animal cruelty, Louis XIV style

Here's a disturbing illustration of some archaic pig siren that used to make people like Marie Antoinette giggle like a school child. This got me riled up this morning but then I thought: we've come a long way. Long way to go, but at least we don't tie wires to pigs tails and make them scream for amusement

Vegan issues on NYT

I love this op-ed from NY Times. Finally someone who echoes my intent. Meat-eaters today are self-righteous, defensive gluttons with little remorse. I believe if you are going to eat meat, you should be able to kill and butcher it too, and I don't think many of my friends can do that. Eating out is a total drag these days and I do it only when I fee obligated, I simply cannot watch someone eat meat from a bone, smell it wafting over my plate as I lift a spoonful of veggies to my mouth or be around it in any capacity.
This piece hits the point home the fallacy of free-range. If you really care about the fate of animals on this planet than you wouldn't eat them. Period.

This author can count on one hand the number of vegan friends he has. It is a sad state of affairs when people are breaking their backs trying to get around their guilt, all so they can eat a piece of bloody flesh.

Adopt a turkey for the holidays! If your family doesn't thank you, well maybe they don't deserve it. But the turkeys thank you and that should be most important. Change it up a bit, buck tradition. This year, for Thanksgiving, my in-laws asked me to bring the vegan pot-pie I made last year, and it is so nice to be able to share healthy, delicious vegan meals that a whole family loves.

Over-fishing...is your sushi worth it?

lately I'm obsessed with over-fishing, and it seems that my sentitments are echoed around the world. Listen to the NPR story here.
There are healthy fish to eat: tilapia, sardines, herring to name few. Leave the big tuna to the big sea and eat what can easily reproduce. Simple as that.

That not all...think that cigarette you've stumped out on the beach will just...disappear? Not only is your health at risk, but fish too! read more here. Of course nicotine is toxic...just remember where you dump your butts.

I'm taking on this crusade. Protect our oceans!

I heart Tony Gonzales

It's really important for fellow football players to support PETA's initiatives. I love that Tony Gonzales is sticking it to Vick and other animal abusers by using his celebrity to bring attention to the atrocities of wearing fur. Go Tony! I'll root for you any day.

https://secure.peta.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=2575
While you are at it, sign the anti-fur petition, and you'll never wear fur again.

So you're a pescatarian?

So you're a pescatarian... Do you ever consider the impact that your meat-free, yet fish-filled diet has on the planet? Terry Gross on Fresh Air has a great 2 part expose on the fishing industry, how it is killing our planet and the not-so-romantic image of the swarthy fisherman.

I stopped eating fish as soon as I left the nest. Too many early mornings visiting lobster traps with my father before school marred the romantic image of fishing. But at least it was one man (and a girl) against the sea. I spent too many days witnessing the brutal harpooning and watching fish flap themselves lifeless to ever really enjoy a seafood meal, and for that I'm thankful. I'm thankful also that I was forced to watch my dad kill my pet chickens and force me to pluck it, because little did he know that there was a young vegan in the making. I have so many friends who have said, "I only eat fish" And I say to them, "well pretty soon you'll start feeling guilt about the over-fishing problem and you'll stop eating fish too."
In this interview the facts are indisputable. Gone is the image of the swarthy fisherman with a crew of 2, trying to eek out a living. Instead we have floating factories with underpaid workers in less-than-desirable conditions fishing our oceans dry. 80% of the fish consumed in the US are from foreign countries. We use technology originally used in wartime to locate submarines to find schools of fish. Trawlers, huge nets that boats tow behind them, are sometimes large enough to accommodate 6 jumbo jets. This is factory farming people! We are literally ripping ecosystems directly out of the ocean. We are eating fish faster than they can reproduce and giving nice-sounding names to things that really sound inedible. Oh and the jellyfish. Jellyfish will soon run the world if we don't watch it.

If you are interested in the environment, overfishing, vegan issues or simply curious about what the science says, take a listen. Hey, it might just change what you eat.

Larry King grills the Burger industry

Last night on Larry King Live (LKL), the suspender-wearing journalist probed deep into the burger industry. Read the transcript here. Deaths from e-coli, especially in children, are on the rise and it's big beef's fault! Nearly everyone on the panel said that they don't eat burgers, with the exception of one woman who was obviously paid big bucks by big beef to extoll the virtues of an animal protein diet. In a nut shell, her argument went something like this: "It's so much easier to gulp down a burger than to actually think about eating sensibly"
Even Anthony Bourdain, self-professed carnivore, looks unfavorbaly on factory farming. I have a new-found love for Bourdain after a recent episode where he swore he would not take part in the slaughtering of animals for his tv show since he's been dating a vegetarian!

