July 2008

In this edition... Top Stories    Spanish parliament approves 'human rights' for apes    Personal values deceive taste buds    Diet for a more-crowded planet: Plants    Dr. Ornish: The never-ending diet wars Health    Could missing molecule explain why meat causes disease in humans?    Odiferous overcrowded dairy farms pose human health risk    German study: Vegetarians live longer    Research: Popular fish contains potentially dangerous fatty acid combination Environment    Global warming: The meat of the matter    Trawlermen cling on as oceans empty of fish - and the ecosystem is gasping    Veg-o-lution Lifestyles and Trends    Canada: These elite athletes are vegetarians    Meatless in Moscow    Veggie Profile: Wayne Pacelle works for the winged, finned and furry    Flexitarians: Fewer omnivores find meatless meals a dilemma Animal Issues and Advocacy    EU proposes crackdown on seal hunt    U.S. army shoots live pigs for medical drill    Rabbi finds vegetarianism to be a religious ideal    Animal rights activists reveal their own (kosher) identity    War, peace and the monstrosity of animal exploitation Of Note   Please help support VegE-News! We'll say thanks with a special gift. Click here. Don't forget to visit: (Excerpts are included from current news stories. Click on the "Full story" link to read the full article.)   Top Stories     Spanish parliament approves 'human rights' for apes Full story: Guardian, UK Great apes should have the right to life and freedom, according to a resolution passed in the Spanish parliament, in what could become landmark legislation to enshrine human rights for chimpanzees, gorillas, orang-utans and bonobos. The environmental committee in the Spanish parliament has approved resolutions urging the country to comply with the Great Apes Project, founded in 1993, which argues that "non-human hominids" should enjoy the right to life, freedom and not to be tortured. The project was started by the philosophers Peter Singer and Paola Cavalieri, who argued that the ape is the closest genetic relative to humans - that it displays emotions such as love, fear, anxiety and jealousy - and should be protected by similar laws. Guardian, UK - June 26, 2008 Related: Peter Singer: Of great apes and men Quote: As Spain takes one great step forward for animal rights and liberty, activists elsewhere are persecuted. - Guardian, UK (July 18, 2008) Jane Goodall: Animals learn to be human Quote: "We're standing where we used to think there was an unbridgeable chasm between us, and the rest of the animal kingdom, and the chimp looks into our eyes and says: 'Don't you understand that our lives matter, that we too have personalities, minds and feelings?' And they'll turn over their shoulder and look at all the other animals in the animal kingdom and say: 'Don't they matter too?'" - Independent Online, South Africa (July 12, 2008) The new legal hot topic: Animal law Quote: "'The question is not, 'Can they reason?'" philosopher Jeremy Bentham famously wrote in his 18th-century defence of animal rights, "nor, 'Can they talk?' but, 'Can they suffer?'" The new question might be: Can they sue? - Globe and Mail, Canada (July 15, 2008) Personal values deceive taste buds Full story: Science Daily Many heavy meat eaters believe they eat a lot of meat because of the taste. But according to groundbreaking new research the reason that a beef burger tastes better than a veggie burger to some people has more to do with values than actual taste. Authors Michael W. Allen (University of Sydney), Richa Gupta (University of Nashville), and Arnaud Monnier (National Engineer School for Food Industries and Management, France) conducted a series of studies that examined the symbolic meaning of foods and beverages. They found that when it came to tasting meat or soft drinks, what influenced participants was what they thought they had eaten rather than what they actually ate. The authors note that meat has an association with social power, and people who scored high in the authors' Social Power Value Endorsement measure believed that a meat-containing item tasted better than a vegetarian alternative, even when both products were actually identical [both veggie!]. Science Daily - July 18, 2008 Diet for a more-crowded planet: Plants Full story: The Christian Science Monitor A growing world population has more buying power. The newly affluent eat more meat. A rising share of the world's agricultural output goes to animals. While grain supplies are more than adequate to feed everyone now, say experts, the current price spike shows that even an adequate supply doesn't preclude hunger for the world's poor. And in the future, a day may come when there isn't enough grain for both humans and livestock - at least not at the U.S. consumption rate. Add to this the environmental impacts of modern industrial-scale meat production, and many wonder: With a predicted world population of 9.5 billion by midcentury, are we all destined to be vegetarians? Perhaps not entirely, say experts, but technological breakthroughs like lab-grown flesh notwithstanding, we'll likely eat much less meat. And perhaps people in sub-Saharan Africa will eat a little more. The Christian Science Monitor - July 18, 2008 Dr. Ornish: The never-ending