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For as long as men massacre animals, they will kill each
other. Indeed, he who sows the seeds of murder and pain
cannot reap joy and love. - Pythagoras, 500 B.C.
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In this edition...
Health |
 A vegan doctor addresses soy myths and misinformation |
| We feed cows chicken poop |
| Five diseases on the rise due to factory farming |
| My vegan heart: How changing my diet changed my life |
| Jon Stewart takes on pig virus and the price of bacon |
Environment |
| Skyrocketing vegan food business aims to save the world |
| Japanese whale hunt puts pressure on Australian minister |
| Why it's a good idea to stop eating shrimp |
Lifestyles and Trends |
| Veganism in seven decades |
| The rise of the part-time vegans |
| NZ vegans powered by raw food complete year of daily marathons |
| Vegan, DASH, Mediterranean - Which diet is best? |
Animal Issues and Advocacy |
| Video: Then I will hold you in my arms -a moving tribute to animal victims |
| 10 new year's resolutions that can help animals |
| New Zealand Greens celebrate shark finning victory |
| According animals dignity |
| Desmond Tutu: We must fight injustice to animals |
| The state of the animals 2013 |
Books and Perspectives |
| Documentary: The animal communicator |
| 10 documentaries that will make you rethink food and health |
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(Excerpts are included from current news stories. Click on the "Full story" link to read the full article.)
Health 
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A vegan doctor addresses soy myths and misinformation
Full story: Free from Harm
Despite the powerful health benefits of whole soy foods, myths and misinformation regarding the 'dangers' of soy consumption are being widely circulated and presented as fact. I will address a few of these myths by taking a closer look at some of the sources of confusion and controversy.
Read more... |
Free from Harm - January 14
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We feed cows chicken poop
Full story: One Earth
Anyone who pays even scant attention to where our food comes from is likely aware that some pretty unsavory things happen between the farm and your fork. But some of these farming methods are more than just unappetizing: they could be deadly. One practice in particular could allow for the spread of bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or BSE, the gruesome and fatal neurodegenerative disorder more commonly known as mad cow disease. The practice in question is feeding what's known as "poultry litter" to farmed cattle.
Read more... |
Five diseases on the rise due to factory farming
Full story: One Green Planet
Aside from the fact that industrial livestock operations confine thousands of cows, pigs, and chickens into tightly packed facilities where they are forced to suffer the most inhumane treatment imaginable, factory farming has also given rise to countless modern day diseases.
Read more... |
One Green Planet - January 9
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My vegan heart: How changing my diet changed my life
Full story: Everyday Health
After my third heart attack in five years, I became a vegan, or a plant-based eater. Then I wrote about it in my book, The Sanctuary of Illness: A Memoir of Heart Disease, which tells the journey of my having gone from a non-recovery recovery to healing after those near-fatal trials,which finally forced me to change my diet. I did improve - but only after I discovered that what went in my mouth made me sick and kept me sick. I improved, dramatically, after I cut out the cow.
Read more... |
Everyday Health - January 15
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Jon Stewart takes on pig virus and the price of bacon
Video source: The Daily Show
 "The Daily Show" host Jon Stewart knows a thing or two about America's biggest problems. A bacon shortage? "Not one of them." Stewart also takes on Fox News for featuring a pig in a comfortable stall vs the reality of factory farming and jokes, "Oh no! A bacon shortage! But that means type 2 diabetes rates could fall dramatically!" [Segment about half way through the clip.]
Watch video... |
The Daily Show - January 12
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| Environment
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Skyrocketing vegan food business aims to save the world
Full story: Care2
Our current system simply won't enable us to feed 9 billion people a the current rate at which we consume meat, eggs and dairy. Crunch the numbers and it becomes disturbingly clear that something must change - soon. That's why smart, high dollar investors are eyeing companies which understand this coming crisis and are offering solutions. They're out in front, paving the way for a plant-based future.
Read more... |
Japanese whale hunt puts pressure on Australian minister
Full story: Reuters
Anti-whaling activists said they had captured images of Japanese ships killing protected whales inside an internationally recognised whale sanctuary, sparking criticism of the Australian government's handling of the issue. The aerial footage released by the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society have raised pressure on Environment Minister Greg Hunt, who has backed away from a promise made during Australia's election campaign last year to send a ship to monitor Japanese whaling in the area.