So what's the final word? Everyone, except for the paid-lobby lady, agrees that there needs to be a major overhaul in the meat industry in the US. that means more testing. 90% of our meat comes from factory farms, so if you think you are safe, read the label. Lucky for me, as a raw vegan, there are no worries, except for the run-off from factory farms infecting crops like spinach. Eat organic, know where your food comes from. If you must eat meat, raise a cow at a local farm, but please think twice about our beautiful cow-eyed friends before eating them!

end animal cruelty in Cananda

I was contacted over on my blog, For the Love of Raw, by a fellow animal rights activist and advocate. Please visit this sight to sign a petition to end animal testing and seal blugdeoning in the otherwise awesome country of Canada. Let's get some action and see the end of unnecessary animal cruelty.

Sign the petition here.

Michael Vick, Sadistic Prick

That's right people, say it loud! Michael Vick sadistic prick! Michael Vick sadisitic Prick!
Only the Philadelphia Eagles would hire a convicted felon to marshal this years' football season. Would the school board hire back a convicted felon as a teacher, would the government hire someone convicted of extortion? I wonder what morals the NFL is trying to pass onto their legions of disappearing fans. I'm disapointed in Philadelpia, again, but now that the dust has settled, I'm not surprised. It's not like I can boycott football, since I don't watch sports anyway. I don't even know why sports people are role models, but they are. Most kids think he's done his time and that he should be given a second chance. Everyone should be given a second chance, in life, but perhaps Vick should focus being a role model in animal advocacy instead of being given a second chance as a multi-million dollar contract player for another football team. Personally it makes me sick to think that a convicted felon, one who elecrocuted, hung and raped dogs is going to now be a starting quarterback for the football team that represents my city. Well it doesn't represent me, I'll tell you that. Martha Stewart cannot fly into London, Heathrow airport because she is a convicted felon, so why should Michael Vick be able to pour back into mainstream to be idolized? Michael Vick, sadistic prick...Michael Vick, sadisitic prick!!

4th of July musings

I'm not a fan of July 4th and I'll tell you why. Barbecues, people, barbecues. I can't recall a smell more offensive than that of a rotting, raw corpse upon which someone has smothered a greasy, red sauce and intends to call dinner hours later. Living in a tiny shot-gun apartment doesn't make it any easier. Anticipating all my neighbors grilling meats, especially those using that chemical fire-starter, has me shuddering with rage already. My weekend, inevitably, is either spent gagging on the odor or shut inside my hot apartment with doors and windows sealed tightly as waves of rotting meat stench roll by my windows, seeping in cracks and making me miserable. If people can't smoke cigarettes inside, than maybe they shouldn't cook meat outside. I think, and this is a big one, that I'd rather smoke a cigarette then be exposed to toxic meat smell. Walking home every day, I can pin-point the restaurants that contribute the most carcinogens to the environment and I wonder if normal people have any idea how offensive this stuff really is!
Even though I'm escaping out of the city this year, I recall last summer, where the same thing happened at an open camp ground. We could hardly find anywhere to settle down to eat our delicious, raw vegan picnic due to the mass-hysteria of barbecuing on July 4th.
Some people say, aw suck it up. I say, next time someone lights a toxic can of ass under your window, you can suck it up, buster. Cheers, and happy fourth to those individuals who find a quiet, undisturbed, unscented spot upon which to eat their nature's bounty.

caught me a possum

As if this week wasn't hectic enough! Over the last year, I've tried my hand at gardening, trying to exorcise my black-thumb for a green one and do my daddy proud. Lo and behold I was successful at a few herbs but mainly delicious red tomatoes. Only...I would eye a delicious orb that would be of the perfect ripeness and the following day, when I went to pluck the fruit, I'd discover that it had a gigantic bite out if it. Thus began my problems with Peter Possum. Not only did he eat my crops, he showed me his under-belly and his long rat tail by climbing up my window grate. Not a sight to see at midnight. At least once a week since the debacle began a year ago, have I seen him. He's not afraid to sit and stare, hiss and harass my cats and basically be an all-around nuisance.
I'm an animal lover, first and foremost and after calling around various Philly humane animal rescue and quoted a fat $375, I decided to take matters into my own hands. With my friendly neighbors support, (the whole neighborhood is involved at this point, which kind of makes me like Philly again), we've borrowed a humane trap.
Yesterday I baited the trap with a juicy juicy apple and today, he is there, inside the trap. Tonight, Peter, you will leave the city and enjoy a country life. City living has you far too comfortable and I need to grow my garden.

