absolutely vegan

2010-08-31T11:07:00.000-07:00

Things I wish I could unsee

One, this video, of a heartless young woman throwing tiny puppies into a river. WHAT IS WRONG WITH PEOPLE??? A few sites seem to think this was a hoax. I hope it is but I doubt it. Nor does it change the fact that cruelty like this really does take place. Hoax or not, it's all horrifying.

I hope she gets caught like that crazy person, Mary Bale, who was filmed tossing a cat into a garbage bin.

2010-02-10T08:50:00.000-08:00

I've recently decided to delete the myspace profile I've had for 4 years. As a result, I'm moving over most of the 200+ blog entries to my blogger account. Anything related to AR/veganism goes here. Many of those are from my vegan infancy and, therefore, a bit misguided. I've learned a lot since I made the life-changing decision to go vegan and maybe these old entries will be educating, whether positive or negative. I'll be adding them in order, by year.

Why I'm posting PETA videos
07 Oct 2005 Friday
This is my fucking space to post whatever I want. If you don't like it, you're welcome to leave. These videos need to be seen. Ignorance is not bliss. This shit happens everyday, all over the world and it simply has to stop. How anyone can continue to wear fur and/or support that industry should be skinned alive. I mean it. If they know, and most do (they're not that stupid), they are aware of the misery that went into the clothing they don. I am at a loss for words after watching both of the fur farm videos. I was crying and sobbing so hard that Beaumont came wandering into the office to see how I was doing. God, I hope that my babies never have to endure something like this. I read that some of those poor dogs had collars around their necks, signifying they once belonged to someone. If that ever happened to my dogs....well, we won't go there. I've been reading some posts in many of the AR/vegan/vegetarian groups and I'm just plain disgusted with the animosity towards vegans. These videos are why I'm vegan and why I will never purchase animal products to wear. Simple as fucking that! And for all the little wussies who complain about the violent content, boo-fucking-hoo. If they are not shown, I feel that those animals will continue to suffer horrifically and that their deaths were worthless. What really got me was that the animals were still fucking ALIVE when that monster started skinning them. I don't even want to get started about the way they casually slammed them into the ground or stepped on their heads to finally snuff out their protracted agonized deaths. I think I'm tired now. I forgot how horrible and inhumane those videos were. My stepdad used to force us to watch Faces of Death, when we were children, but I am far more disturbed by these videos and images. My life may be but a flicker in the tapestry of life but at least I can say I tried to live it compassionately. And that 4 dogs named Max, Minna, Beaumont, and Panchito had a mama that loved them and let them be who they were.
22:40

Fur farms:Why they're hell on earth for the animals who will be clothing
08 Oct 2005 Saturday

Current mood: infuriated

Category: Pets and Animals

I've copied this from PETA becasuse it gives a great breakdown on why the fur farm industry is evil. I will never wear an animal's misery and this is why. Eighty-five percent of the fur industry’s skins come from animals living captive on fur factory farms.(1) These farms can hold thousands of animals, and the practices used to farm them is remarkably uniform around the globe. As with other intensive-confinement animal farms, the methods used on fur factory farms are designed to maximize profits, always at the expense of the animals. Painful and Short Lives The most farmed fur-bearing animal is the mink, followed by the fox. Chinchillas, lynxes, and even hamsters are also farmed for their fur.(2) Sixty-four percent of fur farms are in Northern Europe, 11 percent are in North America, and the rest are dispersed throughout the world, in countries such as Argentina and Russia.(3) Mink farmers usually breed female minks once a year. There are about three or four surviving kits for each litter, and they are killed when they are about half a year old, depending on what country they are in, after the first hard freeze. Minks used for breeding are kept for four to five years.(4) The animals—housed in unbearably small cages—live with fear, stress, disease, parasites, and other physical and psychological hardships, all for the sake of a global industry that makes billions of dollars annually. Rabbits are slaughtered by the millions for meat, particularly in China, Italy, and Spain. Once considered a mere byproduct of this consumption, the rabbit fur industry demands the thicker pelt of an older animal (meat rabbits are killed at the age of 10 to 12 weeks). The United Nations reports that “few skins are now retrieved from slaughterhouses,” and countries such as France are killing as many as 70 million rabbits a year for fur, used in clothing, as lures in flyfishing, and for trim on craft items.(5) Life on the “Ranch” To cut costs, fur farmers pack animals into small cages, preventing them from taking more than a few steps back and forth. This crowding and confinement is especially distressing to minks—solitary animals who may occupy as much as 2,500 acres of wetland habitat in the wild.(6) The anguish of life in a cage leads minks to self-mutilate—biting at their skin, tails, and feet—and frantically pace and circle endlessly. Zoologists at Oxford University who studied captive minks found that despite generations of being bred for fur, minks have not been domesticated and suffer greatly in captivity, especially if they are not given the opportunity to swim.(7) Foxes, raccoons, and other animals suffer equally and have been found to cannibalize each other as a reaction to their crowded confinement. Animals on fur factory farms are fed meat byproducts considered unfit for human consumption. Water is provided by a nipple system which often freezes in the winter or may fail because of human error. Pests and Parasites Animals on fur factory farms are more susceptible to diseases than their free-roaming counterparts. Contagious diseases such as pneumonia are passed from cage to cage rapidly, as are fleas, ticks, lice, and mites. And disease-carrying flies thrive in the piles of rotting wastes that collect under the cages for months. Video footage and photos taken by undercover investigators show animals suffering from severe infections and injuries, untreated and left to die slowly. Unnatural Habitats Fur factory farm cages are often kept in open sheds that provide little to no protection from wind or harsh weather. Their fur alone is not enough to keep them warm in the winter, and in the summer, minks swelter because they have no water in which to cool themselves. When minks learn to shower themselves by pressing on their drinking water supply nipples, farmers will modify the nipples to cut off even this meager relief. Poison and Pain No federal humane slaughter law protects animals on fur factory farms, and killing methods are gruesome. Because fur farmers care only about preserving the quality of the fur, they use slaughter methods that keep the pelts intact but which can result in extreme suffering for the animals. Small animals may be crammed into boxes and poisoned with hot, unfiltered engine exhaust from a truck. Engine exhaust is not always lethal, and some animals wake up while being skinned. Larger animals have clamps or a rod applied to their mouths while rods are inserted into their anuses, and they are painfully electrocuted. Other animals are poisoned with strychnine, which suffocates them by paralyzing their muscles in painful rigid cramps. Gassing, decompression chambers, and neck-snapping are other common fur-farm slaughter methods. The fur industry refuses to condemn even blatantly cruel killing methods. Genital electrocution, deemed “unacceptable” by the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) 1993 Panel on Euthanasia, is a fur factory farm killing method that causes animals the pain of cardiac arrest while they are fully conscious. In 1994, Indiana became the first state to file criminal charges against a fur factory farm after PETA investigators documented genital electrocution at V-R Chinchillas. The chinchilla fur industry considers electrocution and neck-breaking “acceptable.”(8) In 1995, one district attorney filed charges against pelt supplier Frank Parsons of Salisbury, Md., for injecting a mixture of rubbing alcohol and weed-killer into the chests of minks. PETA undercover investigators videotaped Parsons using an illegal pesticide, Blackleaf 40, to painfully kill the minks. Would You Wear Your Dog? An undercover investigation by the Humane Society of the United States, reported in a 1998 Dateline NBC piece, revealed that dog and cat fur is a multimillion-dollar industry in Asia and found that coats and toys made with domestic dog fur are being sold in the U.S. “There are no federal laws preventing anyone from importing dog and cat fur into this country,” reported Dateline. “If the imported item costs less than $150, the importer doesn’t even have to reveal what it’s made of.” Dateline footage shows a German shepherd, tail wagging and head stuck in a restraint, moments before he is skinned alive. A cat, crowded in a cage, watches and waits his turn, as one by one, his cagemates are choked, slung up, and hanged just inches away.(9) New legislation outlawed the import or sale of clothing containing dog or cat fur, but the fur still enters the country illegally since it is intentionally mislabeled and can only be detected by expensive DNA testing. Environmental Destruction Contrary to fur-industry propaganda, fur production destroys the environment. The energy needed to produce a real fur coat from ranch-raised animal skins is approximately 20 times that needed for a fake fur.(10) Nor does fur biodegrade, thanks to the chemical treatment applied to stop the fur from rotting. The process of using these chemicals is also dangerous as it can cause water contamination. About 44 pounds of feces are excreted per mink skinned by fur farmers. Based on the total number of minks skinned in the U.S. in 1999, which was 2.81 million, mink factory farms generate approximately 62,000 tons of manure per year. One result is nearly 1,000 tons of phosphorus, which wreaks havoc in water ecosystems.(11) Fur in Sheep’s Clothing As fur sales decline, sales of shearling—the skin of lambs with the wool attached—have risen. Some fur manufacturers have actually taken to disguising mink as shearling.(12) Many people are unaware of shearling’s origins or that shearling sales are an incentive for sheep ranchers to increase their stock, thereby adding to the plight of sheep (see PETA factsheet “Inside the Wool Industry”). In Afghanistan, karakul sheep are now raised to produce lambs for the high-end market in “Persian lamb” coats and hats. For “top-quality” lamb skin, the mother is killed just before giving birth and her fetus is cut out. The pelts of the unborn lambs are prized in the fashion world for their silk-like sheen. It takes the skin from an entire lamb to make one karakul hat.(13) Industry in Decline Austria and the U.K. have banned fur factory farms, and the Netherlands began phasing out fox and chinchilla farming in April 1998.(14) In 2003 there were 307 mink farms in the U.S., down 5 percent from the previous year.(15) In a sign of the times, supermodel Naomi Campbell was denied entry to a trendy New York club because she was wearing fur. Said the club’s owner, “I really love animals, and I wanted us to be the good guys.”(16) Humane Choices Consumers need to know that every fur coat, lining, or item of trim represents the intense suffering of several dozen animals, whether they were trapped, ranched, or even unborn. These cruelties will end only when the public refuses to buy or wear fur. Those who learn the facts about fur must help educate others, for the animals’ sake. For more information, visit FurIsDead.com.
20:51

Sunday
09 Oct 2005 Sunday

Current mood: contemplative

Today was a nice day in that Mark and I spent most of the day in our bathrobes. The dogs napped and we read the newspaper and watched the first season of Lost. I gave him a haircut and we made delish vegan burritos for dinner. Then, I began reading my fashion magazines and was horrified to see all the ads and spreads of models and celebrities wearing fur. Even Uma Thurman, who is currently posing for Louis Vuitton, is sporting fur. UGH! What an ugly, abhorrent trend. Allure featured a spread about the Cossack look. Last I checked, the Siberian cold is not an occurence in the US. So, now I am stopping my subscriptions to Allure and InStyle, both mags that I been receiving for years. I'm simply sick of the fur use in the fashion industry and am trying to educate myself as to which companies are responsible for its use. Money is the only thing that wil make these bastard companies pay attention. They don't give a fuck about the pain and torture an animal must go through to achieve the "sumptuous pelts" designers and celebrities and their followers want. I can't think right now, I'm so mad.
22:34

Talk about diligence! I got rid of all of my subscriptions because I don't see the need to waste the paper that I rarely get the chance to read. I still get BUST, though. You'd like that.
Posted by ☠brooke☠ on [10 Oct 2005 | Monday] - 11:55

"I have given every green herb for meat"
10 Oct 2005 Monday

Current mood: mischievous

Category: Religion and Philosophy

I found this post in my Vegan No edge group and thought it was very interesting. Meat-eater tend to quote that hoary-old "We have dominion over the animals so we get to eat them" blahblahblah. Take that! GENESIS (regarding creation): 1:28 And God blessed them [humans], and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. 1:29 And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat. 1:30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so. hmmm, the last time i checked, animals aren't herbs nor do they go on trees. so per haps god intended for us to be vegans?
12:21

I'm not Christian but...

I love quoting that when people try to argue religion as a reason for eating animal flesh. Also, God made a covenant with animals after Noah saved them. Noah, in respect of God's covenant became a farmer. And in Revelations, God has four animals sitting around his throne. Which would imply that animals do have souls.

I read a ggod book called 'God's Covenant with Animals' not long ago. Quick read, but filled with some great info.
Posted by Caleb Hutchinson on [10 Oct 2005 | Monday] - 12:53

A posting from a group against animal cruelty (not mine)
11 Oct 2005 Tuesday

Current mood: mischievous

Category: Pets and Animals

"Yeah, I guess the animals will go to hell too then. They torture animals much worse than us. Ever look up the stats on animals eating eachother? How sanitary is that web that the insect gets stuck to and bound in and then wound up until it cant even breathe freely. Then slowly digested with acids while it is still alive? What about the honey badger or the hyena? What about the mouse or the cat? These animals kill for sport. If you own even a housecat you will know that. They will often eat their own babies. They will eat eachother while still alive. They will attack things due to shear annoyance. They will attack an area of the body that will not allow the creature to die right away. What about those who paralyze its' prey and lay eggs inside of the body of the prey. When the eggs hatch, the babies eat the prey from the inside out. ANIMALS ARE NOT INNOCENT! They are your food. Stop thinking like children! The woods are not full of pooh bears, care bears, or Big Birds! They are ruthless animals daring to kill anything in it's path....and we happen to be better, AND more compassionate. You guys will never win this argument...you ARE wrong....I am sorry. You cannot debate who is meaner. You cant fight over who is the most immoral. It is animals."

