Dear Friends, I hope you are having a wonderful Christmas with your family and loved ones. Unfortunately, our finned friends in captivity cannot spend this time of the year with their families as they are hundreds of miles separated from one another. That's why we're writing to Willie Walsh, the boss of BA/International Airlines Group, today! Here's the deal: Please send an E-Mail to Willie Walsh (willie.walsh@iairgroup.com) and ask him to stop selling trips to SeaWorld. Make the message as short or long as you like. We didn't include a standard message to copy as we're worried that Willie Walsh's IT team will delete all the message as spam. Please send a Bcc (blind carbon copy) to BA@whales.org so we can monitor the activity and get an idea of how much impact this may have. So: E-Mail to: willie.walsh@iairgroup.com Bcc to: BA@whales.org The idea is to make this all about Christmas, union and close bonding which orcas in captivity do not have. A few points you could make: - Christmas is a time of giving and sharing with your loved ones but orcas are hundreds of miles separated from their families - Tell Willie Walsh that the market and public opinion about orca captivity is changing. SeaWorld's attendance has fallen, revenue is down and their stock price hit an all time low this last quarter. They just fired over 300 employees before Christmas to deal with their financial trouble. - Ask Willie Walsh to listen to the experts, such as Dr. Ingrid Visser, Dr. Ken Balcomb, Dr. Lori Marino and Dr. Naomi Rose. The evidence is out there. Turning a blind eye to it and denying it as SeaWorld does is not working. Our slogan for the E-Mail campaign is: "Happy Christmas Willie Don't be silly Help free Willy!" You can include the slogan through this picture from Whale and Dolphin Conservation: http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y238/lil-Rinny/Life/Animals/DontBeSillyWillie.jpg If you have any questions, please do ask. BA had just announced before Christmas that they will continue to sell trips to SeaWorld and that they see no reason to end their partnership. Let's show them the hundreds of reasons they do have to end this partnership!!! We won't be sitting back and let our orca friends suffer, especially not at Christmas! All the very best and a Happy Boxing Day everyone! Kathleen