Gluten Free Healthy Food

You may have seen Say No To Animals In Pet Shops info, pamphlets, or the website before – a campaign against the proliferation of puppy farms/mills and generally seeing “pet” animals as commodities to be bought and sold with little regard for their welfare.

Here’s a new one: Lead The Way: The Animals (Regulation Of Sale) Bill – for animal welfare, against puppy farms (Australia):

We are a nation of Animal lovers, but we need to do more to ensure their well-being and eliminate animal cruelty. Regulating the sale of animals means a better beginning in life, and helps reduce the 60,000+ unnecessary deaths in NSW alone every year. This website has more information on the Bill, and makes it easy for you to support it.

‘The principle here is about our responsibility as humans to the animal world’. Lord Mayor Clover Moore MP

It looks like a step in the right direction for cats and dogs… but unfortunately this Bill seems to only apply to cats and dogs. It appears to be only aimed at cat and dog rights/welfare, not animal welfare or animal rights at all – very selective and clearly speciesist – it makes no mention of extending these “better conditions” to include other animals being mistreated and neglected in shops.

While “other mammals” get a mention in the Bill (although predictably livestock is excluded, which makes one wonder about the status of – and hypocrisy involved with – certain small animals that are considered “food” for other animals…), birds and fish often get the worst treatment in stores, being seen as novelty short-term “disposible pets” or “pocket pets.” Rather a large oversight, given the far greater numbers of small animals going in and out of pet shops. Barely an encouraging move in real terms, but perhaps better than nothing? Although…

Selectively saving lives? Is this really a step in the right direction, or is it encouraging further discrimination based on arbitrary characteristics? If so, will this really even benefit cats and dogs in the long-term? Or is it just another case of token “feel good” welfare efforts primarily designed to relieve guilt? Efforts that will get in the way of the abolition of animal abuse and use for all species? Why are we continuing to put limits on our compassion according to what animal people think looks cuter in our house or backyard? According to what animal it’s more socially acceptable to feel compassion for? … Vegan food for thought.

Posted in animal rights, companion animals

Yesterday the Melbourne Cup was held in Australia, as part of the Spring Racing Carnival. During this time, women stick dead birds in their hair, calling it fashionable and attractive, and everyone sits on their lazy asses to watch horses get flogged around a race track. Sound pleasant? A little bit of light-hearted fun?

If you open your eyes and look beyond the fluff presented on your idiotbox, you’ll see that it’s far from a “bit of fun.” Having seen the trauma racing inflicts on horses first-hand when I was growing up, I know even the most well cared for horses suffer when they’re forced into racing… Never mind the drugging that goes on behind the scenes. When there’s money to be made off animals, exploitation and abuse isn’t far behind.

This article from Animals Australia covers a heck of a lot:

Horse racing – the glitz, the glamour, the grim reality.

The Melbourne Cup: a celebration? Think again. The only thing being celebrated is an ignorance of cruelty towards animals.

Posted in animal rights, events, holidays, media

The UK media, from what I’ve seen, seems to be reasonably vegan-friendly. From pro-animal rights articles to health, they aren’t quite so afraid as certain other western nations of throwing the v-word around. *cough*Australia*cough* *cough*UnitedStates*cough*cough*

The Guardian has been doing a series called The Ethical Wardrobe in their Life & Style section that’s worth checking out. Recent articles include info about leather and silk.

Don’t hide from the truth
Many ethical consumers excuse their leather purchases on the grounds that skins are simply a byproduct of the meat industry. The reality is not so simple, as Kate Carter reveals

& More on vegan-friendly weddings!

A whiter-than-white wedding
Wedding dressing can include a catalogue of ethical no-nos, from low-paid seamstresses to tortured silkworms – not to mention the sheer waste involved. Kate Carter explains how to keep a clear conscience on your big day

Thanks to Andrew Bartlett for pointing this out in his recent blog post “Queensland government’s hot air on climate change continues unabated.”

And speaking of ethical clothing, there’s a great photo group on Flickr dedicated to Vegan Shoes. That’s hot.