Read more... |
Why it's a good idea to stop eating shrimp
Full story: Treehugger
Shrimp is the most popular seafood in the United States, with Americans eating an average of 4.1 pounds per person annually. As delicious as shrimp may be, we actually should not be eating them. The process that delivers bags of frozen shrimp to your grocery store at cheap prices has devastating ecological consequences, and you'll probably not want to touch that shrimp ring ever again after reading what's really happening behind the scenes.
Read more... |
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| Lifestyles and Trends
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Veganism in seven decades
Full story: New York Magazine
Perhaps inspired by Jay Z and Beyoncé's 22-day vegan diet or the recent outing of Al Gore as a "newly turned vegan," news outlets on both sides of the Atlantic are already declaring 2014 "the year of the vegan." Such popularity was unfathomable 70 years ago, when Vegan Society founder Donald Watson first created a separate term for milk-and-egg-free vegetarians. Here, a quick primer on veganism's outliers-to-Oprah path...
Read more... |
New York Magazine - January 12
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The rise of the part-time vegans
Full story: BBC
Once veganism was widely associated with animal rights activists, the health conscious and the religious. But now more and more people are dabbling with a vegan diet, albeit temporarily. Why? ... According to Juliet Gellatley, director of the vegan and vegetarian group Viva, it mostly comes down to two main reasons - health concerns, and greater awareness about how animals are treated. Gellatley believes there's been a "seismic shift in attitude" towards going vegan, "which is no longer seen as alien."
Read more... |
NZ vegans powered by raw food complete year of daily marathons
Full story: Daily Telegraph, UK
A couple in their 60s have finished running a marathon each day, every day, for the past year. The pair ate up to 30 bananas each a day as they completed a trek of almost 10,000 miles around Australia. The couple, both raw vegans from New Zealand, ended their journey with an extra marathon to their home in Melbourne at 5am on New Year's Day to set the world record. They used the run to raise money for charity.
Read more... |
Daily Telegraph, UK - January 1
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Vegan, DASH, Mediterranean - Which diet is best?
Full story: The vegan r.d.
U.S. News recently published their report on the best diets for 2014 [of 32 diets, paleo came last]. The ratings were based on factors like nutritional adequacy, ease of compliance, and effectiveness for weight control or managing chronic diseases... There are all kinds of dietary approaches - all variations on a plant-based theme - that will protect health. But when it comes to the bigger and more responsible picture - eating with a healthy, compassionate and just world in mind - there is only one best diet. Vegan wins hands down.
Read more... |
The vegan r.d. - January 9
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| Animal Issues and Advocacy
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Video: Then I will hold you in my arms -a moving tribute to animal victims
Video source: Free from Harm
 Animal Liberation Victoria has released powerful new footage from their Animals Are Not Ours memorial, a public demonstration in Melbourne, Australia in which 200 activists cradled the bodies of dead animals obtained from slaughterhouses, shelters, and other sources. A very moving tribute. The accompanying essay is also worth reading.
Watch video... |
Free from Harm - January 6
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10 new year's resolutions that can help animals
Full story: Care2
The New Year is the perfect time to adopt a resolution that will help animals. Whether you want to pledge to go veg or cleanup for wildlife, we've got a whole host of awesome ideas and advice to help you achieve your goals...
Read more... |
New Zealand Greens celebrate shark finning victory
Full story: TVNZ OneNews
 The decision to ban shark finning has been hailed as "a great victory" by the Green Party. The Government has decided to ban the practice and has tightened the timetable for eradicating shark finning in New Zealand waters. New Zealand Shark Alliance has also welcomed the new laws to ban shark finning but is disappointed it will be almost three years before they take full effect.[2:13]
Read more/Watch video... |
According animals dignity
Full story: International New York Times
... This is only going to build, because at the same time that scientific advances force us to gaze upon the animal kingdom with more respect, the proliferation of big and little cameras - of eyes everywhere - permits us to eavesdrop not just on animal play but also on animal persecution. It's all documented, it all goes viral, and we can't turn away, or claim ignorance, as easily as we once did. "Those creatures big and small that have fed, frightened, entertained, comforted and awed us are no longer just them," Kerry Lauerman writes in a letter to [his new animal news and features website] The Dodo's readers. "Increasingly, they are us."
