Easter Celebrates Fertility - The Cruelest Fate For Rabbits

The pagan celebration of Easter is rooted in the fertility and renewal of spring. Tragically this gift of life is the cruelest curse to the rabbits who are a symbol of this holiday.

Gentle readers, if you eat cows, pigs or birds you have absolutely no call to condemn the rabbit industry. But I can and will: 

Rabbits suffer from the same hardships every other farm animal suffers from such as: space deprivation, poor ventilation, manipulated lighting, and etc. Consequently they exhibit a range of neurotic behaviors such as fur-plucking, ear-biting and self-mutilation. They become obese, get inflamed feet, have poor bone density, develop gastrointestinal and urinary dysfunction.

Caged rabbits can suffer from ulcerative pododermatitis (also called "sore hocks") consisting of scab-covered ulcers on the hind legs. This is caused by the pressure of heavy body weight on a wire floor, or by excessive stamping of the feet by nervous rabbits.

In some cases the feces underneath the cages are never cleaned out. Prolonged exposure to fumes (particularly ammonia) from urine and feces, irritate the rabbits' eyes and respiratory tracts and predisposes them to disease.

In nature, rabbits’ way of dealing with dangers is by running and hiding in holes. The fact they can’t do it in the cages leaves them panicked with every change in the surrounding. When they are taken out of the cage or someone else is getting in or even to the slightest noise, rabbits often respond with digestive problems, in some cases hurting themselves or their babies, sometimes killing them.

Just to understand how hard the conditions in the rabbits farms are, 1 in 4 rabbits will die due to the intensive conditions before the age of 12 weeks (rabbit’s slaughter age) even though they can reach up to 12 years.

The industry’s way to reproduce more “meat bunnies” is by caging does and bucks (female and male rabbits) in a single cell cage and use them as a breeding stock. In the wild, rabbits form social colonies that usually consists of one to three males and one to five females. Domestic rabbits retain the full range of behaviors of their wild ancestors, so housing rabbits singly in barren cages causes physiological and behavioral problems. Young does are mated for the first time at the age of 16 weeks. Then they start their endless cycle of overlapping impregnation, gestation, birth, and nursing.

A typical litter consists of 8-10 bunnies which are taken away from their mother at 4 weeks of age.

The does are fertile 24 hours after giving birth and being re-mated before each litter is weaned.

Does have an average 'use-life' of about 18 months. During this period, they will produce 8-15 litters. The gestation lasts for 32 days. An average litter reproduces 6-8 successfully fattened rabbits (out of 8-10 born bunnies). The production targets are at least 50 rabbits per doe, per year. Bucks are usually kept until they are three to four years old.

When the breeding does' and bucks' productivity begins to fall, they are sold for low-quality meat production..

You may read the end of these bunnies miserable journey here.

You can remove your participation in the suffering of so many by simply making other choices. Whether it's rabbits, chickens, pigs, cows or any other exploited being... Please do so. 

Love Life sticker available at Herbivore Clothing

Happy Vegan Holidays - To You!

All the fur, feathered and scaled creatures think your kindness is the best gift of all!

(To You!)

Compassion Is The Only Way To A Happy ThanksLiving Day

With gratitude to all those who live compassionately. <3

Thanksgiving - Nothing Tastes As Good As Life Feels

Okay all you bird cooking, turkey munching fans - Looks like today's your big day! The pressure's all on YOU, especially the chef/cook extraordinaire! 

Here's assuming you've either found your thawed "fresh" bird (which could incidentally be up to 2 years "fresh"), or that you've dedicated a shelf in your refrigerator for a week or so, in order to defrost the carcass... You've made a meat locker of sorts in your fridge haven't you? Oh how cozy and inviting that must have felt when you went to grab your grapes or mustard. :/

Next we know you've absolutely got your recipe down on what ingredients you're going to stuff into the anal cavity to bake your special ass-bread. And make sure too that you pat that corpse down with all the right plant based seasoning, spices, flavorings and herbs... Wouldn't want a plain-old bland tasting bird - now would you?

Make sure you've sufficiently slaved over the hot oven, basting often with that stolen dairy butter. Burning one's own flesh on the rack or roasting pan is appropriate as well. The point is that this MUST be the meal a lifetime! It MUST be worth every single step of work, agony, and pain. For that's what it cost someone else.

