tagged w/ Steer
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Corey Wrenn
* Roanoke Vegan Examiner
A brief criticism of animal sanctuaries
* November 15th, 2010 12:40 pm ET
Photo: Two lucky chickens at Farm Sanctuary, Watkins Glen, NY
Photo: Corey Wrenn
While non-human animal sanctuaries play a very important role in providing homes for rescued nonhumans, it is unfortunate that very few, if any, hold a much needed strong abolitionist stance.
Most sanctuaries like Rikki’s Refuge in Orange, Virginia may open its doors to any species of non-human animals, but fail to recognize how critical vegan education is to preventing many of the animals from ending up at their door in the first place. Having met representatives of the organization at the Charlottesville Vegetarian Festival, I was encouraged to attend an open-house with promises of free food. I asked if the food was vegan. It was not. It’s quite curious how a sanctuary maintains goals of rescuing non-human animals while continuing to promote the consumption of those same non-humans.
More importantly, however, those sanctuaries which do attempt to adopt a vegan message often confuse the message terribly. United Poultry Concerns in Machipongo, Virginia and Woodstock Animal Sanctuary and Farm Sanctuary in New York are three influential sanctuaries falling short of a hardline abolitionist stance so necessary to promoting equal consideration of other species and abolishing non-human animal use.
These self-proclaimed vegan-based sanctuaries and others like them support single-issue campaigns which single out specific practices or industries which gives the illusion that these issues are more important than others. Most of these campaigns simply focus on issues which are already agreed upon by most to be unacceptable and fail to make any substantial challenge to public thinking. Furthermore, campaigns can sometimes contribute to preexisting racism, sexism, or xenophobia which is problematic for humans as well as non-humans. For example, the United Poultry Concerns runs a campaign against the use of chickens in the Jewish ritual of Kaporos. Why focus on an obscure Jewish practice when the vast majority of suffering is on the dinner menu of the average American?
These sanctuaries support legislation which generally does very little to advance non-human animals. For example, Woodstock Animal Sanctuary takes issue with tail-docking. Certainly, ending this practice means a tiny improvement for cows, but does little to challenge their use. Instead, a focus on ending a small percentage of the cruelty done to non-humans might have the effect of making the public feel better about the use by giving the impression that the important cruelties are being addressed by non-human animal groups and that use is itself not the issue.
Finally, these groups may claim to take a strict vegan approach, but they continue to promote vegetarianism. Vegetarianism, of course, addresses only a fraction of the non-human animal use we wish to abolish. On my visit to Farm Sanctuary, I was quite discouraged to see them selling vegetarian books, stickers, etc. in their store. They also operate a Veg for Life campaign which promotes vegetarianism alongside veganism. The rescued battery cage hens and dairy cows on their farm are a testament to the inadequacy of vegetarianism.
Finally, some, though not all, sanctuaries fail to seriously address the inadequacies of "humane," "free-range," or "organic" non-human animal production. Farm Sanctuary, with its heavy focus on combating factory-farming is an important contributor to the public confusion over "happy" exploitation.
The reality is that, as a movement, we have extremely limited resources. Every minute, every dollar spent on a confusing or counterproductive messages or methods is a minute and dollar taken away from important, clear vegan outreach. Gary Francione has written extensively on the practices of animal sanctuaries and other animal welfare organizations (See also Rain Without Thunder 1996). Terming the phenomenon “new welfarism,” he argues that these groups may promote veganism and state an aim of ending animal use, but their message and methods speak otherwise and are often counterproductive.
It’s a tricky thing to criticize a sanctuary which is often very underfunded and does in fact work diligently to provide homes to animals immediately in need. Adoption is a very important direct action. However, given the limited resources available to the animal movement at large, we should always be open to the possibility that what little we have is being squandered on mixed messages and counterproductive actions. What's more, many of these organizations fail to engage in the discourse. No movement is perfect and every movement sorely needs to be open to self-criticism if it ever hopes to improve and grow. Sanctuaries are at a unique advantage to promote a clear abolitionist vegan message. With the public looking to them with hearts opened by real victims of institutionalized non-human animal use standing right in front of them, is that really the time to suggest vegetarianism, humane use, or ineffectual legislation?Corey Wrenn
* Roanoke Vegan Examiner
A brief criticism of animal... more
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Celebrate Compassion
The 5th annual World Go Vegan Week is taking place this year from October 24th through 31st. This week is a celebration of compassion and a time to take action for animals, the environment and everyone's well-being. A plant-based diet not only improves your health, it significantly reduces your carbon footprint and preserves resources for future generations. So please join me in creating a healthy future and go vegan for World Go Vegan Week.
