Jerry Vlasak is a U.S. physician and prominent member of several controversial nonprofit organizations, including Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine and the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. Wikiquote has a collection of quotations by or about: United States Wikinews has news related to this article: United States United States government Official website of the United States government - Gateway to governmental sites White House - Official site of the US President Senate. ... A physician is a person who practices medicine. ... The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) is a non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C., that promotes preventive medicine, conducts clinical research, and encourages higher standards for ethics and effectiveness in research. ... The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society is a non-profit, non-governmental maritime organization founded by Paul Watson in 1977. ...

Vlasak is a former member of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society's board of directors. He was removed on April 22, 2005. April 22 is the 112th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (113th in leap years). ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar and is the current year. ...

Since 1986 he has been married to Pamelyn Ferdin. 1986 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Pamelyn Ferdin (born February 4, 1959) is an outspoken animal rights activist and former child actress. ...

Controversy

Vlasak stirred controversy at a conference in 2003 when, speaking of scientists who perform experiments on animals, he stated that "If these vivisectors were being targeted for assassination, and call it political assassination or what have you ... strictly from a fear and intimidation factor, that would be an effective tactic." 2003 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

This comment was widely interpreted as an endorsement of targeted assassinations against such scientists, and led to his being barred from entering the United Kingdom.

In a 2005 interview with CBC News, Vlasak reiterated his support for his previously-expressed view, and suggested that seal hunters bore the same level of guilt as the scientists he had previously accused, saying "Are these people comparable to people that chop up animals in laboratories just to further their academic careers? Yeah, I think they're all abhorrent in a certain way." 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar and is the current year. ... The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known by the abbreviation CBC, is Canadas government-owned radio and television service. ...

Vlasak claimed that he was selectively quoted by CBC, which held a pro-sealer bias. "I didn't expect much from a Newfie, but you have hit a new low for one-sided reporting." An outport (small fishing village) in Newfoundland Newfie is a colloquial term used in Canada for one who is from Newfoundland and Labrador. ...

Here are a few quotes from Jerry Vlasak:

"Get arrested. Destroy the property of those who torture animals. Liberate those animals interned in the hellholes our society tolerates."
-- Jerry Vlasak, M.D., Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, Animal Defense League of Los Angeles, Internet post to AR Views, June 21, 1996

"If someone is killing, on a regular basis, thousands of animals, and if that person can only be stopped in one way by the use of violence, then it is certainly a morally justifiable solution."
-- Jerry Vlasak, spokesman for the Animal Defense League, April 1, 2004

"I am personally not advocating violence. I am simply saying that it is a morally acceptable tactic and it may be useful in the struggle for animal liberation. I don't know."
-- Jetty Vlasak, spokesmen for the Animal Defense League, from a BBC interview

"Anybody who does business with this company, they become a legitimate target for the campaign,"
-- Jerry Vlasak, an ALF spokesman and a physician in Los Angeles

Both Jerry Vlasak and his wife, child actress Pamelyn Ferdin are directors of the Animal Defense League (ADL). The ADL acively supports the direct actions of the Animal Liberation Front, the Earth Liberation Front, SHAC, amongst other Domestic Terrorist groups.

From the ADL website at www.animaldefense.com, "The Animal Defense League is an above-ground animal rights group, but fully supports the great work done by the underground Animal Liberation Front (ALF)..."

External link

• Anti-sealing group denounces director's comments, CBC News, 21 Apr 2005