing this for 20 years - I know a brush off when I see one, we've been brushed off.  I can't imagine any other group that would have received this answer.  We asked Judge Goldsmith as voters, not ferret owners to address us.  Because we are so often ignored by public officials, we are a little sore about being shut out.  Read my open letter to Judge Goldsmith.  You can visit his website at http://www.jangoldsmithforcityattorney.com/  Read my open letter to Judge Goldsmith here.
 
More on Our Video Contest.
 
By now I've deleted a few email addresses out of database from people who signed up for CLIFFNotes so they could vote in the Video contest.  I'm relieved that it didn't change the outcome.  The votes are:
 
There were a few comments that video #6 didn't really address ferret legalization - but he followed the rules.  The votes were legitimate and his YouTube video did bring a lot of people to www.legalizeferrets.org.  The rules are going to be a little different next year, but it was a tremendous success.
 
One late entrant you didn't see - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ff7pDgqtBCA 
 
Check out http://legalizeferrets.org/ for a cleaner display of the winners

Mysteries Explained - Where Ferret Beer Videos Came From - and Domestic Ferrets vs Native Weasels
 
I have been receiving photos of a particular ferret drinking from what appeared to be a beer bottle.  I discovered it was "Fursty Ferret Ale."
 
No doubt the video has been stripped out of you email - click here to see it - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3eTZbniQA8o
 
 Now that you know the domestic ferret hangs out in pubs - this is how our native wild weasel spends their time.  Quite a difference, eh Geo?
 
Again, most email providers have stripped out the video - click here to see how a San Diego weasel spends it's day - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iEOnTKJn5Ew
 
In Conclusion...
 
We're moving forward to ferret legalization!  I received an email from someone in Petco corporate saying they thought ferrets would be legal by December.  Sorry, no chance of that.  But I feel we are finally on the right road as we tackle this problem from a scientific angle.  The grassroots are going to be important because the Department of Fish and Game still probably wishes we'd just go away. 
 
So please continue to support us.  Your memberships, donations, etc make this effort possible.
 
Also, check out the San Diego Ferrets Anonymous Page - I've made some changes.  If anyone has additions to Where to Buy a Ferret, please let me know. 
 
Pat Wright
We still have t-shirts and coffee mugs with this great design!

CLIFFNotes Editor
CLIFFNotes@legalizeferrets.org
(619) 303-0645
 
Lance M.
Founder, OCFerrets /
President, Ferrets Anonymous
Website: http://www.ocferrets.org/
OCF Email: info@ocferrets.org
(949) 303-8481
 
Keep on Supporting us!