Why go Vegan? Animal Cruelty, Health and the Environment

Four months ago I became a vegan. I thought eating animal products was perfectly fine, I just gave them up in order to start eating a plant based whole foods diet. My motivation was simply to clear my skin and improve my energy and clarity of mind for school.

Since then, I have learned so much about the poison Americans are being fed through the food system in general. There are so many things that are not spoken about. For the purpose of writing this post I will focus on meat, eggs and dairy products alone.

My mind about the consumption of meat started to change when I learned of the cruel, brutal, torturous conditions in the meat factories (they are not farms like they advertise in all the commercials and food packages - these are NOT happy cows). The fact that shook me up was learning that in many factories they use a tazer that is supposed to kill the cow before being processed, but only 30% of the cows are actually killed. The rest have been caught on the security tapes being skinned alive and kicking desperately for their lives while having their legs chopped off.

Treatment of dairy cows, chickens, pigs and the likes is not any better. These are truly torture chambers.

For anyone who has ever loved an animal, who has ever had a pet, it's heart breaking to think the question, "why is it okay to do this to these animals and not this one that I love?"

Scientists have known for years that meat, eggs and dairy products, contrary to what is advertised everywhere, are not good for our health and actually cause many sicknesses. Some of them being obesity, cancer and heart disease. Part of this is a result of the pharmaceuticals and hormones that the animals consume, and we consume when we eat the animal products. Scientists have showed that it is not the drugs alone that are making us sick. The animal products themselves are not good for us. The meat protein harms our bodies.

To hear two prominent scientists clearly show the relationship between animal product consumption and disease, I would highly recommend watching the movie "Forks Over Knives".

To find movie times near you click the link below:

"Forks Over Knives" Showtimes

Not only are animal products detrimental to the health of our bodies, but also to the health of our planet. One-third of the worlds land mass has been bulldozed for pastures and factory farming. This has had a terrible impact on global warming. Not only are all of those tree's missing that are not absorbing CO2, the cattle are emitting toxins into the air; from the eight million of tons of CO2 they exhale into the atmosphere to the the nitrous oxide and methane gas emitted from their manure and the animals themselves.

Meat and dairy farming is destroying our planet, while it is known that organic plant based farming uses far less energy and feeds many more people. If just a portion of the grain that goes to feeding the cattle was given to people, world hunger would no longer exist.

Below is a link to Lisa Bloom, a prominent attorney and life long vegetarian, speaking about the brutal treatment of animals in the meat factories and the impact of these factories on our planet.

Lisa Bloom: How to be Vegan in a Dumbed Down World (8 mins)

My mind has been totally changed when it comes to the consumption of animal products, and it has been changed on so many levels. The cruel treatment of the animals, the diseases that come hand in hand with meat consumption, and the destroying of this planet.

When I first started on this path of being vegan I had no idea that the consumption of meat had such a wide range of negative side effects.

Though it is shocking to start learning about, it is actually good news. It is good news because these things are happening whether we know about it or not. Once we know what is going on, and the terrible impact of the meat, egg and dairy industry, we can spread the information and take steps towards change

Every time we shop, every time we sit down for a meal, we are voting for what things will be sold in the stores, we are voting for what industries will thrive. It is in our hands to make changes: to vote for a healthy organic plant based way of eating that only benefits everyone from the producers to the consumers rather than an animal based way of eating that tortures innocent beings and harms the consumer.

For those who are not moved by learning the information above, they might be interested for the same reason I originally was. Over the past four months my skin has become increasingly clear, and my energy level and clarity of mind have increased ten fold. Those two things alone would have been motivation enough for me to continue living a vegan lifestyle.

God Bless you and yours

"Forks Over Knives" -movie review

I just watched this excellently made documentary on the correlation between health and what we eat. Specifically how eating a meat based diet is bad for our health and makes us sick; while a plant based whole foods diet not only stops us from getting more sick, but can reverse illnesses.

It is impossible to put all of the valuable information from the film into one short review. There is so much to learn, I want to watch it again with a pen and paper to take notes.

At the heart of the film are two doctors who didn't even know each other when they started their research decades ago, but have met up and work closely for the same purpose; that of spreading the information that eating a plant based diet is the key to health and vitality.

One doctor, who started research from a clinical point of view, became interested in this while performing one surgery after another. Doing bypass heart surgery, removing cancerous tumors, but never being able to help anyone other than that person under the knife. Even then, he realized that many of these people became sick again. After extensive research, going against everything he had learned and believed, he started to learn that he was just treating the symptom not the cause; that the cause was in the meat, dairy and eggs these people were eating.