Indeed, this meal MUST be so good that the stolen life MUST be removed from the consciousness of the diners. And what a relief that you didn't have to pay the hit-man directly! The unseen, invisible life-snuffer won't whisper a word about your pact. We'll have no momentary regrets or memories of the knife that slit the bird's neck. No snippet of thought that his/her entire life was pure misery. No... This is how deliciously decadent and juicy your turkey MUST be. It MUST be better than life - for that's what it cost. Someone's life.

You mustn't fail in any of these steps... The bird MUST be cooked to perfection. The aroma MUST bring the house down with groans of anticipation. It MUST be a visual Norman Rockwell portrayal of wholesomeness and down-home goodness. It MUST deliver and impart an atmosphere of sheer contentment and peace. 'Cause that's what the holiday is all about right? Being thankful for peace? But... But isn't that going to be very, very hard to pull off, even with your perfectly roasted and beautifully trimmed, murdered centerpiece? We sure hope no one remembers the violence it took to get this MUST-have, perfect meal going...

No. You're just going to have to do your best to cook and host the most delightful, worry-free, fantasy-meal of a lifetime. Because that's what it cost someone else. It cost them everything. It cost them their life. You MUST bring this bird's whole life existence and ending to culminate in an equal value or more of what it cost. If not, it's a sacrifice. It's a sham. A fraud. A waste. And a pity.

You MUST make this meal - Better than life itself: You MUST do the impossible!

No pressure now. Eat heartily... And watch for those small, sharp bones.

A Tradition Of Compassion - A Vegan Heritage

There's this tradition:

Heritage Turkey Processing

Or you can make a new ones:

In Thanksgiving For the Birds, Colleen Patrick-Goudreau eloquently debunks the myths around the "traditional" foods surrounding Thanksgiving.

"Most people don't know that our contemporary customs at Thanksgiving, namely the serving of turkeys, were shaped and popularized by a magazine editor, Sarah Josepha Hale, in the mid-1800s. Whatever meaning we attribute to this Thanksgiving holiday is most certainly not lost (in fact, it is enhanced) by creating food-based rituals that affirm rather than take life, that demonstrate compassion and empathy rather than selfishness and gluttony, that celebrate the fact that no one need be sacrificed in order that we should eat."

And in Talking Turkey she speaks truth to power: "If you've never met them, turkeys are magnificent animals, full of spunk and spark and affection. I've introduced many people to the critters at farmed animal sanctuaries, and the animals with whom people have the most transformative experience are the turkeys. Every time. Never fails. Join me as I tell some stories of special turkeys I've had the privilege of meeting and as I explain why I'm still making amends to the animals, whose breasts, legs, and wings used to darken my dinner plate." 

*****

“A farmer gave his son a hatchet and a turkey saying, "Take this bird out behind the barn where no one can see you and kill him.”  Being an obedient son, the boy vanished behind the barn only to return several minutes later with the still very much alive turkey.  “What is the matter?” asked the farmer. “Did you not understand my instructions?”  The son looked his father in the eye and said, “But Father, everywhere I went the turkey could see me!” The son in this story has made the shift in awareness that we feel the people of this world need to understand. Just because a sentient being cannot talk does not mean they don’t have a point of view on whether they live or die.”

Seth Tibbott

President and Founder

Turtle Island Foods and Tofurky

You can read about Seth Tibbott, who has literally saved the lives of millions of birds, here, here, and here.

photo courtesy Leilani Münter for The Ghost In Our Machine

Thanks to all who have made compassion 

part of the vegan heritage. :)

A Disturbed Turkey Party

The captured image below is from a video titled The Turkey Party. The creator of this video also hosted the beheading of this bird by a very young, inexperienced executioner. No need to watch the gore... Suffice it to say that the crowd of guests got to witness this creature endure a series of brutal, inaccurate swings.

People excuse the habit of eating animals by saying that the victim doesn’t know, doesn’t feel, doesn’t care, is complicit, or isn’t even there. This one turkey certainly knew. Felt fear. Was terrorized. Resisted. And was definitely present in all of his desperate being until his exhausted end.

*****

And just like this video and the people who made killing a festive event, centuries ago people won lotteries for the opportunity to witness these acts of slaughter and relished seeing the final moments of expiring life.  

