Does it make sense to keep whales and dolphins in aquariums.

I would say 'no' always. No animals should be captured from the wild and kept in captivity. I was surprised to see such a pro-animal article in National Geographic. Check it out: link

Fish have feelings too

A great article on Peter Singer arguing for equal consideration of interests for fish and questioning the ethic of fishing.   As usual the comments provide perfect illustrations of speciesism where the mere idea of considering their interests is considered ridiculous, worthy of ridicule.  link

Indigenous peoples and animal rights

It is often said that animal rights or veganism is an elitist white ethic that does not apply, is not suitable or not shared by (all) other cultures. I have largely believed this to be false since most Hindus and Sikhs practice vegetarianism.  Further, Ethopians eat a mostly vegetarian diet for religious reasons, some Buddhists are vegetarian and I'm sure we would find other cultures who might vegetarian or view animals favourably if we cared to look.  Further, individuals of all cultures can and do develop an affection and belief that animals are not here for us to exploit, abuse and kill. We are not static in our identities and cultures.

For this reason, I loved this interview with Margaret Robinson, from the Mi'kmaq tribe in Canada who explains her perspective on veganism and its relationship to her traditional culture. Link

Modern day hero

This Australian man with a troubling past perfectly summarises the sentiments of the animal rights movement in a compelling manner.

For activists

I just watched this series of videos from Tribe of Heart co-founder James LaVeck. I found it very helpful and interesting. I thought you might find it helpful too.

 Part 1: The journey of awakening conscience (7.5 min)

 Part 2: Dealing with toxic ideas and toxic organizations (14.5 min)

 Part 3: From passive nonviolence to spiritual transcendence (7.5 min)

 Part 4: Aligning our lives with our values(15.5 min)

Quotes

Misanthropic Quotes

“We have enslaved the rest of the animal creation, and have treated our distant cousins in fur and feathers so badly that beyond doubt, if they were able to formulate a religion, they would depict the devil in human form. ”-William Ralph Inge

“Man is an almost hopelessly conceited animal, this pygmy! He thinks that not only the earth with all that it contains was created for his benefit, but also the sky, the sun, and indeed, the whole universe, as far as he has any knowledge of it, were designed for his purposes and welfare.”- Ernest Bell

“I am ashamed of the race of beings to which I belong. It is so cruel and bigoted, so hypocritical, so soulless and insane. I would rather be an insect … a bee or a butterfly … and float in dim dreams among the wild-flowers of summer than be a man and feel the horrible and ghastly wrongs and sufferings of this wretched world.” – Professor J. Howard Moore

Positive Quotes

“Be soft. Do not let the world make you hard. Do not let pain make you hate. Do not let the bitterness steal your sweetness. Take pride that even though the rest of the world may disagree, you still believe it to be a beautiful place.”
- Kurt Vonnegut

“TO BE HOPEFUL in bad times is not just foolishly romantic. It is based on the fact that human history is a history not only of cruelty, but also of compassion, sacrifice, courage, kindness.
What we choose to emphasize in this complex history will determine our lives. If we see only the worst, it destroys our capacity to do something. If we remember those times and places—and there are so many—where people have behaved magnificently, this gives us the energy to act, and at least the possibility of sending this spinning top of a world in a different direction.
And if we do act, in however small a way, we don’t have to wait for some grand utopian future. The future is an infinite succession of presents, and to live now as we think human beings should live, in defiance of all that is bad around us, is itself a marvelous victory.”
- Howard Zinn

BP Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill 2010

The cover up: link

It's sad to think what all that toxic waste has done to the poor animals in the ocean - not just from a human perspective, but from their perspective.

Anti-biotic resistant bacteria in meat

link - We've known about it long enough. When are we going to look this problem in the face and take action. The best action is to stop eating meat!

Drug development - pieces of the puzzle

1) Drug development: Raise standards for preclinical cancer research

 http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v483/n7391/full/483531a.html

2) Must try harder
http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v483/n7391/full/483509a.html

It seems scientists are admitting that a lot of basic research on animals (preclinical studies) does not lead to benefits in clinical trials on humans (especially for cancer).  Many causes are suggested, lack of reproducibility, bad stats, publication bias, etc.  Only a few comments were made about the appropriateness of animal models.

From 1 above:
"Certainly, the limitations of preclinical tools such as inadequate cancer-cell-line and mouse models" (original source: Francia, G. & Kerbel, R. S. Nature Biotechnol. 28, 561–562 (2010)). Note that animals are labelled as tools.


A commentator said: "The claims presented here are pretty outlandish. Particularly relevant to "Hematology and Oncology" we now know that mice housed under different conditions with different microflora can have vastly different outcomes in any model, not just cancer."

the science of the paleodiet

link

Short and sweet

Advert for veganism

Sounds of slaughter and death

Pig slaughter
Bells 1
Bells 2
Bells 3
Bells 4
More Bells

food wastage

link

Intersectionality of oppression at slaughterhouses

link

Animals have multitudes of abilities and capacities

Animals have multitudes of abilities and capacities that we are too arrogant and stupid to see. link

Catholic Priest speaks on behalf of animals

I hate this! Animals used as robots

link

Venture capatilists investing in plant-based meat or meat alternatives!

link

Animal rights book club!

link

Found a couple of events

Industry sponsored life sciences expo on May 23: link. Would be interesting (and disturbing) to see them deal with the topics of research materials, i.e. animals.  Would like to encourage U of T animal rights club students to go since it is free. 

A conference on environmental activism on 23 March: link. An opportunity for animal rights activists to form relationships with environmental activists and pick up some tips.