Vegan Existence (V.EX)

If you’re not vegan, the video that follows is addressed to you.

Gary Yourofsky makes a number of interesting points in it.

Around the 1:20 mark, he raises the odd contradiction that the title of this post comes from. To find out exactly what this is, though, watch the video for yourself – it will have more impact that way.

Gary’s presentation is full of spirit, so you should find it engaging enough to watch – even if you’re already vegan.

If you’re not, this video presents both a challenge and opportunity, one that Gary unfolds for you as he goes.

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Friday I attended the Brisbane leg of the Voiceless law lecture series.  Whilst it was good to see so many people enthusiastic about animal rights and protection at a legal level, I still believe that we need to do more to promote this at a consumer level.

For example, on page 5 of Brisbane’s City News issue 346, there is a little article about the Brisbane based Charity, Youngcare. This organisation has been named beneficiary of a Red Angus steer that has been named Gus.  This sentient being has been donated by the Red Angus Society of Australia for auction at this year’s ‘Ekka.  The author even goes on to say “… has big shoes (or plates) to fill”.

Also sadly in the same edition, is a two-page spread claiming that Brisbane is now the undisputed steak restaurant capital of Australia, and that it is a city of unapologetic beef snobs.  A city where diners or groups of, are willing to pay anything for their side of animal flesh.  Prices range from $69.00 for 600gm of Angus cattle’s rib to over $100.00 for a 1 – 2.5kg rib called a Tomahawk.

Whilst hard working and dedicated people are fighting battles on behalf of the animals in courts of law all over the country, only to be stonewalled by a judiciary that is not willing to challenge the status quo, the real battle is to open the eyes of the average man and woman on the street.  And I do think that a line in the sand needs to be drawn here in Queensland and that this state has to become the front line for any future Animal Rights issues.

Unfortunately, this state prides itself on its animal exploitation industries and is not looking at letting it go any time soon.

Currently, here in Brisbane The Royal National Agricultural and Industrial Association of Queensland (RNA) is having its annual Exhibition or ‘Ekka as it is known to the locals.  At this years ‘Ekka, the same as last year, there will be over 100 pregnant ewes set to give birth at a rate of 10 per day, during the 9 days of exploitation.  I won’t say too much about it, because I have done that in another post, though the idea behind the ‘Ekka, is to bring the country to the city, except it is a heavily sanitised version of country life that the city folk see.

So, we do need to work on re-educating an ever increasingly ignorant public about the reality of how the animal flesh that they are sinking their teeth into actually gets to their plate from the farm.  Only then will we see any realistic change in the way that animals are treated, and possibly go some way towards removing their property status.

Recently I attended a talk about the plight of the Sumatran Orangutans.  Now admittedly, up until recently, I was ignorant of the plight of the Orangutans and other animals in these National Park areas.

Sitting there listening to the stories of the deforestation of the Gunung Leuser National Park by farmers planting palm trees illegally within the national park, the inability of the government to take action to enforce their own laws to the Orangutans and other wild animals that are either captured or killed because they are deemed to be a pest.  Those Orangutans that are lucky enough to escape being shot, burned or poisoned are trapped only to spend their life tied to a chain as someones pet.

A figure that was disturbing to see was that it is estimated that over 800 Orangutans are killed or die every year.  By anyone’s standard, that figure is way too high and we need to do something about it now, before it is too late.

The easiest way to do this is to avoid products that contain palm oil or it’s derivatives.  Now I do know from experience that palm oil is literally in everything, though it doesn’t take too much time to find those products that don’t contain it.  So, we need to be proactive as consumers about the purchases that we make, and avoid these products.

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A  TRUE STORY ABOUT LIFE ON A DAIRY FARM – WHY I PREFER VEGAN TO VEGETARIAN

According to a Californian industry report, the natural lifespan of a dairy cow is approximately 15–25 years, however dairy cows are rarely kept longer than five years prior to slaughter.

Why the dairy industry cannot ethically be supported. The direct females involved are not treated with respect, or with any kind regard for their physical well-being, they do not get to live normal lives in respect to their bodies, behaviors or their natural ecosystem. They are slaughtered as soon as they cannot deliver any more milk. The non-direct animals (males) suffer the consequences of being male and barely even get the chance to live, unwanted byproducts to be done away with as soon as possible so money doesn’t have to be spent on feeding them. What goes on in the killing sheds after they leave the dairy farm, I cannot say.

I did however milk cows for three weeks on a large NZ Dairy Farm  in 2006,  as part of my backpacking, and this is a bit of what I saw first-hand.  Keep in mind that I was most certainly shielded from what they would have considered the more ‘gory aspects’, as it was common practice for them to employ backpackers for the really busy calving and milking season.

I remember this one male new-born male calf who was just a couple of days old. I had to beg for them to let me give him a drink of milk after he had been left out in the cold for two days starving because the bobby van hadn’t turned up and they didn’t want to waste milk on him. He was tiny and scared and thirsty, running up to people and trying to drink from them.  He wasn’t tied up because he was trying to stay near his mother who was on the other side of the fence.  We had two large vats on site filled with milk and they wouldn’t let me touch it. Nor would they let him drink with the other female calves in the pens right near him. He could smell ‘milk’ all around him, as he was right near the milking shed, and it would have been driving him crazy.

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Ok, you think being vegan has its good points, but you’re worried you’ll turn into a skinny, pale, stunted wreck.

To show that doesn’t have to happen, my last post gave the example of bodybuilder and weightlifter Joel Kirkilis from Melbourne. But maybe you’re thinking he’s a one off.