The other doctor came at this same topic from a different viewpoint. He studied population, diet and disease statistics around the world, and repeatedly came to the same conclusion that societies that consume a large amount of meat, dairy and egg products also have high statistics for disease (including cancer and heart disease) while populations that consume plant base foods have a more healthy and vital society.

They talk about the myths that have been perpetuated in our society, that meat is necessary for us to have enough protein, and that calcium is good for our bones. Instead they talk about the fact that both of these things are actually detrimental to our health.

It is so interesting to see the research that shows how simple of a solution there is to heal so many ailments that are plaguing the people of the world. They even touch upon how a plant based diet is not only better for health, but is better for the environment and could be the solution to solving world hunger. Something as simple as changing to a plant based whole foods diet.

Some people think that is extreme. One of the doctors said that heart bypass surgery is a very common procedure to be performed in this country. That ripping open someone's chest, cutting open their leg, taking an artery from their leg and attaching it to their heart, well, this seems a bit extreme.

The solution is so simple,

That we eat to live, rather than live to eat.

For more information on the movie, and showtimes near you, please click the link below

www.ForksOverKnives.com

I would recommend bringing a pen and paper, just in case you want to take notes.

~peace to you~

GMO's - what are we eating?

What is GMO? GMO literally translates to Genetically Modified Organism. Scientists are able to isolate specific genes, then they can insert those genes into organisms, especially food crops, to produce "desirable" traits. Some of these desirable traits are that they can make the crops resistant to pests, weeds, and add nutrients to them. All great in theory.

One of the abilities they have is to put vaccines into these seeds, and thus vaccinate consumers through their food. The article I found this information in is posted below. The author endorses this as if it is a good thing. This ability to manipulate food concerns me because if they have the ability to put pharmaceuticals in the genes of a plant, how do I know I am not consuming them?

I found this article helpful for gathering basic information, but definitely maintain my own point of view on the matter:

Genetically Modified Foods: Harmful of Helpful?

I watched a documentary "Scientists Under Attack" (a documentary on well respected scientists who lost it all when they did not endorse GMO food), in part of the documentary an independent researcher from another country tested the effects of GMO potato on rats. All the rats he tested on developed cancer. He said he would not eat these foods and would not recommend that anyone else eat these foods. Big company shut him down and stopped him from giving this as his official results.

Effects of Feeding GMO potato to rats (about 5 mins)
"remember all these studies are done before you can do any experiments with humans. Now in this thing of course the whole thing has been changed around because you are being used as the guinea pig, they are doing the experiments on you. What is even more is that you do not know whether they are doing it or not..."

Scientist Under Attack

Growing and eating truly organic food is becoming increasingly impossible. Monsanto, the company that owns GMO seed, has made it nearly impossible for organic farming to continue to exist. They have passed laws so only GMO seeds can be purchased and used; Even farmers who do manage to have organic seeds, their crops are being contaminated via pollination from neighboring GMO farms. The organic farmers are fighting back and have filed a law suit against the big company. To read on the case open the link below:

Organic Farmers v. Monsanto

This is a lot of information to pack into one post. And all of the information that is here is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the matter of GMO's.

So, what do we do with this knowledge?

One step is to avoid commonly genetically modified foods,
Some major genetically modified foods to look out for are:
-corn
-soy
-milk
-canola oil
-salmon
-meat (animals are fed GMO corn, we eat the animals, we eat GMOs)

I know that I am just beginning to learn about what is happening with GMO foods, and how it has penetrated the United States food system with little to no acknowledgement. Just beginning to learn about all of the negative effects of these foods on both our health and environment. I do know that it is time to take action to change this. As I learn more myself I will be sharing.

This is exactly why freedom of speech was made as the first amendment. To protect people's abilities to speak about and uncover the truth, and to decide for ourselves whether or not we want to participate in this large scale science experiment.

Run From the Cure

This might sound shocking, but the pharmaceutical companies do not want to find a cure for cancer. Cancer is big business, and there is a LOT of money to be made.

Over the past few years I have watched several documentaries and read several articles that all attest to this.

Below is a great documentary I watched last night titled "Run From the Cure." It is about a man in Canada who discovered that hemp oil cures cancer, and the Canadian government quickly shut him down.

Run From the Cure

So many people are making money off of sickness; for cancer specifically there is a long list from the pharmaceutical companies themselves who make the drugs, the hospitals, the doctors, each "walk for a cure" that takes place lines the pockets of the pharmaceutical companies, the people who make wigs for the balding patients, etc.

The startling thing of it all is that in many cases the drugs make the patient more sick and die quicker than they would have had they had no treatment at all.

