SoulVeggie

Mona Lisa vs. An Entire Species

I've seen Capt. Paul Watson (vegan) speak a few times, shared some drinks in a bar, and although I sometimes believe he's a bit far out, there are times when he really raises some interesting issues.  His recent comment about a vegan in an SUV consuming less resources than a carnivore on a bicycle is a classic.  Then there's his views that, from an ecological standpoint, earthworms are more important than humans and we're "a bunch of arrogant primates out-of-control."

The following extensive article in the New Yorker about him was well-written and researched. There's a statement in same that caused me to stop and think for several minutes:

"“People say, ‘You’re incredibly arrogant,’ ” Watson told me. “I say, when you’re dealing with a species that’s as arrogant as the human race you’ve got to be arrogant to believe that you can actually change it.” He regards civilization’s greatest artistic and cultural achievements—from architecture to music and film—as expressions of human vanity, “worthless to the earth.” He sometimes asks people to imagine the outrage that would occur if someone were to destroy, say, the Vatican or the “Mona Lisa,” and he compares that with the indifference that people exhibit toward the mass extinction of plants and animals. “In anthropocentric society, a harsh judgment is given to those that destroy or seek to destroy the creations of humanity,” he has written... yet if a human destroys the wonders of creation, the beauty of the natural world, then anthropocentric society calls such people loggers, miners, developers, engineers, and businessmen.”"

Extreme thoughts, but then again... how many "Mona Lisas" are we collectively destroying, needlessly, on a daily basis?  Which is more important?  An entire species, developed and evolved over billions of years, or a painting by Leonardo DaVinci?

I've spent a lot of time the past year and a half watching things grow from seed to maturity to death.  The dazzling complexity, ingenuity, resiliance, diversity, and dynamic aspects of the plant kingdom just continually amazes and astounds me.  "Modern" science and technology can't come close, in any aspect, to that which nature has accomplished (or is accomplishing).  Yet, we are destroying, through our consumerism and ignorance, untold numbers of species, and that number is increasing and rate accelerating. 

So, which is the greater crime, the destruction of a single work of genius, or mindless demolition of a complex interrelated "geniusness" that works?

[Full article here and below. Capt. Watson's website is here.]

Vegan in SUV vs Carnivore Cyclist

[Been really busy managing drought-time for huge vegetable/flower gardens and 60 new trees, and a major new gig... the following is excerpted from a thoughtful essay by Capt. Paul Watson, as noted by the always intriguing Robert Cohen in his superb "NotMilk" column earlier today.  My thanks to Paul and Robert.]

"The meat industry is one of the most destructive ecological industries on the planet. The raising and slaughtering of pigs, cows, sheep, turkeys and chickens not only utilizes vast areas of land and vast quantities of water, but it is a greater contributor to greenhouse gas emissions than the automobile industry.  The seafood industry is literally plundering the ocean of life and some fifty percent of fish caught from the oceans is fed to cows, pigs, sheep, chickens etc in the form of fish meal. It also takes about fifty fish caught from the sea to raise one farm raised salmon...

... [There] is a solid conservation connection between eating meat and the destruction of life in our oceans.  In a world fast losing resources of fresh water, it is sheer lunacy to have hundreds of millions of cows consuming over 1,000 gallons of water for every pound of beef produced... And the truth is that you can't practise solid and constructive conservation work without promoting veganism and/or vegetarianism as something that promotes the conservation of resources.

... our meat eating habits are more closely related to the vulture, the jackal or other carrion eaters. This means that we can't be described as carnivores. We are better described as necrovores or eaters of rotting flesh.  Consider that some of the beef that people eat has been dead for months and in some cases for years. Dead and hanging in freezers, full of uritic acid and bacteria. It's a corpse in a state of decomposition. Not much that can be said to be noble about eating a cadaver.

... The bottom line is that to be a conservationist and an environmentalist, you must practise and promote vegetarianism or better yet veganism.  It is the lifestyle that leaves the shallowest ecological footprint, uses fewer resources and produces less greenhouse gas emissions, it's healthier and it means you're not a hypocrite.  In fact a vegan driving a hummer would be contributing less greenhouse gas carbon emissions than a meat eater riding a bicycle."

[Full essay here and below. An excellent read.]

Mad Cowboy in Africa

The 54th Issue of the "Mad Cowboy" Newsletter has been published.  The following is the first part of the introduction with links to the table of contents, issue, and full intro.

"Howdy!  Welcome to the 54th Edition of the Mad Cowboy Newsletter.  In this issue we've a couple of surprises for y'all:  250 pictures taken during Howard's recent trip to Africa and news that Howard's Documentary will be aired at the famed Hollywood Egyptian Theater this coming November as part of the "3rd Annual Artivist Film Festival & Awards."  Check out their website:

http://www.ARTIVISTS.org

There's also two great recipes from "No More Bull!" (one from Dr. T. Colin Campbell), and 10 links to help you and yours have a Happy Veg'n Halloween!  As you read on, you'll see a buncha information in the Mad Cow Corral covering "mad cow, mad sheep, mad honey, and mad deer" issues, articles related to the recent spinach/e.coli crisis and industrial farming, learn about an unusal and contempletive canine, why New York City may become "less fatty," what Dr. Esselstyn says about "moderation," an activist success story from "Compassion Over Killing," and a reminder to celebrate World Vegan Day."

[Rest of Intro and Table of Contents below.]