****My two cents:**** Wow..... Sometimes the things people believe really baffle me. This would be one of them. Animals being the immoral ones rather than humans. It would be hilarious if not for his adamant belief this is true. *sigh*
10:34

More pearls of wisdom
12 Oct 2005 Tuesday

Current mood: annoyed

"CHICO'S OPINION (and that's all it is, nothing more). And of course we have the haters (hemp-vegans). Yes, the vegans that hate everyone who isnt a vegan because they wont follow them, and most people think it is corny. So they walk around with a frown and hope that maybe the ozone layer will burn open and everyone will die so that they can all get a taste of their own medicine. They are always at rallies and fighting for the animals while their kids are at home alone. They smoke pot often, like the PETA march here in a week is supported by, and forsake bills, real matters, and responsibility as a human being to take care of ones self. They are the common culprits to conspiracies theories about anybody that is more powerful than them, such as presidents, large companies, and the government. Common sense is not this vegans' forte. Then we have the calm, educated vegan (flower-child vegan). This person is calm and well-spoken. They do not try to push it on anyone, although many can tell their distaste for anyone who has a normal diet. They tend to stick to veganism for staunch reasons as well as living in a futuristic mindset...."What if life could be THIS way?" Although it isnt something that will ever happen. They love their pets, but not many animals in the wild, because they really dont spend that much time out in the real wildlife to see what animals are really like. The vegan for health reasons will often be different personalities. The vegan that eats for health reasons and turns their purpose to animal cruelty is often feminine. Those who only do it for supposed health reasons seem to do it for both reasons. This person usually doesnt really care all that much about the animal issue, they just want to stay healthy, and so they think that if they dont eat meat then they will get thin...hence why men arent chasing this health plan. This is where the line starts to get shady, because the health vegan is not so worried about the animals, and will eat dairy products and so forth more often. Then we have the common "half & half" eater. They call themselves vegans but eat chicken. They call themselves vegans but eat eggs and drink milk. They dont mind if animals get killed, because they realize that we are omnivores, but they dont really care for the taste of meat that much, and obviously dont like animal cruelty. These people are usually the most healthy of the vegans because they get more vitamins per tonnage yet do not "OD" on meat alone as some people seem to do. They are usually balanced mentally pretty well and are the easiest vegetarian to debate with because of the level-headedness. Now we have the omnivore. This person is much like the vegan "half & half, " but he doesnt go by any terms. He allows his body to tell him what to eat, because he knows it is already built correctly just the way it is. People such as this are usually healthy naturally and havent ever dealt with major diseases or anything like that which would force them to get more involved in their diet. The difference is that food is not a vice for them, so if their body tells them to eat, they will, but wont gorge themselves. They eat what their body is asking for, such as chicken or pork, salad or eggs. This is a very large percentage of people. Last but not least, the person who really doesnt care. Enough said....they dont care about anything, lost their wife because they are lazy, dont have a real job or degree to embetter themselves, or even get a shower everyday. This person is rather worthless on every level of society and will use and abuse taxpayers' money on welfare if at all possible. And finally, the carnivore. This person prides himself in the fact that he eats meat. He does this to the point of annoyance. He doesnt realize that this is not only a corny thing to pride oneself in, but he doesnt realize that there is a correllation between that and his wasteline. He is commonly called a hick, and is usually the very few that actually do commit animal cruelty. They are loveable and have great hearts, but can be as annoying sometimes as the "hemp-vegan." Their worst enemies are the flower-child vegans, because they easily outdebate the carnivore, because the carnivore has little education whether he is right or not. Because of a feeling of inadequacy, this will force him to become withdrawn and have a lack of outward show of feeling or affection. These are usually male."

***This is what I think: According to the sage and wise, all-knowing Chico....I think I fall somewhere between the "hater(hemp-vegan)" and "flower-child vegan". Though, after reading most of his bullying posts, I lean toward hater. I'm done wasting energy on this close-minded indivdual. But, I do think his posts offer good reading. Am I learning anything from them? Yes, but nothing I'd care to be. Viva Veganism!***

9:00

. . . . . . ....I only have limited time with my friends MAC bawt I

. . . . . . ....Shall return to give this a better reading,, Hmmmmm,

My new motto: "The eating of flesh extinguishes the seed of great compassion"

Current mood: calm
01 Nov 2005 Tuesday

It wouldn't fit in my headline so I went with the doggie quote. I believe this quote, a Buddhist one, sums up why I don't believe in eating or using any animal products. I've run into those carnivorous haters who bemoan why I put animals first. There's a simple answer. If you can't show compassion to animals, how the hell do you expect to show compassion to people? As for my choice to have "furbabies" in my life rather than human children, so be it. It's a decision I feel comfortable with. Unfortunately, all it took was Max's death nearly 2 weeks ago :( Otto helps out quite a bit (he's nestled in my left arm as I type this. One-hand typing is not fun but puppy mojo is the best feeling in the world) I also like this quote, from Gandhi: “To my mind, the life of a lamb is no less precious than that of a human being. I should be unwilling to take the life of a lamb for the sake of the human body. I hold that, the more helpless a creature, the more entitled it is to protection by man from the cruelty of man. . . . I want to realize brotherhood or identity not merely with the beings called human, but I want to realize identity with all life, even with such things as crawl upon earth.” — Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948)
10:47

2009-11-23T19:51:00.001-08:00

Travel: Eating vegan in France

I had some trepidations about being able to find decent vegan food when I went to France last month. Surprisingly, it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. At least, once I got to Paris. In Nice, it was definitely inconvenient.

It started with a going away meal at SFO, with my hubby. Very over-priced & bland Chinese food:

Then, since I requested "pure vegetarian" meals during my flight, this is what I was fed:
1) Evening meal

2)Breakfast

Unfortunately, some of the items on my "pure vegetarian" plate were not vegan at all.

Once I arrived in Nice, I settled in to my hotel room & went exploring. I ended up finding some decent groceries in the basement of the Galerie Lafayette, just a few blocks from my hotel. This was the first night of chip sandwiches, which I pretty much had to eat during my stay.

What my chip sandwich looked like:

The next day, I went shopping at Monoprix and picked up some fresh fruit. I found out that you have to print up labels for your produce, which was a bit inconvenient at first.

One of my favorite foods to discover was haricots verts, with a dijon mustard dressing. My first one was from the Nice Monoprix.

.

While in Nice, I ate in my hotel room. The one time I tried to eat out turned into a weird experience. After that, I figured it was just easier (& safer) to eat in my own quarters.

So, I had some hope for Paris, because I had reserved an apartment (complete with a kitchen). Thankfully, I was right! My apartment, located in the 9éme arrondissement, had plenty of boulangeries and grocery stores. In fact, this is what I found, at Franprix, my first night there:

So much good stuff, including almond milk & a vegan pesto!

This was my first dinner in Paris. C'est bon!

My second grocery trip had me at both Franprix & Monoprix. I found a vegan soy "steak" and freshly baked bread, as well as a delicious olive pasta sauce & soy yoghurt.

My Parisian frigo, full of vegan noms.

The soy "steaks", up close. This is the Tomate-Basilic flavor.

My 2nd dinner in Paris, with the soy "steak" & bread. Very filling!

At a produce market, in the Rue Cler area. I wish I had purchased those berries.

Though I never did eat at the veg restos or shop at the health stores I'd heard about, I did find some cool stuff. Brandi & I spent Saturday near Les Halles & the 1st arrondissement and I finally stepped into the French version of Whole Foods. Unfortunately, I didn't purchase anything but the idea of flavored tofu (especially the olive) was most intriguing.

That same day, Brandi & I stopped in at a café, on the Rue Montorgueil. She had the cheese plate & I had what I thought was bruschetta (sans fromage). Looks more like pizza, non? We both had vin chaud.

I tried to finish up what groceries were left in our frigo but we had one last meal out the day before we left. My salade & pommes frites were fantastic. Wish I had only gone sooner.

All in all, a mostly positive experience eating as a vegan in Paris. It would've been a different story if I didn't have my own kitchen. This might just be the way for me to be happy while traveling. I'm already looking at another international trip, next year. Back to Paris & London. But, at least I know what I'm in for!

2009-09-09T15:00:00.000-07:00

Why I hate eating out

Since I moved out from my mil's house, I have 2 well-known veg-friendly restos in my neighborhood. I've eaten there occasionally but am officially fed-up.

a teriyaki "burger", from Au Lac, and sun-dried pasta salad & chocolate cupcake, from Charlotte's Bakery

the steamed veggies that came on the side of my teriyaki "burger". They're going in the trash.

2009-01-10T10:29:00.000-08:00

Ignorant comments and surprising cruelty

The other day, I was driving a co-worker home. We had to stop at the local PetCo as my dogs needed some food and he needed to pick up a filter for his fish. When we get back into the car, the subject turns to my dogs' diet-they are all vegan, as well as the cats-who are not.

Anyway, what infuriated me was the ignorant and unsubstantiated claims coming out of his mouth. He stated that dogs were carnivores and cats were omnivores because they ate grass. WTF????

In doing research, I found out that dogs, like us, are omnivores and scavengers whereas cats were obligate carnivores. In other words, dogs could live healthily & happily on a veg diet whereas a cat could not.

Also, several vets have confirmed that our diet choice, for the dogs and cats, was sound. Their health has checked out fine and we are, in no way, endangering our pets. In fact, their main veterinarian was quite supportive.

On to the other subject. Lately, I've been reading the Anne of Green Gables series. For some reason, I was never interested in the series as a child. Currently, I'm into the third book, Anne of the Island. The whole series has been mostly delightful, save for a few instances of exploitation and speciesism. Imagine my shock when I read the following two passages, one from chapter 16 and the other from the next chapter, 17.

In chapter 16, Anne and her friends are settling into place they've rented for the school term. A stray cat decides to adopt Anne and the others are fearful that Rusty will start fights with the other cats the housekeeper will bring when she moves in. Phillipa, Anne's flighty friend, suggests they chloroform him as it is the "most humane way". It goes downhill from there. Here is the passage, after Phillipa's rather graphic description of how to do it:

Accordingly the chloroform was procured and the next morning Rusty was lured to his doom. He ate his breakfast, licked his chops, and climbed into Anne's lap. Anne's heart misgave her. This poor creature loved her-trusted her. How could she be a party to his destruction?

"Here, take him." she said hastily to Phil. "I feel like a murderess."

"He won't suffer, you know," comforted Phil, but Anne had fled.

The fatal deed was done in the back porch. Nobody went near it that day. But at dusk Phil had declared that Rusty must be buried.

"Pris and Stella must dig his grave in the orchard," Phil decreed, "and Anne must come with me to lift the box off. That's part I always hate."

The two conspirators tip-toed reluctantly to the back porch. Phil gingerly lifted the stone she had put on the box. Suddenly, faint but distinct, sounded an unmistakable mew under the box.

"He-he isn't dead," gasped Anne, sitting blankly down on the kitchen doorstep.

"He must be," said Phil incredulously.

Another tiny mew proved that he wasn't. The two girls stared at each other.

"What will we do?" questioned Anne.

"Why in the world don't you come?" demanded Stella, appearing in the doorway. "We've got the grave ready. 'What, silent still and silent all?'" she quoted teasingly.

"'Oh, no, the voices of the dead
Sound like the distant torrent's fall.'" promptly counter-quoted Anne, pointing solemnly to the box.

A burst of laughter broke the tension.

"We must leave him here till morning," said Phil, replacing the stone. "He hasn't mewed for five minutes. Perhaps the mews we heard were his dying groan. Or perhaps we imagined them, under the strain of our guilty consciences."

But, when the box was lifted in the morning, Rusty bounded at one gay leap to Anne's shoulder where he began to lick her face affectionately. Never was there a cat more decidedly alive.

"Here's a knot hole in the box," groaned Phil. "I never saw it. That's why he didn't die. Now we've got to do it all over again."

"No, we haven't," declared Anne suddenly. "Rusty isn't going to be killed again. He's my cat-and you've just got to make the best of it."

"Oh, well, if you'll settle with Aunt Jimsie and the Sarah-cat." said Stella, with the air of one washing her hands of the whole affair.

Then, a few pages later, the chapter ends on this note:

Eventually Joseph and Rusty accepted the situation and from sworn enemies became sworn friends. They slept on the same cushion with their paws about each other, and gravely washed each other's faces.

"We've all got used to each other," said Phil. "And I've learned how to wash dishes and sweep a floor."

"But you needn't try to make us believe you can chloroform a cat," laughed Anne.

"It was all the fault of the knothole," protested Phil.

"It was a good thing the knothole was there," said Aunt Jamesina rather severely. "Kittens have to be drowned, I admit, or the world would be overrun. But no decent, grown-up cat should be done to death-unless he sucks eggs."

Then, in the next chapter, Davy, a 10-year old twin who lives at the Green Gables, wrote a letter to Anne, which contained this excerpt:

Mr. Harrison wanted to get rid of his dog. So he hunged him once but he come to life and scooted for the barn while Mr. Harrison was digging the grave, so he hunged him again and he stayed dead that time"

Ok......nice to read about the cruelty inflicted on non-human animals because they are unwanted or have outgrown their usefulness. Though, to be honest, not much has changed.

Still, I was taken about by the frank description of violence, in a children's book. I guess it's a monument to its era. I suppose I'm going to have read it with more caution from here on. This was a series I was thinking of reading to Caleigh, when she's older, but am not so sure now. Very disappointing.

2009-01-10T09:50:00.000-08:00

Shelters who transfer pets to labs

This was in my email inbox this morning:
MI- Halt Transfer of Shelter's Animals to Vivisection

Apparently, there is a vote, Monday 12 January 2009, that concerns the renewal of a contract between Michigan's Montcalm County shelter and R & R Research (a Class B dealer who takes the cats and dogs from the shelter then re-sells them to animal research labs).

I didn't know this but Michigan is one of thirteen states that allows the sale of sheltered animals into animal research. At the very least, I am appalled though not surprised. I've been reading Redemption: The Myth of Pet Overpopulation & The No Kill Revolution in America by Nathan J. Winograd. as well as Plague Dogs by Richard Adams and they both mirror, to some extent, what's going on with the shelter.

I agree with the email that the practice of selling non-human animals into the vivisection industry is repugnant. Especially as these doomed pets have already suffered grievously "at the hands of humans and a system whose original design was to help them". It's disgusting and completely unethical.

Also, according to the email, Michigan Animal News reports that in 2007 Montcalm adopted or returned to owners less than 10% of all pets received. Sounds like they're not making an effort to reduce the numbers in their shelters, knowing they can profit by selling them to the Class B dealers.

Once I'm done with this entry, I'll be contacting the local politicians to add my voice to the opposition. I rarely speak up on issues anymore but this one grabbed my attention. And, then, maybe order Dealing Dogs, which I've been reluctant to do because of the subject matter.

Oh, and in researching this article, I found an actual site dedicated supplying those in the "animal research profession". Words fail me. R & R Research is listed on their site.

More on Class B dealers, etc here and here.

2008-05-09T09:54:00.000-07:00

PeTA + Johnny Rockets = eeeeeeeew!

PeTA is pushing its promotion of Johnny Rockets this month: a free Streamliner (using a vegan Boca patty), at participating locations. I guess it's to celebrate "World Vegetarian Day". When I fell for this promotion, in April/May 2006, it was to support businesses that usually peddle in animal flesh to continue offering one veg alternative. I no longer believe in that type of thinking anymore, that's for sure. I just refuse to eat at most omni restos these days. It's easier to eliminate cross contamination that way.

Needless to say, when I fell for this I was still a n00b, and paid the price. Food poisoning, becoming violently ill, and not being able to eat more than crackers, juice, and water for nearly 2 weeks. Oh, yeah, and another infection from the antibiotics. Which I haven't had to take in years! Mark was nearly hospitalized from dehydration, as well.

Anyway...yeah. Mark and I have vowed to never eat at Johnny Rockets again. PeTA can fuck itself with this promotion. Fat lot of good it does you to eat a vegan burger when the patty is being cooked on the same grill as the dead flesh.

I'm still traumatized, and it's been two years since this happened. Hard to forget something as painful as what we went through. Plus, I ended up missing out on my nephew's first birthday party and I still haven't forgiven myself for that.

2008-04-17T11:36:00.000-07:00

Saw this site, in a blog entry, and decided to sign up on the spot. I love the idea of short documentary profiles featuring vegans from all walks of life.

