McCartney's wife seeks of sale of cat, dog fur

McCartney's wife seeksof sale of cat, dog fur
BRUSSELS, Belgium -- Animal-rights campaigner Heather Mills McCartney called on the European Union to ban the production and sale of cat and dog fur in Europe.
Mills McCartney, wife of Paul McCartney, revealed evidence Thursday that she said shows a thriving industry and trade in cat and dog skins, mainly in the Czech Republic, which joined the EU in 2004.
"Domestic cats are stolen off the streets in the Czech Republic and we're talking about 2,000 to 3,000 just in the Czech Republic, not in the whole of Europe," she told reporters.
"They skin them alive," Mills McCartney said, displaying a baby blanket sewn together with 20 cat skins.
A video was shown of emaciated dogs and cats kept in dark, cramped rooms and cages. The video also portrayed the killing of a dog.
"It has to stop," said EU lawmaker Struen Stevenson, who is backing the appeal. "The main thing that we are seeking is to have an EU-wide ban on the import, export and trade in cat and dog skins."
The United States and Australia have already instituted bans on the trade, as well as EU member nations Belgium, Denmark, France, Greece and Italy.
Activists have been campaigning for five years to have a ban passed by the EU's European Commission.
"How much more do we have to show to get this ban in place?" asked Mills McCartney, who was in Brussels earlier this year to campaign for the same cause. "How many more animals have to be skinned alive before they [the Commission] go and do something about it?"
Corporate donors to help 7 kids whose mother died
LOS ANGELES -- Supermodel and TV talk-show host Tyra Banks says corporate donors will provide a computer, clothing allowances and college tuition for seven children who were orphaned when their mother was mowed down by tow truck.
The children of Rosa Carrera, who was killed in the October accident in suburban Vernon, appeared on "The Tyra Banks Show" on Wednesday to discuss how the family is holding up.
"I'm like the mother now of all these kids and so I have to hold it together," said 18-year-old Karla Becerra. The other children range in age from 6 to 17.
"I'm proud of you," Banks replied.
Police said Carrera, 34, was killed in October when a truck driven by Raymond Bermudez went out of control. Two other people, including Carrera's husband, Daniel Dorantes, were killed and eight others were injured. Dorantes, 35, was the father of Carrera's youngest child.
Bermudez, 29, has been charged with murder, assault with a deadly weapon and auto theft, police said. Authorities said he stole the truck hours after being released from Salinas Valley State Prison.
Today's birthdays
Nobel Prize-winning author Alexander Solzhenitsyn is 87. Actor Jean-Louis Trintignant is 75. Actress Rita Moreno is 74. Actor Ron Carey is 70. Former California state assemblyman Tom Hayden, D-Los Angeles, is 66. Pop singer David Gates (Bread) is 65. Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., is 64. Actress Donna Mills is 63. Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., is 62. Singer Brenda Lee is 61. Actress Lynda Day George is 61. Music producer Tony Brown is 59. Actress Teri Garr is 57. Movie director Susan Seidelman is 53. Actress Bess Armstrong is 52. Singer Jermaine Jackson is 51. Rock musician Nikki Sixx (Motley Crue) is 47. Rock musician Darryl Jones (The Rolling Stones) is 44. Singer-musician Justin Currie (Del Amitri) is 41. Rock musician David Schools (Gov't Mule, Widespread Panic) is 41. Actor Gary Dourdan ("CSI") is 39. Actress-comedian Mo'Nique ("The Parkers") is 37. Rapper-actor Mos Def is 32. Actor Rider Strong is 26.