- Emily Deschanel
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IDA would like to encourage people to use World Go Vegan Week to educate their community about the vegan lifestyle as a compassionate, sustainable, and healthy way of eating and living. Promoting veganism through outreach events and the media, we know that our annual World Go Vegan Week is helping make the word "vegan" a household word, universally recognized as meaning love and compassion for all living beings.
Take the Vegan Pledge [http://ida.convio.net/site/PageNavigator/Vegan_Pledge] and pledge to go vegan for the week of World Go Vegan Week, October 24 - 31. Join other compassionate and inspired people that are changing their diet, changing their life and changing the world! Then, hold an event to celebrate you commitment to World Go Vegan Week.
Here are some ways you can celebrate World Go Vegan Week:
Be sure to register your event with us so we can send you flyers, posters and other materials to make you event a success. Contact Hope Bohanec: hope@idausa.org (415)448-0058.
* Plan an event or activity to get people interested in veganism, such as a public lecture, cooking demonstration, feed-in with vegan food samples, leafleting, tabling, library exhibit, or street theater performance. If you serve vegan food at your event, you can get refunded for the cost through the VegFund
* Host a vegan potluck dinner or restaurant outing to show your family and friends that they don't have to sacrifice taste to save animals' lives. Sharing delicious vegan food with others is a fun and easy way to make a difference in the lives of animals and the people you care about.
* Ask your local natural foods store to offer vegan samples for the week. Ask your favorite local food store to offer vegan samples or specials for the last week of October. Let them know that we can send information, posters and materials to help them celebrate World Go Vegan Week.
* Ask veg-friendly restaurants to offer discounts or specials on their vegan food. Encourage restaurants to have vegan specials for the week or to offer a discount for bringing in a veg-curious customer.
* Show a powerful, short vegan video at your next potluck or social gathering. Here's one of our favorites: Vegan video by NonViolenceUnited.org.
* Host a vegan pie-baking contest. You can do this in your own home in a public place. Offer prizes like gift certificates to veggie restaurants or IDA T-shirts. Don't you want to be a judge? Yum!
* Host a Vegan Halloween Party. Have a costume party and have prizes for the best animal costume, most compassionate, and the most vegan creative! Have vegan Halloween candy and treats on hand and go trick-or-treating, offering folks at the door vegan candy and brochures.
* Students: join or start a vegan club in your school and plan an event with your friends that will educate people about the benefits of a vegan diet to human health, animals, and the environment. Write a paper on veganism, hand out vegan literature at a college campus or help get vegan meals into your school's cafeteria. Visit Choice to learn how.
* Have a well-known vegan author or athlete come speak in your community. Host an event where a famous vegan offers an inspiring presentation. Have vegan treats for folks to try. IDA can help you contact the person.
* Send a friend or family member who lives far away a gift certificate to a restaurant in their own town. Visit Happy Cow for reviews of vegetarian restaurants around the country.
* Write a letter to the editor about the benefits of a vegan diet or the cruelties of factory farming, or ask your local newspaper to write a story on the subject.
* If you are religious, or participate in spiritual services or gatherings, look for opportunities to incorporate the vegan message into the discussions. If you participate in study groups, suggest discussion fo the vegan message.
* Visit a farmed animal sanctuary and take a friend who still eats meat. There are a number of farmed animal sanctuaries where you can visit rescued cows, pigs, turkeys, chickens, ducks, goats, sheep and rabbits live naturally in peace and harmony without fear of abuse or slaughter. Check out Animal Acres, Animal Place, Farm Sanctuary, Poplar Springs Animal Sanctuary, or IDA's Project Hope.
* Encourage a Compassionate Thanksgiving. Since Thanksgiving is coming up in a few weeks, talk to your community food banks about providing vegan options such as Tofurkys. Consider buying a few Tofurkys, preparing them, and bringing them to your food bank or other similar community dinner. Be sure to check out Gentle Thanksgiving which offers a lot of information and guidance on this special observance.