2008-01-14T09:51:00.000-08:00

Resources for noobs and such

I'm borrowing the idea of this excellent list from another fellow vegan. I'll keep it updated and add my own finds as often as I can. Enjoy!

Websites:
==========
www.actionforanimals.org
www.americanvegan.org
www.chooseveg.com
www.cok.net
www.goveg.org
www.govegan.net
www.fatfreevegan.com (low-fat recipe source)
www.happycow.net (Restaurant Guide)
www.mercyforanimals.org
www.theppk.com
www.vegfamily.com
www.vegweb.com (recipe source)
www.vegan.org
www.veganfreak.net
www.veganoutreach.org
www.vivausa.org

Food Websites/Blogs:
===================
another vegan food blog
www.cafevegnews.blogspot.com
www.crueltyfreekitchen.blogspot.com
www.eatair.blogpsot.com
www.blog.fatfreevegan.com
www.lellyskitchen.blogpsot.com
www.theppk.com/blog
www.theurbanhousewife.blogspot.com
www.urbanvegan.blogspot.com
www.veganfeastkitchen.blogspot.com
www.veganlunchbox.blogpsot.com
www.veganmenu.blogpsot.com
www.veganomics.blogpsot.com
www.veganyumyum.com
www.vivelevegan.blogspot.com

Podcasts:
=========
http://www.compassionatecooks.com/podcast.htm
http://www.vegan.com/
http://www.animalvoices.ca/
http://veganradio.com/
http://www.goveganradio.com/
http://veganfreakradio.com/

Online Support:
===============
www.veganfreaks.net/forum
www.veganrepresent.com
www.postpunkkitchen.com/forum/index.php

Books:
=======
Skinny Bitch by Rory Freedman
Becoming Vegan by Brenda Davis
The New Becoming Vegetarian by Vesanto Melina
Vegan Freak by Bob Torres
The China Study by T. Colin Campbell
Diet for a New America by John Robbins
Mad Cowboy by Howard Lyman
The Food Revolution by John Robbins
Vegan by Erik Marcus
Meat Market by Erik Marcus
Animal Ingredients A to Z by E. G. Smith Collective
Introduction To Animal Rights by Gary L. Francione
No More Bull by Howard Lyman

Cookbooks:
==========
Skinny Bitch In the Kitch by Rory Freedman
Veganomicon by Isa Chandra Moskowitz
Vegan With a Vengeance by Isa Chandra Moskowitz
Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World by Isa Chandra Moskowitz
Vegan Planet by Robin Robertson
Alternative Vegan by Dino Sarma
Yellow Rose Recipes
The Joy of Vegan Baking by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau
Eat Drink and Be Vegan by Dreena Burton
The Ultimate Uncheese Cookbook by Jo Stepaniak
La Dolce Vegan by Sarah Kramer
Vegan Italiano by Donna Klein
My Sweet Vegan by Hannah Kaminsky
Quick Fix Vegetarian by Robin Robertson
The Garden of Vegan by Sarah Kramer
Students Go Vegan Cookbook by Carole Raymond
Vegan Vittles by Joanna Stepaniak
Vive Le Vegan! by Dreena Burton

Online Shopping:
================
www.cosmosveganshoppe.com
www.foodfightgrocery.com
www.veganessentials.com
www.pangeaveg.com
www.alternativeoutfitters.com
www.shophumanitaire.com
www.ragazzi.com
www.zappos.com (Enter "vegetarian" into the search field)
www.herbivoremagazine.com

2007-10-30T10:21:00.000-07:00

World Vegan Day

Thursday, 1 November 2007 =

Admittedly, vegans like to celebrate from Saturday, 27th October through Sunday, 4th November. A whole week of vegan festivities!

For more information:
www.worldveganday.org
www.myspace.com/vegansupport
www.vegansociety.com
wikipedia entry

2007-10-07T17:51:00.001-07:00

Year of the Dog

So, I finally rented "Year of the Dog".

I've been wanting to see it since it came out last April. It struck a nerve with me as the main character, Peggy, lived with her beloved dog. One night, the dog, Pencil, gets out of the yard and is poisoned. He dies the next morning. Through her grief, Peggy begins to volunteer at the local animal shelter and finds veganism by the example of a fellow volunteer. Her veganism leads her to the plight of exploited animals and she becomes über-hardcore about her beliefs. To the point of alienating those around her, imo.

I've heard mixed reviews about this movie, especially from fellow AR vegans, in that the film portrays vegans in a negative light and highlighted the stereotypes rather than the wonderful mix of people we are. So, I tried to be objective about the film and really wanted to like it. I mean, Peggy loves her dog, lost him to an untimely death, became vegan, and interested in animal rights. Something I've had experience with.

Well.....within the first ten minutes of the movie, I hated the film. It was so off the mark as to be laughable. Not to mention the alliance with PeTA. Ugh. Though I wanted to turn off the dvd, I felt compelled to watch the movie all the way through, hoping she'd redeem herself by the end. Nope. And not a single likable character. After finishing the film I had a massive headache and the urge to punch walls. Anything to purge it from my brain. Mark, Linda, and I are all in agreement it was wretched movie. I will never watch this movie again. Not to mention anything directed by Mike White. Gah. I was going to find a clip on youtube, to feature in my blog, but I don't even want to taint my page (any more than I have) with the film. Just horrible and terribly disappointing.

The official website is: www.yearofthedogmovie.com.

GAH! Worst movie ever.

On the flip side, we watched "Stranger Than Fiction before Year of the Dog", and it was superb. Glad we bought that dvd and not the latter.

2007-09-11T14:42:00.000-07:00

felix

May you rest in peace.

The article is here.

2007-08-26T11:34:00.001-07:00

and the case goes on.........

2007-07-30T10:19:00.000-07:00

The Animals Film

The notice was posted, in the Vegan Freak forums, that The Animals Film was being re-released. I have never seen the film but think it is a highly interesting documentary.. Especially as this film was made 25 years ago and is considered the precursor to Earthlings.

Article in The Guardian.

Official website: www.theanimalsfilm.com.

2007-07-11T16:23:00.000-07:00

My blurb in today's newspaper

A couple of weeks ago, the food columnist in our local paper had written a column about vegetarians. At the end of the article, she asked for emails from readers and I sent one in that day. Prior to this column, there had been some small mention of vegetarianism but usually in the light of "happy meat", "free-range", "no hormones/antibiotics" crap. I was disappointed and didn't want to go Vegan Freak all over her so I bided my time.

It is definitely worth it to praise the articles that do get printed, thus encouraging more coverage. I sent Joan quite a few links and named several of my favorite cookbooks. She was quite receptive and asked me if I'd consent to an interview. Which we did, via cell, last Friday. And, below, is the result of said correspondence. Yay for more veg*n coverage in Fresno :)

I've pasted the entire article, with my quotes italicized, for convenience:

Favorite places to go meatless
By Joan Obra / The Fresno Bee
07/11/07 04:38:59

My goodness, you veg*ns are a passionate and articulate bunch.
A couple of weeks ago, I asked veg*n (vegetarian and vegan) readers to tell me what -- and where -- they like to eat in Fresno. Well, you overdelivered.

Not only did you tell me your fave dishes, you lamented some wonderful ones that were taken off menus. You also noted Web sites and cookbooks. And generally confirmed that veg*nism is thriving in Fresno.

First, a quick primer for those who don't know the difference between vegetarian and vegan. Here's the textbook definition: Vegetarians don't eat meat, but they do eat animal products. (That means they'll shun salmon but embrace eggs.) Vegans won't eat either.

Vegans and vegetarians abound in Fresno and Clovis.

"There is a surprisingly large group of veg*ns out there, but I think we're all thinking, 'Where are they?' " Melissa Sesma-Smith writes in an e-mail.

She's found others through the Valley Vegan & Vegetarian Friends, a Meetup.com group that gathers for monthly meals. The group has about 30 members; 10 or 11 are regulars, she says.

Find out more at meetup.com. In the "Enter an Interest" box, type in "vegetarian" or "vegan." Then add a Fresno-area ZIP code. Click on "Go," and you should see the group.

Sesma-Smith raves about the group's dinner at Joy Luck Chinese Cuisine in the Villaggio shopping center at Blackstone and Nees avenues.

"I ... recall the sesame tofu as a standout dish," she writes. "Plus, the giant lazy Susan on the table made it ideal for sharing food."

You'll find more recommendations at fresnovegan.com. The Web site touts vegan cupcakes at Charlotte's Bakery in the Tower District, customized veggie meals at Senses World Cuisine (also in the Tower District) and tofu-veggie kebabs at Fugazzi's California Bistro in Clovis.

Charlotte's is popular among many veg*ns for various reasons. The bakery carries vegan cupcakes daily, says Josh Rocha, whose parents own the bakery. The selection -- made with margarine and soy milk -- varies; flavors include Mexican hot chocolate, lemon macadamia nut and triple chocolate.

Other vegan offerings are pastry horns filled with custard, pasta salads and sandwiches. The bakery also makes vegan cakes by special order.

Other readers praised vegetarian dishes at The Thai House (Shaw Avenue and First Street), vegan baked goods at Whole Foods Market (Fig Garden Village) and frozen vegetarian dishes at Trader Joe's (Blackstone and Barstow avenues in Fresno; Willow and Nees avenues in Clovis).

Now for the bad news. Some of you lament the loss of the pear-and-gorgonzola pizza at California Pizza Kitchen.

"The waiter told me the decision to take the pear-and-gorgonzola pizza off the menu was a corporate decision," Bee reporter Tracy Correa writes in an e-mail. "That's lame!"

She also misses the vegetable calzonetto at Romano's Macaroni Grill in River Park. Correa remembers it as a wood-fired bread stuffed with grilled vegetables, served with a balsamic vinaigrette and marinara dip.

"Its awesomeness was short-lived," she writes.

With limited veg*n items on Valley menus, losses like these hurt. Our area won't become a veggie haven anytime soon, so it pays to do your own cooking.

Sesma-Smith recommends cookbook authors Sarah Kramer, Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Dreena Burton. They have too many vegan cookbooks to list here, so you'll have to do an Internet search.

Remember to e-mail me once you're done cooking. Now that I know so many veg*ns are readers, I'll be happy to pass on good recipes.

The columnist can be reached at jobra@fresnobee.com or (559) 441-6365.

You can read the online version here.

It's a positive step though I did have an issue with the description of "vegan". I wrote her an otherwise praiseworthy email but pointed out that most vegans are vegan for ethical reasons not health. Veganism is a lifestyle not a diet choice. But, I also realized this was printed in the food section and I wrote that, too. Just clarifying ;)

2007-07-11T15:20:00.000-07:00

Think happy cows come from California?
New video from Farm Sanctuary: Behind the Mustache
Farm Sanctuary's investigation of Californian dairy farms.

This summer, when you're eating your ice cream or drinking milk, remembers who truly suffers to provide their bodily fluid for your treats. The suffering of a mother, whose nourishment for her offspring is diverted for human consumption. And, as further insult, the offspring she has carried in her body, is then ripped from her hours to a few days after their birth. Then, the young calf is doomed to veal, clothing, and/or low-grade meat.

The callousness with which the workers in this video treat the cows and their calves is nothing short of reprehensible. All life is precious and to throw it away so easily is disappointing, indeed.

It never ceases to amaze me to see the suffering of non-human animals just so we (as a species) can consume them and their by-products. Milk is especially foul. And the lacto vegetarians who think they're being kind to animals becuase they only consume milk are sorely delusional. Milk isn't cruelty-free. It is, in fact, hand-in-hand with veal and hamburgers. So, the only way to end the cruelty is to simply Go Vegan!

There are countless of non-dairy alternatives, even frozen. To continue the consumption of a cow's milk, in this day of choices, is inexcusable. Cow's milk is for their babies-not humans!

2007-06-13T11:53:00.000-07:00

Dark Water Rising

With the latest scandal coming out of St Bernard's Parish, I found this video on youtube.com. It's a trailer for the documentary Dark Water Rising. I should order this dvd soon.

The related story, from abcnews.com, concerns the executions of many companion animals at the hands of the police officers in St Bernard Parish. Many of whom forced the guardians of these animals to abandon them, sometimes at gunpoint.

It's a bleak picture, to say the least.

2007-06-09T10:59:00.000-07:00

Two disheartening accounts from ida-india

Story 1:
Police file criminal case against Municipal workers for killing dogs
By K. S. Satagopan

When some employees of the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) allegedly strewed poisoned food on the roadside in the Viman Nagar area with an intention to kill dogs, clearly violating relevant laws once again in January last, they may have not thought they would be arrested and were landing themselves in courts, this time. A resident of the area Diana Ratnagar who had the shock and agony of seeing her 5 dogs dropping dead one after another in quick succession as result of swallowing those bites, could suspect criminal mischief (allegedly repeated as a matter of course) and on examination, a registered veterinarian certified that the death had been “caused by poisoning.” Determined this time to get justice done for those innocent victims, she lodged a complaint with the Pune police and her unflinching determination took her nearly 6 months to get the police to act and eventually two workers of the PMC were arrested (and later released on bail) in July last on charges under Sections 34, 284 and 428 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Sec. (Z4)X(1) of The Bombay Police Act (BPA).

While Sec. (Z4)X(1) of BPA states that “No stray dogs shall be killed as a rule…” IPC Sec. 428 covers mischief committed by killing, maiming etc. of animals, and Sec. 284 is concerned with negligent conduct with respect of poisonous substances. Perhaps Sec. 34 should be of special concern to the higher-ups in a local body. It provides for implicating also those who support, encourage and protect the person(s) actually committing a criminal act. That explains why the police have implicated the PMC itself in the criminal case.

It is also learnt that in March last, another Pune resident Meenal Jogdev who was on a walk with her two Labrador dogs on a leash has had the same shock of seeing her companions dropping dead after swallowing ‘something’ on the roadside. Identical has been the fate of Khurshid Chaudhuri’s 7 dogs, which fell dead on 22nd August last year. So is the story of several other dogs including those of Asha Doshi, Rakesh Jagtap, Deepti Dalvi, Pradeep Joshi and others of Pune.

Speaking to this scribe, Ratnagar, who seems equally concerned with the safety of humans, asks, what if a poor child swallows a piece of the strewed lot or what about those untargeted animals like cows and calves, and birds which might fall victims, and wonders whether the law of the land provides for killing healthy dogs. Describing the modus operandi, she says, “Some dogs do react in a threatening manner when teased or provoked. But, on this, when someone lodges a complaint with the PMC, the latter knowing very well that it is illegal to kill dogs, makes a pact with the former to strew poisoned food on the roadside and the result is that every time this is done, some 25 unsuspecting dogs fall dead. What’s more, the carcasses are almost immediately collected by the garbage collection squad, leaving no trace of evidence, with the PMC pleading complete innocence.”