ADDENDUM: Releasing the possum was the biggest concern I had. I honestly didn't know how to let him out of the cage. Would he be viscous and bite me? After pocketing my identification and my insurance card, I brought him downstairs and into the trunk of the car, covered in a dark plastic the whole time. We took our time while driving, avoiding huge pot-holes and, once we arrived at our undisclosed location where I know for a fact opossums thrive, we shuttled him out to the woods. I in my gardening gloves and long-sleeves with a big stick, and J with nothing but bare hands. Eventually we rolled the trap on its upside and watched our possum, tentatively at first, hop away into the wild. Free at last.

What!? Foie Gras Week!?

Yep, you read correctly. Next week marks the start of Philadelphia's Foie Gras Week. While other places like the city of Chicago and the state of California have banned the sale of foie gras in stores and restaurants, this backward city is celebrating this archaic brand of animal torture.
For a list of restaurants to avoid, see here. Again, I wonder, how can I live in this unhealthy city that was put on the map for another vulgar specialty, the cheesesteak.
I like to compare foie gras eaters with Hummer drivers. People think they look good eating their engorged, toxic liver, but they really look like insensitive brutes, kind of like SUV drivers! The car industry is working hard to make economical, responsible cars, so why are we still eating foie gras? huh? Can't foie gras farmers farm stuff like ...vegetables! Move forward!
One person defending the foie gras industry asks why protesters don't protest McDonalds or KFC. uhh, we do, we don't eat there and have you checked out PETA's website lately, it's an ongoing campaign? duh. Do your research before saying something ignorant.
Oh Philadelphia, you disgust me.

Sea Mammals, News and abuse

I'm always a sucker for a good documentary and the new film that NatGeo channel is showing right now on the fate, plight and habits of the Blue Whale did not disappoint. Highlights include beautiful footage of blue whales up close and personal. Also footage of scientists posing as customers at a seafood market where whale meat is sold in Japan. Because they are mammals, their meat is highly prized and resembles beef. That had never occurred to me, and even more, I'm inspired to end whale hunting once and for all.
Japan, Norway and Iceland all support whale hunts for research, and this doc reveals that Japan imported whale meat from North American waters, one no-no, and also that they speared a rare hybrid whale for their endeavors.

On a similar note, PETA is launching a huge campaign to stop the bludgeoning of baby seals in Canada in conjunction with the proposed 2010 Olympics. Check out their website to get active, write a letter to the Olympic Committee to get them to see the light. As much as I love Canada for being progressive in many respects, they really can't be taken seriously in my eyes, Morrissey's and countless others until they stop this senseless, bloody slaughter and I said as much in my letter sent yesterday.

Write a letter, get active. It's free, and makes you feel good while accomplishing your personal and universal goals!

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread is a haunting, relatively new documentary about the modern food business. Visually stunning and often disturbing, this film is not for the faint of heart. As a vegan for many years, I couldn't bear to watch the scenes of abuse and slaughter unfold yet another time before my eyes, and I ended up fast-forwarding through the animal scenes and focused instead on the farming. If you could call it that. Gone are the farmers on their hands and knees, weeding their crops and caring for their plants. Here to stay are GMO crops looking slightly alien, yet identical to the thousands of others under the same roof. I found myself gazing at the beautiful symmetry of the hydroponic greenhouse, comparing it to the pyramids at the Louvre. Gigantic machines spray pesticides, thrash wheat, while workers at night quickly pluck and wrap cabbages while the machine dictates their progress. Farming is no longer romanticized in this vision of food production.
Memorable scenes include one where a huge industrial crop waterer spread its wings like a giant, graceful pterodactyl. Beautiful sunflowers are covered in a haze of pesticides.
Disturbing scenes include a baby chick processing plant where women unfeelingly toss baby chicks into a giant machine which takes them through a crazy amusement park-like ride until, presumably their death. Farmed fish swimming like sardines in a can, never given the opportunity to swim free and have a chance at life.
Despite the beauty of the film, I was left feeling dirty and sad. For most people living on a modest budget, there is little one can do to avoid the commercial food chain. Alex Jones, yesterday on his podcast on Infowars.com, was speaking of a future, fifty years from now, where we will all be vegans, not by choice, but because there will be no room to raise animals and of a future where all our food comes from genetically modified sources controlled by the government. Now is the best time to try your hand at container gardens for city-dwellers and more ambitious planting for those fortunate enough to own green space. I know I sound like a broken record sometimes, but the most important thing when choosing your food is knowing where it came from, not necessarily organic, since the big producers are getting around federal guidelines and establishing their own, but local, farm-raised produce, picked and raised by loving human hands.
I'm thankful that I no longer eat meat, so I don't feel the guilt that often accompanies meat consumption, but I also feel the duty to raise my own food to keep various strains of vegetables alive, until they take that from us too.

