Melange Saturday
Too bad it’s not Monday. Melange Monday. I think that’s my new series, and here’s a preview . . .
- The New York Times editorial board says some of what we’ve all been saying (the wtf? part) this morning regarding several Supreme-Court justice remarks about the Navy sonar case (you know, the one that harms marine mammals. But as Justice Breyer said: “The whole point of the armed forces is to hurt the environment.” That’s comforting.). Breyer also said “I don’t know anything about this. I’m not a naval officer.” But The Times notes (along with anyone paying attention and thinking his quote through for 30 seconds):
The response isn’t perfect, but at least they didn’t let Breyer’s and Alito’s comments go uncriticized. (Alito thinks the Navy should be able to police itself. Okay, then animal rights activists should, too.)
- I received a message from Debbi Miller from PCRM at 7:05 last night that Dr. Neal Barnard was going to be on “Extra,” which starts at 7pm in my area. The segment was about the health benefits of a vegan diet, and about how unhealthy chicken is. The only problem is that, probably due to editing, the only reason given for how unhealthy chicken is is that it’s only a little less fattening than beef. But veggies were touted for their benefits, which was good. However, though broccoli was said to be uber-healthy, there was Dr. Neal, recommending squirting it with a bit of lemon to get rid of the bitter taste. For me, that doesn’t send a great message about broccoli or a vegan diet. But I’m being picky, and I’m sure there was an hour of footage to choose from and PCRM wasn’t doing the choosing. At least a vegan message, for the second time recently (Barnard was also on Ellen) is being broadcast to regular-folk. There’s more, and you can comment also here.
- I spoke, at length, with Patrik Jonsson, a journalist with The Christian Science Monitor, regarding the first alligator hunt in 44 years in South Carolina, and I’m delighted to be quoted in his article, “Alligator Hunts Raise Questions in South’s Swamps.” I was sort of the odd-person out, as I was the only one who didn’t think alligators are a “resource.” That’s a generally-unquestioned premise, and I long for the day its questioning becomes serious and ubiquitous. The story (and there’s a 2-minute audio) is about how the alligators should be killed, rather than whether we have a right to kill them.
- Another of us has decided to Be the Pundit and not wait for PeTA or HSUS to speak for us. As you probably know by now, Stephanie Ernst, fellow writer/editor/vegan/animal rights activist, is the animal rights blogger at Change.org. I’m not sure how it all works yet, and I’m in/famous for my non-team playerness (mostly because I don’t have the time to devote to participating in the online community in a meaningful way), but that doesn’t mean I don’t fully support others who are getting the message out to the mainstreamers.
Finally, Bea made this for all of us who have supported her in her journey. If you were to compare where I live (with regards to support for veganism) to where she lives, let’s just say I live in Portland and she lives in Jackson, Mississippi (that’s a guess, based on the fact that for the third year in a row, Mississippi is the “Most Obese State,” so I figure there aren’t a lot of vegans there. Thoroughly unscientific, but logical.) I know how grateful Bea is for the fact that though when she leaves her home she feels like an alien, when she’s on her computer interacting with all of you, she feels like she has kin.
Thanks Bea!
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Well Bea, that vegan food looks appetizing; however, as a former dairy farmhand, I would likely just wither away and die without cow’s milk! Still subsisting with lacto-ovo vegetarianism and that was a big change for me. Thanks for the video.
Ron,
I promise you you wouldn't die without cow's milk. But you can be sure that others will die horrible deaths. I always suggest that people who do like cow's milk try Almond Breeze unsweetened vanilla almond milk (http://www.bluediamond.com/retail/breeze/index.cfm the sweetened is too sweet for me and the plain is too plain for me–it's the perfect combination!). How about going egg and dairy free a day a week? You might find it's a lot easier than you anticipate, particularly now that we can get anything over the Internet. Teese (http://www.teesecheese.com/) is my favorite pizza cheese. And you can freeze it! Check it out!
It's totally true that I connect more with my online vegan family than anywhere else. I'm grateful that I have this support. And I have in a small way changed some folks here in "Mississippi" – There's my husband who hasn't eaten a land mammal, (or dairy) since I've gone vegan. And there's two "ethical" vegetarian women I met. One was at my yard sale, she only used "milk" for cereal. I gave her a mini Rice Dream and I believe she'll make this substitute in the future. The other woman was horrified at the truth about the calf/veal murders. I'm certain she's re-evaluated her choices as well. So your friendship and reinforcement hasn't been for nought. It's all effective…
Everything each of us does makes it's mark in a way we hardly get to see, but it's there. Just knowing that there are others "like us" strengthens our resolve and makes our cause that much more credible. We all get to be less "alien" when we can connect with each other. Oh, and the Teese helps too 🙂
Such a pity about these alligators though. They are being encroached upon at every turn through urban sprawl. Mary, you're right when people feed them, they loose all fear of man. Just recently we were boating on the Kissimmee – at the landing there was a "tame" 10 foot male. Yes, people were feeding him and standing close for a "photo op". How insane is that?
That article had a great point about nature, when left alone it encourages bigger alligators that take care of the smaller ones… But there's no advantage to man in that scenario. The alligator's are "resources" just like the rest. Licenses to kill them bring revenue. Their hides are valuable, there's the tacky novelty items and of course the "meat". So again… it's all about us.
Nice response in that interview Mary – I'm glad there was a voice of reason 🙂
"Mississippi is the 'Most Obese State,' so I figure there aren't a lot of vegans there. Thoroughly unscientific, but logical."
GAAAH. I was lacto-vegetarian for over 20 years, and it DID NOT MAKE ME THIN. I have now been vegan for about 3 years and IT HAS NOT MADE ME THIN. Not even a little bit! Veg*n diet does not equal key to thinness! Healthful diet, yes, thin-maker no. (A healthy person does not lose large amounts of weight on a healthy diet anyway.) And I resent the implication that because I am fat, I must chow down on hamburgers every day.
For more on why fat people do not deserve this stereotyping, see http://kateharding.net/. For another example of a fat veg*n see http://rioiriri.blogspot.com/.
meerkat,
You have mentioned this before, and I've always said that by no means do I think vegan=thin all the time any more than I think that removing animal products makes anyone necessarily, magically healthy. However, vegans do tend to be thinner than vegetarians and omnivores, and though I wasn't thrilled that he mentioned it as a reason to go vegan, Dr. Neal did say that you tend to lose weight when you go vegan. (Actually, he didn't say "tend," but I would, as it's not true for everyone.) As John Robbins has said, "vegans, as a rule, are much leaner than others in our society. Against the backdrop of what passes for normal in our culture, vegans can seem downright skinny." (Remember, there's also the opposite side of this issue, where thinness is presumed as related to frailty and being unhealthy: http://www.foodrevolution.org/askjohn/6.htm) All that said, this doesn't mean that being "fat" means you eat hamburgers; no one said that. Regular exercise is just as important, and genetics aren't without input either, as we all know.
Yeah, what you said wasn't actually wrong, really, it just blends in very well with stereotypes about fat people, so without further commentary it is easy to interpret as "stupid meat-guzzling fat people," and I would be surprised if none of your readers read it that way and agreed.