As for other areas in the country, this scribe learns from the former film actress Amala Akkineni who runs the Blue Cross society at Hyderabad that the local municipality has stopped poisoning dogs, though other sources maintain that the local body still does it but denies doing so. But Amala adds that it happened 6 months ago in Vijayawada and Malkajgiri (also of Andhra Pradhesh). As for Karnataka, sources from Bangalore in anonymity contend that dogs have been poisoned in Kolar. According to sources including this scribe himself, stray dogs have been beaten to death or killed by injecting poison in Tamilnadu.

It seems likely that the practice is also in vogue in some other states like Kerala. But undoubtedly the latest instance from Pune has squarely caught the attention of law and that could perhaps be an eye-opener for administrators and authorities at various levels in the country.

Perhaps the local bodies in the country must take note; perhaps the state governments should instruct them to mind propriety, stipulated rules and procedures that have a bearing on such issues. As for an instance, Khurshid Chaudhuri points out that the Mumbai High Court in its “Comprehensive Guidelines for Dog Control and Management” has laid down that even stray dogs shall not be killed as a rule, making an exception only in the case of fatally injured, incurably ill, and rabid dogs (Sec. (Z4)X(1) of The BPA). Even the exception is made “with the sole object of relieving [the dog] of the pain of such sickness, injuries or rabies…” The honourable court has also laid down “Rules for capturing, sterilization [birth control], immunization [against rabies] and release of dogs.” (Note release, the court has insisted on the release of the dogs in the same area from where they were captured). After all, our constitution itself, by its Article 51A(g), enjoins upon us as a fundamental duty “…to have compassion for all living creatures,” she adds.

source

Story 2 (rather gruesome):

IDA-India Seeks Justice for 17 Dogs Burned to Death
Complaint triggers official inquiry by Animal Welfare Board of India

In response to a complaint filed by IDA-India, the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) has launched an inquiry into the mass-burning of 17 homeless dogs at Shwan Nasbandi Kendra, a municipal sterilization center. The dogs were killed in this brutal manner by shelter personnel "in the interest of public health." Officials who ordered the flaming execution claimed the animals were "rabid, diseased and violent," and could create "unhygienic conditions" that might compromise the health of other canine residents.

While the center did have legal permission to dispatch of the dogs, IDA-India and AWBI both maintain that burning the dogs to death, even for suspected rabies, was illegal as well as unconscionable. IDA-India informed AWBI of the violation after getting a tip from a local resident and animal lover on April 4. IDA-India president Fizzah Shah and two colleagues soon made a personal visit to the center to determine whether the report was true.

To their great horror, it was. Among piles of singed hair and blackened collars, they found the charred bodies of 17 dogs dumped on the ground in back of the locked sterilization facility. According to Shah's testimony, "It was clear that dog burning was a regular practice over there." The kennels and operating room were also disgustingly filthy and lacked proper drainage systems.

The center's mission is to collect stray dogs from the streets, sterilize them, and release them after monitoring their health for five days. However, IDA-India found out from local residents that the killing has been going on for at least two years, and that the dogs barely get any food and water. Even after this scandal, police have so far refused to investigate, claiming that no offense has been proven and indifferently rejecting any evidence to the contrary.

In the face of police inaction, IDA-India used the local cable TV station to break the story. News cameras captured the sight, if not the horrible smell, of burned and rotting dog carcasses scattered like trash behind the center. They also filmed the 12 remaining dogs, who police had locked inside without food or water. The footage was broadcast throughout the Bhiwandi area. The AWBI inquiry is still pending.

source

I'm bewildered by the actions of the officials. That they have strayed so far from their original mission is apparent. And this was their solution to the overpopulation? This "Let's just kill everything" mentality is tiring. And to condemn the dogs to a fiery death? It is inhumane and vile. No living being deserves that fate.

I stand by what I've said before: if we can't end our exploitation and violence towards non-human animals, we have no hope of ending it amongst our own species.

It's so disheartening to hear, watch, or read of the endless acts of violence. You'd think that we could get our act together, as we all share space on this precious planet, but I don't think that will ever happen. What a silly, stupid, selfish species we are. I'm rambling here but there are just moments when the whole deal becomes overwhelming.

2007-06-07T20:18:00.000-07:00

MFA releases new undercover footage

I received this video as a bulletin from myspace. To say I was upset is an understatement. I am appalled and outraged.

I don't understand why these animals, already doomed to slaughter for "food", have to undergo such horrible abuse before they are murdered.

And, sure, these people may need the job at the slaughterhouse but do they really need to torture an already doomed animal?

It seems barbaric and evil to me. If there is a hell, I hope there's a special section for these assholes.

Though the video says "go vegetarian" at the end of the video, I say fuck that! GO VEGAN!!

2007-04-11T13:37:00.000-07:00

buddhist prayer for animal liberation

if only.....

Music by Choyling Drolma and Steve Tibbetts. - Songs "Chenrezig" "Padmesambava"

Prayer for Liberation for Our Brother & Sister Animals.

May all sentient beings in the animal realm
subject to unbearable pain in labs throughout the world
be free from suffering.
May alternatives to animal experimentation and testing
be used immediately.
May Bodhicitta fill the hearts of those who imprison them.

May all sentient beings from the animal realm
who suffer endless days, months, years
locked in tiny cages unable to move, be filled with peace and calm.
May the many billions waiting in slaughterhouse lines be free of fear.
May the hearts of those who work in abattoirs
be filled with Bodhicitta so the very thought of harm is purified.
May they never kill again and may the slaughterhouse lines become immediately empty.

May no animal be afraid or depressed.
May their bodies be free of injuries, disease and illness.
May those who need homes, or who have been driven from them
find shelter, plentiful food & water.
May there be liberation for those
tortured for fur, entertainment or who are hunted.

May those who believe they are superior to our brother & sister animals
develop perfect equanimity.
And may they realise in their hearts
that all sentient beings possess Buddha nature
And they are not ours to kill or exploit.

May the many billions of land and sea dwelling sentient beings
who are abused, exploited and killed due to greed, hatred and ignorance
be free of suffering
May they experience complete and perfect enlightenment,
through the virtue of my efforts and prayers.
May I be a voice for the voiceless.
In short, may all human and non-human sentient beings
live together in harmony, peace and equanimity
and achieve perfect Enlightenment quickly.

Composed Feb 14, 2007 by Liberation for Our Brother & Sister Animals. http://www.lobsa.org

To help our brother & sister animals -: Go Vegan/Join your local animal rights group & become active/Don't buy animal products, find alternatives/Don't buy products tested on animals.

Sign US Animal Bill of Rights (international signatures welcome)
http://www.aldf.org/billofrights/index.php

2007-04-09T11:18:00.000-07:00

Hidden from view

Because no one wants to see what happens to their "food" before it lands in the supermarket; packaged nicely and unrecognizable from the living animal it once was.

2007-04-09T11:15:00.000-07:00

The myth: Old MacDonald's Farm

He may have had it decades ago but the big conglomerates have replaced the "idyllic" farm with massive factory farms.

2007-04-07T13:18:00.000-07:00

chinchilla-o-rama

I had to go to PetCo yesterday because the dogs were running out of their dry food. Thankfully, the kibble we feed them is not on the huge list of recalled foods. Besides, all those foods that were recalled were derivative of animal by-products and my dogs are vegan. They had been vegetarian but I've been baking their treats for them, as opposed to purchasing over-priced "vegetarian" treats. Now, I can control what goes into those cookies and they're definitely vegan :)

Anyway, as part of their daily diet, we feed them Avo-Derm Vegetarian kibble and wet-food and you can only buy that at PetCo. While there, I decided to find some squeaky toys for Otto but found none that I thought he would enjoy.

I found myself drawn to the rodent area, after talking to the birds, and found two chinchillas!

I have never seen them up close and, to be honest, don't recall seeing them in photos either. I've only seen their pelts once they've been made into coats :(

They were adorable! If I didn't have four dogs, I'd definitely buy one for a pet. I couldn't tear myself away from their cage. I was marvelling at what sweet little creatures they were, with such long whiskers. It made me sad to realize that they are killed to make ugly coats. Apallingly, it takes 200 chinchillas to make one coat. Fucking Madonna and J-Lo.

I took a few pics with the camera on my cell phone but I haven't uploaded them yet. However, I did google chinchilla images and found out quite a bit about them. For instance, they can live up to 15 years and have an agreeable nature.

These two sites, one French and the other Croatian were very interesting, regarding chinchillas raised on fur farms in Croatia. Who knew?

a chinchilla killed (by electrocution) for her fur

I really hate fur coats (except on the animals they belong to) and the people who wear them.

Why can't this fashion choice be abolished forever? No one really needs to wear fur these days yet they continually choose to perpetuate this barbaric practice. And, right now, I'm thinking of the remaining baby harp seals who are being hunted down, at this very moment, in Canada's St Lawrence region. Apparently, there was an ecological disaster in that the ice floes melted quickly and thousands of newborn seals drowned in the icy waters. Yet, shockingly, the Canadian government still okayed the hunt! WTF? Every seal the hunters/murderers see, they are killing! It's absolutely mind-boggling. Who the fuck is requesting seal fur and why the fuck do they need to have it? IT.IS.NOT.A.NECESSITY!!

You can learn more about the Canadian seal hunt here and here

As a footnote, I've been on a Sex and the City binge lately and am surprsied at how much fur they wear on that show. It results in me not liking the show so much. Is fur that much of an East Coast phenomenon? As someone who lives on the West Coast, that's how it seems to me. And if that's the case, I'd never want to live there. I'd be too angry everytime I saw someone walk by in the carcass of a dead animal. It's bad enough here....

an image I always see when I think of people who wear fur

2007-03-23T21:55:00.000-07:00

I remember when they briefly disabled this video from being downloaded as it was up for a Golden Globe award or similar. Anyway, now it's back for free viewing.

Please watch and learn.

Earthlings

Earthlings

2007-03-12T14:47:00.001-07:00

Bangalore's War against Street Dogs

Joellen Secondo is a U.S-based animal activist focusing on animal issues in India. She has frequently tipped me off to quality stories, and this marks her first guest post for An Animal-Friendly Life.

Bangalore's War against Street Dogs
By Joellen Secondo

Following two fatal dog attacks on children in January and February, there has been an intense and violent backlash against the street dogs of Bangalore in India.

While the death of a child is tragic under any circumstances, given the number of dogs in Bangalore approximately 56,000 and the number of people over 6 million of these incidents are exceedingly rare.

This past week, city officials ordered dogs to be rounded up and brought to shelters. Many were kept in vans for 24 hours without food or water. Some 800 stray dogs have been dumped at local animal shelters. Over 200 dogs caught by the city were deemed diseased or vicious and were killed by injecting chemicals directly into their hearts or clubbing (as reported in a interview with a city employee published by Mid-Day newspaper, which also published a photo of piled-up dead dogs). Other dogs have been killed by angry mobs in their neighborhoods.

Due to a dearth of professional dog catchers, city garbage cleaners had been given the task of bringing in 1,000 dogs a day, but their lack of experience resulted in abusive handling of dogs as well as an inability to meet their quota.

Local newspapers report that the catching and culling will resume in ten days, after the city builds pounds where the dogs can be permanently housed (it is unclear how many or which dogs will be kept there).

The number of dogs killed is tiny compared to the numbers killed in China recently. But what is particularly upsetting is that, up until now, India's progress in stray dog and rabies control has been a model for other countries. The current culling mandate is a foolish step backward and may set a precedent for other municipalities.

Most dogs in India are free roaming. They are community dogs, who live outdoors and belong to neighborhoods or persons who live or work on the streets.

The management of street dog populations in India is critical, not because of the possibility of fatal attacks by street dogs, but because of rabies. India has more human fatalities from rabies than any country in the world, and virtually all are the result of dog bites.

As stated by the World Health Organization, an animal birth control/anti-rabies program (ABC/AR) is the most effective (and most humane) way to: keep dog populations down; prevent dogs from biting (since mating and protection of litters can lead to aggression); and, subsequently, prevent rabies in humans. For 100 years, street dogs were routinely killed in India. Following the passage in 1960 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, this has been outlawed; ABC/AR has now become national policy for street dog and rabies control. Now there are calls for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act to be set aside so that all the dogs in Bangalore may be killed.

In many Indian cities, as in Bangalore, animal organizations catch street dogs, spay/neuter and vaccinate them against rabies (putting a notch in one ear to signify that the dog has been sterilized) and then release the dogs back to their original neighborhoods. Since dogs are territorial, they prevent new, unsterilized dogs from moving in.

As proof of the efforts of animal welfare organizations, most of the dogs caught in the recent round-up had been sterilized.

According to Savitha Nagabhushan of Compassion Unlimited Plus Action, one of Bangalore's most active animal welfare organizations,

Stray dogs are a consequence and not a cause of civic problems. The cause is really:
a) The exposed meat shops and their wastes.

b) General garbage piles uncleared.

c) Migrant construction workers who keep dogs and then abandon them when they move on.

d) Uncaring pet owners abandoning their dogs.

e) Unscrupulous breeders abandoning weak and unsold dogs.

It is quite clear that dogs are not the problem, but are victims of humans, of the general population and civic authorities. One incident, however tragic, cannot justify the slaughter of thousands of dogs.

Even though the directive is to capture feral/ferocious/diseased dogs, at the ground level, the catchers will catch only the docile, sterilized, harmless dogs to meet their quota. This will only increase the influx of untreated dogs. This kill the dogs mania is only making the problem worse.

Read her full statement here.

The suburban area in which the two children were killed was cited in 2002 by an animal welfare NGO as high-risk due to numerous illegal butcher shops, which dumped meat waste onto the streets. Dogs gravitated to this highly prized food source. When the butcher shops were closed or penalized for littering, bribes to officials had them quickly back in business.

The government provides some funds for ABC/AR programs to five NGO's responsible for five areas of Bangalore. The area of the dog attacks does not have an ABC/AR program.

The Hindu, one of India's leading newspapers, reported on March 9 that T.N. Chaturvedi, the Governor of Karnataka, castigated city officials in Bangalore and in nearby Mysore for ordering a dog culls, calling it a knee-jerk reaction and requesting a more scientific approach to the problem.

Having spent time in India with animal welfare organizations, I can attest to the dedication and hard work of their staff (who, in many cases, are not even paid). Now, however, all of their efforts and a great deal of the expense that has gone into the sterilization and vaccination of dogs is being undone by voices calling for the killing of street dogs.

Please write to ask authorities to conduct proper waste management and expand the ABC/AR programs. Emails can be sent to the Chief Minister of Karnataka (Karnataka is the state where the city Bangalore is located) and the Bangalore Mahanagara Palike Commissioner, K. Jairaj (this is the city commissioner)

Chief Minister, Government of Karnataka at cm@kar.nic.in

BMP Commissioner: K Jairaj at commissioner@bmponline.org

Letters to the editor can be sent to:

The Hindu at letters@thehindu.co.in

Deccan Herald at editor@deccanmail.com

Photo courtesy of Savitha Nagabhushan, CUPA

2007-03-08T14:35:00.001-08:00

I noticed that Satya has a new issue out (I'm still not a subscriber, d'oh). So, I read through the free articles and decided to check out the back issues. They have back issues all the way to their premier issue, in 1994! I've been perusing the available articles and am stunned at what I'm reading. Very informational. Here are some of the things I've learned today.

