| (Columbus) - Microsoft has rejected a U.S.
Sportsmen's Alliance request to abandon its partnership with the
nation's leading anti-hunting organization.
Microsoft, the software giant, will make a
$100,000 donation to the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS)
and is partnering with the group on a pilot program called the i'm
Initiative. Through the new program, whenever a Windows Live
Messenger user has a conversation using i'm, Microsoft will give a
portion of the program's advertising revenue to one of ten
organizations selected by the user. The HSUS is one of the
choices, and there is no limit to the amount of money that can be
donated.
The U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance, the nation's
leading sportsmen's advocacy organization has urged Microsoft to
ends its support of HSUS, but the company refused. According
to Microsoft representative Tara Kriese, Microsoft believes the i'm
Initiative is "a great way to enable people to help cuases that are
important to them."
"Microsoft is going to pour hundreds of
thousands of dollars, probably more, into an organization that
recently issued a manifesto that targets hunting for extenction,"
said USSA President Bud Pidgeon. "If there was ever a time for
sportsmen to take grassroots action, this is it."
Sportsmen should contact Microsoft and demand
that its financial support of HSUS be terminated. Contact Bill
Gates, Chairman, Microsoft, 1 Microsoft Way, Redmond, WA
98052. Phone 425.882.8080. Fax: 425.7329.
The Human Society of the United States opposes
all animal use, including trapping, hunting and fishing. It
was a key player in the campaigns to outlaw dove hunting in
Michigan, trapping in California, and black bear hunting in
Colorado. The organization has created a hit list of hunting
traditions that it hopes to dismantle, including bear hunting and
hunting with hounds.
"The HSUS already has a multi-million dollar
budget that it invests in legislative and ballot campaigns to ban
trapping and hunting," said Pidgeon. "The partnership that it
has formed with Microsoft, the maker of the Xbox, will allow the
organization to make money hand over fist, and continue to fund
efforts to ban outdoor sports.
Sportsmen can make a difference in an issue
like this. Companies such as Iams, General Mills, Accor
Hotels, Pet Safe, Sears, and Ace Hardware ended relationships with
HSUS after thousands of sportsmen levied strong protest.
In 2002, Jeep raised the ire of sportsmen when
it aired a blatantly, anti-hunting commercial called the "Deer
Hunter." After a flood of sportsmen's contacts, Jeep pulled
the commercial in three days.
The U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance is a national
association of sportsmen and sportsmen's organization that protects
the rights of hunters, anglers and trappers in the courts,
legislatures, at the ballot, in Congress and through public
education programs. For more information about the U.S.
Sportsmen's Alliance and its work, call 614.888.4868 or visit its
website, www.ussportsmen.org
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