So I'm Thinking Of Going Vegan

so is Ellen still vegan? part 1

Well, I have my own thoughts on this (which I'll likely share in part 2), but the reaction from the vegan community at large* certainly seems to have answered some of the questions I posed in my previous temptation with eggs post. Interesting timing, huh?

Q: Would I have been stripped of my vegan title? A: Absolutely. I may also have been tarred and feathered -- wait, feathers aren't vegan, but tar still is, I think.

Q: And by whom? A: Anyone and everyone. Being vegan isn't a matter of self-definition apparently, and anyone who deems you unfit can declare you non-vegan, and even claim that you weren't vegan to begin with. Vegans who are thought to be "welfarist" by others shouldn't be calling themselves vegan either, I learned.

Q: Would posting about it have been folly? A: Yes.

Q: Is posting about even being tempted foolish? A: Probably.

Q: What would have happened had I given in to temptation? Would that have undone everything I have tried to do these last four years? A: Likely.

Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not saying we shouldn't be disappointed that Ellen is possibly eating eggs again, but I do think we should be equally disappointed with how vegans as a whole have reacted. First, talk about being quick to pounce and denounce! Could we at least get more clarification and feedback from Ellen before vilifying? Could we be a bit less vulture-like? No offense to vultures intended of course.

Could we stop reserving our compassion (supposedly the cornerstone of veganism) for non-human animals only and have some left over for human animals as well? And other vegans especially? Could we try not to perpetuate the stereotype that vegans are angry, judgmental and self-righteous assholes? That one is hard, I know, because I'm angry, judgmental and self-righteous a lot of the time too. And an asshole on occasion.

Could we remember that only about 1% of us are vegan? That even with 19 million booklets handed out by Vegan Outreach over the last decade or so that that percentage hasn't changed much? If any? (Why is that, by the way?) That veganism isn't the end, but the means?

I dunno. I'm still glad I didn't partake of my uncle's eggs (well, not HIS eggs, but you know what I mean), and luckily I'm not famous so don't have my mistakes/choices witnessed by gazillions, but this whole Ellen episode (and the reaction especially) has left me feeling disheartened, sad, annoyed, angry and questioning. While I will always be vegan (self-defined at least), do I really want to call myself that now? Because at the moment the word is calling to mind all kinds of other negative V words like vicious, vilification, vitriol, vengeful, and vindictive -- not what I thought I signed up for. 

* from what I've read anyway

Okay, because I'm still in a pissy mood right now but would rather not be, and before I continue my thoughts in part 2, I'm going to insert this video parodying another hugely famous (except that I haven't seen it yet) video, and see if it cheers me up a bit. Watch with me if you like! :)

 

my temptation with eggs

So here's what happened.

Of course I know eggs are cruel. This is why I haven't bought or consumed them for over four years, and am careful to check ingredients to make sure that egg isn't included. But eggs were the last and hardest thing for me to give up (dairy? cheese? meat? no problem!) and the one item I actually missed.

Fast forward four years and I'm at my uncle's place discussing eggs and the awful reality of factory farming while admiring the beautiful chickens that seem to be quite content as we walk among them. They're busy taking dust baths, and conversing with each other and clearly not afraid of this man who seems to be taking good care of them. Lots of space to move around, an enclosure to protect them from the elements (the coop is closed at night for predators), perches galore, water and food. My uncle is quite proud that he treats the birds well, and that he doesn't force them to lay the eggs he takes. Eggs, as he rightly points out, that are usually produced under horrible conditions because people want them cheaply. Eggs that he gives with me because he understands why I protest commercial eggs and how animals are treated and used.

And I have to admit that I take the eggs home. Put them in my fridge and think of how much I have missed soft-boiled eggs (I know, even the thought is revolting to many of you!), and imagine being able to eat one of these brown beauties. They stay in my fridge for a few days, tempting me every time I open the door, and I confess to wanting to eat them. I think about how the chickens don't seem to mind the eggs being taken, about how they're clearly cared for, and about how if I was ever able to rescue chickens and let them live out their natural lives unencumbered that surely they wouldn't mind me taking a few eggs (I wouldn't if I noticed them becoming upset) in exchange for their upkeep, so to speak? I even email a friend as I continue to hem and haw.