* Share the ideals of veganism with your community of friends and colleagues by adding this quote to your email signature:"Veganism gives us all the opportunity to say what we 'stand for' iin life -- the ideal of healthy, humane living. Add decades of health to your life, with a clear conscience as a bonus." - Donald Watson
* If you are a part of an animal protection organization, become a presenter of World Go Vegan Week. There are no costs to you for joining us as a co-presenter. All you need is to post the World Go Vegan Week banner on your web site, which links to the World Go Vegan Week web page. Contact Hope Bohanec, for more information: hope@idausa.org or call (415) 448-0058.Celebrate Compassion
The 5th annual World Go Vegan Week is taking place this year... more
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August 9th, 2010
02:47 PM ET
1 million pounds of ground beef recalled
Consumers are being warned to check their freezers for recalled beef that may be contaminated with E. coli. The Modesto California-based meat processor Valley Meat Company is voluntarily recalling approximately one million pounds of ground beef. The beef may contain a rare strain of the bacterium E. coli O157:H7.
The Valley Meat Company says the ground beef patties and bulk products were produced between October 2nd, 2009 through January 12th, 2010 and were distributed to retail outlets and institutional foodservice providers in California, Texas, Oregon, Arizona and overseas. A list of retailers has not yet been released, but a complete list of products has been published on the company's website.
So far seven people are believed to have been sickened between February and June according to a USDA press release. Consumers are urged to throw away any of this beef, if they still have it in their freezers.
E. coli can cause serious illness including death in the most severe cases. Consumers can avoid getting sick if they properly cook their meat to at least 160° F, which kills the bacteria.August 9th, 2010
02:47 PM ET
1 million pounds of ground beef recalled
Consumers... more
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PART ONE...
The Beings We Eat
Worldwide, more than 80 billion land animals, of many kinds, are raised and killed each year as food for one particular group called Homo sapiens. Similar numbers of animals are taken from the water, so humans eat around 160 billion animals each year. In comparison, just about 100 billion humans have walked this planet in our known history.
We present these facts not to make ourselves or our readers feel overwhelmed. No one wants to feel bad. We can, however, feel responsible. Think of it as the power to change things, beginning today. Because we can, by becoming vegan.
Here is an overview of the realities of animal farming. Goats, sheep, and other animals not covered here are also respected by vegan values. These beings are just a few of the many conscious beings humans have dominated and now use daily. This domination and use is not inevitable, so you need not accept the objection that vegans are idealists and the world won’t go vegan overnight. The world of one person changes with each individual who does opt out of animal use, and that’s just what a movement means.
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The Chickens and the Eggs
Of the 80 billion land animals killed each year, well over half are chickens. In the United States, nine billion out of the ten billion land animals killed each year are chickens raised for their flesh, their ability to reproduce, and their eggs.
The chickens bred and confined to lay eggs are commonly referred to as battery hens. Most are kept in small, wire cages; a small number are kept in crowded sheds, and a tiny fraction of the overall number have some access to the outdoors. Nearly all of them have much of their beaks seared off (to prevent pecking), and are quickly exhausted from the egg-laying, and at that point slaughtered for their flesh. Osteoporosis and frequent bone breaks are the norm for their bodies, purpose-bred to lay egg after egg.
Male chicks are not wanted in this business. They may be suffocated or ground alive to be used as fertilizer or feed. Egg production is a deadly business for birds.
Some feminists -- including Priscilla Feral, Lee Hall, and Richard Twine -- have pointed out the commodification of the female reproductive system in the egg industry, as well as in the dairy industry, is, and should be treated as, an issue of exploitation every bit as oppressive as the production of flesh.
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Cage-Free Eggs?
The idea behind eggs marketed as “cage-free” is to switch from keeping hens in a wire cage to keeping them in a shed or on the stacked floors (known as tiers) more common in Europe. Then the customer feels that the conditions were improved. Some proprietors keep birds in both sheds and cages to take advantage of both markets.
The conditions found in cage-free operations are virtually identical to the conditions endured by chickens raised for their flesh. These “broiler” chickens spend their days in one big cage, often with many thousands of other birds, the air heavy with dust and ammonia from their waste.
So “cage-free” is no bargain for the chickens, and removing these purpose-bred animals from cages can actually increase bone breaks, stress, and competition for food. Friends of Animals president Priscilla Feral visited a company considered a pioneer in this market, and asked the tour facilitator to please pick up some of the dead birds whose bodies the crowded birds had to walk around and over, and the facilitator did so, without any sign of surprise at the dead birds. Priscilla noted that these birds too had much of their beaks taken off. The males were mostly missing. Priscilla remembers this as an appalling scene. “And they all get slaughtered at the end.”
