Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - July 30, 2013, Winnipeg, Manitoba C M Y K PAGE A12 A 12 WINNIPEG FREE PRESS, TUESDAY, JULY 30, 2013 WORLD winnipegfreepress. com By Duncan Owen For more information visit our website, www. salisburyhouse. ca **** **** Salisbury House, MFPA 2013 Industry Excellence ' Company Of The Year Award' **** Ask about our other flavour. Sals Anyone who doubts Winnipeg's cultural significance in Canada needed only to spend a little time over the last couple of weeks talking to some of the performers from around the world who converged on the city for this year's Fringe Festival that wrapped up on Sunday. Jeff Leard, a comedian from Victoria, BC said of Winnipeg, " This is my second time in Winnipeg and it's the favourite Fringe on the circuit for the performers. We all really enjoy Winnipeg and everybody knows about it. The whole city gets into it." Jeff wasn't alone in his praise of the city's hospitality. Steve Larkin, from Leeds, England, was premiering his new one man show ' Fat Sex' said " it's like stepping back in time to come here, it's gorgeous." A veteran of the Fringe circuit who has performed at the Grand Daddy of all Fringes in Edinburgh, Scotland said, " This is the inverse of the Edinburgh festival. Everybody over there wants to make money off the artists. Here they go out of their way to make the artists feel at home. And the audiences are willing to try anything for the performers." " In other cities the festival is spread out all over town. Here it's very central, and there is a great community," Jeff said. This year's Fringe set another record for attendance with over 100,000 people attending shows, which just reinforces Winnipeggers reputation for supporting the arts. Of course, none of it would be possible without the hundreds of volunteers who were willing to put their lives on hold for 12 days to help out. Irena and Kira, who had a moment to spare from their duties selling tickets are both are both veterans of the Fringe with 15 seasons of volunteering between them. Irena, a BSc major at the University of Winnipeg, says the Fringe is her way of giving to the arts, " plus I get to see shows and meet lots of really cool people. It's a great atmosphere." And for Kira, who works at the MTC and is a theatre veteran, the Fringe offers a chance to " see some really edgy plays." Indeed, for the thousands who showed up to support the performers, they were treated to an amazing array of prerformances, from Winnipeg's own Nan Fenchuk's wonderful role in ' Dog Act' to the comedy of another hit show, ' 2 for Tea' which relied on audience participation for their act. James, from ' 2 For Tea' said of his first experience in Winnipeg, " The festival is amazing. There's so many theatre goers here. Such a delight, and they're so friendly." So take a bow all you Fringe volunteers, record crowds and rave reviews from the performers. And luckily, a 24 hour Salisbury House restaurant nearby to kick- back in at the end of a busy day. Jamesiey and James from the Fringe show ' 2 for Tea', loving Winnipeg. Every Hour is Happy Hour! NEW 204- 697- 1400 1400 McPHILLIPS WINNIPEG MB SAVE TIME . SHOP ON- LINE www. jimgauthierchevy. com www. jimgauthierchev. com * All prices are plus freight, taxes, fee's, boxliner and boxrails. Factory orders or locates may be required. See dealer for details. THE GAUTHIER AUTO GROUP IS PROUD TO BE THE # 1 VOLUME DEALER IN WPG!! 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Seeking to capitalize on that discrepancy, animal- welfare advocates are launching a campaign called The Someone Project that aims to highlight research depicting pigs, chickens, cows and other farm animals as more intelligent and emotionally complex than commonly believed. The hope is more people might view these animals with the same empathy they have for dogs, cats, elephants, great apes and dolphins. " When you ask people why they eat chickens but not cats, the only thing they can come up with is that they sense cats and dogs are more cognitively sophisticated than species we eat - and we know this isn't true," said Bruce Friedrich of Farm Sanctuary, the animal- protection and vegan- advocacy organization that is co- ordinating the new project. " What it boils down to is, people don't know farm animals the way they know dogs or cats," Friedrich said. " We're a nation of animal lovers, and yet the animals we encounter most frequently are the animals we pay people to kill so we can eat them." The lead scientist for the project is Lori Marino, a lecturer in psychology at Emory University in Atlanta, who has conducted extensive research on the intelligence of whales, dolphins and primates. She plans to review existing scientific literature on farm animals' intelligence, identify areas warranting new research, and prepare reports on her findings that would be circulated worldwide via social media, videos and her attendance at scientific conferences. " I want to make sure this is all taken seriously," Marino said in an interview. " The point is not to rank these animals but to re- educate people about who they are. They are very sophisticated animals." For Marino and Friedrich, who are both vegans, the goals of the project are twofold - to build broader public support for humane treatment of farm animals and to boost the ranks of Americans who choose not to eat meat. " This project is not a way to strongarm people into going vegan overnight but giving them a fresh perspective and maybe making them a little uncomfortable," Marino said. " Maybe they'll be thinking, ' Hmm, I didn't know cows and pigs could recognize each other and have special friends,' " she said. " That might make them squirm a little, but that's OK." The major associations representing chicken and pork producers say the farmers they represent already have taken strides to minimize cruel treatment of farm animals. " While animals raised for food do have a certain degree of intelligence, Farm Sanctuary is seeking to humanize them to advance its vegan agenda - an end to meat consumption," said David Warner of the National Pork Producers Council. " While vegans have a right to express their opinion - and we respect that right - they should not force their lifestyle on others." Gwen Venable of the U. S. Poultry and Egg Association said poultry provides a valuable and affordable source of protein. " Consumers should be able choose their food based on their own dietary preferences and nutritional needs and without being unduly influenced by any one group's personal agenda," she wrote in an email. - The Associated Press Barnyard animals no dummies: project Livestock as worthy of empathy as pets, activists believe By David Crary SCOTT MASON / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS A project aims to show farm animals are more intelligent than commonly believed. A_ 12_ Jul- 30- 13_ FP_ 01. indd A12 7/ 29/ 13 8: 05: 59 PM ;