THE GREATEST NO-SHOW ON EARTH

Say what you will (and I have) about PETA and some of their hamhanded, and frankly misguided, campaigns - but there's one organization that makes them look not only angelic but completely on the ball. That's Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey Circus, which not only infiltrated the organization with professional spies, but has shown such contempt for the courts in the lawsuit PETA subsequently filed that Ringling head Kenneth Feld has now been publicly chewed out by the judge for withholding crucial information in the case.

"A judge issued sanctions against the owner of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus for filing late and incomplete documents in a lawsuit that claims that the owner had established a spy operation against animal-rights groups.

Based on the portions of the 30-page document revealed during Thursday's hearing, it appears to spell out the company's plan for dealing with circus protests by animal-rights groups. The plan calls for efforts to discredit PETA and other animal-rights groups and to seek ways to undermine PETA's status as a nonprofit organization.

Circuit Judge David Stitt said Feld should have turned over the documents long ago. He ordered Feld to turn over an unredacted copy of the documents by Monday and to turn over any other documents related to the company's Animal Issues Department."