But then I remember asking my uncle what eventually happens to these delightful birds, and him admitting that they go into the soup pot. After only about two years. Two! And then I also remember walking into a barn and seeing the cutest little rabbits and for a fleeting moment thinking they were pets before realizing they probably were being raised for meat, and I know what I have to do. The eggs go to my mom's fridge (at age 85 she puts up with my "craziness" but most certainly isn't willing to give up animal products herself) and I let my uncle know thanks, but no thanks. Because what kind of message would I be giving him? And what of my resolution not to be a participant in this animal-dismissing madness?

Still miss eggs though, so what does this former egg-lover do? Gets on her computer and orders herself three packets of Vegg and now happily dips her toast in soft yellow goop without any of the guilt, snort. Plus, even though scrambled eggs were never my thing before, I now absolutely love mixing Vegg with scrambled medium-firm tofu -- yum!

But this whole incident also got me thinking about the pressures and expectations of being vegan, and of ex-vegans as well. What would have happened had I given in to temptation? Would that have undone everything I have tried to do these last four years? Would I have been stripped of my vegan title? And by whom? Is temptation itself enough to render one no longer vegan? Would posting about it have been folly? Is posting about even being tempted foolish? And is it possible that some vegans become ex-vegan because they feel they shouldn't slip up even once? That even one mistake is so bad they'll be crucified by other vegans? (Odd, by the way, given that veganism is supposed to be about compassion.) That if you can't be "perfect" you might as well give up completely and revert to your carnivorous ways? What do you think?

thanksliving

This weekend Canadians celebrate the holiday that makes me so sad. I've talked about the fowl/foulness of this day before, and where I feel turkeys really belong, but today I'd like to talk about the word Thanksgiving itself. It's the second part of the word "giving" that I find quite confusing as this holiday has so much to do with taking instead. How can we demonstrate "thanks" by taking the lives of so many? Do people really think that millions of turkeys are giving up their lives willingly? We talk about give and take as a practice of compromise, but when it comes to animals, why are we doing all the taking and they the giving? 

Why can't we give thanks by letting beings live? What would be a better act of gratitude than appreciating all the wondrous species that cohabitate the planet Earth? Why don't we celebrate Thanksliving instead?

This prayer by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau has been circulated widely, but it's beautiful, and so appropriate for a holiday that spells horror for many:

My hope is that we can navigate through this world and our lives with the grace and integrity of those who need our protection. May we have the sense of humor and liveliness of the goats; may we have the maternal instincts and protective nature of the hens and the sassiness of the roosters. May we have the gentleness and strength of the cattle, and the wisdom, humility and serenity of the donkeys. May we appreciate the need of community as do the sheep and choose our companions as carefully as do the rabbits. May we have the faithfulness and commitment to family of the geese, the adaptability and affability of the ducks. May we have the intelligence, loyalty and affection of the pigs and the inquisitiveness, sensitivity, and playfulness of the turkeys.

My hope is that we learn from the animals what it is we need to become better people.

from Vegan's Daily Companion: 365 Days of Inspiration for Cooking, Eating, and Living Compassionately, Day 310, p. 263

p.s. Unfortunately I was too late with writing a letter to the editor asking folk to consider celebrating the holiday in a more living way, but did manage to slap a few "New Vegan Age" stickers (thanks, Tom!) on a couple of butcher shop windows in town.

13th annual CrueltyFest Niagara

Ugh. As proud as I was of my region hosting the fabulous inaugural Niagara VegFest, I'm equally saddened and ashamed to be living in a region that's hosting their 13th annual PoultryFest Niagara this Saturday. I mean, I'm sure there are some harmless and perhaps even positive aspects to this event, but somehow I don't think celebrating chickens and chickenhood and trying to prevent them from being used and abused will be the main focus. At least, not judging from the "fun" competitions like Chicken Chariot Races, a wing eating contest and a drop the egg contest. Chicken chariot races? Seriously? 

