June 2011
1 post
As long as it doesn't hurt them.
As long as it doesn’t hurt them.
Speciesist ad used with CC 2.0 BY license from flickr.com/photos/equality
Apologies I haven’t written for so long. I find I am constantly thinking of things throughout the day that make me want to hop on this blog and drill out a post. Why that doesn’t usually happen, I don’t know.
But here’s something: A few posts ago, I wrote about a vegan bar in Brooklyn...
March 2011
5 posts
On Animal Rights and the Skeptic Movement
Follow Adam on Twitter. I’m a big fan of the skeptic movement. I love listening to shows which debunk claims of paranormal activity and the like. Recently, however, I was suprised to see a lack of discussion about animal rights in skeptic circles. Skeptics ought to be the perfect audience for discussion on the rejection of a traditionally held belief (that it is justified for us to use...
Animals are Sentient
I didn’t know there was any controversy over whether or not animals are sentient. I would guess that most people at least minimally believe animals have some sentience. However, I’ve found myself in two separate animal rights discussions this week alone with opponents who firmly believed animals were fully instinctual, habitual machines.
I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised, when I...
Raising Awareness is no Excuse
The shield of “raising awareness” comes up a lot in my arguments about PETA tactics. I find no matter what criticism I make about animal charities making boldly destructive moves, the fact they are “raising awareness” seems to make it all okay. Here’s an example from a post called “In Defense of PETA” on Associated Content:
Interestingly, she begins:
Let me begin by noting that I am not a...
What if you were forced to do something you didn't...
Have you ever been met with a really difficult question on something in which you strongly believe? Here’s one that I got recently:
So you don’t believe it’s justified that animals are kept as property? I was doing some work in Mexico a couple years back, and let me tell you; without animals, some of these small poor family farms just couldn’t survive. They just...
Restaurant Patrons Outraged over Lion Burgers
An Arizona restaurant recently caused a stir when announcing they would soon unveil a burger made from lion meat. The menu option was just one of a series of “exotic” food choices at Boca Tacos y Tequila including “python, alligator, elk, kangaroo and rattlesnake….frog legs, turtle, duck and Rocky Mountain oysters ”
After a storm of public outrage, the restaurant...
February 2011
19 posts
Veganism becoming more mainstream?
The Chicago Sun Times reports veganism is becoming more mainstream.
I’ve always wondered how journals get that one percent statistic. That is, the statistic that 1% of Americans are vegan. Is it really one percent, or is that rounded up? Also, in what direction is that figure going? If it’s one percent, one point what? The Chicago Sun Times reports this number may be increasing...
Vegan Ad Network Looking for Testers
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According to a post from prlog, vegan bloggers will soon be able to display vegan-targeted ads on their websites. The company, Vegan Mainstream, will be starting a three-month program to test their Vegan Blog Network at the end of this month.
Unfortunately, it appears the ads will be “vegan or vegetarian,” this obviously leads the door wide open to promoting...
Subway's falafel sandwich not necessarily vegan
Subway recently announced they’ve been testing a falafel sandwich version of their popular 6” and footlong subs. The sandwich appears to only be available in the Chicago area and in some of its suburbs.
By default, unfortunately, the sandwich is not vegan due to the addition of a cucumber sauce. This removed, the sandwich has been claimed to be vegan. I have, however, heard...
Leaving Examiner.com →
Adam KochanowiczEffective immediately, I will no longer be writing as the National Vegan Examiner. Instead, I am moving my work and continuing my writing at Vegan.fm/blogOver two years ago, I…
Chipotle to add vegan soup to menu
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You probably already know my thoughts on Chipotle’s supposedly revolutionary stance on animal exploitation. However, if you find yourself eating here among limited vegan-accommodating restaurants, you’ll be happy to know another vegan option may be coming your way.
The company’s menu has been very static since its conception eighteen years ago. Since...
People are going to do it anyway
I was having a conversation with a friend about pet breeding. She didn’t necessarily like the idea of breeding but wasn’t against it either. Although it would be ideal for people to adopt their animals from shelters, she said, there are some people who just won’t buy adopted animals. These people insist on buying purebred animals from breeders.