"Eating Green" Calculators

"Two interactive online calculators let consumers gauge the health, environmental and animal-welfare impact of their diets.  They're available on the new Eating Green Web site...  The "Score Your Diet" calculator gives you a qualitative assessment of your diet on those three fronts. The "Eating Green" calculator provides a quantitative assessment of the environmental costs of the meat and other animal products in your diet, and shows how small dietary changes can help both an individual's health and the health of the planet.  For example, replacing just one serving of beef, one egg and one serving of cheese per day with fruit, vegetables or whole grains would spare the need for 1.8 acres of cropland, 40 pounds of fertilizer and 3 ounces of pesticides each year, according to the site. Consumers can also take an interactive tour of the food supply from the fertilizer factory to the feedlot to the dinner plate, and learn about problems associated with modern meat production..."

[From the article here... yet more reasons to go vegetarian (or, better yet, vegan)]

53rd Mad Cowboy Newsletter

Here's the Table of Contents for the latest issue of the Mad Cowboy Newsletter (disclaimer:  I'm the editor):

00: Quote(s) from Howard
01: Howard & Willow Visit Bryanna Clark Grogan
02: The Vegan Mind-Bender Contest Winner/Challenge!
03: "Sunburst Salsa" and "Cancer-Fighting Pesto" Recipes
04: Mad Cow Info Round-up
05: Plants Challenge, 1 Meal Impact, Diet/Smoking, Alzh./Blood Sugar
06: Vegan: Food Pyramid/Marathoner/diet & diabetes, VegNews<Top 50
07: Chopstick Tussle, Listen to the Pig, Cartoons/Video, Veg Codes
08: Merrkats/Apes/Blurring Species Line, Using Rodents in Labs Debate
09: Cancerous River, Enviro./Death, G'Peace Win, Climate Debate Chg.
10: Upcoming Events of Note
11: Howard's Schedule
12: Quick Bytes
13: Closing Thoughts from Howard

Introduction is below, direct link to issue here!

Study Shows Vegan Diets Healthier for Planet, People Than Meat Diets

April 13: "The food that people eat is just as important as what kind of cars they drive when it comes to creating the greenhouse-gas emissions that many scientists have linked to global warming, according to a report accepted for publication in the journal Earth Interactions. Both the burning of fossil fuels during food production and non-carbon dioxide emissions associated with livestock and animal waste contribute to the problem, the University of Chicago's Gidon Eshel and Pamela Martin wrote in the report.  The average American diet requires the production of an extra ton and a half of carbon dioxide-equivalent, in the form of actual carbon dioxide as well as methane and other greenhouse gases compared to a strictly vegetarian diet....

"We neither make a value judgment nor do we make a categorical statement," said Eshel, an Assistant Professor in Geophysical Sciences. "We say that however close you can be to a vegan diet and further from the mean American diet, the better you are for the planet. It doesn't have to be all the way to the extreme end of vegan. If you simply cut down from two burgers a week to one, you've already made a substantial difference."  In their next phase of research, Eshel and Martin will examine the energy expenditures associated with small organic farms, to see if they offer a healthier planetary alternative to large agribusiness companies."

[Full (and very interesting) article here, and below... a good read!]

51st Issue of the Mad Cowboy Newsletter

Hi y'all!  I've been out-of-pocket for the past several days working on the latest issue of the Mad Cowboy Newsletter (a free e-publication) and moving.  We've over 3650 subscribers and here's the intro/toc and link to the latest issue.  Promise to get back on a regular blogging schedule asap.

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Howdy!  Welcome to the 51st Edition of the Mad Cowboy Newsletter!

In this issue you'll find an excerpt from (and link to) a wonderful letter sent to Howard about one person's transformational experience and the reaction of her doctors.  You'll also see a picture of arguably the best vegan pizza (ever), read four knowledgeable responses to the recent "low fat diets don't work" study getting all that press, learn about the current scientific consensus about global climate change, how global warming is impacting frogs, the many problems with bottled water, and why nutritional labels for shoes is a good idea.

Further on down (of note) there's information about a unique hippo, how squids are surprising scientists, "the Unsinkable Molly B. (for "bovine"... and she has a home page!),"  11 Super Foods (and why they are such), how veggies help lower blood pressure, and new ideas about how red meat contributes to cancer causation.  There's also our comprehensive "Mad Cow Corral" series of cites, PETA's 2006 Proggy Awards, the President of the Humane Society of the US picks the "top 12" animal stories of 2005, and Bryanna's marvelous vegan "melty cheese sauce" recipe from "No More Bull!"

[issue link - rest of intro, table of contents, and same link below as well]

New Year's Resolutions: Better Your Health and the Planet's

"The decisions that you make in the coming year that affect your health will also affect the health of the planet. Every choice we make causes a ripple that emanates through the people, the places and the ecosystems linked to the products we consume. This "ecological footprint" is the amount of land and water it takes to produce our daily needs and to absorb our wastes. One of the easiest resolutions you can make this winter to help reduce your eco-footprint is to change your eating habits. Below is a little food for thought..."

[Source link and full article are below. Some superb statistics, info, and tips]

Harvest for Hope & Goodall Interview

"...an interview [transcript] with the renowned primatologist, Jane Goodall. Her latest book is "Harvest for Hope: A Guide to Mindful Eating." Goodall... turns her attention to the food we eat and how it reaches our tables.  [She] examines the danger of corporate ownership of water and the patenting of seeds, the hazards of genetically modified foods and the existence of inhumane animal factories." [I heard this interview on a "Democracy Now" podcast, and was just taken aback by what she's written & also the "Roots and Shoots" kids program. The book's website has superb resources links, and the 1st chapter.  T.O.C. of the book is below.]

Vegan-organics

"If agriculture continues its present course across the planet, it is predicted that there will be wars over water resources, conflict over land rights, farmers increasingly dispossessed and marginalised, a widening of the gap between affluent and poor, increasing intensification of animal farming, depletion of the quality of soils, damage to the oceans, devastation of rain forests and many other negative factors.

Vegan-organics points a way out of these problems."