Oh yeah, and the best part of this film? Even though it is a foreign film, there are no subtitles; the machines do the talking.

Big Box lunch at KFC

When I first saw this Variety Big Box lunch from KFC advertised, my first thought was total disgust. I mean, have you looked at this lunch, that is meant to feed one human? No wonder we have an obesity problem on our hands. Who eats this crap? And more importantly who encourages us to eat this?
Who can possibly fit this in their body. Answer, many more Americans than you can imagine. And probably an entire village in Africa.
Who needs 3 types of fried chicken with a biscuit, gravy and mac-n-cheese? I guess obese people think they do, or at least that's what KFC is gonna tell you. What ever happened to a balanced plate? Where are the veggies? Oh, that skinny green leaf in that bulky sandwich hardly counts. And coleslaw slathered in artery-clogging mayo hardly constitutes a vegetable.

Oh KFC, just because you've so courageously stopped debeaking birds does not mean you have to serve more to the masses. It's counterproductive. And you are hurting people by serving this. Heart-attack on a plate, coming up.

Adopt a Turkey

In direct response to Sarah Palin's unfortunate choice of where she chose to stand while pardonning Turkey's in Alaska, I thought now is as good a time as any to remind you that one of the best gifts you can give this year is life. In case you didn't see it, and I urge those who are sensitive to animal cruelty to simply take my word for it, as it was horrifying; Mrs. Palin stood in front of a turkey grinder so that all the world could watch live turkeys getting shoved down a bloody grinder shoot while she stood on a pedestal and spared the life of just a few. First of all, how insensitive. And haven't we had enough of her already?

Adopting a turkey is easy and there are more than a few places to do it. The Farm Sanctuary is a great place to start and you can even visit the turkey you chose to sponser so you can see your dollars at work. Last year, when I visited, all the turkeys, although extrememly breast-heavy thanks to genetic modifications, were so happy to see humans that cared. The turkeys were probably one of the best parts of my visit to the sanctuary.

So while you watch your friends and family shove turkey down their gullet over the next week or so, at least you can have the piece of mind that you helped save the life of a helpless creature. Want to stir up a little trouble over the holidays? Sponsor one for an insenstive family member as a holiday gift this year.

Heard on the radio

The secret is out of the bag. Vegetarianism helps the planet!
On NPR today, just in time for the glutinous holidays, an impressive chunk of time was devoted to a show about vegetarianism, health and global warming. The segment was called, Healthy Planet, Healthy People, and focused on how what is good for the planet is actually good for us too. They discuss how going vegetarian is the easiest thing you can do to counteract global warming. At least on privately-funded radio we can still seek the truth. I hope they do this every Sunday.
Included in the segment are interviews with vegetarians and their personal experience as to why they chose that path. Even though animal cruelty is a big motivator for some of us, sometimes health and science are also factors. It's interesting to hear other points of view and a wide range of topics all converging around my favorite subject: Vegetarianism. The show also offers advice to those who are interested in changing their eating habits, so I recommend it to newbies. I must add my two cents, however. They recommend taking it slow, like cut out bacon this month, sausage the next, and so on 'til you're meat free. I recommend cold tofurky. I understand maybe eliminating red meat, then chicken and fish, and perhaps that might be an option for you, but try to nip that bad habit in the bud and just end your relationship with the burger. Meat will probably end up grossing you out before you know it anyway.
Think about what you eat this Thursday on Thanksgiving, and bring a veg option to dinner, just in case. Remember, Mother Earth will thank you.

One step forward, two steps back

Proposition 2 was a victory for farm animals. The day after the election, when I learned that Californians had voted for more humane farming techniques, I wasn't surprised, but I was pleased. I know how long it had taken PETA to convince KFC to stop debeaking their birds, and while some don't see it as a victory, baby steps, all the way. Nothing gets done over night, especially the big battle with corporate, greedy farmers who do see animals as dollar signs and not as sentient beings.
However, one week after Prop 2, the Supreme Court has ruled against the welfare of whales in the name of national security. The US Navy uses sonar off the coast of California to train their recruits and insist that sonar is a vital part of the training. You know, just in case Russia decided to invade us with submarines. Sonar is said to be damaging to whales, causing disorientation and other catastrophic effects.
So whales, our vital marine life mammals, who are slowly going extinct thanks to global warming and illegal fishing, have lost against the US Navy.

you can read an article about whales and sonar here, or just do a google search.