For example, there was an article about punk rock music and animal rights (Oct 95) and this quote caught my attention: "To end the enslavement and the slaughter the antidote is veganism. Don't let your outrage for injustice end where your selfishness begins. I have conquered through self control... A peaceful world can evolve after animal liberation." It's from Earth Crisis who, at the time, was a popular and militant straightedge band (apparently they were described as "New York Vegans", whatever that means).
The song is "Eden's Demise".

I need to start listening to more animal rights-based music...even if I did grow out of hardcore music years ago. It's gotta be better than the shit out there right now.

This article was very informative as well. It aligns itself with my belief that animal testing is outmoded, unsafe, unreliable, and dangerous to humans.

This quote, by Carol Adams, is insightful, People who eat animals are benefiting from a dominant/subordinate relationship, but our culture encourages invisibility of the structures enabling this, and invisibility of the animals hurt by this. Indeed, the animals are seen as unified masses. There is a complete denial of their individuality, so that it is not seen as subordination. We see meat as the ontological reason for animals' existence, that they are there to be eaten. But when you talk about intervening with an ecofeminist care-ethic, one of the things we need to say is, "What are you going through?"

Or finding this out, though I knew that it is standard practice to feed factory-farmed animals other dead animals..mixed in with their feed (and, wtf?, these are herbivorous animals! Why they're being fed flesh is a sickening travesty brought on by the huge demand humans have for animal consumption. Eew): Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) or "mad cow disease." For a number of years, until the late 1980s, British farmers fed their cattle a concoction of animal remains including dead sheep's brains infected, it so happened, with a degenerative disease called "scrapie." Soon, tens of thousands of cows were exhibiting behavior such as disorientation, muscle spasm and collapse, and finally death. Autopsies revealed their brains to be full of holes, like sponges. You are what you eat....

Or this, There is, of course, one final irony. When we have imported the baboon's liver, the pig's heart, the cow's spleen, and whatever else into our body — maybe we'll start recognizing that there's not such a moral difference between human and non-human animals, now that the physiological difference is diminished to almost zero. I doubt it somehow. I agree. I mean, why is it ok to implant animal body parts into our own bodies but still refuse them status as fellow beings? Yes, we're different species but we all live on the same planet, sharing its resources, though we humans have done a bang-up job on gobbling up most of them. Literally.

This article, by Matt Ball, about being vegan is just as true today as it was when this was published, in 1996.

Just like these tips for effective letter writing:
Ideas are powerful. Most of us have opinions and when we feel strongly will spend much time talking about them. But talking is not enough. Doing is what makes activists effective.

Writing letters to the editor is a simple and effective way of taking action. Letters to the editor are powerful tools. The letters section is one of the most widely read parts of a newspaper or magazine. Your letter can reach thousands and even millions of readers. And beyond the cost of a stamp, it won't cost you a penny for typesetting, paper or distribution.

It you need to write 20 letters until one gets printed, it's well worth the effort. And even when your letters are not printed, they alert the editors to readers' interest in an issue. Occasionally a letter can touch a nerve or spark a dialogue which continues for days, weeks and sometimes even months.

It has been our experience that certain steps can maximize your chances of getting that letter printed.

• Before putting pen to paper or finger to keyboard, know exactly what you want to say.

• Whenever possible, bring new information or a fresh perspective to the subject.

• Ideally, you'll address an item which just appeared in a publication. Respond immediately. Don't spend undue time trying to craft the perfect masterpiece. By the time you succeed, editorial interest in the issue may be long gone.

• Let your words ring reasonable, rational, and well thought-out.

• It's okay to be critical, but don't come across as nasty or hysterical. A reasonable tone is usually persuasive, insults are usually not.

• If at all possible, stick to just one issue. It keeps things uncomplicated.

• A well chosen headline can help keep you and your readers sharply focused.

• Familiarity with the letters page will suggest what kind of letters the editors tend to select for publication. Write with this in mind.

• Write as if you're talking to another person and want to hold their interest.

• Keep your language simple. Try to make it flow naturally with short words, short sentences and short paragraphs.

• Avoid trite phrases and clich..s.

If your writing skills are a work-in-progress, consider starting small. It may be a lot easier to get your feet wet with a community paper rather than starting at the top with major national publications.

Once your letter gets published, make copies and circulate them for additional impact. Take advantage of the ripple effect. Encourage your friends and colleagues to do the same. And if your letter doesn't get published, don't give up. Keep trying. A well written letter with something to say will inevitably wind up where it deserves to be. In print!

Or, how to be an activist:
Civil Disobedience (CD) - breaking the law of the day to argue for a greater goal - has been used as a form of activism for many years. Both Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. used it. Ben White lays down some philosophical ground rules for those who feel they wish to undertake CD. The following is not intended as a recommendation to undertake CD; that is entirely a personal decision.

1. Challenging the infliction of suffering is the right thing to do. Feel proud. If you act like a criminal, you will be treated as one.

2. Treat everyone - police, your opponents, the press - as potential converts. Be persuasive, not angry.

3. Be peaceful. Completely. If verbally attacked, smile. If physically attacked, protect yourself without responding in kind. Look the person in the eye.

4. Remember why you are doing it - to keep from personally acquiescing to suffering. The more oppressive the treatment of you, the more obvious the institutional protection of systemic violence.

5. There is power in numbers.

6. Come across as a normal person. Otherwise your opinion is considered by many to be worthless.

7. Know your subject. Don't answer any question from the media that you're not sure of.

8. Appeal to the inherent sense of fairness in your opponent or the police who are encountered.

Tips for preventing burnout:

• Don't mourn, organize! The last words of the great labor organizer Joe Hill before his execution early last century still ring true. Let your sorrow for the victims of oppression fuel your activism. Nothing will change if you are paralyzed by guilt, unending grief and despair. Dwell on solutions, not suffering.

• Campaign to win. Translate your ultimate goal into something you can accomplish today or tomorrow. You can't end all animal abuse today, but you have a good shot at convincing your cafeteria to offer more vegan options. Get involved in an existing campaign—or start one of your own. Choose something you enjoy. Winning even small battles can give you momentum, energy and inspiration to go on.

• Pace yourself. Think long-run. You can't operate in crisis mode all the time. Whatever the issue, you can be sure that it's not the whole world or the last campaign. Take time to pause, listen to your heart, and then act.

• Embrace friends, food and fun. Share your worries and feelings. Celebrate victories. Run your ideas by others. You are not alone! Even people who are not connected with your particular issue can be valuable "reality checks" and sources of ideas and inspiration. Don't neglect yourself, your partner or your companion animals. When adrenaline is high, eat like a fruitarian. When calm returns, feast on luscious vegan food prepared with love and gusto. Sing in the shower, make love, play with your cats, giggle with your kids.

• Move. These days activists spend way too much time behind the computer. Get out of the house and move your body! Hike, bike, walk on the beach, skinny dip, do yoga, stretch. Connect with nature, breathe fresh air, notice the seasons. You will gain perspective and renew yourself for the long journey ahead.

I think I'll buy this book soon. It's called "Dead Meat" by Susan Coe. The link will take you to a review Satya published in June '96. I found this site of her other work, as well.

dream, a painting from Susan Coe's series (Graphic Witness)

Another gem from Carol Adams, this article on fur and the homeless. Particularly, her use of this quote from an Indian text:
The Laws of Manu really captures this dynamic: "He who permits the slaughter of an animal, she who kills it, he who cuts it up, she who buys or sells meat, he who cooks it, she who serves it up, and he who eats it, are all slayers." (I have tried to equalize the pronouns.)
So too with fur: the slaughterer, the manufacturer, the retailer, the buyer, the group that donates fur to the homeless, the wearer--are all implicated in the slaughter.

Cow Myths by Angela Starks.

Interesting article on Heifer International. I had stopped buying Seventh Generation because they support them. This article reaffirmed my dislike towards HI. Interesting that it mentions Mary Steenburgen. She is on the latest issue of Delicious Living, available (free) at Whole Foods. And she was pimping Heifer International like it was going out of style. I recall her saying that she suggests people give donations to HI at Bar Mitzvahs, birthday parties, holidays, etc. I threw the magazine in the recyle bin with absolute disgust.

Something I am also aware of, as I do like to sip a glass of wine: not wines are vegan. Here's an introduction to vegan wine, by Catherine Clyne.

Why I feed my dogs a veg*n diet can be explained, partly, by this article. And, it's vet-approved. On the flip-side, there's "natural" pet foods. Not all of them are good.

Some other articles:

What is animal cruelty?

About the actual size......

An interview with Ian MacKaye.

Animal rights and wrongs, by Lee Hall.

Restoring the small farm ethic, with Diane Halverson.

I know I've highlighted mostly animal rights/vegan related topics but Satya focuses on environmental and social justice issues, as well. There was just so much to sift through.

If I wasn't an optimistic person, I'd say our world (or, rather, its humans) are rotten.

2007-02-25T12:51:00.000-08:00

from a bulletin posted on Myspace

Exposing the beast: factory farming must be called to the slaughterhouse
J.M. Coetzee
February 22, 2007

To any thinking person, it must be obvious there is something terribly wrong with relations between human beings and the animals they rely on for food. It must also be obvious that in the past 100 or 150 years, whatever is wrong has become wrong on a huge scale, as traditional animal husbandry has been turned into an industry using industrial methods of production.

There are many other ways in which our relationship with animals is wrong (to name two: the fur trade and experimentation on animals in laboratories), but the food industry, which turns living animals into what it euphemistically calls animal products and by-products, dwarfs all others in the number of individual animal lives it affects.

The vast majority of the public has an equivocal attitude to the industrial use of animals: they make use of the products of that industry, but are nevertheless a little sickened, a little queasy, when they think of what happens on factory farms and abattoirs. Therefore they arrange their lives in such a way that they need be reminded of farms and abattoirs as little as possible, and they do their best to ensure their children are kept in the dark too, because children have tender hearts and are easily moved.

The transformation of animals into production units dates back to the late 19th century, and since that time we have already had one warning on the grandest scale that there is something deeply, cosmically wrong with regarding and treating fellow beings as mere units of any kind.

This warning came so loud and clear that one would have thought it impossible to ignore. It came when, in the 20th century, a group of powerful and bloody-minded men in Germany hit on the idea of adapting the methods of the industrial stockyard, as pioneered and perfected in Chicago, to the slaughter - or what they preferred to call the processing - of human beings.

Of course we cried out in horror when we found out what they had been up to. What a terrible crime to treat human beings like cattle - if we had only known beforehand. But our cry should more accurately have been: what a terrible crime to treat human beings like units in an industrial process. And that cry should have had a postscript: what a terrible crime - come to think of it, a crime against nature - to treat any living being like a unit in an industrial process.

It would be a mistake to idealise traditional animal husbandry as the standard by which the animal products industry falls short. Traditional animal husbandry is brutal enough, just on a smaller scale. A better standard by which to judge both practices would be the simple standard of humanity: is this truly the best that humans are capable of?

The efforts of the animal rights movement - the broad movement that situates itself on the spectrum somewhere between the meliorism of the animal welfare bodies and the radicalism of animal liberation - are rightly directed at decent people who both know and don't know that there is something going on that stinks to high heaven.

These are people who will say: "Yes, it's terrible what lives brood sows live; it's terrible what lives veal calves live," but who will add, with a helpless shrug of the shoulders - "what can I do about it?"

The task of the movement is to offer such people imaginative but practical options for what to do next after they have been revolted by a glimpse of the lives factory animals live and the deaths they die. People need to see that there are alternatives to supporting the animal products industry.

These alternatives need not involve any sacrifice in health or nutrition, and there is no reason why these alternatives need be costly. Furthermore, what are commonly called sacrifices are not sacrifices at all. The only sacrifices in the whole picture, in fact, are being made by non-human animals.

In this respect, children provide the brightest hope. Children have tender hearts - that is to say children have hearts that have not yet been hardened by years of cruel and unnatural battering. Given half a chance, children see through the lies with which advertisers bombard them (the happy chooks that are transformed painlessly into succulent nuggets, the smiling moo-cow that donates to us the bounty of her milk). It takes but one glance into a slaughterhouse to turn a child into a lifelong vegetarian.

Factory farming is a new phenomenon - very new indeed in the history of animal husbandry. The good news is that after a couple of decades of what the businessmen behind it must have regarded as free and unlimited expansion, the industry has been forced onto the defensive.

The activities of animals-rights organisations have shifted the onus onto the industry to justify its practices, and because they are indefensible and unjustifiable except on the most narrow economic grounds ("Do you want to pay $1.50 more for a dozen eggs?"), the industry is battening down hatches and hoping the storm will blow itself out. Insofar as there was a public relations war, the industry has already lost that war.

A final note. The campaign of human beings for animal rights is curious in one respect: the creatures on whose behalf human beings are acting are unaware of what their benefactors are up to and, if they succeed, are unlikely to thank them. There is even a sense in which animals do not know what is wrong - they do certainly not know what is wrong in the same way that humans do.

Thus, however close the well-meaning benefactor may feel to animals, the animal rights campaign remains a human project from beginning to end.

J.M. Coetzee won the Nobel Prize for literature in 2003. This is an edited version of a speech to be given this evening to open the exhibition Voiceless: I feel therefore I am. It will be at the Sherman Galleries until March 10.

To learn more about the horrors and reality of factory farming, click here

italics, bold, and images I have added

2007-02-12T12:19:00.000-08:00

It's true.....

2007-02-08T10:44:00.000-08:00

I have always been suspicious of certain types of so-called faux fur and now this: the Humane Society of the United States has been conducting an investigation of several big stores and determined that the faux fur used on coats is actually dog/raccon dog fur from fucking China.

An excerpt follows below:

------------snip---------------------
Dog Fur on Sale

An ongoing investigation by The HSUS has found some of the biggest names in fashion selling raccoon dog fur trim on jackets that were mislabeled, advertised as another species or not labeled at all. The investigation also turned up dog fur on sale.

The HSUS investigation has found:

Dog fur sold online as "faux" by Nordstrom's, Tommy Hilfiger and Bluefly.com. The brands involved are Tommy Hilfiger, Joie and Andrew Marc.

Raccoon dog fur on coats sold online as "raccoon" by Neiman Marcus, Dillard's and Loehmann's (via Smartbargains.com), and as "rabbit" by Bergdorf Goodman and Footlocker. The brands involved were Andrew Marc, Michael Kors, Oscar de la Renta, Bogner and Rocawear.

Misidentified or unlabeled raccoon dog fur sold on jackets by retailers and brands including DKNY, Lord and Taylor, Ross, D.E.M.O, Rocawear, Macy's, Baby Phat, J.C. Penney and Burlington Coat Factory.
----------------snip--------------------------------------

For further details, click here.