Entertainment for the mob

And just like this video too, these public and legal murders weren't without their incidents of ineptness either:

In Britain, beheadings were carried out by the “common hangman”, who had very little practice or experience, which often led to unfortunate consequences. These axemen would often show up in a drunken state, no doubt to numb themselves from the task at hand. And just like the Turkey-Party-butchers the positions of headsman were often passed down from father to son.

In 1587 it took four blows to remove Mary Queen of Scot's head.

Robert Devereux Earl of Essex was executed at the Tower of London in 1601. Over 100 people witnessed the execution - three strokes of the axe were needed to sever his head.

Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury was dragged to the scaffold but refused to lay her head on the block. She struggled and was forced down. The inexperienced executioner made a gash in her shoulder rather than her neck. She leapt from the block and was chased by the executioner, with his axe in full swing. She was struck eleven times before she died. There were 150 witnesses to her execution.

The Execution of Lady Jane Grey (1834) Paul Delaroche

Anne Boleyn, Queen of England was terrified at the prospect of being beheaded by an axe. She was therefore granted some clemency and a swordsman was called from France to undertake the execution.

Queen Catherine Howard, pleaded with her husband King Henry VIII to supply her executioner with a block so that he could practice her execution.

In 1890 Anna Månsdotter of Sweden was executed. In her case, the blade of the axe passed through her lower jaw which was left attached to her neck afterwards.

The Execution of Sir Walter Raleigh by Severino Baraldi

The victims would pay the headsman large sums in hopes that he'd complete his job with swift precision. The victim was also expected to forgive the executioner.


                "Please don't hurt me. I don't want to die!"

I realize that even today in the most primitive cultures such depraved violations of life and the sanctity of one's body still occur to humans, and most of us recognize it as barbaric and unjust. But these executions take place in "turkey parties" in hundreds of slaughterhouses every second. Likewise, the crowds huddle around the meat cases and tell the same lies, that the victims didn’t know, didn’t feel, didn’t care, didn't resist, or are made invisible. These deceptions let mobs make self-serving exceptions that trivialize butchery, under the guise-of-a-leap of "humane" faith.  

"Anyone who says that life matters less to animals than it does to us has not held in his hands an animal fighting for its life. The whole of the being of the animal is thrown into that fight, without reserve." 
(Elizabeth Costello, in J. M. Coetzee's book The Lives of Animals)

If you intend to have one of these sacrificed turkeys as a holiday celebration - Please don't fool yourself that this being didn't have a violent and painful death. Or that they didn't struggle and plead for their lives. No one consents to be killed. And we know their life was full of misery as well. 

This is just one suggestion in thousands of options that will allow you to avoid the un-festive consequences of botched slaughters and the gloom that comes with all killing. On holidays and always, please consider kind, abundant, life-affirming vegan options instead. Thank you.

United Poultry Concerns

sources:

Execution by beheading

Executions at the Tower of London

Animals Who Labor - The Irony Of A Holiday

Labor Day was created in 1884. The first Monday in September was selected as the day to honor the "working man".  This holiday celebrates the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country. 

Lots of people take this opportunity to spend a day relaxing under a quiet hammock at home.  Or some go to the beach for a day of playing in the water.

And some take in the boardwalk attractions.

I think it's great to kick back and enjoy the fruits of one's work and toil... Everyone needs that. Just wondering though... The animal ag people make all sorts of inferences that animals must be "productive", and that their "contributions" are vital to us all carnists... 

So when do these "essential" animals get a day off? When do they have a 24 hour reprieve from their "duties" and their "job" of supplying dairy, eggs and meat to the blood-hungry masses? We know that the slaughterhouse lines never stop, not for any holiday... So I think it's really ironic that those humans who profess to "benefit" most from the horrific use of these animals don't at least give them

one miserable day off!!! EVER!!!

No one was put here to eat, to wear, to be entertained by, or to be used as a test-subject. Not any day of the year! 

Please... Give all animals a holiday everyday. 

Go vegan!

Earth Mother's Love - Across the Species Divide

I stumbled on these videos by the artist Louise du Toit and found her songs worthy of sharing - Especially in recognition of Mother's Day and the nurturing qualities I know my readers embrace. 

I think you'll agree the messages that urge us to work for a better world are appropriate especially for a day that values healing kindness and love for our Earth Mother and all her children.