diet wars Full story: Newsweek A new study comparing the Atkins diet, a Mediterranean diet and a low-fat diet published on July 17 in The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), is likely to inspire headlines saying that the Atkins diet is better for your waistline and your health than a low-fat diet. However, I believe this study is extremely flawed. Here's why: The NEJM study, which was funded in part by the Atkins Foundation, reported that participants who ate a low-carb (Atkins) or Mediterranean diet (restricted calorie, moderate fat intake) for two years lost more weight, and saw more of an improvement in their glucose and cholesterol levels, than those who were on a low-fat, restricted calorie diet. However, participants in the study who were on the "low-fat" diet decreased their total fat intake from 31.4 per cent to 30.0 percent, hardly at all... In addition, in the "Atkins diet" that was tested, "the participants were counseled to choose vegetarian sources of fat and protein and to avoid trans fat." A vegetarian Atkins diet? Most people associate an Atkins diet with bacon, butter and brie, not a plant-based diet like the one I recommend. Newsweek - July 16, 2008 Related: A victory for the Atkins Diet? Not so fast Discover Magazine (July 17, 2008) Advertising passed off as research confuses the public again Quote: This is another case of purposeful deception, publicized widely in order to confuse the public - keeping the status quo. There will be an economic windfall for a variety of industries with an increase in sales of meats, dairy products, cholesterol-lowering statins, and angioplasties. Consumers will pay with worse health, rising medical bills, higher food costs, and an increase in environmental pollution. - Dr. MacDougall newsletter (July, 2008) Kathy Freston: Why vegan is the new Atkins Huffington Post (July 23, 2008) High-carbohydrate foods, with their 'resistant starches,' are back Loa Angeles Times (June 23, 2008)     Health     Could missing molecule explain why meat causes disease in humans? Full story: OpEdNews, PA, U.S. An article in the Daily Telegraph tracing the link between eating animal flesh and the human propensity for chronic diseases has cyber pundits buzzing. At the center of the debate is whether or not humans are "natural" meat-eaters. The larger question, at least from an animal rights perspective, may be: Does it matter? "Mystery of the meat-eaters' molecule" explores the discovery that humans, unlike all other mammals [primates in original article], do not produce the molecule Neu5Gc, and that when we ingest certain meat (especially beef) and dairy foods, our bodies believe that molecule to be a foreign invader, generating an immune response to attack it. According to the article's author, former Telegraph science editor Roger Highfield, "This raised the fascinating possibility that anti-Neu5Gc antibodies are involved in auto-immunity. Auto-immune diseases, such as type-1 or juvenile diabetes and some types of arthritis, occur when the body mistakenly attacks healthy tissue." Highfield, who has since left the newspaper to become the editor of New Scientist, also notes that consuming the flesh of animals could trigger heart disease and certain cancers. Does this revelation worry meat-eaters? Apparently not. OpEdNews, PA, U.S. - July 11, 2008 Odiferous overcrowded dairy farms pose human health risk Full story: ENN Vegetarians and concerned carnivores alike have long protested the way livestock is raised at many large farms. But it's taking some time for Americans to view this not only as an animal-mistreatment issue but one that directly affects human health. The Union of Concerned Scientists has taken the issue up, and is driving its point home by citing a recent event in which rural Minnesotans actually fled their homes as a result of animal crowding's side-effects. ENN - July 17, 2008 German study: Vegetarians live longer Full story: Huffington Post The battle has long been waged, and will certainly continue in spite of this study. Are humans designed/evolved to eat everything and at risk of malnutrition as vegetarians? Or is vegetarianism the healthy and ethical choice? The most impressive data arises from a study of 1904 vegetarians over 21 years by the German Cancer Research Center (Deutsche Krebsforschungszentrum). The study's shocking results: vegetarian men reduced their risk of early death by 50 per cent! Women vegetarians benefit from a 30 per cent reduction in mortality. Huffington Post - July 13 Research: Popular fish contains potentially dangerous fatty acid combination Full story: ENN Farm-raised tilapia, one of the most highly consumed fish in America, has very low levels of beneficial omega-3 fatty acids and, perhaps worse, very high levels of omega-6 fatty acids, according to new research from Wake Forest University School of Medicine. The researchers say the combination could be a potentially dangerous food source for some patients with heart disease, arthritis, asthma and other allergic and auto-immune diseases that are particularly vulnerable to an "exaggerated inflammatory response." Inflammation is known to cause damage to blood vessels, the heart, lung and joint tissues, skin, and the digestive tract. They say their