The victims

Each year over 50 million animals—including millions of dogs and cats—are killed for their fur worldwide. Although the fur industry does its best to keep the cruelty out of sight, suffering is a common ingredient in all methods of procuring fur, from fur factory farming to trapping. Many, perhaps more than half, of these animals are killed specifically for fur trim—it is not a by-product.

The following are some of the animals murdered for their fur:

Dogs and Cats: Over two million dogs and cats are victims of the fur trade—primarily killed intentionally for their fur, but also injured and killed in traps set for other animals.

Seal Pups: Canada's annual seal hunt is the largest slaughter of marine mammals on the planet. Hundreds of thousands of seals are killed for their pelts each year, with many skinned alive.

Various wild animals: including lynx, bobcats and wolves, suffer and die in traps each year. Countless dogs and cats, deer, birds and other animals—including threatened and endangered animals—are also injured and killed each year by the indiscriminate traps.

Newborn and Fetal Karakul Lambs: Newborn and fetal karakul lambs are killed to make fur labeled "karakul," "astrakhan," "Persian," "broadtail" and other names.

For more details about the vitims and/or to view video, click here

I believe that, one day, fur production will be abolished as it should be. There is absolutely no reason anyone needs to wear it today, except for vanity. Which makes it a heinous fashion choice, in my opinion.

This video shows what happens to the animal whose fur is stripped off just to make a fucking coat or piece of trim. It's barbaric.

Get free stickers at peta2.com

2007-02-07T11:47:00.000-08:00

This photo, which I saw on another blog las night, is absolutely heart-breaking. And people still go about in their polluting bubbles...........

Click here to take your ecological footprint quiz. Ideally, the planet can only support 4.5 acres per person. I scored at 15 acres and it would take 3.4 planets if everyone lived like me. Sadly, the average in the US is 24 acres per person. Mine would be a lot less if I didn't use my car as much or, at least, had a car with better gas mileage. I currently drive a Honda Element.

And, I should ride my bike more often but this city I live in is not conducive to foot power or bike riding. And the public transport is a joke. If I lived in SF, this would all be a moot point as Mark and I would walk everywhere or take the bus and BART. We have agreed we'd rarely drive our car. Also, he's going to be getting a motorcycle again and I think I'll be getting a Vespa. That should reduce usage of my car.

Here is a list of ways to reduce your ecological footprint:

Transportation

Vehicles that use fossil fuels harm the environment and people's health by creating air pollution.
*Ride or walk to nearby places instead of driving.
*Organize a carpool to get to work or use public transit.

Air Travel
*Airplanes use lots of fossil fuel and contribute significantly to pollution.
*Refrain from vacations in faraway destinations. Take vacations in places nearer to home.

Waste

Throwing things away harms the environment because we use up space to store garbage and also have to produce new materials to replace the ones we threw out.

*Take your lunch to work in reusable containers.
*Separate your garbage for recycling and recycle as much as you can.
*Start composting or worm farming food scraps.
*Think about whether things can be used again for the same or another purpose before you throw them away.
*Give things you do not need to other people or to second-hand stores.
*Buy rechargeable batteries so you do not have to buy new ones.
*Use plastic grocery bags in your garbage cans.

Food

As well as tasting great and being healthy, fruits and vegetables take less space and energy to produce than junk foods, instant foods and meat.

*Try eating more fruit and vegetables instead of junk food.
*Start a vegetable garden so you can grow some of your own food.
*Go to the farmer's markets to buy fruit and vegetables.
*Try to eat meat less often.

Energy

*Turn lights off when you leave an empty room.
*Turn the computer, TV, stereo and other appliances off when you have finished using them.
*Get what you want from the fridge quickly and close the door properly.
*Dry your clothes on a clothesline instead of using the dryer.
*Consider buying electricity from a renewable energy supplier.

Water

Only about 1% of the water on earth is drinkable so it is important to conserve it and keep it clean.

*Turn off the tap when you clean your teeth.
*Take short showers instead of baths.
*Sweep the path or driveway instead of hosing it down.
*Turn taps off properly and if they keep dripping, fix them.

Paper

Paper is made from trees or by recycling old paper, so if we use less we save trees and energy.

*Borrow books from libraries or friends instead of buying them.
*Use both sides of paper for writing or drawing.
*Put a notice on your mailbox saying you do not want any junk mail.
*Reduce the amount of printing at work and save files electronically instead.

Click here to view a series of video tips to reduce your ecological impact.

Most of the sources from this blog entry came from here.

2007-01-14T11:20:00.001-08:00

I am absolutely digusted by this article I read, in our local paper. It's actually more of a blurb as animal related items hardly sell. Here it is but you can read more about it here

USDA to inspect hospital after dog's testing, death
Cleveland- The U.S. Department of Agriculture will send an inspector to a hospital where a neurosurgeon demonstrating a medical device to salespeople deliberately induced a brain aneurysm in a dog, which was later destroyed.

The Cleveland Clinic, known for its heart center and for treating high-profile patients such as royalty, said that it had not authorized the procedure. The hospital reported itself to the USDA, which regulates animal testing.

A neurosurgeon caused the brain aneurysm in the anesthetized animal Wednesday at the clinic's Lerner Research Institute in Cleveland to demonstrate a medical device to a group of 20 to 25 salespeople. The large mixed-breed dog was destroyed afterward because of the damage caused by the aneurysm, the clinic said.

The audacity of humans is astounding, to say the least. What do you want to bet that the poor dog was a stray or picked up from a shelter? No one living being deserves to have tests of this kind performed the be "destroyed. Animal testing is bad enough, as results are highly suspect. When I think of mankind's cruelty towards animals, I'm reminded of the tests performed on humans during WWII.

I remember visiting the Dachau concentration camp, in Germany. In the "museum", I came across photos of prisoners being tested on and one series of images were forever engraved into my mind.
This is one of the photos from that series.

I believe the Nazis were researching high-altitude changes (click here or here for more info) and this particular prisoner is seen in various stages if the experiment until the last photo shown is the one of his death. Heartbreaking....

This photo absolutely blindsided me. The soldier looked as if he was sleeping but was murdered in an inhumane 'high-altitude' experiment at Dachau.

2007-01-09T06:07:00.000-08:00

So, school started again yesterday. I had a 5pm class and had gone to the store once class was over. Usually, I'm ambivalent about checking the snail mail but I am expecting a package from amazon.com so I was highly motivated to see if it had arrived. It didn't :(

On my way to the mailbox, which is 3 houses away from mine, I spotted the friendly pitbull that is tethered in the front yard of the house near the mail box. I said hi to him and petted him and proceeded to check the mail. Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted another dog. She, a cream-colored mixed breed, came to the pitbull and they sniffed each other and seemed to recognize one another. I was curious and wondered if she was a stray so I observed her for a few minutes while trying to make up my mind about what to do.

I noticed immediately that she wore a collar without tags. I swear to God that is something that really baffles me. Why bother to put a collar on your pet if you can't be bothered to put an identification tag on it? I mean, seriously, what's the fucking point???? GAHHH!! That completely pissed me off. It was déjà vu again, what with that evening we spent with Honey a month ago. Same thing with her, a collar yet no tags.

Anyway, I tried coaxing her over to me and she came easily enough but then ran across the street and began lapping up water that was in in the gutter. I followed her and managed to get a hold of her collar and gently led her into my garage. Unfortunately, I had left my garage door open and had locked my car (with the door remote within). The way I parked left barely enough room for both of us to maneuver over to the manual switch. When I got there, I let go of her collar but the noise of the garage door closing spooked her and she ran out. During all this, I was on the phone with Mark and voicing my frustration at the whole situation. When she left the garage, I contemplated, for a brief moment, just letting go of everything and settling in for a relaxing evening. My conscience wouldn't let me and I made up my mind to find her.

The dogs were outside but Otto was still in the house. I grabbed some cookies and a spare leash and proceeded out through the garage. I found her, easily enough. She was back with the pitbull yet, once she saw me, she came over. She stopped in the neighbor's yard and I offered her a cookie, which she took gracefully enough. I hooked the leash to her collar and led her back to my house, closing the gargage door once again.

Otto was a bit scared but the dogs outside were going crazy. I decided not to let them back in for the time being because I didn't want them to overwhelm her nor have her attack them. I let her roam around the house as Otto and I followed her. She seemed friendly enough but too skinny, in my book. Otto seemed very interested in her backside and I think she was in heat. I called Mark to let him know we had another guest and he suggested I take her for a walk, that evening, to see if she would lead me back to her house. I said that I would, if he went with me. Thankfully, he was already on his way home so I did what I could to make our new friend comfortable. I gave her some more cookies, fresh water, and took a few photos of her. She was really striking, in my opinion. I loved her two different colored eyes (one was an icy blue, the other a dark toffee).

a striking beauty, to say the least ^_^

The weather was a bit chilly and I was feeling bad that my three other doggies were still outside and I didn't want to make them wait there til Mark got home so I let them in. It was mayhem until I calmed them down and they were actually decent to the poor stray dog. When Mark arrived, he called me and I led her, through the huddle of four curious doggies, out the front door. We walked down half the block when she stopped in the middle of the road. A SUV pulled up to a house and we thought that maybe they were her humans. We waited until they got out and Mark asked if they were missing a dog. The mother replied that no, she wasn't theirs but she'd been over the day checking out their dog. I thought to myself, she's been running around for two days? And without identification? I could feel myself getting angrier at the stupid people who let her get loose. So irresponsible.

Anyway, one house down, several more to go. I suggested we call it a night and Mark remarked that there was always the no-kill shelter to drop her off at. I was incredulous, to say the least. It was nearly 7:30 pm as it was. No shelter would be open. So, Mark conceded and said she could stay but I had to take her first thing the next morning. I wasn't looking forward to having another stray dog stay the night but I knew it wasn't her fault she was lost and it would be cruel to let her back out. So, we began to head back to our house when the pitbull spotted us and got excited at seeing her. His guardian came out, after the pitbull kept barking, and we asked if he had seen the dog before. He said he had and that the people across the street brought her over to play with his dog. I looked across the street and had noted that some young guy had been hanging out in the front as we walked by earlier. He must've seen us with her but didn't recognize his own dog? I don't know.

We thanked our neighbor and went across the street and asked the kid if this was his dog. He acknowledged that, yes, she was. I felt relief but this wave of anger began to take over. It started bubbling out when he said that "it is always getting out of the yard." I looked at him and replied, "It? It is a she, ok. She is not an it." He looked sheepish but I was on a roll. I remarked on how I found her wandering and that I noted she had a collar but that there were no tags on it. I pointed out that, if he could put a collar on her, perhaps he should pick some tags, as well. He came up with some excuses such as "I know I need to do that but....." Dude, no excuses. If you have an outdoor dog, two things are non-negotiables (in my book) and they are to spay/neuter your pet and put some fucking identification on them. End of story. Jeez.

I realized that I was being a tad bitchy but I can't stand irresponsible people. The kid remarked, at one point, that he didn't know why she kept getting out and I said that it was because she was, more than likely, in heat. And, before I got on my soapbox about spaying and neutering, I decided to end the whole situation. I admitted to the kid that I had no interest in lecturing him but I have four dogs and I can't stand idly by when I see stray dogs wander around without tags. I feel compelled to say something. I mean, really, she could have fallen in to any number of dangerous situations (hit by car, attacked by another animal, taken to the pound, sold to a lab, tortured by another person etc). I think about those things when it comes to my four, all the time. I do not trust anyone as some people are extremely cruel.

As we went back to our house, I felt less relieved and more worried after returning her to her "guardian". I was very agitated once we got home. Mark said he was proud that I didn't lose my temper and that you "have to pick your battles and this one wasn't going to get us anywhere". Also, he said that not everyone treats their pets the way we do and that I just have to accept that. I asked him what's the point then? Why have a pet if you can't fucking take care of it? I hate people who do that to pets. If you're going to have a pet, do the right thing. At the very least, give them lots of love, proper nutrition, exercise, regular veterinary care, adequate shelter, and a collar with identification tags. That's it. If you can't do any of those, don't get a pet. It's that simple.

Pets don't ask for you to bring them home but, if you do, it's your obligation to care for them for the rest of their lives. None of this "I had to take them to the pound because they were too aggressive/too meek/we had to move/insert any other paltry excuse here" or "Dogs are meant to stay outside and cats should be allowed to wander at night". Hell no. Totally unacceptable, imo.

Okay, this rant over. I'm tired but I can't sleep. I am so thankful that I can take care of my dogs the way they deserve. They don't ask for much but I would do anything in the world for them.

2006-12-27T23:47:00.001-08:00

Virgil Butler, who wrote a blog titled "The Cyberactivist", recently passed away (15 December 2006).

He was a whistleblower at a Tyson slaughterhouse in Arkansas, back in 2003. Though he worked at Tyson for most of his life, he was so disgusted by what went on there that he dedicated his life to exposing and fighting animal abuse. In fact, he and his wife were instrumental in the campaign against KFC to pressure Tyson to change their brutal ways. With the help of PeTA, of course.

Anyway, it's very sad. He died unexpectedly. His wife has recently updated the blog but you can click the link to read all the archives if you're interested.

Click here to view his blog.

Click here to read the Satya magazine interview.

2006-12-27T22:21:00.000-08:00

80 ways to help animals
================

COMPANION ANIMALS

1. Spay and neuter. Each year, millions of dogs and cats are put to death in animal shelters. Spaying and neutering eases the overpopulation problem and prolongs the life of your dog or cat.

2. Never buy an animal from a pet shop. Adopt your companion animals from shelters. Pet shops buy from puppy mills and large-scale breeders who contribute to the population crisis and whose over-bred animals are often very unhealthy.

3. Never give an animal as a gift. Many an animal has been abandoned because people aren't prepared to care for it. Discuss it with your friends and family first.

4. Take notice and take action. Never ignore stray animals on the street, where they can become victims of disease, starvation, and human cruelty.

5. Help lost animals find their way home. Pay attention to flyers posted in your neighborhood. If you find a lost animal with no tag, post it in the newspaper, but be vague in your description. Animal guardians should be able to describe their animals in detail.

6. Support your local animal shelter. Animal shelters and SPCAs always need help socializing cats and walking dogs, fostering animals, and cleaning cages and pens. If you cannot volunteer, send a contribution.

7. Report abuse. Call your local humane society if you witness any type of cruely or abuse. It is common knowledge that violence towards non-human animals is a precursor of violence towards human animals.

8. Keep them safe at home. Be sure to keep collars and tags on dogs and cats (even if they are indoors). In case of an emergency, they can be returned home safely. Be sure to have a secure fence for dogs in your yard.

9. Use natural cleaners. Hazardous chemicals are harmful to your animals' health. Use only non-toxic cleaners in your home, and always clean up antifreeze (which tastes sweet to animals). Contact the Environmental Protection Agency (800-424-9346) to learn how to properly dispose of hazardous chemicals.

10. Warn people about thieves. People who place "free to a good home" ads in newspapers don't realize that "bunchers" are known to scan such ads for animals they can sell to laboratories.

