Rolling Stones Magazine Publishes Article About Pork Production

Wow! A bigtime magazine addresses the issues of Pig Slaughter!
Read all about it here: Rolling Stones

Here's a snippet of the article:
"America's top pork producer churns out a sea of waste that has destroyed rivers, killed millions of fish and generated one of the largest fines in EPA history. Welcome to the dark side of the other white meat."

Giving Gifts with Compassion and Thoughtfulness

Wahooooo I just got the greatest Valentine's gift ever! I'm officially the proud sponsor parent of a handsome rooster named Nightshade.


I got this great Adoption Certificate describing him as "Mysterious & Aloof." Yep, that's my boy! I couldn't be a more proud parent.

This is part of Farm Sanctuary's Adopt-A-Farm Animal Project.
You can find out more about becoming a sponsor here:
http://www.farmsanctuary.org/adopt/sponsor.htm

Thanks Raylon!

- Dill

Extremely Inhumane Foie Gras Served at Least 5 Restaurants in Sarasota!!

Foie gras, considered by some to be a delicacy, is produced by forcing a long metal pipe down the throats of ducks and geese and force-feeding them massive amounts of grain, resulting in their livers swelling to up to 10 times their normal size.

Two to three times a day, a worker grabs each bird, shoves a long, thick metal tube all the way down his throat, and an air pump shoots up to two pounds of corn mush into his esophagus. The industry always refers to the dry weight of the feed, which is about one pound per feeding. Adding oil and water doubles this weight, making it 20-30% of the bird's healthy body weight. Picture 30 one pound boxes of dry pasta and then add water. This is proportionally how much a 150 pound human would be force fed using this formula.

A duck's liver naturally weighs around 50 grams. However, to qualify as foie gras, the industry's own regulations require ducks' livers to weigh an absolute minimum of 300 grams.

The vast amounts of feed pumped down the ducks' throats causes enormous internal pressure, and the pipe sometimes punctures the esophagus, causing many to die from choking on the blood that fills their lungs. Some birds literally burst, choke to death on their own vomit, or become so weak that they are unable to fend off rats from eating them alive (click to see footage from Sonoma Foie gras--requires Windows Media Player). Other ducks die a slow, painful, and premature death by suffocation from inhalation of regurgitated feed. In fact, because of the massive toll taken on the birds during the force-feeding process, the average pre-slaughter mortality rate is up to twenty times higher than on other duck factory farms, according to the European Union's Scientific Report on the subject.

According to the ASPCA, "The birds' livers become so enlarged…that according to documentation by veterinarians, the animals must experience unspeakable pain and suffering. Birds have literally exploded from these forced feedings. The results of necropsies on dead birds that have been force-fed reveal ruptured livers, throat damage, esophageal trauma, and food spilling from the dead animals' throats and out of their nostrils."

What Restaurants DON'T WANT YOU TO SEE.

Already banned in California & Chicago and soon to be NYC, let's add Sarasota to the list. These restaurants think they are so upscale, how trendy is birds laying in their own vomit, bleeding to death from the inside, physically bursting?

Let these restaurants know what you think about them supporting these practices and serving Foie Gras:

Derek's Culinary & Casual
www.dereks-sarasota.com
514 Central Ave
Sarasota, FL 34236
(941) 366-6565

Summerhouse Restaurant
6101 Midnight Pass Road
Sarasota, FL 34242-2212
941-349-1100,
www.theplacetoeat.com

Maureen's Palm Grille
Unverified listing
5350 Gulf of Mexico Drive, Longboat Key, FL
(941) 383-7774

Ophelia's Restaurant
www.opheliasonthebay.net
9105 Midnight Pass Rd
Sarasota, FL 34242
(941) 349-2212

Fred's
www.fredsrestaurant.com
1917 S Osprey Ave
Sarasota, 34239
(941) 364-5811

Support Erik... Spread The Word

Greetings readers, because I fully support Erik Marcus' activism, I hope that Dreena Burton from Vive Le Vegan will not mind me re-appropriating (ok stealing) her recent blog entry about the book Meat Market. I changed it only a fraction to indicate I was purchasing 3 copies, but I like the idea of offering those copies to anyone interested enough to leave a comment. So without further blabbing, the post:



If you listened to Erik's recent podcast (1/26), you'll know that he has requested some support. Erik Marcus doesn't ask for donations (though I'm sure he would get much help from the vegan community if he did). What he asks is that we support him through sales of Meat Market. That way, we are not only helping him financially, but we can also get his important message out there!

Do you have an office where you can put a copy of Meat Market in a reading room, waiting area, or LUNCH room?! Imagine, someone picks up Meat Market and after 10 minutes of reading, starts to examine their lifestyle and food choices. Maybe they cut out meat, maybe they go further and cut out all animal products. Maybe they buy the book and give it to a friend. This is how we have to spread the word. So, I am buying 3 more copies to share with anyone I think could benefit by reading it.

In case you're worried that this book is too 'gory' to read, it's not. But, within those pages is powerful information that can initiate change.

Erik says in Meat Market (p.118) "When I was a teenager, my greatest ambition was to one day become a millionaire. In my twenties, as my primary ambition shifted away from making money and toward protecting animals, I adapted the millionaire concept for purposes of activism. I decided that I still wanted to be a millionaire, but not in terms of earning a million dollars. I wanted to be a millionaire in terms of keeping a million animals out of slaughterhouses."

I think you'll agree that this is remarkably admirable, and also, with our help... achievable. Most of us have $11 to spare. Imagine if that $11 translated into even just one other person turning vegetarian, or even better, vegan. If copies of Meat Market are put in front of enough people, this is more than possible.

Personally, I'd love to see Erik reach both goals - a million for him, and a million for the animals, because I know the more resources Erik had at his disposal, he could reach more people and have an even greater impact.

I will also add that I have read this book and find the arguments it makes very compelling and reading it has helped me speak more eloquently on behalf of animals. It is not a difficult read, as Eric has made it very straight forward.

Leave a comment if you think you should be the recipient of a copy of Meat Market that I am ordering. Tell me where you can put the books so that they can be read by others. And, if you can, order a copy of Meat Market yourself.