THE TIME HAS COME: "To do no harm, to help rebuild the lives that have been wrecked"


Earth Waltz 



As fellow earthlings sharing the same planet, may we always strive to obtain, enhance and nurture each of the following virtues:
Altruism
Benevolence
Compassion
Devotion
Empathy
Freedom
Goodwill
Harmony
Indulgence
Joy
Kindness
Love
Magnanimity
Nonviolence
Order
Peace
Quiet
Respect
Salvation
Tolerance
Unity
Veracity
Worth
Xenial
Yot
Zeal



If you enjoyed these I know you'll find more here that you'll like as well.

Happy Mother's Day to all who repair, renew and restore - Unconditionally. 

The Irony of Growing Green Food --- For Livestock

In celebration of Earth Day I can't help but get enthusiastic about modern methods that will ethically sustain our nutritional needs.  Anyone who's read my opines throughout the web or on this blog also knows what optimism I have in hydroponic food production. This along with veganic gardening and perma-culture - We actually stand a chance to feed ourselves in ways that don't destroy the planet or harm others.

In rural and suburban areas I love the idea of turning lawns into gardens and I praise guerrilla farmers in cities. In residences I think someday all homes will be equipped with food stations that add ever more to the possibility of sustaining a good life on this good planet:

And even in our future galactic travels plants are the answer!

Anyone can see the urgency that should motivate industrial and architectural shifts to producing good food for the generations to come.

Advocates of 'vertical farming' say growing crops in urban high-rises will eventually be both greener and cheaper

This sustainable plant based food model might include floating barges at every port filled with all sorts of grains, legumes and leaf-foods... Grocery stores might have facilities on the roof that grow vegetables of all varieties... It would be processed on the spot and the "food miles" would be the elevator that moves the goods to the ground floor for sale and local distribution. The chaff and waste would be recycled to supply energy for the building and nutrients for the next growing crop. I mean really! Can you just envision what we could do if we shifted our mindset to what's healthier for us any way? (And also what's so much kinder to others too).

So now - You may roll your eyes as I have, at the ludicrous, daft, nonsense the meat industry shows in it's attempt to take these viable, modern methods of feeding humans to ironically --- Feed cows instead! :(
 Greenhouse feeds gaining ground in livestock industry. 

The Earth, the inhabitants and I thank you for consuming in an ethical, vegan manner.

The Irony - End of Lay Hens & End of Day Glass

When I read this article I couldn't help but see the irony between what happens to "spent hens" used for their eggs and items made from left over glass. Both beautiful. Both fragile. Both "valued"... But their final fate so very different than each other.

The article posted at World Poultry states: 

Unlike broilers which [sic] are reared for meat and yield a valuable food product, end-of-lay (or ‘spent’) hens are considered a by-product of the egg industry.
Due to their low economic value, spent hens are unattractive to most poultry-processing companies. Thus, globally, the poultry industry is faced with billions of spent hens every year. The majority of poultry in commercial production are ultimately transported to processing facilities at the end of their commercial lifecycle. 

The article goes on to suggest better "welfare" measures to transport these "unattractive" birds to their slaughter... Well, anyone who knows the "commercial lifecycle" of male chicks and "unproductive" hens knows the bloody rest of it.

Don't you know if any one of us were one of these chickens nearing the finish mark of their "commercial lifecycle" we'd do everything we could to pump out one last egg for this Easter's festivities. Anything to bring a smile to the human faces that never see us. :/

From United Poultry Concerns

But here's one girl Ginger... 

She's the last in the small flock of "spent hens" that came to my care almost 5 years ago. She's watched each of her sisters enjoy their piece of life in the sun and earth and through the seasons... Their life-cycles were what they were born to have minus the end toll of human greed and gluttony. 

Ginger lost the last of her original flock about 6 months ago and like the others before her, her egg laying has been sporadic or non-existent for years. It doesn't bother any of us one bit! Her body isn't valued for what it expels but rather for she whose being possesses it. That is concern for her "welfare". Each morning that I enter my yard I'm thrilled to see her beautiful face! Only those who are unattractive wouldn't see the same!

If any reader here would love some alternatives to "Easter Eggs" This Vegan Life has some great resources. And of course throughout the year there are baking alternatives, Veggs, and other options. Not to mention what's coming in the future!

Like glass... Life is fragile. Handle with care. Please don't harm anyone when you can avoid it. 

An Invisible Soul - And a Stingy Heart

We may have started out great... At least our ideals were worthy of admiration. Mankind ever in pursuit of the rational way to live. With goals of fairness, justice, equality and all the other things to which the "GOoD" species should aspire to. We took responsibility to become civilized and ethically consistent. It seems that would be the minimum effort to make, given what was bestowed to us.