research revealed that farm-raised tilapia, as well as farmed catfish, "have several fatty acid characteristics that would generally be considered by the scientific community as detrimental." Tilapia has higher levels of potentially detrimental long-chain omega-6 fatty acids than 80-percent-lean hamburger, doughnuts and even pork bacon... "Cardiologists are telling their patients to go home and eat fish, and if the patients are poor, they're eating tilapia. And that could translate into a dangerous situation." ENN - July 8, 2008     Environment     Global warming: The meat of the matter Full story: San Antonio Current, TX, U.S. It turns out that nearly every aspect of the huge international meat trade has an environmental or health consequence, with global warming at the top of the list. If you never thought that eating meat was an environmental (and by extension, political) issue, now is the time to rethink that position... The few commentators who have taken on the connection between meat consumption and global warming ignore the most obvious solution: not eating meat. San Antonio Current, TX, U.S. - July 16, 2008 Trawlermen cling on as oceans empty of fish - and the ecosystem is gasping Full story: Guardian, UK All over the world, protesters are engaged in a heroic battle with reality. They block roads, picket fuel depots, throw missiles and turn over cars in an effort to hold it at bay. The oil is running out and governments, they insist, must do something about it. When they've sorted it out, what about the fact that the days are getting shorter? What do we pay our taxes for? The latest people to join these surreal protests are the world's fishermen. They are on strike in Italy, Spain, Portugal, France and Japan, and demonstrating in scores of maritime countries. Last month in Brussels they threw rocks and flares at the police, who have been conspiring with the world's sedimentary basins to keep the price of oil high. The fishermen warn that if something isn't done to help them, thousands could be forced to scrap their boats and hang up their nets. It's an appalling prospect, which we should greet with heartfelt indifference. Just as the oil price now seems to be all that stands between us and runaway climate change, it is also the only factor which offers a glimmer of hope to the world's marine ecosystems. Guardian, UK - July 8, 2008 Veg-o-lution Full story: Common Ground "Global demand for meat has multiplied in recent years, encouraged by growing affluence and nourished by the proliferation of huge, confined animal feeding operations. These assembly-line meat factories consume enormous amounts of energy, pollute water supplies, generate significant greenhouse gases and require ever-increasing amounts of corn, soy and other grains, a dependency that has led to the destruction of vast swaths of the world's tropical rain forests." A PETA newsletter? No - that's from the New York Times... It's no secret there's a greenrush going on - a re-evaluation of the way our civilization works in light of certain inconvenient environmental truths. While real change has only just begun, this new perspective is circling us back to the wisdom of some of the oldest concepts around... So choosing veg is wildly optimistic: it is making ourselves into who we want to be, and proclaiming that conscious change on a global scale is something we humans just might be able to pull off. And that would be nothing less than an act of intentional evolution. Think it can be done? It starts the next time you sit down at the dinner table. Common Ground - July, 2008     Lifestyles and Trends     Canada: These elite athletes are vegetarians Full story: Victoria Times-Colonist, BC, Canada A group on Vancouver Island is showing athletes don't need meat to compete. "Dinner last night was a big yam, about two cups of broccoli, two cups of kale and a little veggie chicken thing," says Dave Shishkoff, 32, a competitive cyclist and a vegan for almost 18 years. "Typically a meal of mine will be just a big plate of vegetables, whatever is in season, preferably." Shishkoff is president of the Victoria chapter of Organic Athlete, an organization dedicated to providing information and support to vegetarian, vegan and whole-food athletes. With more than 500 members worldwide, the group is made up of body-builders, power-lifters, cyclists and triathletes. The 20 members of the Victoria chapter come from all sports and rankings, including a national-level rower. Victoria Times-Colonist, BC, Canada - July 4, 2008 Related: Lean, mean meat-free machine Willamette Week, OR, U.S. (July 16, 2008) Meatless in Moscow Full story: Moscow News Russia's cold winters give little chance for a year-round bounty of plant food, and the culture's signature dishes, from borshch in winter, to summer shashliks, feature meat more often than garnish with it. But, in the motherland of campaigning vegetarian Lev Tolstoy, a country in which mushroom-hunting could almost be called a sport, vegetarians survive in the cosmopolitan capital in their own way. Moscow News - July 18, 2008 Related: Trials of being vegetarian in France CalorieLab Calorie Counter News, NV, U.S. (July 19, 2008) Iceland: Vegetarianism without a screaming wallet Iceland Review (July 21, 2008) Veggie