11. Attend a humane dog training course with your pooch. Learn to communicate with your dog, who is eager to please but isn't always clear on what you expect.

12. Provide exercise for your dogs. Dogs crave walking, running, digging, and exploring. Go for long walks if possible, and use a retractable leash.

13. Keep cats indoors. Indoor cats live longer, safer, healthier lives. Cars, pesticides, feral cats, cruel humans, rabid animals, leghold traps, storm drains, and animal thieves (who sell them to labs for a profit) are just some of the reasons to keep cats indoors. With love and shelter, cats do not feel deprived.

14. Trim your cat's claws. Don't declaw. Have your veterinarian trim the nails, or buy a good pair of nail clippers. Invest in a good scratching post that is sturdy and tall enough for your cat to stretch out fully.

15. Tattoo your dog or cat. Vets, shelters, and laboratories often check for tattoos, and many animals have returned home as a result. They are painless and permanent.

16. Educate yourself. Read books to learn to care for your companion animal properly, such as Compassion of Animals, Understanding Your Dog, Dogs that Know when their Owners are Coming Home, Dr. Pitcairn's Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and Cats, The New Natural Cat, and Stolen for Profit.

ANIMALS IN ENTERTAINMENT

17. Find alternatives to zoos. Animals are fascinating to watch . . . in their natural environment. Victims of illegal trade, forced from their families, and raised in captivity, zoo animals would prefer not to be entertainment for humans. Watch National Geographic videos, read zoology books, and visit local nature centers.

18. Join wildlife protection organizations. Capturing young animals from the wild to sell them to zoos is a cruel practice both for mother and baby. Support organizations that protect these animals.

19. Attend a Cirque du Soleil performance or other human circus. Human performers who willingly entertain the public are incredibly talented and entertaining. No animals are used in this "circus."

20. Boycott marine theme parks. Unable to use their sonar, choose a mate, escape the noise of onlookers, or travel hundreds of miles with their family, captive marine mammals routinely die of pneumonia, ulcers, and other stress-related illnesses. Wild dolphins can live 40 years, and orcas can live 90, but in captivity, they rarely survive their teens.

21. Learn more about how animals suffer in rodeos. The rodeo's most popular events would not be possible if humans did not inflict pain on the animals involved. Calves and steers often incur back and neck injuries, torn ligaments and broken bones, a painful device makes broncos "buck," and animals are cramped in pens as they endure constant travel.

22. Do not patronize dog tracks. The greyhound racing industry breeds approximately 50,000 puppies each year. Of these animals, only 15,000 actually become racing dogs. The rest are "retired," used as breeding stock, or, in a more likely scenario, shot and destroyed. Greyhounds that actually become racers live life in small cages, usually no greater than three feet in diameter.

23. Boycott the Rodeo. The rodeo consists of painful and often fatal events such as roping, bucking, and steer wrestling events. While the public witnesses only the 8 seconds or so that the animals perform, there are hundreds of hours of unsupervised practice sessions. Also, the stress of constant travel, often in improperly ventilated vehicles, and poor enforcement of proper unloading, feeding, and watering of animals during travel contribute to a life of misery for these animals.

24. Learn why carriage horses have been banned in many cities. Such people as Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger are dedicated to helping carriage horses, working animals with minimal protections. Heat exhaustion, dehydration, stress, collisions with cars, fear of traffic and loud noises, incessant inhalation of exhaust fumes, lameness, hoof deterioration, improper food and water are just some of the ways they suffer.

25. Oppose bullfighting. A cruel spectacle of human dominance, the bullfight purports to be a battle to the death in which either participant, bull or matador, may die. In reality, the bull never has a chance to win. Stabbed in the side before released into the arena, the hurt animal is taunted until angry and then stabbed repeatedly until he dies a painful death.

26. Educate yourself and others. Read books and watch videos to learn more about how animals suffer in the name of entertainment, such as Beyond the Bars: The Zoo Dilemma, When Elephants Weep: The Emotional Lives of Animals, and The Souls of Animals.

ANIMALS IN LABORATORIES

27. Buy cruelty-free products. Most consumer products, from soap to cosmetics and cleaners, have been cruelly tested on animals who are intentionally poisoned or blinded. Check the packaging and only buy products that are not tested on animals. (Also check the ingredients to be certain that animal products were not used in the manufacturing process.)

28. Obtain a list of cruelty-free companies. Such organizations as the American Anti-Vivisection Society, In Defense of Animals, and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals offer (free!) updated and comprehensive lists of companies that DO NOT test on animals (as well as lists of those that DO test). Keep them in your wallet and refer to them whenever you shop.

29. Call and write companies that currently test products on animals. Let them know you will not use your money to contribute to animal suffering and that you know these tests are not required by any regulatory agencies. Most companies have 800 numbers that you can call at no cost to you! Consumer pressure is why many cosmetics companies, such as Revlon, have switched to animal-free testing.

30. Write to your congressional representatives. Ask them to support any legislation that would discourage companies from using animals for safety tests or that calls for alternatives to animal testing. Find your representatives here.

31. Do not buy products that contain animal ingredients. Animal and animal-derived ingredients are incorporated into many seemingly innocuous products. Animal Ingredients A to Z lists the source of ingredients -- especially all those "unpronouncables."

32. Before you donate to a health charity, ask if it funds animal experiments. Many people do not realize that when they donate to a health charity, they may be helping to fund disturbing experiments that have little to do with helping those in need. Support human-centered research programs that directly benefit the populations they serve. View an online guide of charities that do and do not fund animal experiments here.

33. Donate your organs. By donating your own organs, you are saving lives -- human animals as well as non-human animals. Obtain an organ card that states "I request that after my death any part of my body be used for medical and scientific research." Obtain a donor card today by clicking here.

34. Purchase synthetic alternatives to animal-based medications. One example is Premarin, a hormone replacement therapy derived from the urine of horses kept in stalls for this purpose. (Cenestin is just one FDA-approved hormone replacement therapy derived from synthetic materials.)

35. Provide warning. People who place "free to a good home" ads in newspapers don't realize that "bunchers" scan the paper for such ads so they can sell animals to laboratories. Place an ad alongside such "free to a good home" ads to alert others.

36. Read books about Vivisection: Lethal Laws, The Human Cost of Experiments on Animals, and Animal Liberation.

ANIMALS IN EDUCATION

37. Don't dissect. If you are a student, you have a legal right to refuse to dissect animals in labs. Put your feelings in writing to your teacher and principal and involve your parents if possible. Millions of animals are harmed or killed in or for elementary, middle school, high school, college, and graduate school courses every year. Cats, frogs, fetal pigs, grasshoppers, earthworms, rats, mice, dogs, pigeons, and turtles are just some of the animals used.

38. Encourage alternatives to dissection. There are thousands of amazing alternatives to dissection available for all sorts of animals. Great options are available that fit into any budget and are appropriate for students from elementary to college. Through programs such as Animalearn The Science Bank, students and educators can try a variety of alternatives from 3-D CD-Rom dissection simulations to videotapes, charts, and models.

39. Learn where the animals come from. Up to 90% of the animals used for dissection, including frogs, turtles, and perch, are wild caught. Some species used for dissection come from other industries that exploit animals. Fetal pigs are removed from pregnant sows slaughtered for meat. Skinned mink, fox, and rabbit bodies come from fur ranches. rabbits, Cats and dogs are often stolen from backyards, bought from pet stores, or adopted from animal shelters.

40. Make the connection. Dissection desensitizes people to animal concerns. Many people feel a natural connection to animals. They're our companions at home and in the wild. However, many educational projects and labs ignore that connection and help create a feeling that animals are objects, not living, feeling beings. Many classes refer to animals as "specimens," "subjects," or "tools," which further alienates students from the animals who lay before them. Biology is the study of life -- not death.

41. Encourage medical schools to eliminate dog labs. The majority of medical schools in the United States have abolished dog labs from their curricula. Columbia, Harvard, Stanford, and Yale all introduce physiology to their students with other, more applicable and humane methods. A significant number of medical schools, however, continue using dog labs.

42. Educate yourself and others. Read books and watch videos to learn more about dissection and vivisection: Brute Science: Dilemmas of Animal Experimentation, Animal Models of Human Psychology, Animal Liberation.

ANIMALS IN THE WILD

43. Provide a Wildlife Sanctuary. Leave a good part of your yard natural with bushes and ground cover. The more diverse your yard, the greater variety of birds and small mammals you will attract.

44. Keep dead wood. Hundreds of species of birds and animals live in dead trees and feed on the insects there. Top off, rather than chop down, dead trees.

45. Provide bird baths. Keep water in a birdbath and in a ground pan all year long.

46. Leave wildlife in your attic or chimney alone. If an animal has a nest in an unused part of your house, leave them alone for a few weeks until the youngsters are grown. They will probably move out on their own. "Humane" trappers aren't always such. Seal up all entry places once the family has left.

47. Avoid "pest control" companies. Don't capture and kill or relocate an animal. "Humane" pest control agencies are often a fraud. You may be separating them from loved ones as well as food and water.

48. Don't feed wildlife. Good-intentioned as it may be, feeding geese and other wildlife weakens their natural and necessary fear of humans.

49. Recycle Christmas trees. Birds and other small animals use dead wood as nests and protection.

50. Throw bird seed at weddings. Rice swells in birds' stomachs, often proving fatal.

51. Cut plastic six-pack rings. These rings are commonly found around the necks of wildlife, from turtles to waterfowl.

52. Deter ants with spices. Pour a line of cream of tartar, red chili powder, paprika, or dried peppermint at the place where ants enter the house. They won't cross it.

53. Use bay leaves to keep cockroaches and moths at bay. Spread whole bay leaves in several locations around infested rooms.

54. Use an alternative to mothballs. Place cedar chips (or bay leaves) around clothes or sachets made of dried lavender, mint, or rosemary in drawers and closets.

55. Remove spiders with a jar. Don't kill spiders. Simply remove them and place them outside.

56. Support whale watching. One solution to ending whaling is to support whale-watching, which is both educational and humane and supports local communities.

57. Read about Wild Animals & their threats: A New Way to Solve Beaver Problems, Man Kind? Our Incredible War on Wildlife, Wild Neighbors: The Humane Approach to Living with Wildlife.

ANIMALS AS FOOD

58. Do not eat animals. The suffering that occurs in factory farms and slaughterhouses is such that most of us don't want to know about it. Reduce animal suffering (and environmental devastation) by eliminating animal products from your diet.

59. Do not eat eggs. Egg-laying hens and dairy cows are the most exploited of all "food" animals. Approximately 300 million egg laying hens in the U.S. are confined in battery cages -- small wire cages in which 4-6 hens are forced to live. The birds cannot stretch their wings or legs, and they cannot fulfill normal behavioral patterns or social needs. Constantly rubbing against the wire cages, they suffer from severe feather loss, and their bodies are covered with bruises and abrasions. All battery-cage hens have part of their beaks cut off to avoid damage to other birds. Debeaking is a painful procedure which involves cutting through bone, cartilage, and soft tissue.

60. Do not drink cow's milk. One of the biggest misconceptions about dairy cows is that they are just born with the ability to give milk. Like all mammals (including humans!), in order to produce milk, they first must give birth. Like humans, cows have a 9-month gestation period and form a very close bond with their offspring. But to keep milk production high, dairy cows are artificially inseminated EVERY YEAR. With genetic manipulation and intensive production technologies, it is common for modern dairy cows to produce 100 pounds of milk a day - 10 times more than they would produce in nature.

61. Boycott veal. Calves born to dairy cows are separated from their mothers immediately after birth. Male calves are raised for veal and live for up to sixteen weeks in small wooden crates where they cannot turn around, stretch their legs, or even lie down comfortably.

62. Find alternatives to animal products. Today, with the variety of soy products, there is no shortage of "alternative meat products." In supermarkets across the country, consumers are buying everything from mock turkey, ham, bacon, and turkey to mock burgers, sausage, and pepperoni. These soy products, including cheese and milk, are healthier too, as they have no cholesterol (only animal products have cholesterol) and are low in fat.

63. Learn the facts. If everyone knew how animals suffer, more people would make compassionate choices. Read books and watch videos on how animals are raised for food and cook vegetarian meals: Diet for a New America, Battered Birds Crated Herds, Mad Cowboy: Plain Truth From the Cattle Rancher Who Won't Eat Meat, and Slaughterhouse. The Peaceful Palate: Fine Vegetarian Cuisine, The Vegan Cookbook, and my personal favorite cookbook: Vegan With A Vengeance.

ANIMALS AS CLOTHING

64. Buy non-leather products. Leather accounts for 50% of the by-product value of cattle raised for meat. Many alternatives are available, such as satin/fabric dress shoes, sythetic running and hiking shoes, and canvas recreation shoes.

65. Avoid down. Live geese and ducks endure excrutiatingly painful plucking four or five times before they are killed. Choose cotton, courduroy, natural fibers, and quilts stuffed with synthetics, such as Fiberfill and Polarguard.

66. Boycott fur. Whether killed by steel-jaw leghold traps or electrocuted on fur farms, animals raised and killed for fur suffer tremendously.

67. Never buy fur from exotic animals. Reject products made from skins or furs of endangered jaguars, leopards, and tigers.

68. Do not buy ivory. Ivory comes from elephants and such marine mammals as whales and walruses. It is often carved into figurines and jewelry.

69. Avoid silk. Silkworms are immersed in scalding hot water, steamed, or electrocuted alive. 900 silkworms are killed to make one shirt.

70. Choose non-animal fabrics. Avoid eelskin, ivory, pearls, feathers, wool, and angora. Choose instead cotton, ramie, canvas, vinyl, nylong, linen, rayon, faux pearls, rubber, or hemp.

71. Buy alternatives to wool. There are alternatives to wool clothes and blankets that the many people who are allergic to wool already use, including cotton, cotton flannel, polyester fleece, and other man-made fibers. These wash easily, don't shrink, keep their bright colors, cost less, and don't contribute to cruelty.

ANIMALS AS SPORT

72. Do not hunt. Millions of birds and mammals are killed every year at the hands of a hunter. (over 10 million duck and geese -- both of whom mate for life -- are killed each year alone.)

73. Don't get caught up in fishing. Fish have a neurological system like ours and the brain capacity to experience fear and pain. Most people enjoy the nature aspects of fishing anyway -- being outside on a boat breathing the fresh air. Go hiking, canoeing, snorkeling, or bird watching.

74. Stop Pigeon Shoots. Pigeon shoots are now practiced in only three states -- Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and Texas -- and all three have pending litigation to halt pigeon shoots under state animal cruelty laws. Contact state representatives today and support the ban of shooting pigeons for sport.

75. Help put an end to cock fighting. Cock fights usually result in the death of one, if not both roosters. Handlers place two roosters in a pit. These roosters, armed with sharp steel projections called gaffs, then proceed to peck and maim one another with their beaks and with the weapons that have been imposed upon them. Write to your Senators and ask them to support S.345, a bill that would make cockfighting all but illegal.

