Hello supporters, The last month has been tiring, hopeful, disappointing, optimistic, challenging, and frustrating. Those of us working on this issue have been stretched to the limits of our endurance. There's no doubt that so many mixed emotions in such a short period of time can take a toll - not only on my team but on all of you. With every new update to this petition, I often added a call to action; the majority of the time, that meant calling and/or emailing the delegates on the House Agriculture Subcommittee. I asked this of all of you because we have strength in numbers. However, I also assumed that, despite your outrage, you would contact the delegates in a professional manner (as I'm sure most of you did). But, an email was recently forwarded to me in which one of you chose to lash out profanely at the delegates. Though I know exactly who sent this email, I am choosing not to name them publicly. Still, I ask you to read it below in its entirety: "Someone should put a big heavy chain around all your damn necks and tie you up outside in subzero temps and watch you die a slow death you inhumane assholes. What a bunch of fucking morons!!! Like this was going to get in the way of your damn precious political life. I hope ALL of you are a victim of a violent crime and endure pain, torture and eventually die just like these poor, neglected, innocent, defenseless animals are doing. I HOPE ALL OF YOU ROT IN HELL!!!!" Granted, we are all angry. The push for this law has been a year in the making and it's incredibly upsetting to think that such a large effort can be swatted away so quickly. But, everyone must realize that sending emails like this DO NOT help our cause. To the contrary, all they do is infuriate the recipients - and that does not coax them into action on our behalf. They are more likely to push back even harder when they feel berated. To those of you who did contact the delegates in a more civil manner, I thank you. This fight is not over, but it is still a fight, and we cannot let emotion get in the way of strategy. In the future, if we require a large outpouring of support and a phone/email campaign to reach the delegates, I ask that you please contact them in a tactful, courteous way. Thank you for your continued support. Gary