Now, I am not saying all doctors and hospital workers don't want their patients to get better. I believe many of them have the best intentions in mind. But the pharmaceutical companies who fund their medical schools and textbooks have them brainwashed to believe only their way is correct, and everything else is witchcraft.

This discovery of hemp oil's healing abilities is not the only means to cure cancer. There have been people who have been cured through diet (one of them I have read about is macrobiotics), there are people who have used homeopathy, there are psychic healers who are able to make people well, and more.

Now, many people don't want to hear that the pharmaceutical companies don't have their best interest in mind. Quite frankly, it is a scary thing to hear at first.

But if somebody has ears to hear, this is actually good and great news. There ARE WAYS TO BE CURED! We do not have to blindly follow the dictates of a few wealthy people. We have the resources we need. It is very empowering.

When I was little girl, about 8 years old, my grandmother died of cancer. She tried everything the doctor said, would get a little better, then her cancer would come back. Towards the end it was a very sad thing to behold, how deteriorated this beautiful light filled woman had become.

I can't help but wonder, if she was still alive and was diagnosed now (now that I am a young woman and have some knowledge of these things) would she be alive and thriving ten years from now? I have a very strong suspicion that she would be.

God bless you and yours

TSA- losing our Fourth Amendment Right in the name of "National Security"

The most bizarre thing is taking place in the airports of this country. It has been developing for years now. When a person travels they are given one of two choices:

1. Allow a total stranger to see a picture of you naked. Also, expose yourself to dangerous radiation.

2. Be sexually assaulted. A complete stranger will fondle your genitels.

This is a clear violation of our Fourth Amendment Right, which protects against unreasonable search and seizure.


The most interesting thing is that this is all done in the name of "National Security."
Our personal freedom is being handed over to keep us "safe"

Below is a link to Miss USA Susie Castillo. This a video of her moments after being sexually assaulted by the TSA. You can see she is really shaken by the whole thing. Having her body and rights violated. She is just one example of many. Fortunately, she is famous and can get the word out.

Miss USA Susie Castillo Sexually Assaulted TSA

A great, and horrifying, point in this clip is when the lady who works at the airport tells her,
"well honey, I'd rather get a pat down and go through the scanner than be blown up"

Its shocking how quickly people are willing to give over their freedom. We get scared into giving up our liberties.

I heard on politics radio that these workers who look at the naked body scanner images are the equivalent of having the garbage man looking at the naked pictures. Not only are adults subject to this, there are reports of workers fondling young children.

Susie Castillo is gathering TSA stories, and signing a petition to Congress. She is working to get TSA techniques changed, and restore people's right under the fourth amendment

Below is a link to sign the petition to Congress :

Susie's Petition to Congress

When we are passive our rights get slowly take away from us.

The United States of America was made to be "the land of the free and the home of the brave"

Maybe this is because a person has to be brave and make a stand in order to live in a land that is truly free.

God Bless You.

A Republic for the people, by the people

To begin, this country, the United States of America, was intended to be a country for the people by the people. Looking at the government, even through main stream media, it can be seen that we are clear off the mark. Many many people are losing jobs, losing their homes, going hungry, the public school system is deteriorating more and more. Meanwhile, trillions of dollars (trillions of dollars that is driving us deeper into debt) is being put into wars. Not just one, three. Instead of investing that money into making this country strong, it is being invested into murdering people in a far away place.

We are following the pattern of the Romans in more way than one. We all know how the Romans ended up, well, they aren't around anymore. They started out as a Republic where they functioned under the law and the people in their country were able to thrive. Slowly it deteriorated to a Democracy where people were forced to hand over their power and rights under the name of "freedom," and then came the oligarchy with the Caesars (you could say that it was a monarchy, but really, it was a small group of the elite running things not just one man).

As they slowly deteriorated they also started focusing on conquering other lands. Instead of maintaining quality of life at home, they went to fight people in far away places. While energy was invested in this life on the home front deteriorated. (sound a little familiar?)

Many Americans don't realize that this country was never meant to be a Democracy. It was intended to be a Republic where "the law" (as republic means) set a standard for everyone. In a Democracy mass opinion can be swayed and manipulated.

When Benjamin Franklin was leaving the constitutional convention a woman asked him, "what did you give us?" and he responded, "a Republic ma'am, if you can keep it."

There is a fascinating video on this I have watched over and over. I recommend anyone who is interested in this to take a look. It is not too long, just ten minutes, it is right here:

Republic vs. Democracy

It is our job, our duty, to keep the Republic and the foundation of a free nation that the Founding Fathers intended for us. To bring us back to being a nation that is both for the people and by the people.