For this reason, she believed, we...
Three Questions Vegans get All the Time
Having been vegan for about four years now, I like to think I have heard just about every question someone could ask a vegan. I have no problem fielding these repeated questions. I actually like talking about my veganism and I’m sure most other vegans feel the same. One of the most common questions we get is: 1. How do you get your protein? I think this question comes up so often for the...
No, Veganism isn't expensive
I was reading a post on Your Daily Vegan today responding to an article by Joel Stein which asserts that becoming a vegan is the new way to buy a Ferrari, a fur coat, or a diamond necklace. Stein claims,
Steve Wynn, Mort Zuckerman, Russell Simmons, and Bill Clinton are now using tempeh to assert their superiority….It shouldn’t be surprising that so many CEOs are shunning meat,...
Make Veganism your New Years' Resolution
I know your kind. You’re not one of those smart alecks asking me why, if we aren’t supposed to eat animals, they are made of meat. You get it. It doesn’t make sense that we use animals for food, clothing, or entertainment. Yet, you’ve been holding back from actually going vegan until “someday,” a date that has no actual place on your calendar. You have...
Lesser Evils
John stabs five people a day. Bob stabs one person a day. Is Bob less harmful than John? Clearly. By a simple comparison we can accurately say that. Is Bob a compassionate killer? Hell no. He stabs people, what does it matter what John does? Lately, I’ve been thinking about this issue when it comes to this new “be green” fad. The public has itself convinced that by...
There are more important things to worry about
A few days ago, I asked my twitter (@abvegan) friends their thoughts on the saying “There are more important things to worry about” in regards to the initiative to go vegan.
I did get one “they’re right!” response, but most other responses sounded like this:
mshonle
@AbVegan I would say that veganism is something that is easy and worry free.
This response is...
On fake animal products
I’ve had the pleasure of taking a few friends to the grocery store to help them on their first day as being a vegan. They usually get excited to see all the mock products; cheese, beef, sausages, bacon, etc. available to them. Yet, I advise them to steer clear of these products, at least for their first few weeks as a vegan.
I don’t have a moral objection to these products being...
Is there milk in your juice?
Recently, I vented a bit on twitter about Naked and Odwalla’s switch to whey (milk-derived) protein. Unfortunately, in my rage from taking a big gulp of whey protein, I tweeted that ALL Naked and Odwalla products now have dairy protein. Sorry about that. However, there are now very few if any protein drinks from these companies that are vegan.
It turned out a lot of vegans didn’t know about...
Vegan Donuts, Need I say more?
I have always been griping about how hard it is to get vegan donuts. Donuts are known for their puffyness, their sweet, creamy filling and glaze. For some reason, these things are really hard to replicate with common egg replacers and donut ingredients.
For my birthday, I received some vegan donuts from a good friend. Were they anything like the real thing? Yes, in fact they were better....
Yeah, but what do you believe?
I believe if we arrive at a position with so much conviction, we may mistakenly believe we also understand this position well. For many animal advocates, this is an unfortunate outcome of going vegan after watching horrific videos of the animal industry. For instance, after I watched Earthlings for the first time, my course of thinking went something like this: “I see animals suffering....
Hurraw Vegan Lip Balm
Have you ever noticed how hard it is to find vegan lip balm? The vast majority have bee products while the remaining few that don’t have other animal oils like lanolin. I hadn’t noticed this in a long time since I don’t use lip balm in the first place. But recently, I took my girlfriend to Whole Foods pretty certain someone there would have something suitable for vegans. There...
Missing the Point in Advocacy
Lately, I’ve been hearing quite a bit about George Monibot, an individual who once promoted veganism as the best way to go green and has recently denounced his views acknowledging some animal products are more green than vegan farming.
On the same day, I noticed a new feature on Huffington Post where readers can vote on “game changers,” people who are making a difference in...