Profile: Wayne Pacelle works for the winged, finned and furry Full story: Los Angeles Times Animal welfare activists don't usually invoke the National Rifle Assn. as a role model. After all, hunting animals for sport and protecting animals from sport hunters are mutually exclusive endeavors. But Wayne Pacelle, chief executive of the Humane Society of the United States, finds something to admire about the gun rights group: its brute strength. No, he doesn't want to run an organization that is only feared. "I'd rather be loved - and feared." In the four years since the 42-year-old vegan ascended to the top spot at the Humane Society, Pacelle has retooled a venerable organization seen as a mild-mannered protector of dogs and cats into an aggressive interest group flexing muscle in state legislatures and courtrooms. Los Angeles Times - July 19, 2008 Flexitarians: Fewer omnivores find meatless meals a dilemma Full story: Northwestern, WI, U.S. There are those who can't stand the thought of eating anything that once had a digestive tract, and there are those whose mouths water just thinking about a juicy, medium-rare tenderloin steak hot off the grill. Then there are those who fall somewhere in the middle. Some part-time vegetarians go by a modern title - flexitarian. A term that's been around since the early '90s and has been recognized by the American Dialect Society, "flexitarian" generally is defined as an omnivore whose diet is comprised mostly of vegetarian meals, but sometimes includes meat or fish. It could go the other way, too. Some say people who eat meat daily are now taking breaks from their usual habits, perhaps replacing cheeseburgers with veggie pitas or portobello mushroom sandwiches. A flexitarianism trend is on the rise because of the abundance of vegetarian and organic foods available in grocery stores, and because of restaurants that are revamping menus to offer a mix of vegetarian and nonvegetarian options. Northwestern, WI, U.S. - July 22, 2008     Animal Issues and Advocacy     EU proposes crackdown on seal hunt Full story: AP The European Union proposed an import ban [July 23] on products derived from seals that are killed in a cruel way, a move that could hurt the annual seal hunt in Canada - the largest in the world. Animal rights groups and lawmakers have called for an EU crackdown against seal hunts worldwide, prompting wrangling at EU headquarters over how far the European Commission should go. The plan announced covers hunts worldwide, but especially focuses on Canada because of claims by anti-hunt campaigners that it is the cruelest. Canadian seal hunters use spiked clubs and rifles to kill seals. The largest markets are in Norway, China and Russia, however one-third of the trade in seal pelts, meat, and oils passes through the EU market. AP - July 23, 2008 U.S. army shoots live pigs for medical drill Full story: AP The Army says it's critical to saving the lives of wounded soldiers. Animal-rights activists call the training cruel and outdated. Despite opposition by the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, the Army proceeded to shoot live pigs and treat their gunshot wounds in a medical trauma exercise for soldiers headed to Iraq. PETA, however, said there are more advanced and humane options available, including high-tech human simulators. In a letter, PETA urged the Army to end all use of animals, "as the overwhelming majority of North American medical schools have already done." "Shooting and maiming pigs is outdated as Civil War rifles," said Kathy Guillermo, director of PETA's Laboratory Investigations Department. The Norfolk, Va.-based group demanded the exercise be halted after it was notified by a "distraught" soldier from the unit, who disclosed a plan to shoot the animals with M4 carbines and M16 rifles. AP - July 18, 2008 Rabbi finds vegetarianism to be a religious ideal Full story: Missourian, MI, U.S. Rabbi Yossi Feintuch says vegetarianism is a religious ideal. "When you read about the abuse of animals in our own industrial meat production, then you cannot say that God's idea about compassion for animals is achieved," he says. Feintuch blames the nature of modern-day factory farming... National organizations share Feintuch's belief in religion-based vegetarianism. In an e-mail to religious leaders, Richard Schwartz, president of the Jewish Vegetarians of North America, writes: "This dietary change would be consistent with important Jewish mandates to preserve our health; treat animals with compassion; protect the environment; conserve natural resources; help hungry people; and pursue a more peaceful, less violent world." His Web site, along with that of the Society for Ethical and Religious Vegetarians, offers statistics and text to support a commitment to spiritual vegetarianism. Missourian, MI, U.S. - July 13, 2008 Related: "All Creatures Great and Small" campaign HSUS and JVNA The only diet for a peacemaker is a vegetarian diet National Catholic Reporter (July 8, 2008) "A Religious Proclamation for Animal Compassion" signup Best Friends Animals Society The Schwartz collection on Judaism, vegetarianism, and animal rights Film: "A SACRED DUTY: Applying Jewish Values To Help Heal The World" JVNA Animal rights activists reveal their own (kosher) identity Full story: Haaretz, Israel When AgriProcessors, America's largest kosher slaughterhouse, was caught on tape conducting what a federal agency later called "acts of inhumane slaughter," officials at the plant knew they had been infiltrated by undercover investigators. What the company didn't know was that two of those infiltrators were a married couple who keep kosher themselves. Meet Hannah and Philip Schein, undercover investigators for the animal rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. Now, for the first time, they are going public with their identities. The Scheins have decided to go public as part of a publicity bid for PETA. Despite the sensitive nature of their undercover work, they say they are not worried about the media attention. Their confidence in their ability to carry on undercover investigations - and to have carried out so many in the first place - appears to be rooted in the techniques they use when they go undercover, which they will not divulge. But she added, "Everything we do is legal." Haaretz, Israel - May 5, 2008 War, peace and the monstrosity of animal exploitation Full story: Cyrano's Journal Since the advent of civilization almost every nation from the smallest to the largest has struggled through periods of unbearable violence. Looking back the world finds its trail littered with the history of war and bloodshed... Just how much more does it take before the world stops long enough to ask how it all happened and what can be done about it? Isaac Bashevis Singer answered the latter part of the question most precisely when he wrote "As long as human beings will go on shedding the blood of animals, there will never be any peace... There will be no justice as long as man will stand with a knife or a gun and destroy those who are weaker than he is." The means for putting an end to war is, therefore, not easy but perfectly conceivable, if we would only avail ourselves of it, and has, in fact, been staring us in the face for centuries. The exploitation and abuse of animals must be stopped. That is the simple answer. And if it should seem all too simple, even simpletonian, then let us take a look at the impact on the world the abuse of animals has made. That should clarify the issue. Cyrano's Journal - July 17, 2008     Of Note     Summer recipes From Bar-B-Q ideas to picnics, check out our vegan tips and recipes! VegE-News recipes Calls to action As the world’s largest exporter of sheep, Australia is responsible for the suffering of millions of animals every year. Help convince Australia’s Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, it is time to stop the journey of cruelty. Live export. It's just cruel. U.S. presidential candidate Senator Obama has promised his kids a dog when the campaign is over - BestFriends.org wants people to tell him to please adopt the dog from a shelter or rescue group. Adoption petition Register your vote in the Angus Reid Seal Hunt Poll. Seal hunt poll Tell the U.S. Bush administration to stop the slaughter of gray wolves. Wolf petition A note for veggie organizations and members We are pleased to produce customized versions of VegE-News for the Australian Vegetarian Society, Vegetarians of Alberta, Toronto Vegetarian Organization, and Winnipeg Vegetarian Organization with local events listed. If you are a member of one of those organziations, but not receiving the customized version, just drop us an email if you would like us to switch you to the specific list. If you are a member of another organization and would like to discuss having your own customized version, let us know. Email VegE-News Docs and videos worth seeing A new Australian documentary "A Delicate Balance - The Truth" asserts our society is not plagued with bad luck but bad dietary choices that has lead to a catastrophic number of diseases affecting millions. "A Delicate Balance - The Truth" The animated "Story of Stuff" explains so simply how we got in this mess - perhaps it will inspire simple solutons. "The Story of Stuff" Watch an extremely touching reunion between a now grown lion, and the two fellows who raised him as a cub, until he grew too big, and had to be taken to Africa, and returned to the wild. It reaffirms the emotional and memory capacity of all animals. Lion reunion Here's a simple and compelling video for veganism. "A Life Connected" SOS Climate Change International Conference - July 26 An amazing line-up of vegetarian speakers will address the most up-to-date data on climate change from scientists, environmentalists and media and the best solution we have to stop it. SOS Climate Change The Animal Rights 2008 National Conference - August 14-18 The conference promises to set new records in number of registrants, presenters, exhibits and new videos. There is sure to be a great agenda and inspiring speakers, including Rabbi Schwartz of JVNA, Karen Dawn, and Howard Lyman at this conference. The Animal Rights 2008 National Conference   Note: Whenever possible, stories are linked to the original source. Some sites may require registration, and/or not archive the stories. All links were active at the time of publication. Follow these links to subscribe or unsubscribe to the VegE-News. 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