Regardless of the circumstance of how we got on this very special star called planet Earth, no other species has been so able to manipulate the star's contents to its own benefit as we Homo sapiens. We're able to discover and influence all matter. And to define it in relation to us. No other creature can use mind or might like us. We could evolve to improve and preserve. Or degrade and destroy. I'm always sad to see we're on the latter course. We could do so much better!


It's tragically disappointing that our species has thus far failed to rise to the challenge of genuine greatness. With these "gifts" of intelligence, and conscience we even gave ourselves the notion that we possess a  soul that uniquely exalts us above the rest. All the more cause to be generous to others not so "special." In this vast, unlikely universe -  We alone can determine fairness to countless others by the simple act of what we choose to put in our shopping carts. Still - We humans are so stingy and petty to those who aren't in charge of even the smallest portion of their fate.


While seeing ourselves better and "blessed," we use these reasons of "exclusive privilege" to take from those who have no defense at all... We needlessly take their freedom.  Their sexuality. Their chosen mates. Their children...  


We hunt them.  Enslave them.  And torture them. 


We reduce them to objects and instruments... Products and commodities... Goods and consumables... Breed them. Tag them. Brand them. And eat them. Most of the time because we can - Or we want to - Or because it's inconvenient not to. Barbaric cruelty has become a justifiable habit for us. It's not even killing for survival. It's killing for gluttony.


Nonhumans can be owned as property. Bartered as profit. They are widgets to be marketed. Things to be caged, "harvested", trapped, trained, skinned, dressed, cleaned... They live in a state of constant flux - Being adapted to fit our intent. They are appropriated and subjugated and "processed"  to the fullest extent of our wants. Those pitiful ones whose existence for our benefit is their only recognized purpose. Yet they are, as we call them, the souless ones. And without a soul they have no claim to our humanity... We owe them nothing, save a "humane" passage on the way to being "utilized". In the scheme of things - The sincere concern and respect most humans give to other species looks something like this:

So while it may be true that man is the possessor of a soul - That invisible attribute that no one can prove or disprove... I'm here to say that the symbol that represents the values of kindness and compassion - The one meant to illustrate abundant love and life is sadly absent in our species. A heart.  Oh we may have a physical one that ticks and beats - But our intangible heart -- the one that's supposed to feel for others -- is that's hollow, puny and incomplete.

And then there are those who have chosen a different way - To help not harm. To give not take. To expand love not in a miserly, cheap and exclusive kind of way... But in an inclusive, magnanimous, bounteous way: 

Mankind will not suffer if it chooses to be kind.  

Please if you haven't already done so - Unflaw your heart. Widen it to include all others. Be generous. Extend your empathy to every living being who would benefit from it. Leave the bodies and minds of others alone. Let them live. Open the universe of Earthly possibilities to them! Go Vegan. And thank you to all who have done so already! <3 xox

2013 - An Ethical Change - A Vegan Chance

Out of all the annoying (and dumb) things people say to defend their animal killing/flesh eating, carnist views - the silliest to me has always been this: "You're never going to change everyone! People are always going to eat meat (eggs and dairy)..."  It bugs me so much because it shows how narrow minded they are... The only thing in life that is predictable is change. Everything becomes obsolete.  


As we prepare to bid 2012 goodbye we can choose to look to a future where better thinking and kinder living prevails. Here's a round up of what these better days might look like:

Future History of Animal Rights in the West (2080)

A Non-Speciesist World Of 2094

Excerpt from a Future History Book

An informal poll predicts the rise of vegans in 2050 to be one in ten people.

And a future conversation might sound like this.

Now I'm not normally an over-optimistic soul... But without a crystal ball no one can really say what's on the way in years to come.  If we're such a great species, with these huge reasoning brains I can't help but hope that we'll figure a way to end the violence and self-destructive acts that keep us anchored in a hurtful, fossilized past.

What do you say to an ethical change in 2013? Want better health? A healing planet? Respectful treatment to all others? An untroubled conscience? Sure you do! 

For the happiest of New Years: 
Let hate, fear and ignorance be relegated to an obsolete past.

Live kindly. Live aware.

Be the change you want to see in the world. ... Mahatma Gandhi 

A Silent Night - But Not a Silent Life

A wish for a peaceful night to all those trapped in systems that are prejudice against who they are...