So to provide a couple more examples illustrating that being vegan doesn’t automatically put you on a road to physical degeneration, take a look at the poet Benjamin Zephaniah and raw food vegan Tonya Kaye, a dancer, actor and aerial stuntwoman – among other things:

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The most pressing reason is that being vegan opposes harming and killing animals.

Many billions of animals are killed every year. The environment, possible health benefits, and efficiency in food production are all good reasons too, but the effects on such a large number of feeling creatures is both immediate and on an ENORMOUS scale – billions of animals every year is enormous whatever language you speak.

Vegan symbol from etnies.com

Before you dismiss that as just another pinko/hippie/greenie/wacko/left/way out or lentilly alternative idea, remember that we’re also animals. We feel pain, other animals feel pain. We have a will to live just like other animals. By our understanding of intelligence, we may consider ourselves more intelligent than other animals, but that has nothing to do with whether it’s ok to use them for amusement, or to make money, or to chop them, cook them and eat them.

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I recently got a phone call from someone that was curious as to why most vegans are against pet ownership so I thought I would use the answer as another blog post.

So why are vegans against pet ownership?

This comes for a number of reasons.  Firstly there is the exploitation of the female as ‘breeding stock’ and something to make money from.  The female, whether it be a cat, dog or bird has her reproductive cycle exploited by the owner.  Every litter is worth money. The females are kept constantly confined in cramped, filthy conditions. There is a lack of appropriate veterinary care (every vet visit costs money and lowers the profitably of the litter), due to their constant confinement they are not adequately socialised (which often leads them to be unfit as a pet after a few months and taken to the pound), there is the chance of inbreeding and none of the breeding animals receive the proper enrichment by being able to interact and play with other animals in an environment away from cages and concrete floors.

With the rise in popularity of the so called designer breeds of dogs and cats, we are seeing a rise in the puppy-mill style of breeding because the only way that breeders can make a profit is to breed on a large scale and run it as a business.  The puppies often travel hundreds of kms from the mills to the pet store lacking proper food/water/ventilation. There is the treatment of the puppies and kittens whilst they are in the pet stores waiting to be sold.  They are kept in small glass cages in full view of everyone that passes by.  Their bedding consists of shredded newspaper and it is the same small area where they have to do their ‘business’.  The water/food they have is usually in a small bowl and frequently gets knocked over with no one knowing how long it takes to be refilled.  Being kept in glass and on display to the world, these puppies and kittens are tormented by people staring at them and banging on the glass  an attempt to wake them up should they be asleep or attract their attention. To maximise the profits of the pet store, the puppies and kittens are usually fed the cheapest food that is available, which usually isn’t the best for a growing animal.
New born babies are no longer displayed at maternity wards in hospitals so why do we still do it to puppies and kittens?

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With society becoming more aware of the impact palm oil plantations have on critical rain forests and peatlands throughout Indonesia and Malaysia, thankfully we are starting to ask producers and manufacturers more questions.  When asking the majority of companies about their use of palm oil – companies state that they only use palm oil from RSPO (Roundtable for Sustainable Palm Oil) sources, or ‘sustainable’ sources or that their company is a member of the RSPO.  Nothing more or less needs to be stated to put ones mind at ease.

But after working with several orangutan welfare organisations over the past 8 years and after spending time in Indonesia myself, I became increasingly aware that there is in fact no such thing as “Sustainable Palm Oil”.  The following information, from the Palm Oil Action Group will give you an overview on sadly why this is the case.

The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil has developed and implemented some criteria for what it terms the sustainable production of palm oil. However, despite the best intentions of the RSPO there are many weaknesses, failures and conflicts of interest that leads me to believe that the RSPO in its current form is NOT part of the solution to providing sustainable palm oil.

Unfortunately the extent of the illegal and unethical practices as outlined below, as well as the lack of appropriate RSPO action on these breeches, concludes that the RSPO cannot be relied upon to take responsibility for ensuring that its members act legally, ethically or environmentally and socially responsible.  The RSPO is merely an attempt to greenwash palm oil production to keep the industry growing at any cost – and until it is agreed to INDEPENDENTLY VERIFY sustainable palm oil plantations, being a member of the RSPO is no guarantee at all that the palm oil being used is sustainable, no matter what the companies wish you to believe.

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MEDIA RELEASE
24 May 2010

WHAT DO VEGANS EAT?

What Do Vegans Eat? is the latest in a series of free seminars to be held this Sunday 30 May at Brisbane Square Library, Tiered Theatrette, 266 George Street, Brisbane.

Vegan Existence (V.EX) is promoting this event as part of its commitment to provide free vegan education.  Other presentations will be held monthly throughout 2010.

What Do Vegans Eat? will cover the following topics:
1.     What’s involved in adopting a vegan lifestyle
2.     Why does someone become a vegan?
3.     Basic food staples of a vegan diet
4.     Examples of vegan foods for breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks and dessert
5.     Basic examples of plant sources of vitamins, minerals and nutrients
6.     Introduction to quinoa (pronounced keen-wa) and how to cook

Leigh-Chantelle, founder and operator of Viva la Vegan! and vivalavegan.net will be giving the talk, with food samples provided on the day.

– END –

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What a great idea. Unfortunately, the guy in the lab coat doesn’t look too impressed.

I don’t think the monkey believes he’d do it, anyway. It’s a plea of resignation.

Other animals often trust us and let us lead them – just like human children – and this is how we repay them: our caring and protective natures go out the window.