Okay, wait, maybe we'll have better luck with their Poultry Discovery Centre where they promise that we will learn all there is to know about our fine feathered friends. After all, in our local paper today enthusiastically endorsing CrueltyFest one of the organizers said that watching chicks hatch is one of the most popular activities among the youngsters, so no doubt they'll be informed of the important familial and social bonds and that they need to be respected, no? Sadly, the answer is likely a big fat NO, unless the following makes you feel more at ease than I do:

"Take a minute to watch Mother Nature work her miracles with our hatchery display.  Chat with the experts and don’t forget to collect informative handouts from our industry partners and their representatives. Special thanks goes to our industry partners, the Chicken Farmers of Ontario, and the Egg Farmers of Ontario for their continued support..."

Yikes. But what really bothers me is that this event is being touted as a great day of family fun, and many of their activities are specifically geared to kids. Call me paranoid, but I can't help think that with the involvement of industry partners and informative handouts, it conveniently indoctrinates younger generations into believing that using other sentient beings is just okey-dokey. So sad. Actually, depressing as hell.  

p.s. if a family member, who knows I'm vegan and what I would likely think of this event attended last year and said it was a lot of fun, how can we convey to the folks running this Fest (or to the forum members of Poultry Swap Ontario, for example) that what they're doing is NOT right, without sounding completely bonkers?

maybe it's not too late? ;)

Have a happy, safe and animal-friendly holiday everyone! Hope to be back soon.

* The cartoon above is by the well-known vegan genius Dan Piraro. He's awesome. 

the fowl/foulness of Thanksgiving

Yep, it's Thanksgiving Day here in Canada (we Canucks are way ahead, snort), and as a vegan I don't have to tell you about the accompanying sadness that this day brings. Sure, I'm grateful for all personal blessings and am happy with whatever gains have been made by the animal rights movement this past year, but the idea of so many folk celebrating by indulging in cruelty and either not giving it a thought or excusing it by citing tradition overshadows what is supposed to be a joyful occasion.

In the days leading up to this annual glorification of unnecessary slaughter of innocents I found myself increasingly in a foul mood, so to make myself feel a bit better I finally (yes, I've been meaning to do it for ages!) mailed out some of the Would Jesus Eat Meat Today? pamphlets produced by the Christian Vegetarian Association. Had no idea my little town has so many churches covering so many denominations, but 16 of them received the "good news", snort. Have to admit I was a bit tempted to mail them out anonymously, but instead I attached a short note saying "Thank you for reading!" a smiley face, my email address and a postal address on the envelope in case any of them want to get in touch. I also made sure to address them to the person in charge. See, I'm hoping for a trickle-down effect so that if even one pastor/minister/priest takes the message to heart then perhaps they will relay it to their congregation.

I don't know if mailing them out so close to Thanksgiving was such a great idea, but since a fowl stench is in the air anyway I figured it was a good a time as any. And, I was pleasantly surprised to have received one response already:

Dear [my name]
I have received the info booklet that you have sent
It is very informative and well presented
Thanks and God bless
Msgr [name]

Who knows? Even if one little seed gets planted...

p.s. I apologize for being WAY behind in commenting (the human animal I call mom is taking up more and more of my time these days), but I hope to catch up soon.

not vegan yet? then please view farm to fridge

 

Vegan already? Excellent! Then keep calm, vegan on, and scroll down for latest post.

alternative images for Good Friday

Christ (who could be viewed as an animal liberator when in anger he released doves, cattle and sheep from the Temple -- an open-air market) would NOT condone the suffering and sacrifice that billions of animal beings face on a daily basis today.

And his sacrifice (if you happen to believe the Christian story) does not wash away the enormous human sin of devaluing and destroying the lives of countless sentient beings that God (if you believe in him) values just as dearly.

I don't know what (if anything) happens after death, but part of me hopes that something resembling what is commonly thought of as heaven will exist for every senselessly slaughtered animal being. But humans? Nah, we don't deserve it.

The images above were created by the talented Dirk Giesselmann and can be found (along with others) at the Toronto Pig Save website.

 

the Oprah vegan show "review" of sorts

So how did I feel after watching Oprah's vegan challenge show? In a word: disappointed. And by the last five minutes downright angry. But let's go back to the beginning. (I'm also writing this before reading any other blogger's post on the subject so I won't be influenced by my usual "damn, why didn't I think of that" envy. Snort.) And, just as the episode did not include a lot of investigative journalism that I could see evidence of (despite Lisa Ling being a paid journalist), this post will not attempt to be balanced or even-handed if I don't feel like it, nor necessarily present my impressions in chronological order. Ha! 