If you are interested in saving whales, think about joining an organization that makes that its mission. Click here for more details about volunteering to help bring attention to whales plight. It's a global problem and they were here before we were.

Whales back on top

Now that this whole election is over and the right man won, my efforts can be turned back to things that matter most. Whales!
Tune in tomorrow to Animal Planet's Whale Wars to watch American environmentalists battle those evil Japanese whalers.
Japan wants to turn whaling back into a successful, viable industry, while the rest of the world disagrees. (except for some backward countries like Iceland. Hey Iceland, maybe if you abandon your whaling, your economy might come back. Ain't karma a bitch?)
Whale Wars. watch it!

the PETA breast-milk thing

In case you've been hiding under a rock this past week, PETA approached Ben & Jerry's with the radical idea that they switch from using cows' milk in their ice cream to the healthier human breast milk. Quite honestly, this is an idea that they've been tossing around for a while, it's just now they got the press to notice.

After reading John Robbins' Diet for a New America, years ago, the simple dietary fact that rats' milk is amongst the most nutritious milk from all mammals, has stayed with me. Cows' milk offers some of the least nutrition of all breast milks. Because no matter how you view it, all milk comes from a teet. Chocolate chip Rat milk ice cream, does that sound delicious or what?

Dairy cows are some of the most abused animals out there, and even though B&J claim to use non GMO milk, blah blah blah, the point is that they still insist on using old-fashioned milk from cows. There are some great soy-based ice-creams out there, that don't contribute to poor health and animal welfare, and even better, there are great fruit-based sorbets and creams out there that blow the traditional dairy treat out of the water.

PETA's point, I think, was to imagine a world where humans were tethered up to machines, where, like clockwork their precious milk would be extracted for mass consumption in the form of the devilish ice cream. Would these humans be injected with hormones, with their young torn away moments after birth, only to be used as a tasty veal meal for some uncompassionate diner miles away. You can safely assume that the answer would be no. Would humans be perpetual milk machines, with sometimes only a day of rest before being forced into another milking cycle. No!

What PETA is trying to do, is to make the plight of the dairy cattle known. Would you subject a fellow human into this inhumane treatment. Maybe we can tether all Republican women up to a milk machine, they deserve it. Perhaps then we can allow these ill-abused cattle to live the remainder of their days, doing things that cows should do, like eat grass, raise their young. Basic rights that all animals should be granted.

Next time you lean down to lick that dripping cone, think, where is this coming from and to what cost? It is not merely the issue of human health and cholesterol, it is basic animal rights.

Organic Nectars make some the best gelato I've ever tasted, and it's guilt-free, raw and vegan. AND it tasted like the real deal. Check here for ordering.

Another reason to hate Sarah Palin

I've spent hours honing my imitation of Sarah Palin in front of mirrors and for my partner. I've got that bridge to nowhere speech down pat, including that awful accent. Tina Fey, watch out!
Sarah Palin stands for everything I don't. She's a hypocritical mess. Pro-Life, Palin is glad her pregnant 17 year-old daughter CHOSE to have her baby. Pro-Oil, Palin is taking a stance against polar bears as an endangered species. She don't believe the hype, thinks the data is skewed. See, if we let Alaska drill for oil, there will be less and less land for these beautiful threatened species to feed upon, thereby ensuring their extinction within our lifetime. And once those topple, what comes next? We got frogs and bees, wolves and other thousands of other species that are slowly becoming extinct thanks to mankinds' addiction to oil.
If you envision a world where the only place we can view polar bears in a sub-tropic zoo, then sure, vote for her. But if you care about guns invading your city and killing children, or the education system, (yep, she wants creationism taught in schools) which is in a state of near-disrepair, and freedom of speech (banning books anyone?) then maybe you should reconsider. I secretly thinks she hates women, which makes me dislike her even more.
Let's face it, the only thing she has going for her is her good looks, (which is not much). Her family is riddled with controversy, and she actually said she'd consider starting a war with Russia! Ooooh if she gets elected I'm starting an ex-pat colony South of the Border. Any takers? We are slowly plotting our escape.
For more info on the Palin-Polar bear controversy check here

Check here later in the year for more info on my ex-pat colony, because I really feel that's what the conservatives want, is for all us level-minded people to pack up and leave.