“We have no need for eggs,” continues Priscilla. “So the vegan thing to do is to advocate peaceful and respectful alternatives. I urge everyone who is thinking about vegan living to learn how to cook and bake wonderful foods, including egg-free desserts, from Dining With Friends: The Art of North American Vegan Cuisine.”
CONTINUED...PART ONE...
The Beings We Eat
Worldwide, more than 80 billion land animals, of... more
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Recycling food that would otherwise go to waste seems like a perfectly eco-friendly thing to do, but why aren't we worried about the consequences of feeding our factory farmed livestock the very same crap that is sold in our junk food aisles?!?
http://1800recycling.com/2010/04/american-livestock-hog-wild-junk-food/Recycling food that would otherwise go to waste seems like a perfectly eco-friendly... more
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Today marks the 40th anniversary of Earth Day. Approximately 1 billion people will participate in Earth Day celebrations this month, and today alone countless people will plant trees, clean up rivers, pledge not to use plastic bags and decide to walk rather than drive. All of this helps, of course, but it's not going to save the planet. To be truly "green", we've got to make our diets more environmentally friendly by kicking the meat habit and going vegan. An apple a day can help keep environmental destruction away.
Our most serious environmental problems – climate change, overexploited natural resources, deforestation, wasted land, water and air pollution – as well as today's most serious health problems, including heart disease and cancer, are all directly linked to the consumption of meat, eggs and dairy products.
A 2006 United Nations report revealed that the livestock sector generates more greenhouse gases than all the cars, trucks, trains, planes and ships in the world combined. The report attributed 18% of annual worldwide greenhouse-gas emissions to farmed animals, but new research indicates that the figure actually could be much higher. In Livestock and Climate Change, the Worldwatch Institute estimates that raising animals for food actually accounts for 51% of all greenhouse-gas emissions.
The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations estimates that 30% of the Earth's ice-free land is now involved – either directly or indirectly – in livestock production. Huge swaths of forests are being bulldozed to make more room for animals and the crops that feed them. According to Greenpeace, all the wild animals and trees in more than 2.9m acres of rain forest were destroyed in one year's crop season in order to grow crops that are used to feed chickens and other animals on factory farms.
Some activists will be showering in the street today behind a curtain that reads, "1kg of meat = 1 year of showers. Clean your conscience: go vegan". That's because between watering the crops that farmed animals eat, providing drinking water for billions of animals each year and cleaning away the filth on factory farms and in trucks and slaughterhouses, the farmed-animal industry places a serious strain on our water supply. A totally vegetarian diet can be produced with only 1,100 litres of water per day, while producing a diet that includes meat requires more than 15,000 litres of water per day.
Then there's the energy required to operate factory farms, feedlots, slaughterhouses and trucks that transport animals. The respected environmental magazine E noted in 2002 that more than one-third of all fossil fuels produced in the US are used to raise animals for food.
That's not all. Our meat-based diet is partly to blame for world hunger, because land, water and other resources that could be used to grow food for human beings are used to grow crops for farmed animals instead. It takes up to 16 pounds of grain to produce just one pound of meat.
It's time to face what some may consider an inconvenient truth: our meat, egg and dairy habits are destroying the planet. Let's not forget about being environmentalists the moment we sit down to eat.
If we are to halt climate change and environmental destruction while stopping animal suffering and improving our health, we must celebrate Earth Day every day – at every meal.Today marks the 40th anniversary of Earth Day. Approximately 1 billion people will... more
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A former Tasmanian dairy farmer will be extradited to the state to be sentenced on animal cruelty charges.
Roderic Neil Mitchell, 28, appeared in the Bendigo Magistrates Court this morning after turning himself in to Victoria Police yesterday.
The 28-year-old was found guilty of 14 charges, relating to the negligent treatment of cattle and the death of five animals on his former Redpa dairy farm in Tasmania's north west in 2007.
Some of the charges he is facing carry penalties of up 18 months jail or a fine of $24,000.
Mitchell is also facing another 200 charges.
The 28-year-old failed to appear in the Burnie Magistrates Court last month for sentencing and a warrant was issued for his arrest.
He is expected to appear in court in Burnie on Friday.A former Tasmanian dairy farmer will be extradited to the state to be sentenced on... more
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Starting in June 2010 the USDA will set in place mandates that give livestock more grazing time and require that 30% of their diet come from grazing.