76. Work your community. Develop strong anti-hunting sentiment in your community by writing letters to the editors of local newspapers, meeting with neighbors, and getting on talk shows. Post anti-hunting fliers in parks and other community areas.

77. Become educated. Learn both sides of arguments so you can inspire thinking in others. Read The American Hunting Myth, What's Wrong with Hunting.

ANIMALS AND CHILDREN

78. Teach respect for animals. We instinctively grasp the natural bond between children and animals. We fill babies' cribs with stuffed animals, put floating rubber ducks in their baths, and enjoy animals as the main characters in many children's books. This natural connection, the child-animal relationship, provides a great opportunity for parents and teachers to instill the core value of leading a compassionate life.

79. Support the connection. A child's bond with a companion animal builds social competency, social sensitivity, interpersonal trust, and empathy -- all necessary qualities to building emotional intelligence and compassion.

80. Provide books about animals. Mrs Frisby and the Rats of NIMH, Charlotte's Web though I don't totally agree with this, after all Fern never gave up eating meat and she did abandon Wilbur by leaving him at the Zuckerman farm....., Black Beauty (which you can also read for free here), Wateship Down is admirable as it "pointedly shows wild bunnies as sentient beings with culture, language, and interests outside of being food for humans" (Herbivore Magazine, Issue 12), Victor's Picnic, The Pit Dragon Trilogy which, according to Herbivore Magazine does start out with rather "un-vegan" themes but the main characters, Jakkin and Akki swear off eating meat after becoming telepathically able to "hear" animal thoughts and feelings. Which is remarkably like Inheritance (Eragon and Eldest) which contain animal-friendly "shout-outs" such as the culture of vegetarianism among the Elves and the main character's own path toward abstaining from meat. Also, A Teen's Guide to Going Vegetarian

2006-12-13T15:18:00.000-08:00

I was reading my daily email and was very interested in one from API (Animal Protection Institute). The update about Lucky Brand Jeans pulling the Ringling Brothers shirt was good to read but I was more interested in the link to animal testing and cosmetics. It kind of tied in with something I saw at West Coast Beauty Supply yesterday.

I found a line of "vegan and dbp-free" nail polishes! FYI: the dbp stands for dibutyl phthalate which you read about here. Very toxic stuff.

The brand is SpaRitual and you can read their Overview here. I think it's a great way to market something but, after purchasing a bottle yesterday, I need to find out how vegan and cruelty-free this company is. Especially after reading through the Compassionate Consumer site. Check it out here.

Apparently if a product does not have the Leaping Bunny™ logo, then you can't guarantee said product is cruelty free.

The famous Leaping Bunny™ logo Guaranteed to be cruelty and animal by-product-free!

It seems that the longer I'm vegan, the greater impact the veganism has on my consumer choices. For example, I used to buy most of my household needs from Target (stuff like dish and scrub cleansers, laundry detergent, etc) but now find myself purchasing them from WholeFoods. I went from using products by Unilever, SC Johnson and Company to Seventh Generation, Bon Ami, and Method. My beauty routine reflects those choices, as well. Used to be that Neutrogena was good enough for Mark and I but they're on PeTA's list of bad companies. So, we buy Jason, Aveda, Weleda, Merry Hempsters, etc. Sure the stuff is more expensive but marginally so and we both feel better about ourselves by making educated purchases. At least, we hope they're educated....

Click here to read the Caring Consumer guide.

Oh...and boycott Pom "Wonderful"!!! Despite many pleas, they still refuse to stop their asinine animal tests. As if animal testing is even necessary, in this day and age, but to test on them for fruit juice?!? WTF!!! Video posted below:

2006-12-09T00:16:00.000-08:00

The most disgusting piece of clothing ever is fur, imo.
One of these days, I'll blog all about it. Until then, a very excellent comic by Dan Piraro:

2006-12-08T23:29:00.000-08:00

Sneaky, sneaky bastards......

I knew all about the AETA passing, through both the Senate and the House, but I hadn't heard that "President" Bush signed it into law, as of 27 November 2006. For the record, I faxed, phoned, and emailed my Representatives to voice my opposition to the AETA but a fat lot of good it did. My local representative is completely opposite my views. For starters, he's a conservative Republican and I am not.

I happened to stumble onto this bit of news via Will Potter, who writes a great blog and is featured in this month's double-issue of Satya magazine.

Will thoughtfully provides a detailed analysis of the AETA (Animal Enterprise Terrorist Act) which you can read here.

Green is the New Red is a blog I'll be reading everyday, from here on out...

And, finally, two informative sites regarding AETA:
www.noaeta.org
www.stopaeta.org

2006-11-24T00:03:00.000-08:00

We had our first "official" vegan Thanksgiving today :)

Last year didn't count as I had spent the entire day at the hospital (my middle sis was in labor). Usually, we always go to my mother's for Thanksgiving but this year we decided against it. For one thing, now that we are vegan, it seems hypocritical to celebrate a holiday when the main part of your meal is the sacrifice of an animal. Secondly, we wanted control of a holiday for once!

Mark and I figured we could try to make an-all vegan feast this year. We made plans to celebrate this holiday with my mother-in-law. She's trying to become vegan and has done so much for us we felt it was her turn to get a Thanksgiving with us. We promised to do all the cooking and baking. Actually, Mark did all the cooking and I did the desserts.

We decided against using Tofurky and used Celebration Roast instead. Which was an important factor in planning this meal: keeping the tofu/soy quotient down. I found recipes for a tofu-free pumpkin pie and a vegan pecan pie (bonus!). Mark cooked a lot of veggies, made a Roasted Butternut Squash Soup, and rice pilaf. The food was soooooo delicious. I've posted photos here.

After we let our tummies settle down, we were ready for dessert. Unfortunately, the pumpkin pie wasn't a hit. I think it was because I used the maximum amount of cornstarch and blackstrap molasses. However, the pecan pie was very nearly devoured by the three of us over the course of the night! I'll be baking another one tomorrow, after we visit my mom at the hospital.

What I am thankful for this year: My husband, our dogs, my niece and nephew, my sisters, my mom, Christina's healthy pregnancy with the twins (knock on wood), my French class, good music, my few trips to SF during 2006, and my mother-in-law.

Our canine crew, hoping from some handouts as Grandma sets the table.

2006-11-09T22:54:00.000-08:00

I was browsing around on Mypsace (yes, I have a profile but I'm starting to get bored with it...).
Anyway, I was on one of the veg*n groups I've joined and this bulletin caught my eye. I'm a sucker for surveys. I'm one of those people who will always respond to a survey if I find the questions interesting enough. This one was certainly different. A teen was asking that fellow vegans fill it out and message her back with the answers. A wee bit personal but it seems like nothing's sacred on the internet anymore.

1. How old are you?
33

2. What motivated you to become vegan?
To be one less person unnecessarily eating animals. I find it unethical to support the wholesale slaughter of animals for food, clothing, and testing. Especially, in this new millenium, when there are countless vegan options. As someone who lives with 4 dogs, this bumper sticker hit home: "If you love animals called pets, why do eat animals called dinner". Seemed rather hypocritical to be omnivorous while claiming to be compassionate towards animals.

3. Did you explore any websites to research more upon the subject? If not, where?
Of course I explored many websites to research the vegan lifestyle.

4. What store do you usually shop at?
For groceries: Whole Foods
For clothing: no particular favorite store

5. How has being vegan affected your "work" lifestyle?"
Usually receiving a lot of ignorant questions and/or disbelief that I can subsist on an animal by-product free diet.

6. How was being vegan affected your "social" lifestyle?
I don't eat out as much and am less likely to want to be around "meat-eaters". Also known as the public-at-large.

7. Have you felt different since you've become vegan? If so, How?
Completely different. I'm more compassionate yet hyper-sensitive to cruelty. I do not like hypocrisy and I have become extremely picky about the products I purchase.

8. Do you look at life differently, because of this experience?
My life has completely changed since I became vegan. It's one of the best decisions I have ever made.

9. When you first started to cut meat out of your diet, then dairy products, eggs.. etc. Did you feel tempted to go back to eating meat, eggs, dairy products...?
I won't lie. I was tempted throughout the first 6 months and I did backslide a few times.

10. If you did have these temptations, what was a constant motivation to keep going?
I just picture the animals that had to suffer just so that I could satisfy my tastebuds. It's not worth it, especially when I have discovered tasty vegan alternatives.

11. How long have you been vegan? And do you continue to do it for the rest of your life?
I decided to become vegan in April 2005. However, since I did backslide within those first few months, it doesn't seem fair to count back that far. So, technically, I haven't knowingly consumed any animal by-products since January 2006. I will remain vegan 'til the day I die. I couldn't ever, in good conscience, go back to an omnivorous diet.

To end this post, one of my fave comics:

2006-11-09T18:05:00.000-08:00

I haven't been in a baking or cooking mode lately so I need to get on that tomorrow. Especially since it looks like my Friday is now open.

On another subject, I was reading an email from In Defense of Animals (IDA) and it appears China is on another dog culling mission. Apparently, on 7 November 2006, they started murdering dogs in the city of Beijing. Especially large-sized dogs (licensed or not), unregistered dogs without photo-identification, strays, or any dogs over the one-dog-per-family allowance. Their goal is to make Beijing "rabies-free" before the 2008 Olympics. WTF?!?!?! Do they really need to go there?

As someone who is a devoted animal lover and shares her life with four dogs, I am absolutely bloody outraged. And there's not a fucking thing I can do to stop this. No government can tell China what to do. No amount of petitions, awareness, etc seems to work.The Chinese government simply doesn't give a fuck.

Déjà vu: The Chinese government is demanding the dog cullings again:

An unfortunate dog caught up in the Chinese rabies scare. One of the 55,000+ dogs who lost their lives in August 2006.

The result of human overreaction.

This quote from the IDA article completely stood out: "If the city of Beijing is modern enough to host the Olympic Games, then they certainly have the ability to humanely manage communicable diseases through such measures as vaccinations and spaying/neutering of companion animals."

According to an article on Bloomberg.com, "police are killing strays before they can bite people, and ordering owners to register their pets. Beginning Nov. 1, owners without a credit card-sized license bearing their pet's photo will face fines of up to 5,000 yuan ($635) and the confiscation of the animal. Beijing authorities also introduced a one-dog per owner policy and is enforcing a decade-old ban on ``violent and large dogs,'' such as German shepherds.

Police are stepping up enforcement as the rate of infection rises and China is spending $34 billion in preparation for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. More than 8,900 unregistered dogs were nabbed in the city this year, Xinhua reported last month".

I'm sure they were allowed to live....

This bothers me, as well. From Bloomberg.com:
"Even large-sized licensed dogs are being targeted. Yangguang is a registered and vaccinated Golden Retriever, whose owners call a good-natured pet. Yet, they found a notice on their front door last month advising that neighborhood regulations deemed the dog a threat to safety and public health. If not gone within a week, the notice said the dog would be impounded and possibly destroyed.

``We see all the small dogs still in the neighborhood and think, how was our dog any different?'' said Li Meng, 26, who bought Yangguang, which means ``Sunshine'' in Chinese, over the Internet for her father. The pet is now living with a friend in another Beijing suburb. ``It's hard to say whether they're really doing this to control rabies or just to make money.''

What? Money couldn't possibly be a motivating factor?

"Tactics deployed by the city's dog inspectors aren't always civil, said Jeff He, a spokesman for the International Fund for Animal Welfare in Beijing. In one case, a dog was beaten to death in front of its owner. Police have cut power and water supply to homes suspected of abetting clandestine canines, he said.

Concern over the disease in August prompted organized squads of citizens in Shanghai, and in Yunnan and Shandong provinces to organize to beat dogs to death. Unvaccinated strays pose the greatest risk of spreading rabies in urban areas, according to the WHO."

How thoughtful of these people to get together and rid their cities of the problem.
Check them out in action:

Year of the Dog????

"Asia accounts for more than 80 percent of rabies cases worldwide, according to a study by researchers in China and the U.K. published in December in Emerging Infectious Diseases journal. In China, 103,200 people died of rabies in four epidemic waves between 1950 and 2004, the study's authors said. Human cases are now approaching levels not seen since the 1980s.

A ``fifth epidemic wave of rabies that began in the 1990s is gaining momentum,'' the authors said. Abandoned dogs bear much the blame, they said.

``In China it is extortionately expensive to register an animal,'' the WHO's Hall said. Pets are often kept illegally and unvaccinated, she added, recommending that vaccination be compulsory and cheap.

Initial registration costs 1,000 yuan ($127) and includes the first rabies vaccination. The fee, including a booster shot, declines to 500 yuan in subsequent years.

In New York, by contrast, the annual registration costs $2.50 for a dog that has been neutered or spayed, and $10.50 for others. A rabies shot goes for about $10.

China has about 150 million pet dogs. The number has climbed 30 percent in the past five years, Euromonitor Plc said in a report last year. The market research company attributes the increase to the desire among one-child households for an extra companion and as a source of comfort for older people."

Check out the following links. I will post more as the story continues:

Bloomberg.com: click
here
IDA.org: click here
IFAW.org: click here

UPDATE: from www.animalsasia.org, a November 2006 update regarding the Chinese dog culls. Click here to read it.

2006-11-08T15:01:00.000-08:00

I was reading my email and received this bulletin from HSUS: that yesterday's elections were friendly to the animals as well the Democrats.

For example: Arizona passed Proposition 204 (by 62%) which makes Arizona the first state in the nation to prohibit the confinement of calves in veal crates and the second state to prohibit the confinement of breeding pigs in gestation crates. These two factory farming practices are infamous for their inherent cruelty and are both already banned throughout the European Union.

Read about it here

It's a drop in the bucket but at least a step forward. Like Erik Marcus, I'd like to see the end of animal agriculture as it is.

2006-11-08T14:04:00.000-08:00

What a swell idea. I came across this nearly 2 weeks ago and thought it was a novel and compassionate way to spend Thanksgiving. It's the annual Adopt-A-Turkey Project run by the Farm Sanctuary.

The Farm Sanctuary, which has been doing this 1986, sponsors "adoptions" of turkeys that live at either of their two locations. You may also adopt one for your home, provided you're veg*n and willing to care for the turkey for the rest of his/her natural life.

Another offering is the Celebration FOR the Turkeys, 18-19 November 2006, at both locations: Watkins Glen, NY and Orland, CA. The Watkins Glen event will cost $5 per family and offer a potluck dinner for which all guests are asked to bring a vegan dish to feed eight people. The Orland, CA event will be catered and costs $30 per person. Both events require reservations by 10 November 2006. Unfortunately, they cannot accommodate reservations made after the deadline.

Though I will not be able to attend the California celebration this year, I hope to be there next year. However, not for the vegan food as I'm sure Mark and I will a superb meal on our own. Mostly, it's for the chance to interact with the turkeys. I hope that, when they are old enough, I can take my niece and nephew to experience something like this.

Click here for more information.

These turkeys won't end up as Thanksgiving dinner!