Shine bright you lovely beings! And all those unsilenced heroes who fight to bring justice and comfort your way. ~Amen

Compassion and Harmony Through the Holidays

Here's a little musical distraction from the traditional holiday tunes... 


An unconventional song with a very pertinent question: You say the blessing but where is the grace?

If you haven't already planned to do so: Please make your gift giving and holiday celebrations compassionate ones. --- I assure you making vegan choices will be the most harmonious gift you give yourself or can give to others. ~peace~

Being Thankful for Living Turkeys - A Compassionate Holiday

I sure don't want to leave this blog in a cranky or unhappy state during what should be a nice celebration of abundance!  Tomorrow for the 4th year I'll be feasting at a banquet spread consisting of beautiful plant based foods. My group calls it ThanksVegan - And indeed the food and the company make me very grateful for Vegans who are thankful and thoughtful.

So in pre-holiday festivities I thought I'd leave Provoked on a pleasant note with some of my favorite messages of a compassionate nature:

The story of Sadie and her three sisters rescued and residing at Safe Haven Farm Sanctuary.

This affectionate and very vocal turkey at Animal Acres is guaranteed to make you smile!

And the recent rescue of one super lucky turkey hen by Animal Place Sanctuary. Someone to be Thankful For

But all of us who are opting for other choices during holidays - before and beyond - give sanctuary to all birds and beings all the time!  We've found a way to feast on "life-giving not life-taking foods" :

With bountiful gratitude to all who have done so!
Happy ThanksLiving!

Winning Words For Liberty... And Ethical Compassion

The best bloggers on the internet have posted this amazing speech from the most important debate there ever was! I'm not about to pass the opportunity to add it here as well - Especially on this July 4th day which is supposed to commemorate liberty and freedom.


This perceptive and gentle man Phillip Wollen, extends the concept of justice to all beings. And I celebrate his vision!

Full transcript here.
Full debate here.

Now, like everyone I love a good debate when reason and truth get to shine! It's particularly enjoyable too when someone reveals the flaws in the (loser's) arguments. This youtuber does just that in 3 other videos aside from the one below:


It's clear for all to see - This vicious war humans have with other animals is just a struggle like the one fought against British oppression 200+ years ago. And countless other challenges in history. They were tough fights... But they were won! And so will this effort to a more equitable world see victory as well! It's just a matter of persistence, courage and time.


Thanks to all who live in the most efficacious way towards that goal... Towards the fairness of autonomy that all should have!

Cows Aren't Machines... Lucky You! You Knew That!

The Irish, like the world are using Computerised Calf Rearing Systems and actually despite "heavy culling" they have excess calves so "many farmers will be forced to feed whole milk to calves". What a notion - calves actually consuming cow's milk! 
- Oh well, it's cheap!

The U.S. of course does it's part to treat these cow's 'n calves like machines... In this article Meet Claudia the High Tech Cow we learn that "Feeding has also gone high tech. Each cow is fed individually, according to its lactation cycle. The cows wear a special collars that work with a computerized system to deliver the right diet to the right cow." 
- Oh well, it's convenient. 

 And then there are the fistulated cows: 

where humans sort of surgically drill a hole inside a cow's body to research what they eat... And then we eventually eat them... Hum...
- Oh well, it's science.  

And then there are these images from The Art of Dairy Art Contest - 

How clever to have the gears and bearings made into the shape of a cow! 
- Oh well, that's art! 

Let's not forget the robots that do the milking of the machines slaves.
- Oh well, that's progress. 

And silly meat-eating people... They believe that these beings treated like widgets their short, miserable lives, will finally have a soft and cozy "human" touch on the bleed rail. S-u-r-e...
-Oh well, that's life murder! 

But you know, the more I see of how cows are mechanized... The pigs and birds too - I can't help but laugh at the notion that ranchers/harmers "care" for their animals... When really it's their machines that truly matter...
- Oh well, that's economics.

Meanwhile today I heard for the 4,289th time (but whose counting?) that plants feel pain! 

- Oh well, my lucky day I guess...

If you are fortunate enough to be a critical thinker, capable of questioning if/why/how you were indoctrinated to believe that you should be drinking the milk of another species, or eating their flesh... You might be lucky enough to have become vegan... I'm wishing on a 4 leaf-clover that you are! ;)