The show started off pretty well, I thought. Oprah and 378 staff members signed up for a week long vegan challenge (participation was not mandatory), and in terms of lunch line-ups and staff-wide hugely increased fiber-induced bowel movements, the week was a big success. The term radical was tossed around a few times with regards to veganism, but I suppose most of us are used to that, just as we're used to hearing words like militant and extreme when our philosophy is described. Michael Pollan (Oprah introduced him as being a rock star of the food movement which I thought quite silly) did agree that veganism is a "cool idea" because it forces you to be conscious and think about where your food comes from, and he also mentioned the link between the standard American diet and chronic disease. Oprah then introduced the statistic of 10 billion animals being consumed each year including 30 million cows and let those numbers (I'm assuming those are  stats for America only) sink in. So far so good.

Unfortunately, from there it went downhill for me, but before I continue, I want to say how much I dislike the term meat. It's too ambiguous, too sanitary, and too far removed from what we're actually eating. Michael Pollan to his credit (who will be referred to as MP from this point on), also mentioned how far removed we are from reality when we buy stuff wrapped in cellophane. Snacking on deceased (and diseased) animal flesh is terminology much more accurate  as far as I'm concerned.

The show then continued with Lisa Ling (after seeing cows being fattened up on corn and corn byproducts) taking a tour of Cargill, one of the largest slaughterhouses in America I believe. Twenty companies had refused a request for a tour of their facilities, but oddly, there was no question as to whether Cargill was typical or representative of most slaughterhouses (correction: MP later stated that Cargill was cleaner, bigger and better run than most), but they still would not allow the actual killing to be filmed. The general manager (sorry, forgot her name) paid lip service to the idea that animals should be treated with dignity and respect and reiterated a number of times how the company and employees had a lot of respect for the former living creatures. Right. I also heard her use the phrase "harvested (gotta love that euphemism) carefully" and that killing animals was somehow part of the "natural order of things." And did you know that the stun bolt gun doesn't hurt, but renders animals completely unconscious so that they don't feel any pain when the bolt is driven into their brain? The effect of the tour on Lisa Ling? Well, she did appear to wince when shown how cows don't feel pain, but now has a new appreciation when eating the animals described as naturally curious by the guy responsible for fattening them up at the beginning of the show. 

So what is MP's take on this industry? Well, meat is not evil (I'm inclined to disagree, and would argue that the production of what we call meat today most definitely is), and while it may be a good idea to reduce our consumption, there's no need to eliminate it, especially meat that's "humanely" raised. He expressed concern that eliminating meat would hurt farmers, and that reforming the industry is preferable. He also credited veganism for improving industry conditions. And remember how I said in my last post that I wasn't sure how I felt about MP? I do now! Putz indeed. MP has a new book coming out soon and I truly hope his sales tank. While it's possible that there are humane ways of raising nonhuman animals, there's nothing humane about killing them for food. 

This brings me to one of my major objections in how veganism was presented in the episode: veganism as diet only. While I appreciate the time constraints of a commercial-riddled hour-long show, absolutely no mention was made of how vegans try to avoid the exploitation of animals in all its forms. Even worse, the implicit (and usually explicit) assumption among most humans that animals are ours to use wasn't addressed at all. 

The show then focused on Kathy Freston and how the vegan challenge was met by staff participants. I like Kathy, I do, and her vegan segment in her Quantum Wellness book was persuasive enough that it (and other factors) convinced me that I wanted to go vegan full-time and not just convert slowly. Some might not like her "lean into it" approach, or her "lose weight, get healthy, change the world" campaign, but I welcome any step in the vegan direction. I also don't have a problem with her seeing veganism as a spiritual path. And, I was quite impressed when she jumped in as soon as MP said, "meat is not evil" with the retort that she wasn't able to look into the eyes of an animal and feel that their suffering was less important than her appetite. At that point though Oprah interrupted with her most delusional and asinine comment ever by saying, "but the animals don't suffer!" What? Really? She then referred back to Lisa Ling saying that whether a person decides to eat meat or not needs to be an individual choice. Maybe she's been burned by the hamburger lawsuit, but to me that's a major cop-out because nonhuman animals certainly don't get that individual choice. No, animal use needs to be seen as a collective decision (one I don't agree with) that human needs/wants are more important and that they trump the rights of any other species.

