The cruelty is shocking. Unspeakable. So brutal that it has sparked outrage, anger, and action worldwide.

Last week Mercy For Animals released heartbreaking footage of malicious and sadistic abuse to cows and calves at a Central Ohio dairy farm. Workers were captured on film violently stabbing cows with pitchforks, mercilessly beating them in the face with crowbars, and punching, kicking, and body-slamming baby calves.

The agriculture industry wants you to believe this is an isolated incident. But it's not.

On factory farms, animals regularly live out their short lives in confinement so extreme that they can't stand up, turn around, stretch their limbs, or lie down comfortably. It's an industry where abuse has become normal.

And Ohio is among the worst. Only four states in this country have weaker animal protection laws than Ohio.

You don't have to be an animal advocate, much less a vegetarian, to want to reform the way we raise our farm animals in Ohio. All it takes is a modicum of compassion and the acknowledgment that animals should not endure unnecessary trauma or abuse while in our care.

Take action now

Here's what you can do:

1. Sign the petition and join the more than 30,000 Change.org members who have already taken action to demand that those involved in the Conklin Dairy abuse case are brought to justice.
2. Volunteer to gather signatures by attending a ballot signature gathering event. Deadline is June 30, 2010 to get 600,000 petition signatures to the Secretary of State.
3. Donate to Ohioans for Humane Farms: your donation will help get the signatures needed for the ballot initiative

Conservative op-ed columnist David Brooks reviewed Obama's speech:

America once had a responsible economic culture, Obama argued. People used to save their pennies to buy their dream houses. Banks used to lend by “traditional standards.” Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac used to stick to their “traditional mandate.” Companies like A.I.G. used to limit themselves to the “traditional insurance business.”