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Article: How now, mad cow? Last week Douglas Hogg survived a vote of no confidence on his handling of the BSE epidemic. John Lanchester examines the origins of the catastrophe, and asks why the Government consistently ignored the disease's link with cannibalism
- Article from:
- The Sunday Telegraph London
- Article date:
- February 23, 1997
- Author:
CopyrightCopyright 1997 The Sunday Telegraph London. Provided by ProQuest LLC. (Hide copyright information)
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AT AN EARLY point in my dealings with Richard Sibley, an
energetic and articulate 42-year-old English veterinary surgeon, I
made the mistake of using the phrase "mad-cow disease". "That word
is an absolute misnomer," he said, his grey eyes glinting. "These
cows are not mad. If you want an easy name, I would prefer to call
it worried-cow disease, or anxious-cow disease. The standard shot
of this poor cow is all wrong." He was referring to a now-famous
video clip of a visibly distressed black-and-white animal - named,
it turns out, Daisy - staggering around a farm pen and falling to
her knees. What is so upsetting about Daisy is that she looks so
upset, as if she knows what is happening to ...