Thanksgiving is not a happy time for turkeys, an American native bird notorious for their family bonding skills and gracefulness. Unfortunately, Thanksgiving became associated with eating the flesh of this beautiful bird and factory farms destroy the lives of millions of them, besides having genetically modified them so grotesquely that they can no longer reproduce without artificial insemination. So-called free range turkeys are not a better option as they also end up at the slaughterhouse. (more…)
It will sound ridiculous to anyone with common sense but, still, a lot of people who eat fish claim to be vegetarians. A new, meaningless term was created to describe these people: flexitarians. The phenomenon caught the attention of the UK Vegetarian Society, who said it loud and clear in its magazine that vegetarians don’t eat fish. Even the BBC chimed in to discuss the issue, and were followed by the Guardian’s columnist Barbara Ellen , who is an outspoken vegetarian. Said Ms Ellen:
Flexitarian is a stupid term anyway. These people should call themselves by their proper descriptive term – nit-picking, self-absorbed twits. Unlike vegetarians, who at least do the job properly, flexitarians seem obsessed with defining themselves in fiddly food sub-sections, as if “I’ll only eat organic”, “I’ll only eat sushi on Tuesdays” or any little quirk to their diet says something intensely interesting about them. Well, guess what, flexitarians, it doesn’t. Get over it. Real vegetarians have had to.
Vegetarianism has increasingly come to mean the same as veganism, although in many people’s minds it can include egg and milk (that would be properly defined as ovo-lactovegetarianism). But, as many undercover investigations have revealed, the reality of dairy and egg production is as grim, perhaps even more so, that what goes on at the slaughterhouse.So don’t fall for fad diets, flexitarianism and all this nonsense. Veganism is the real thing .
A Humane Society investigation led to the closure of Vermont-based Bushway Packing Inc. slaughterhouse. Videotape from the investigation reveals that veal calves only a few days old - many with their umbilical cords still hanging from their bodies - were unable to stand or walk on their own. The tape shows that the animals were kicked, slapped and repeatedly shocked with electric prods and subjected to other mistreatment.The U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Vermont Agency of Agriculture took decisive action last Friday based on the information provided by The HSUS and immediately suspended operations at the plant, pending a continuing investigation.According to a report published by the Associated Press, “U.S. Department of Agriculture records show Bushway Packing Inc. of Grand Isle was shut down for a day in May, again in June and again in July after an inspector cited it for inhumane treatment of animals.”Still according to the AP report, “the slaughterhouse specialized in “bob veal” - meat from days-old calves that ends up in hot dogs and lunch meats.” Ironically, meat coming from this slaughterhouse was certified organic, which once again highlights how meaningless this label is when it comes to animal products.Veal is a by-product of the dairy industry, therefore the most effective answer to this horrible situation is going vegan. These innocent infants are babies snatched away from their mothers, who are literally milked to death, are then killed for someone’s pleasure. This is a not an industry that can be regulated because cruelty is inherent to the process of animal farming. But everyone can help eradicate it through a vegan diet. It’s that simple.Undercover video – contains imagery that some may find upsetting (but very revealing of what the dairy industry really looks like):
Thanksgiving is not a happy time for turkeys, an American native bird notorious for their family bonding skills and gracefulness. Unfortunately, Thanksgiving became associated with eating the flesh of this beautiful bird and factory farms destroy the lives of millions of them, besides having genetically modified them so grotesquely that they can no longer reproduce without artificial insemination. So-called free range turkeys are not a better option as they also end up at the slaughterhouse.
It will sound ridiculous to anyone with common sense but, still, a lot of people who eat fish claim to be vegetarians. A new, meaningless term was created to describe these people: flexitarians. The phenomenon caught the attention of the UK Vegetarian Society, who said it loud and clear in its magazine that vegetarians don’t eat fish. Even the BBC chimed in to discuss the issue, and were followed by the Guardian’s columnist 