And surprise, surprise, Oprah does not want to commit to going vegan, although she doesn't mind being veganish if and when it suits her. To sum up I would say that in some ways this show was a good start, but I was extremely frustrated by the end of it. What a shame. Oprah could have done so much good had she wanted to. And yes, I'll still be contacting her, but it'll be to let her know that she clearly doesn't have a clue and missed a big opportunity to achieve something positive with her useless fame. Sigh.

turkeys belong in fields, not on plates

Today is Thanksgiving Day in Canada, and while I do have much to be thankful for, since becoming vegan this holiday tends to make me sad rather than grateful. The lovely photo above (taken by my Flickr friend Spyder Venym) shows turkeys as they should be: alive, wild, together, outside, and doing whatever they feel like doing. Instead, turkeys are on countless plates all over the country today (I don't have to tell you what misery they suffered before/during their deaths) and it breaks my heart. 

don't have a cow

To be honest I never gave this phrase much thought before, but its meaning of "don't get so worked up" is actually kind of funny when applied to animal rights, because that's exactly what we should be doing in my opinion. If enough people DO get worked up, then perhaps real change will eventually take place. And these days when I say don't have a cow, I tend to mean it literally, as in, don't eat 'em! So I'm wondering if vegans can somehow reclaim or sloganize this phrase, snort.

The cow in the photo above by the way is not just some stock image, but a real cow living in Germany that a friend of mine (hi Krissa!) has gotten to know. And she will attest to the fact that this lovely creature is very friendly and will run up to greet her. Sadly though we continue to deny that the emotional and social lives of farm animals are just as real and complex as that of their perhaps cuter or cuddlier counterparts, and maybe in part that explains why some people still feel they have the right to eat these non-human animals. Consuming cows just doesn't get most non-vegan folk as worked up (okay, I SO want to make a joke here, but I'll spare you) as the eating of dogs and cats, but I think that particular indignation (and now I feel like joking about indigestion!) can still be used as a starting point. People love companion animals, and if we can get them to see that eating them is not fundamentally any different from eating farmed animals, then that's one possible way of leading them to veganism.

Incidentally, when I Googled the title of this post, I found an interview with Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson (of When Elephants Weep fame) that's definitely worthwhile reading.

vegans on The Amazing Race!

Yep, there will be two vegans on The Amazing Race premiering this Sunday evening. Eric and Lisa are married yoga instructors, and it'll be interesting to see how they fare. But apparently there was a vegan last season as well (Mike, who appeared with his father Mel), although I don't remember this ever being mentioned. I wonder what he thought of the challenges involving animals at the Phuket Zoo in Thailand? I certainly wasn't too impressed with the elephant portion of the show, and the posing with the tiger just made me sad. In fact, the exploitation almost made me stop watching The Amazing Race altogether.

And what about the food challenges? How as vegans will Eric and Lisa react? Usually the food is meat or fish-based, so would they make an exception and eat items they normally wouldn't? In Season 13, Terrance, a vegetarian, ended up eating sheep, and I think he regretted it. But being vegan means an even greater commitment to not consume animal products in any way, so I wonder how the vegan couple will handle this ethical dilemma.

How would you?

pig roasts, gun shows, good grief!

As stated in my July 31st post, I moved back to my hometown after an absence of more than twenty years, and I guess I somehow forgot just how small and rurally based this area (Niagara Region) is. Or maybe I'm just not used to reading local newspapers that cover events like barbecues, county fairs and pig roasts. Pig roasts! And in just over the two months that I've lived here, there have been two of them. Now given the fact that I get a visceral reaction just from seeing animal flesh in grocery flyers (I swear I never noticed before turning vegan just how prominent it is), I nearly threw up my last meal when I saw a photo of the poor pig nearly done and ready to be eaten. What's even worse in my opinion is that this event was sponsored by a church; an institution that you would think would encourage non-suffering of all species. Anyway, it made me wonder if I should place an announcement asking if there are any other vegans in this town!

