Oh very young
What will you leave us this time
There’ll never be a better chance to change your mind
And if you want this world to see a better day
Will you carry the words of love with you
Will you ride the great white bird into heaven
And though you want to last forever
You know you never will
(You know you never will)
And the goodbye makes the journey harder still.__Cat Stevens
We vegans all do our part. At the very least, we are setting an example of what could be if all humans on this earth became vegan. I call it being a pebble in the collective shoe of non vegans.
But some of us also research and write about veganism and some of us protest on the streets with placards filled with messages entreating people to end speciesism.
There are fantastic websites and Facebook pages extolling the virtues and health benefits of plant based eating and veganic gardening.
Good-hearted and dedicated folk are running sanctuaries for farmed animals who have managed to escape, usually with help, the horrors of the enslavement within the various industries which exploit other species for profit.
We sign petitions for the release of animals held captive in zoos and other establishments of its ilk. Some groups have even managed to launch impressive and in your face billboard campaigns promoting the end to the exploitation of other species.
We deplore and decry the use of fur, wool, silk, leather, all products which humans wear on their bodies as a fashion statement, and in many cases as an offensive and vacuous declaration of status and wealth.
We also talk about the environment and the ongoing and devastating human created assault on the planet, which ironically, threatens our very continued existence. We tell people most emphatically that:
we are killing (murdering,really) the planet by way of farmed animal agriculture and over fishing of the oceans.
But is it enough? Are we getting through to people? Or are our individual and collective efforts falling on deaf ears and are we, like all non vegans who refuse to reconsider their choices,
Fiddling While the Planet Burns?
While one day more of exploiting other species is one day too many and one enslaved life lost is one life too many, we often think that we have time, that it will take time to appeal to people’s sensibilities, to change hearts and minds. Maybe it will take generations, but this is important work and patience may be the key to getting the job done in the long run.
The scientific facts say otherwise. The scientific facts say that we are heading pell-mell toward a soon to be realized catastrophic, cataclysmic planetary meltdown, the likes of which will see the extinction of the human race. We will be taking with us other species, both plant and animal, the oxygen in the air and the water, the sanctity of the dirt beneath our feet, the white of the clouds in the sky. This is the price we will pay for the violence humans take into their bodies each and every day when they feed on the bodies and secretions of other species.
Gloom and Doom you say? These are merely soothsayers and fortune tellers making outlandish predictions that come and go and never really negatively impact anyone. To the contrary, it is the earth who is speaking up, mother nature who is sending us continual messages and warnings of the folly of our human centric ways.
Big business, governments, environmental agencies and most mainstream media are covering up or diluting these messages, sweeping them under the vegetation that covers the earth, literally dumping them into the human created oceanic dead zones, along with all the toxic waste of farmed animal agriculture.
This angers me because I am vegan for the animals, but I am also vegan for my family and my grandchildren and from a wider perspective, the very life of this planet. If we do not take immediate and decisive action, environmentally there will be nothing for our children’s children and their children to leave their families. My family is, after all, my heart and I feel always and eternally responsible for their well being and survival.
The Facts:
In excess of 65 billion land animals are killed every year as food to feed a human population of 7.5 billion, while billions more are sitting in the wings awaiting their fate. Trillions of aquatic animals die every year due to over fishing, by catch, poaching (shark fins) and pollution.
Animal agriculture is the leading cause of species extinction, ocean dead zones, water pollution, and habitat destruction
A farm with 2,500 dairy cows produces the same amount of waste as a city of 411,000.
Animal agriculture is responsible for 18 percent of greenhouse gas emissions, more than the combined exhaust from all transportation.
3/4 of the world’s fisheries are exploited or depleted.
We could see fish-less oceans by 2048
Animal agriculture is responsible for up to 91% of Amazon destruction,
Animal Agriculture is responsible for 20%-33% of all fresh water consumption in the world today.
Ten thousand years ago, 99% of biomass (i.e. zoomass) was wild animals. Today, humans and the animals that we raise as food make up 98% of the zoomass.
Mother Nature’s Response In the Last 12 to 18 Months:
“Piles of dead whales, salmon, sardines and clams blamed on the El Nino freak weather phenomenon have been clogging Chile’s pacific beaches in recent months.”
“Hundreds of dead fish washed ashore in Lake DeSoto in Lake City this weekend, and the stench could be smelled blocks away….the dead fish are bass and bluegills, and that the fish kill is a natural phenomenon caused by too little oxygen in the water.”
“Both wild fish living in the sea and farmed fish using sea water have been found dead in some coastal communes in the town, causing losses of billions of dong.”
Nearly 1,700 geese were slaughtered at a farm in Chiayi County’s after an outbreak of the highly pathogenic avian influenza sub-type H5N2, in an effort to stop the disease from spreading.
“Eight dead California sea lions have just been reported, Making 10 this week alone on the beaches of Vancouver Island.”
“Massive die-off of common murres that began one year ago.The confirmed carcass count is now up to 36,000.”
“Around 40 howler monkeys have been found dead or dying in the tropical rainforests of Nicaragua.”
“Stormy weather washed up hundreds of starfish on to a beach” in England.
And this is just the tip of the iceberg. We are facing the largest mass extinction in 65 million years. A more complete list of mass die offs in 2016 and earlier can be found, with links at End Times Prophecy. I encourage you to take look. Do not let the religious references dissuade you from looking at the facts presented therein.
And for another article on another day – the strange weather patterns of extreme heat, floods, tornadoes, drought and the list goes on.