Obama has been cracking down on livestock producers claiming to be organic.
The Obama Administration recently suspended Promiseland Livestock, the nation's largest organic livestock producers with over 22,000 head of cattle, for not allowing the USDA to inspect financial and organic records.
More at Link...Starting in June 2010 the USDA will set in place mandates that give livestock more... more
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Skip the meat, better just have dessert!
"As if there weren't already enough concerns about food safety, a new investigation by Martha Rosenberg reveals that the FDA has approved the use of a drug in livestock that has been banned in 160 countries and should raise some serious questions about its effect on people's health.
The culprit, Rosenberg writes, is something known as beta agonist ractopamine, which was actually first designed to treat asthma but was picked up by the industrial meat industry after it was found to cause mice to build more muscle.
And while giving livestock antibiotics and hormones is not uncommon in concentrated animal feeding operations, those drugs are tapered off before slaughter. But ractopamine is actually first begun right before an animal is going to be killed.
How prevalent is it?
Rosenberg writes that the drug is used in 45 percent of pigs in the U.S. and 30 percent of feedlot cattle. Another reason to eat meat produced by farmers who don't administer unnecessary drugs to their livestock. Or not to eat meat at all.
There's also ample reason to be concerned about how the drug affects people who eat animals treated with ractopamine. Rosenberg writes that the drug is actually marked, "Not for use in humans. Individuals with cardiovascular disease should exercise special caution to avoid exposure. Use protective clothing, impervious gloves, protective eye wear, and a NIOSH-approved dust mask." Because animals are given the drug so close to the time of slaughter, questions about its effects on consumers are that much more pressing. And there's also the issue of water contaminated with manure runoff that may end up in our wells, rivers and streams.
It should also be added that it's not just humans who are at risk, the drug has been documented to have adverse effects on the animals, including a 10 percent mortality in pigs.
And who do we have to thank for such risks? Corporate lobbyists, Rosenberg details in her article. The offending company is Elanco Animal Health, which manufactures three versions of the drug: Paylean for pigs, Optaflexx for cattle and Tomax for turkeys. "Skip the meat, better just have dessert!
"As if there weren't already... more
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FACTORY FARMING: Cows
Factory farming is about treating animals like commodities, dealing with them in bulk and ensuring swift through-put and a low-priced final product. Milk is such a taken-for-granted part of our diet that people seldom stop to wonder how this product gets into their homes.
Read more at Suite101: FACTORY FARMING: Cows | Suite101.com http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/green_home/62370#ixzz0ZQc1ZeKCFACTORY FARMING: Cows
Factory farming is about treating animals like commodities,... more
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All you ever wanted to know about going vegan, but were afraid to ask, website: http://www.bryannaclarkgrogan.com/pag...
Excellent BOOK for anyone going vegan:
"Plant Based Nutrition and Health" by Stephen Walsh.
This vid is a celebration of vegan foods, and a non-celebration of the other stuff. I love being vegan so much that it's ridiculous. I can't help it. Haters, please stop hating vegans. You know you want to be one, and we have ways of getting you to come over to our side :-)
New Zealand comedian exposes pig farm: Watch: http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/mike-...
One vegan's day of eating:
Breakfast/Lunch:
1-1/2 cups butternut squash soup with 1/2 cup chopped spinach (2 cups raw--cooked with soup), with 1T nutritional yeast added
2 pcs. flourless sprouted 7-grain bread toasted (little margarine)
12 oz. glass organic chocolate soy milk
Snack:
1/2 cup raw almonds & raisins (50/50 mix)
8 oz. glass vegetable juice (like V8)
Dinner:
More butternut squash soup w/spinach (1T flaxseed meal added)
1 cup angel hair pasta (1-1/2 oz. dry) with marinara sauce
Lemon-lime club soda
Dessert:
1 cup apricot organic soy yogurt mixed w/granola
Snack:
Half an avocado w/hot sauce
(-: All for about 1700 calories :-)
Use supplements as needed; for instance, the only thing I took this day was the calcium w/extras because the food may have lacked a bit.
My only supplements are: calcium/magnesium/vit.D/zinc liquid when needed, B12 1000 mcg from Trader Joe's couple times a week, Bob's Red Mill nutritional yeast 2T daily, flaxseed meal 1-2T daily. I also take extra vitamin C chewable just because I like to.All you ever wanted to know about going vegan, but were afraid to ask, website:... more
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