The opinion pieces I mentioned in that July post? The first, titled No animal cruelty in pampering a race horse, had the editor asserting that folks calling for a ban on horse racing are "horribly-informed, if not totally ignorant" and overreacting. Don't take my word for it though, as someone at the Niagara Center for Animal Rights Awareness also saw this piece and responded with what I thought was an intelligent and articulate rebuttal. Sadly though, their reply was never printed, which, I'm embarrassed to admit, made me abandon my own less coherent and already belated response. Then, this doozy, which made me shake my head, although she had a valid point about the chickens. Not surprising though that a column denouncing the efforts of animal rights activists would also advocate the death penalty! And guess what? Her piece got a huge positive response. But what I've also learned (in looking through drafts of potential letters to the editor), is that I'm pretty hot-headed, and should probably wait with responding to anything until I've cooled down, snort.

why NOT animal rights?

145 million animals are killed every day for food; 53 billion are killed every year.* 

And that doesn't even include fish and other sea animals! I'll let those numbers sink in for a bit because if you're anything like me I find them staggering and almost unbelievable, although it helps to have a clearer picture because I bet most of us don't really think about the sheer number of animals that humans do eat. And this is only one way in which we consume other animals, and only one element of the numerous ways in which we treat other species as if they are our personal property. So how can we then deny that it might not be time to rethink our relationship with other living creatures? Because I'll also bet that none of the animals killed for food every day actually want to end up on our dinner plates.

* from the "Go Greener, Go Vegan" brochure produced by the Vegan Party of Canada (www.veganpartyofcanada.blogspot.com)

my Easter temptation

As some of you know, I work weekends in a small rest home (17-20 residents), where a big part of my responsibility is the serving and cooking of meals. The menu is prefixed, and the night staff person prepares part of the hot meals, so I usually end up reheating most of the food. Now this usually works out well for me because it means I don't have to cook most of the meat, but once a month I'm the one who prepares either the beef or pork roast and on special occasions, there's either a turkey or a ham. I started this job before I became vegan and when preparing meat wasn't an issue, and I have to say that as soon as I made the switch I had no problem with not eating non-vegan items there. I didn't especially like making meat dishes anymore, but on the other hand I recognized that the residents didn't have any say in what was prepared, and that meal and snack-times are the highlights in their otherwise boring day. I also have to say that even though I don't consider myself to be a great cook, I'm actually quite good when it comes to dishes that I have to simmer for any length of time. So this past Easter I had to make a ham (which I've only made once before), and by the comments I received it apparently turned out fantastic (I used pineapple chunks and juice to baste and simmer). I was pleased because it had been a big meal to make and because I wanted Easter to be special for them, but I was so taken aback by how many of them went out of their way to let me know how much they had enjoyed dinner that I was strongly tempted to taste a piece myself! And it wasn't because I still have cravings for meat, or was hungry, but I simply wanted to know what all the fuss was about, snort. Happily though I didn't give in to the temptation, but took their word for it.

It does raise the issue though of whether I want to have jobs in the future that involve the preparation of foods that I myself for ethical reasons no longer eat. Luckily it won't be an issue for much longer in this particular job as I'm leaving at the end of May, but I suppose I have to think carefully about whether I want to even apply for these types of jobs again. Hmmm.

turkey talk

Of course it's hard not to talk about turkey today given that it's Thanksgiving in the United States (in Canada we celebrate it a month earlier), and obviously any blog devoted to animal rights is probably not in favour of killing these birds, but to be honest I never gave much thought to turkeys at all before I became vegan. In fact, I never gave any thought to how any animal eventually arrived on my plate and I suspect most other people don't either. But the whole process of how we treat animals before and during slaughter will be the subject of future posts as today I'm just going to throw out a few turkey tidbits (from Ingrid Newkirk's Making Kind Choices) at you. Did you know that wild turkeys:

• can blush? (they change skin colour to reflect changes in their feelings)
• can be personable and friendly?
• can run 25 miles per hour and fly up to 55 miles per hour over short distances?
• have a 270-degree field of vision and excellent hearing?
• tense up when afraid and get stressed when slaughtered? (um, wouldn't you?)

Okay, I've changed my mind. Came across Farm Sanctuary's Adopt-a-Turkey Project, and they have information on what factory farming for turkeys is really like. So if you're going to eat turkey this Thanksgiving then at least be aware of what they have to go through. Better yet, save a life and have a cruelty-free feast instead!