On animal rights and the skeptic movement →
Follow Adam on Twitter. I’m a big fan of the skeptic movement. I love listening to shows which debunk claims of paranormal activity and the like. Recently, however, I was suprised to see a lack of…
This firefighter wants you to go vegan
Rip Esselstyn is the author of “The Engine 2 Diet” in which he recommends a vegan diet for an optimally healthy lifestyle.
Visiting Rip’s homepage, I did a Ctrl+F to search for the word “vegan” appearing on his page. Alas, only the strict guidelines for veganism itself are recommended in the diet itself. Okay, as a firefighter, we understand you want to give people...
October 2010
5 posts
Yeah, but what DO you believe? →
I believe if we arrive at a position with so much conviction, we may mistakenly believe we also understand this position well. For many animal advocates, this is an unfortunate outcome of…
Coming out of school with a job →
Don't pay extra for that sweater: on diminishing... →
A degree is no career voucher →
Wikipedia
You know you go to a cheap college when you read this
“You will need to be thorough in your research, as you will need to use 3 outside references. These references have to be in addition to your text, powerpoint, and Wikipedia.”
September 2010
6 posts
Hurraw Vegan Lip Balm →
Have you ever noticed how hard it is to find vegan lip balm? The vast majority have bee products while the remaining few that don’t have other animal oils like lanolin. I hadn’t noticed this in…
Missing the point in advocacy →
Lately, I’ve been hearing quite a bit about George Monibot, an individual who once promoted veganism as the best way to go green and has recently denounced his views acknowledging some animal…
The same disease as everyone else →
On PETA and Weekday Vegetarians →
Follow Adam on Twitter
Recently, I heard from a Twitter friend about an article on “weekday vegetarians,” people who choose to eat non-meat diets only one the weekdays supposedly to combat global…
Chipotle's Revolution →
As an animal rights advocate, I just have to share this revolting message Chipotle is stamping on their to-go bags. When you order an entrée to go, the company gives you one of about four or five…
A refresh for vegan information →
A couple years ago, I duct-taped together a site under a pricey domain name, vegan.fm. Since then, I’ve been gradually adding more features aimed at being tremendously useful to anyone wanting to…
August 2010
6 posts
Help people who want to go vegan today →
It’s been a while since I’ve written about @veganhelp, an automated twitter account which finds and retweets twitter users who appear to need help going vegan. After some tweaking and waiting for…
Help people who want to go vegan today →
It’s been a while since I’ve written about @veganhelp, an automated twitter account which finds and retweets twitter users who appear to need help going vegan. After some tweaking and waiting for…
Cyberbullying →
Your First Day as a Vegan →
Going vegan is one of the best things you can do for yourselves and other
sentient beings. You can make this experience even better by learning from
others’ mistakes and getting tips from…
Testing out a forum
Dear friends, as I continuously try to make vegan.fm a place to find great abolitionist resources, I also want to use those resources to encourage the public to go vegan.
I’m currently testing out a forum at this easy-to-remember address: http://vegan.fm/forum
You’ll also find this has been added to the new omnibar appearing at the top of every vegan.fm page.
This forum is mainly...
June 2010
8 posts
Recommended vegan blog reading →
One of PETA’s sexually-charged displays Follow Adam There is an old saying by Issac Newton on his accomplishments, “If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of Giants.” I feel it is…
Four things you need to do to solve a problem →
How to boost your memory in 10 minutes →
Does vegetarianism 'cause' veganism? →
Follow Adam A few days ago, I was invited on Facebook to sign a petition to ask the Obama family to “stop eating meat.” I then proceeded to have a somewhat lengthy discussion in the comments about…
What is 'priming'? →
A few shopping tips for vegans →
Follow Adam Recently, I’ve had to buy some non-food items for myself which required a little research, a little extra money, and fresh ideas for being vegan in a world that is not.
This is just a…
Justification Mechanisms of the Disgruntled... →
What is "abolitionist veganism"? →
Follow AdamQ: What is “abolitionist” veganism? A: Abolitionism is distinguished mainly from welfarism which regulates the use of animals without necessarily taking a position against it….