WATER FOR CONDEMNED PIGS

In the United States, the laws on transporting animals to slaughter are extremely lax.  The government suggests that transporters ideally keep trips under 8 hours, but at the very least give the animals a break from the truck once every 24 hours.  Animals are often deprived of food and water for hours or days because it will be wasted on a body that is about to be killed. Many drivers simply don't care or can't be bothered to let the animals out for a break. On the long transit to their death, these "food" animals are exposed to all elements, be it searing hot or so cold that the animals begin to freeze to each other and to the truck.  The journey is so brutal, an estimated 1 million pigs die in transit each year.

In this moment, these victims on route to the slaughterhouse are probably receiving the only bit of compassion they will ever know from humans, their last (maybe only) glimpse of sunlight, and certainly their only taste of watermelon. The ones trapped in the middle of the countless overheated, filthy bodies receive nothing. 

As this image circulates across Facebook and advocacy networks, the response from viewers speaks to the power of emotion in narratives and photography.  Photographer Anita Krajnc writes:  "[ . . . ] if you haven't yet made the connection between the pleasure of your bacon and the misery of these animals' lives and death, may this image cause a change of heart."

Breaching the false divide between human and nonhuman/consumer and product, these women don't just ease the suffering of these pigs, they restore their personhood.  No longer faceless, nameless commodities, the pigs become individuals.  This image asks us to reconsider our relationship with so-called "food" animals.  Commodities or neighbors?  Friends or food?  Things or persons?  Rights-bearers or property?

GREAT QUOTES : GEORGE T ANGELL

I am sometimes asked: ‘Why do you spend so much of your time and money talking about kindness to animals when there is so much cruelty to men?’ I answer: ‘I am working at the roots.’

DR MELANIE JOY

Melanie Joy is the founder and president of CANN. DR Joy is a Harvard-educated psychologist, professor of psychology and sociology at the university of Massachusetts, Boston. She is a celebrated speaker and the author of the award winning primer on carnism, 'why we love dogs, eat pigs and wear cows'.  

She has written a number of articles on psychology, animal protection, and social justice and she has featured on many TV programs. Dr Joy is also the author is the internationally known 'Strategic action for animals.'

WEIGHT LOSS SECRETS : HYDRATION

It all begins with water ....

Water makes up 75% of the human body, so to say it is vital to health could be nothing short of an understatement. Drinking water is a necessity for maintaining health, but it helps those of us who are trying to lose weight or decrease fat in ways you may not have considered.

When we are shedding fat, that fat is burned up by the body. However, some chemicals that are stored in the fat then enter the blood stream and can cause flu like symptoms. Drinking water can help flush those chemicals out of the bloodstream and in turn, help us feel more energetic.

Many diseases are caused by the simple fact that the body is dehydrated, and while we are dehydrated and in a compromised position it can be almost impossible to lose weight and feel good.

Take the simple step of drinking enough water and you will notice the difference straight away. Sometimes when people reach for food in the form of snacks and junk food, they are really dehydrated, and drinking some water would be a much better remedy for their health. You should always drink enough water so that your urine is clear.

GREAT QUOTES : ALICIA SILVERSTONE

'Nothing’s changed my life more. I feel better about myself as a person, being conscious and responsible for my actions and I lost weight and my skin cleared up and I got bright eyes and I just became stronger and healthier and happier. Can’t think of anything better in the world to be but be vegan.'

GOD'S HERBS : ALOE VERA

• Halts the growth of cancer tumors.
• Lowers high cholesterol.
• Repairs "sludge blood" and reverses "sticky blood".
• Boosts the oxygenation of your blood.
• Eases inflammation and soothes arthritis pain.
• Protects the body from oxidative stress.
• Prevents kidney stones and protects the body from oxalates in coffee and tea.
• Alkalizes the body, helping to balance overly acidic dietary habits.
• Cures ulcers, IBS, Crohn's disease and other digestive disorders.
• Reduces high blood pressure natural, by treating the cause, not just the symptoms.
• Nourishes the body with minerals, vitamins, enzymes and glyconutrients.
• Accelerates healing from physical burns and radiation burns.
• Replaces dozens of first aid products, makes bandages and antibacterial sprays obsolete.
• Halts colon cancer, heals the intestines and lubricates the digestive tract.
• Ends constipation.
• Stabilizes blood sugar and reduces triglycerides in diabetics.
• Prevents and treats candida infections.
• Protects the kidneys from disease.
• Functions as nature's own "sports drink" for electrolyte balance, making common sports drinks obsolete.
• Boosts cardiovascular performance and physical endurance.
• Speeds recovery from injury or physical exertion.
• Hydrates the skin, accelerates skin repair.

DR STEVEN BEST

Award-winning writer, noted speaker, public intellectual, and seasoned activist with 30 years work in diverse social movements, Steven Best engages the issues of the day such as animal rights, species extinction, ecological crisis, biotechnology, liberation politics, terrorism, mass media and culture, globalization, and capitalist domination.

He is Associate Professor of Humanities and Philosophy at the University of Texas, El Paso. Best has published 13 books and over 200 articles and reviews (translated into numerous languages), spoken in nearly two dozen countries, interviewed with media throughout the world, appeared in numerous documentaries, and in 2007 was voted byVegNews as one of the nations “25 Most Fascinating Vegetarians.” 

He has come under fire for his uncompromising advocacy of “total liberation” (integrating struggles to emancipate humans, animals, and the earth into a comprehensive movement for systemic change), and in 2005 Best was banned from the UK for life for the power of his writings and talks.

From Romania to Russia, from Poland to Paris, and from Slovenia to South Africa, Best inspires and agitates at a global level and shows what philosophy means in a world in crisis.