Read more... |
International New York Times - January 13
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Desmond Tutu: We must fight injustice to animals
Full story: Huffington Post
Archbishop Desmond Tutu seeks social justice for everyone - including animals. Tutu is archbishop emeritus of Cape Town, South Africa, and was the recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize for his anti-apartheid work. In his first major statement on animal welfare, Tutu said: I have spent my life fighting discrimination and injustice, whether the victims are blacks, women, or gays and lesbians. But there are other issues of justice - not only for human beings but also for the world's other sentient creatures. The matter of the abuse and cruelty we inflict on other animals has to fight for our attention in what sometimes seems an already overfull moral agenda. It is vital, however, that these instances of injustice not be overlooked.
Read more... |
Huffington Post - December 27
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The state of the animals 2013
Full story: Live Science
First, let's stop pretending we don't know what other animals want and need. As a biologist, I realize there aren't "higher" and "lower" animals, and labels like higher and lower really don't mean anything at all and are frequently used to justify the mistreatment of lower animals because the word lower far too easily slides into "less intelligent," "less feeling," or less valuable." So, are humans exceptional and unique? Yes, but so too are other animals. And, just like us, animals want to live in peace and safety - so let's stop pretending we don't know what they want and need. [Editor's note: The full article by Marc Bekoff, the author of "Why Dogs Hump and Bees Get Depressed: The Fascinating Science of Animal Intelligence, Emotions, Friendship, and Conservation," is highly recommended. See also the article Is consciousness universal? from "Scientific American."]
Read more... |
Live Science - December 20
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| Books and Perspectives
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Documentary: The animal communicator
Video source: YouTube
 What if you could talk to animals and have them talk back to you? Anna Breytenbach has dedicated her life to what she calls interspecies communication. The whole animal kingdom comes alive in a way never seen before - wild birds land on her shoulders, fish gather around her when she swims, and wild unfamiliar baboons lie on her body as if she is one of their own. This is the first full length documentary film on the art of animal communication. Fascinating and awe-inspiring. [A 13-minute excerpt from a longer doc shown at the Green Unplugged Film Festival last year.]
Watch video... |
10 documentaries that will make you rethink food and health
Full story: One Green Planet
Here are 10 documentaries that will make you rethink everything you know about food and health...
Read more... |
One Green Planet - January 7
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Also of interest:
Typhoon Haiyan Food Relief:
A Well-Fed World is working with two two exceptional groups that have people on-the-ground providing emergency food directly to victims of the typhoon in the Philippines. Through them you can contribute funds directly between the vegan groups Food For Life and Food Not Bombs. Each have different people in different areas. Or you can go directly to the two groups themselves.
A Well-Fed World
Food for Life
Food Not Bombs
Events:
June 27-30 - Taking Action for Animals - Humane Society of the United States, Washington, DC
July 2-6 - Vegetarian Summerfest - North American Vegetarian Society, Johnstown, PA
July 10-13 - Animal Rights National Conference - Farm Animal Rights Movement, Los Angeles, CA
Restaurant Recos
In Nice, France, near the old port, you will find great veggie food at the delightful Nice Life International Café & Meeting place, 15 Blvd Lech Walesa, that feels like a home away from home. Relax with a soy latte and dessert, a detox juice and soup, or indulge in the awesome multi-course weekend brunch. Tell Sophie Lana sent you!
Nice Life Café & Meeting place
In central Nice Le Speakeasy at 7 Rue Lamartine is a vegan restaurant with delicious meals. And wherever you are in the world, you can find veggie restaurants and great info on Happy Cow's newly updated website - their goal is to raise consciousness about food choices, and the impact those choices have on the planet and the lives of animals.
Happy Cow
Websites/Blogs
Vegetarian Youth, a new website and blog by 16-year-old vegan Chloe Falkenheim, is an informative resource for young people who want to become vegetarian or vegan.
vegetarianyouth.com
Live Vegan Community is a friendly and uplifting space for veg-curious and new vegans to come together, find support, learn about veganism in fun ways, ask questions, and share advice - from Farm's LiveVegan.org.
Live Vegan Community
You can help end Taiji's annual dolphin hunt. Save Japan Dolphins is lobbying, raising awareness and applying pressure through public support to help end the annual slaughter of bottle-nosed dolphins. They have a page of actions for you to take.
Save Japan Dolphins
More Tidbits:
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