My good friend and fellow vegan and anti-speciesist AR activist, who is also a veganic farmer, has this to say about the current state of affairs:
Unfortunately no matter what we do, unless the world becomes 100% vegan today, we are screwed and that is not being pessimistic, it is just factual. ___Jimmy Videle
Annie’s Vegan View
Or can we simply, start en masse, leaving other species off our plates?
What are you willing to do for your family, for those you love?
May all beings be happy and free.
I appreciate the look at reality given in this article. Shared it on FB, now just hope people “tune in”.
Thanks for putting this together.
Hey there Theron,
Welcome to my website and thank your for sharing my article on Facebook. A good friend of mine sent me the link that became the jumping off point for this article. We can no longer deny obvious. People have got to realize that it is no longer about their right to personal choice. We have to stop exploiting animals before it is too late, for everyone’s sake.
Take care.
Anne
Very well done Anne! In any given day, I can feel hopeful and encouraged one minute and devastated the next. There are good things happening as veganism seems to be growing, and each victory is precious. But as you know the frustrations are many and some days it seems hopeless. So I appreciate you and all my like-minded friends whose support keeps me going. It makes the good news great, and makes the bad news easier to bear. ❤️
Hi Karen,
Thanks for your words of encouragement. I too am an eternal optimist when it comes to believing in our ability to effect change and the ability of others to see, understand and act on the truth.
But these stats scare me and I fear for those I love, for other species, for the rest of humanity and for the planet.
I never expected to have such a wonderful collection of personal and online vegan and AR activist friends, but you all help to shore me up when I feel discouraged.
We shall carry on and hope for the very best.
Take care,
Anne
You nailed it Anne, and Jimmy is dead on as well. However painstakingly slow, change is happening!! But It can be discouraging at times, as most of the people I know are still not, either aware enough, or dismiss the urgency of the situation because it is too inconvenient for them. A lot of people are still downright careless.
It is a daily battle, some days easier than others. Thank you for your advocacy, and this incredible blog.
Claude
Hi Claude,
Thanks so much for weighing in. This article was born of a link that Jimmy sent me and I have to thank him for that. Exchange of information is key in getting the word out in as many formats as possible, in the hopes of reaching many, not few.
I thank you for your advocacy and for tuning in to my website.
Take care,
Anne
All so true and as you say (supported with facts) animal agriculture is the leading cause of species extinction, ocean dead zones, water pollution, and habitat destruction. What amazes me is the (for the most part) resounding silence of the environmental lobby and activists. Why are they so silent and when are they going to start using their voice to declare animal agriculture as the leading threat to the well being of our planet?
Hi Susan,
Cowspiracy did a great job of exposing the reluctance of environmental agencies to get behind and declare the truth for what it is. Unfortunately, they are afraid of losing the financial support of big business who have a vested interest in keeping the truth hidden. I don’t know when it will change, but if it doesn’t change soon we are in for more and continued desecration of the planet.
Take care,
Anne
Hi Anne, my feeling most of the time is that massive change for the better MAY happen, but only after a series of catastrophes when as a species we no longer have a choice. Human nature being what it is tends to be more concerned with short-term gratification than long-term survival. Sounds pessimistic I know, and for the sake of future generations I hope I’m wrong.
Hey Friend,
I get where you are coming from and I agree in principle. I just wonder how many catastrophes it will take. We are in the middle of some monumental ones at the moment and so far, no big shift in thinking by the masses.
I continue to hope for the sake of other species, my family and all those I love, for the planet and for humanity in general that the exploitation ends soon..
Take care,
Anne
This was really interesting to read. I am a Christian and a vegan and to me the two go hand in hand and strengthen one another. I have only been vegan for 2 months but wish I had had my eyes opened sooner. It was through posts on Facebook from a vegan friend that made me go vegan; seeing footage of calves being taken away from their mothers in the dairy industry and footage of male chicks being ground up alive for the egg industry. I was shocked that I wasn’t aware of this before. I tried becoming vegan over a few months but it was when I made myself watch “Earthlings”, that the balance was well and truly tipped. I despaired at what I had been unwittingly contributing to and spent much of the day in tears. I felt compelled to kneel and pray and beg God to put a stop to this. The only thing that keeps me going sometimes is having faith that Jesus will come back soon and put an end to all this and restore peace once more. I feel that everyone has their own personal journey to veganism as they also do to Christianity and we have to meet people where they are at and not judge. I believe that when we are ready to receive, we will receive and as more and more catastrophes happen more and more people will turn to veganism and to God. My only hope is that we have not left it too late. The message needs delivering more urgently than ever so as many people as possible have the chance to be awakened before it is too late.
Well done for spreading the message
Take care
Rachel (Puffa fish)
Hi Rachel (Puffa Fish),
Welcome to my website and thank you for weighing in. I cannot speak to the religious aspect because I am not religious in the in the way that you are, but I certainly have a great deal of respect for your ability to connect veganism and being Christian.
I became vegan when my vegan daughter began talking to me about the cruelty inherent in all farmed animal agriculture and the rights of other species not to be enslaved for our selfish pleasure. To date, I have not watched Earthlings as I think that it would absolutely shatter me. You are very brave for having been able to do so.
Mother nature will definitely continue giving us warning signs about the folly of our destructive ways and every event will increase in intensity. We do need to wake up soon and I do believe in our ability to do so, given the correct information.
Thank you for all that you do and I look forward to interacting on a regular basis. I love to learn from the perspectives of my fellow vegans and AR activists.
Take care,
Anne